Work Text:
Cats are notorious for being difficult, Donghyuck learns this the hard way.
Lucky for him, they’re pretty settled in their routine. Donghyuck works as an illustrator, which means he gets to sleep in, schedule his own hours and work from home. The freedom lets him balance his attention between projects and Johnny pretty evenly; by now they have their own routine—Johnny wakes Donghyuck up, they eat breakfast together, shower (sometimes also together), then Johnny does his little yoga flows, stretches, naps on the couch by Donghyuck’s desk, texts his friends, updates his instagram and finally stares into the wall all while Donghyuck works hunched over his drawing tablet. They have lunch together too, right before the afternoon sun starts shining through their living room window, and Johnny settles in their window sill seat to laze in the warm rays.
He’s a little distracting like that, and Donghyuck finds his afternoon work periods a lot less productive. There really isn’t much he can do about it when the sun hits the fur on Johnny’s ears so tenderly, cascading soft shadows under the pretty curve of his pouty lips. Johnny’s tail sways along with the soft music playing in the background, the very picture of peacefulness. Donghyuck has to force himself to look down at his work.
Cats are notorious for being difficult, Donghyuck learns it when he gets a chance to work on a last-minute project for a very important client, something that would look stellar in his portfolio and guarantee recommendations for months. As it always is with important projects, there’s too much to do and too little time, so Donghyuck’s priorities shift. It’s only two weeks of extra hours and back pain, the effort will be worth it.
But Donghyuck isn't the only one whose schedule changes. Johnny’s a creature of habit, he’s used to Donghyuck’s attention, used to their little breaks and routines, the most enjoyable parts of his day. Suddenly, he’s on his own. Donghyuck is present at breakfast, but after they eat the only thing Donghyuck sees is his computer, he even takes his lunch at his stupid work desk and stays there way past Johnny’s bedtime. He doesn’t even watch Johnny, not like he used to. Johnny’s confused at first, then upset at Donghyuck, then cold, then attentive, but none of it seems to bother his owner even a little. He has a heart to heart with Ten, who’s been with Jaehyun for way longer than Johnny’s even known Donghyuck. Ten is direct and sarcastic, but he’s a good listener and urges Johnny to take matters into his own hands. Over the phone, they come up with a plan on how to get Donghyuck’s attention which they both agree is foolproof.
🐱💖✨
It starts out with the bell collar.
It was something Johnny got as a surprise back when they first started… experimenting. Since then Johnny’s accessories collection has expanded quite a bit with both gifts from Donghyuck and his own purchases, but this one has always been his favourite. It’s simple – baby pink leather that fits rather snugly around his neck (Johnny’s a big cat, he has to be careful with the sizing) and has a pretty gold bell attached to the front, right below Johnny’s adam’s apple. It jingles with each move he makes or each time Donghyuck snaps his–you get the idea. Johnny thinks it’s cute and sentimental, and just what he needs to get Donghyuck’s attention.
He goes back in the living room and unsurprisingly finds Donghyuck at the same spot he left him–frowning at his computer screen. Johnny stops for a moment, playing with the sweater paw of his oversized hoodie, wondering if Donghyuck will look up (he doesn’t).
That's fine. He pads to the kitchen for a sip of water, walks from one corner of the room to the other, stalks to the window and watches the birds for a moment. The bell jingles with every step he takes. Donghyuck still doesn’t acknowledge him. Johnny frowns, going back to claim his favourite spot on the couch–the one that’s right next to Hyuck’s desk.
“Babe, can you stay still?” Donghyuck calls out, voice distracted as he chews on his apple pen, brows still furrowed at the screen. “I can’t focus.”
Well there goes plan A.
🐱💖✨
Plan B is a bit more aggressive. Ten said it’s mostly used by political activists locked up in prison cells, but Johnny thinks he could give it a try. Two whole days have passed since the collar plan failed and he’s getting inpatient. He starts at breakfast.
“Why aren’t you eating?” Donghyuck asks when he looks up from shoveling cereal his throat.
Johnny’s sitting opposite of him on their small kitchen island, chin in hand.
“I’m not hungry.”
Donghyuck seems to consider this for a moment, then sits up. “Are you feeling alright?”
“Yeah.”
