Kill Your X Chapter 103

Woof!

A tiny creature greeted me. It looked like a sugar-coated injeolmi with three black beans poked into it. What had kept the employees from leaving work was none other than a puppy.

Despite the appearance of a stranger, the puppy wagged its adorable tail vigorously in joy. It even went a step further, placing its paws on my pants and jumping up and down. It wasn’t that I particularly disliked dogs, but I had never owned a pet in my life, so I was flustered.

“It wants you to hold it.”

Hearing the employee’s tip, I impulsively held the puppy in my arms. As I lifted it, the puppy was so small and light that I wondered if I was doing it right. Its thin, soft fur tickled my forearm.

“Is this Jiwoon’s dog?”

At my question, the employee shook their head from side to side.

“No. I found it when I came out to feed the cats before leaving work. It seemed hungry, so I quickly bought a can of food from the convenience store and fed it, but it hasn’t thought of leaving since. What should we do, Sir?”

As if to belie its earlier whining to be held, the puppy became quiet as soon as it was in someone’s arms. This was despite my posture, which was utterly clumsy as I held it.

“Seeing how well it takes to strangers on first meeting, it seems to have an owner… Should we put up a flyer or something?”

“We’ll post something online, but I’m worried because the puppy has nowhere to stay right now. Both Hye-young’s place and mine forbid pets. But it’s too young to send to a temporary shelter….”

The story was that although it was well past closing time, they couldn’t bring themselves to leave because they felt for this little puppy.

“Um…”

“Sir. So, what I’m saying is.”

Two employees looked at me with pleading eyes. I felt like I had already heard their words before they were even spoken.

Whimper….

With perfect timing, the puppy shifted its position in my arms. When our eyes met, its slightly sad-looking eyes drooped even more. Although there was no physical resemblance whatsoever, for some strange reason, in that moment, the puppy and Seo Seunghan overlapped in my mind. I wondered if he, too, had a time when he was this small and fragile, back in his hellish past.

“Having lost its owner’s hand, how lonely and confused the puppy must be right now.”

The employee’s words tipped the scales in my heart. Although this was a new and bewildering experience for me, I was bewitched by the puppy’s warmth and spoke without thinking.

“Could you two please post a notice about finding the owner for me? I’ll take care of the puppy for now until the owner shows up.”

The relieved employees finally started to prepare to go home. Soon, only the small puppy and I were left in the empty cafe. Unfazed by the unfamiliar place, the puppy fell fast asleep on the sofa. Watching its chubby belly rise and fall rhythmically, the reality of my impulsive act sank in.

‘I don’t know how long it’s been on the street, so for now…’

I rummaged through the office and found a bag large enough for the puppy to fit inside. I carefully moved the groggy, sleep-drunk puppy inside and searched for a nearby animal hospital. Fortunately, there was a 24-hour hospital not too far away.

Just as I was about to leave the cafe, Seo Seunghan called.

“Oh, Seunghan.”

—You haven’t left work yet?

He knew this because of the location tracking app installed on my phone. Of course, the same program was installed on his device.

“Something came up unexpectedly. Have you had dinner? I think I’ll be home in about an hour or two.”

—Not yet. But are you stopping by somewhere?

“I’ll explain when I get home. Don’t wait for me, you go ahead and eat.”

The puppy inside the bag started to whimper, so I hurriedly ended the call.

✽✽✽

When I told them I had found it on the street, the hospital took the puppy and conducted various examinations on their own. I sat in the waiting room, lost in various thoughts.

Does it usually take this long for an examination at an animal hospital? Is it because the little one is too small? But what if they find something like a serious illness?

Just as my worries reached their peak, an employee called my name.

“Guardian of Seunghan. Please come into the examination room.”

For a moment, I clenched my jaw and held back a laugh. Like Jekyll and Hyde, I had been wearing a dead-serious face, but I almost burst out laughing.

“Cough, yes.”

It was definitely not my intention to mess with him. They said a name was needed for the examination, so I just gave the first name that came to mind.

When I saw ‘Seunghan’ again, it had an expression of ultimate injustice. In contrast, the veterinarian’s complexion was bright.