“Are you sure?” Donghyuck sounds concerned and reaches up to press his hand against Johnny’s forehead. Johnny has to stop himself from purring. “You don’t feel warm.”
“No, I’m very cold,” Johnny says the first thing in his mind that could keep Donghyuck's attention on him.
“You should maybe put pants on,” Donghyuck points out and Johnny looks down at his bare legs and little shorts, frowning. “Do you want some tea?”
“No,” he replies, stomping away to their bedroom to change into the ugliest pair of sweatpants he can find.
🐱💖✨
Donghyuck has lunch at his computer again, so he doesn’t even notice Johnny’s hunger strike. It’s only at six when Johnny’s empty stomach growls and catches Donghyuck’s attention. He turns his chair towards Johnny, who’s once again curled up on the couch.
“Honey, did you eat?” he asks and reaches out to brush a strand of hair away from Johnny’s forehead. Johnny shakes his head, nuzzling his face into Donghyuck’s palm. “Have you not eaten anything today?”
“No.”
“Are you sick? Should we go to the doctor?”
Fuck. Johnny’s eyes fly open.
“I’m fine! Just not hungry. It’s not like I do anything that needs energy.”
Donghyuck considers it for a moment. He hasn’t noticed Johnny being less active lately, but then again, he hasn’t really paid attention, instead being laser focused on his work.
“Do you want to go out?” Johnny’s ears perk up. Donghyuck’s fingers are now stroking his cheek and he can’t believe things are looking up for him finally. “You can call Ten and see what he’s up to.”
Ah, of course. “He’s busy.” Johnny deflates and paws Donghyuck’s hand away, settling down in his spot.
Sighing, Donghyuck leans back in his chair, ready to turn back to work. “Do you want some take out?”
“No. I’ll go to sleep early today.”
And that’s that.
🐱💖✨
Johnny does go to sleep early out of sheer boredom. Donghyuck joins him sometime after midnight, waking Johnny up in the process. It’s then when he realises how empty his stomach feels. He tries going back to sleep, hoping Donghyuck’s arms and soft breath will be enough to lull him back to sleep, but all he can think about is how hungry he is. How do people do this? It’s four am when he slips out of bed to raid their fridge.
🐱💖✨
So plan B fails as well. In hindsight, it was stupid anyway, Donghyuck would probably take Johnny to the doctor a day or two in, and Johnny hates the doctors, now matter how many ear scratches he gets in the waiting room.
Plan C is his last idea. It has to work, there’s no other way around it.
Johnny waits for the afternoon because that’s when Donghyuck is more likely to let himself be distracted. He’s a little nervous just because Hyuck hasn’t been giving him much attention lately, and Johnny could make a fool out of himself, but he’s also desperate enough to follow through with it.
It’s the first steps that feel the silliest–Johnny spreads out on the bed, takes his phone and opens Safari in private mode. He hasn’t done this in such a long time that he almost wishes his heat would hit now, providing an easy solution to literally all of Johnny's problems. Even Pornhub seems intimidating, he has to make sure he picks something good and not embarrassing in case Donghyuck wants to see what he's looking at, but he gets too impatient and just clicks on a random thumbnail.
It’s not difficult to get hard and needy. They haven’t had sex since Hyuck started working this project, apart from the one blowjob Johnny gave him that lulled Donghyuck straight to sleep. Not his proudest moment—Johnny makes a mental note that it’s something he needs to redo.
The couple on his screen start getting into it, and so does Johnny. He slips out of his shorts, grabs the lube and slowly starts rutting against the mattress. The porn’s almost useless—Johnny finds himself thinking about Donghyuck anyway, can almost imagine his weight between his legs as he kisses Johnny’s thighs and fingers him open, always whispering praises against his skin, reverent in his touches that make Johnny fall apart with ease.
It’s when he slides his third finger in that he knows it’s time to act. He hasn’t really been quiet, but he’s also not as good as drawing the sounds out of him as Donghyuck is. Still, he brings the volume on his phone close to the maximum, waiting for Donghyuck to get his carefully crafted hint.
Luckily, he doesn’t have to wait long. The door flies open with a thud. Johnny bites down on a smile. He’s turned away from the door so he doesn’t see Donghyuck, but his hands should be on him any moment now.
“Can you turn the volume down?”
This isn’t what he imagined Hyuck would say, but he guesses he’ll just go along with it. Johnny turns his head to the door, cheek squished against the pillow. Donghyuck’s standing there with his hands crossed. Does he want to play today?
“‘m sorry,” Johnny mumbles, breathless. “I’m just so horny.”
“No, you’re just selfish.”
Johnny freezes. “What?”
“I’m trying to finish this stupid project so I can finally submit it and spend some time with you, but you keep interrupting and not letting me work. I have deadlines, you know. And they pay for this apartment.” Johnny watches with wide eyes as Donghyuck scolds him, not a hint of warmth in his gaze. He does look tired, a bit grey where the bags underneath his eyes sink in deeper than Johnny’s ever seen them. “Do you think this is fun for me?”
Johnny stays quiet for a moment before he realises Donghyuck is waiting for an answer. “No?”
“No. But you’re just thinking about yourself as usual.”
Then he’s out of the door, slamming it shut behind him.
🐱💖✨
Johnny doesn’t leave the bed for the rest of the day. He’s hungry again and he’s missing the afternoon sun, but starving himself seems a lot more possible in these conditions. Somehow, he’s both upset and embarrassed for acting this way. It’s not his fault Donghyuck has been ignoring him for work, but—he’s a pet hybrid, they come with responsibilities which Donghyuck has been neglecting. Maybe he shouldn’t get pets if he can’t be reliable.
He reels that thought back in as soon as it popped up in his mind. There might be plenty of good pet owners, but he’s convinced nobody would make him as happy as Donghyuck. He scoffs. The asshole. You can’t tame a hybrid and then neglect him, didn’t everyone learn that from the Little Prince?
Still, he also understands where Donghyuck is coming from. Johnny should be more supportive. Come to think about it, Hyuckie hasn’t had any time for himself in weeks, and this project must be important if he’s putting everything above it. Even Johnny.
Donghyuck gets in bed at two am. He scoots closer but Johnny rolls away. He knows he’s misbehaving and overreacting, but he also doesn’t forgive easily. He hears Donghyuck sigh, but he falls asleep easily enough. Bastard.
🐱💖✨
When Johnny wakes up, the bed next to him is empty. He hates waking up with a frown, mornings are supposed to be their special time just for each other. Did Johnny ruin this too?
He barely manages to curl up into a little ball of sadness when Donghyuck comes through the door, carrying a tray in his hands.
“Morning, Johnny,” Donghyuck tries to smile at him, but he looks a bit apprehensive too. Johnny just meows back at him quietly, embarrassed now that they’re in the same position as yesterday.
Donghyuck puts the tray on the bedside table and sits on their bed, tugging the covers a bit lower. “I’m sorry,” he starts, tenderness back in his gaze. He knows that’s not enough, but it’s a good start. He reaches out to Johnny’s hand and runs soft fingers over it. “I’m sorry for neglecting you and I’m sorry for being an asshole.”
Johnny sniffs. He lets Donghyuck entwine their fingers. ”What else?”
“Sorry for neglecting my needy kitten,” Donghyuck smiles at him, now for real. Johnny can't really stay mad at Donghyuck, but he also can't have Donghyuck be upset at him. That's not how things go in this house.
So Johnny tries to lighten the mood, he's been gloomy for long enough. “You should be sorry. Your ugly breakfast is a shitty apology.”
“Hey! My breakfast isn’t ugly, she’s just unconventional.”
Johnny snorts and pulls their joined hands to his chest. “I’m sorry for being difficult, too. I should be more supportive, but you should work on your time management skills.”
Now it is Donghyuck’s turn to laugh. “I will if you promise to just talk to me next time.”
“Fine.” Johnny bites the side of Donghyuck’s palm. “Now come cuddle me.”
It only takes a second for Donghyuck to wrap himself around Johnny. “What about food? You didn’t eat again last night.”
Johnny nuzzles his nose into Donghyuck’s hair. “It can wait a bit. I missed you.”
“I missed you too. I submitted the project last night, so I’m free for a couple of days.”
"You did? You should have started with that." And Ding! Johnny gets an idea. Maybe plan C just takes more than a day to complete. He slides his hand down Donghyuck’s torso and slides even closer. “You know, you’re not fully forgiven yet. Maybe you should work for it a bit more.”