“Guardian. We have Seunghan’s test results, and thankfully, he’s very healthy. He doesn’t have any common skin diseases or ear mites. We surmise that Seunghan hasn’t been on the streets for very long.”

The veterinarian also explained that the blood test results showed it had received some vaccinations. This made it clear that the puppy wasn’t born a stray but had an owner.

“In your opinion, sir… I mean, how many months old do you think Seunghan is? And do you happen to know the exact breed?”

The veterinarian examined the puppy meticulously. When he lifted its front paws and touched its pads one by one, the puppy shot glares in every direction as if to say, ‘I trusted you, how could you do this to me?’

“At this size, he seems to be about three months old, and in my opinion, he looks like a Jindo mix.”

“What’s a Jindo mix?”

“It literally means a mix between a Jindo dog and another breed. Visually, a Spitz or a Samoyed seems likely, but if you’re curious, would you like us to do an additional DNA test?”

Since it was late at night, I postponed the test for another time and left the examination room. I bought snacks for the deeply sulking puppy and purchased immediately necessary supplies like potty pads. The colorful toys caught my eye, but I kept the supplies to a minimum, thinking the original owner would show up soon.

On my way home, I was filled with worry. Although Seo Seunghan was a yes-man when it came to me, given his personality, I didn’t think he would be very pleased about suddenly having to temporarily care for a puppy.

He himself was also of the canine kind(?), but being the same species didn’t mean they would all get along well. Just looking at the stray cats living near the book cafe, they were friendly to humans but would be on high alert, ready to kill, when it came to other cats.

With a strangely buoyant heart, I reached home.

“Seunghan. I’m home.”

The real Seunghan that I was raising walked out from the kitchen. A delicious smell wafted over.

“What did you order? Chicken?”

“Yes. I thought you hadn’t eaten yet, Sunbae. But what is that?”

He bent down to look inside the special carrier I had hastily bought at the hospital. Then he stared at me, and the aura was not good. My mouth went dry at his gloomy mumble.

“The location showed an animal hospital, so I had a feeling.”

The atmosphere turned much more grim than I had expected, and I hurriedly tried to make excuses.

“Seunghan. Here’s what happened.”

“Come in first. You have to eat.”

“Wait a minute.”

I couldn’t keep the puppy in the carrier, so I took it out. It looked much more drained than when I first saw it, perhaps tired from the examination at the hospital. It didn’t try to be held by Seo Seunghan like it did with me a few hours ago.

After setting up a makeshift puppy bathroom, bed, food bowl, and water bowl in an empty room, I went to the kitchen. Seo Seunghan was leaning against the refrigerator with his arms crossed, following me with his eyes.

As I had guessed from the smell, chicken was waiting for me at the table. To suit my taste, one was original fried, and the other was spicy seasoned. My mouth watered as I had been on an empty stomach since eating the sandwich for breakfast and lunch.

“It’s still warm. You must have ordered it not long ago.”

“I ordered it when you were leaving the animal hospital, Sunbae.”

He said as he belatedly pulled up a chair and sat across from me. I pretended not to notice his gaze demanding an explanation and filled my stomach first. While I ate, he poked a piece of chicken with a fork and tore it into small pieces. For some reason, a chill ran down my spine.

After eating a reasonable amount, I began to speak. After hearing the long, winding story, Seo Seunghan maintained an unreadable expression. Because of that, I couldn’t even bring myself to say that I couldn’t ignore the puppy because it reminded me of him.

“I’m really sorry for bringing it home without getting your permission first. But I couldn’t help it. If I didn’t take it, the puppy had nowhere to stay.”

“You could have sent it to a shelter.”

“The hospital said the puppy is only about three months old. Do you think a baby like that could survive in such a harsh environment?”

“By that logic, are you going to bring home every creature that has nowhere to go? I didn’t know you were such a compassionate person, Sunbae.”

Contrary to his sulky voice, his actions were gentle. He opened a new pack of pickled radish for me and pushed it forward.

I glanced at him for a moment before cautiously asking.