# LET HIM APOLOGIZE AND EAT IT IN A BENTLEY

you don't like dogs. you absolutely avoid them at all costs. you're fine with trained dogs with owners but stray dogs…

stray dogs are the worst. they come up at you all of the sudden. they bark at you. dogs would bare their teeth on you. and they might even bite you

you hate it since you're so damn scared of dogs… especially the big ones. you're fucking terrified

just the sight of them makes you tremble and hide behind the nearest wall 

well, you like puppies. they're cute and harmless, unlike their grown-up selves that can bite you with the strength of bears! and– and you can die from rabies if they bite you! how the hell isn't everyone scared of them!? 

baji keisuke loves animals. he has books about them in his room (picture books)

he holds a special love for stray animals. he would feed them if he sees one and he won't hesitate to give them his umbrella if it was raining

the last time he brought a stray dog home, his mother gave him an earful. telling him stuff like who will take care of it when keisuke's not at home due to school and gang activities? since his mother usually works overtime and would usually be tired after work, she can't take care of it 

let's add to the fact that she cooks them dinner once she arrives. she understands how much her son would want to have a pet but without anyone to take care of it, it's a no-go 

so baji's really happy when peke j visits his room from time to time. the cat food he has would always be refilled, and he's got a cat bowl and brush, especially for that cat

his love for animals doesn't match his intimidating look, but his heart is full of love for those creatures

he even volunteers to walk pah-chin's dog at times. and this dog, pochi, is a very tame and a well cared for the dog who doesn't just bark out of nowhere

that's why it annoyed him when he saw you, a stranger, run and jump up the public bench. but pochi being the sassy and friendly dog that he is sensed your fear and trotted towards you with his fur in a sashaying manner 

baji, who was holding pochi's leash, followed like an obedient do– guy, eyeing you with annoyed eyes

draken walked beside him

draken didn't have anything to do today since it was his birthday yesterday so he decided to go to pa-chin's to walk pochi. but on the way to pa-chin's house, he saw baji with the dog he was planning on taking out to walk so he just went with him 

you froze up when you saw the dog, petrified even. but when it turned its face to you, you ran to the nearest leveled object you can find to jump on 

what made it worse is that the dog began to strut towards you. the owners, you assumed, just followed along with it like the dog's some kind of prince

you're beyond terrified 

"what the fuck.." you whispered, face in disbelief as the dog was almost near you 

"what the actual fuuuck…" you began to shake. leaning back further on the public bench with your bent knees hugged to your chest

the dog barked and you screeched in fear, "yo!?" 

just what exactly made you decide that a bench can help you hide away from the dog? the author never knows

maybe it was your fight and flight instincts that made you decide that

urgh you should have just climbed up the tree 

but it's too late now. you're shaking. and unable to move. other than stare at the dog in horror pantingwithitstongueoutrightinfrontofyou

"g-" you choked, eyes struck with fear facing the dog before you snapped your head up to the one who was holding the leash, "get it away!" 

and baji could only reply to you with a confused look

and with you being unfamiliar with the guy, seeing his face scrunched up to what you thought is an annoyed one got you mad 

"the dog, you…you…" trying your best not to let your voice waver from the dog's sudden 'yip', you immediately got up your feet and jumped from the bench to hide behind it, "you fuckface!" 

'is she looking for a fight?' an irk mark appeared on both draken and baji's faces 

baji got irked because you just called him a fuckface 

draken's annoyed because you called his friend a fuckface 

and you're just recalling what your senpai told you, 'listen, y/n. there are a lot of bad guys around here. if you ever encounter a bad guy, you have to show them that you're tough!'

in baji and draken's eyes, you're nothing but tough. you're more like a quivering chihuahua in front of a hungry lion

draken was about to scare her, but knowing that baji can handle it, he just gave his best 'scary face' behind him 

and baji… he glared at you and tugged at pochi's collar. said dog didn't back away, instead jumped up the bench, scaring you more in the process 

you tried to jump away but you, being your clumsy self, tripped over air and landed on your butt 

baji actually got surprised when you landed on your butt. he's mean. but his mother raised him right and he knows just by looking at your face that's about to cry, that you're a good person 

so he and pochi went around the bench to reach you. baji sees you about to scramble away again so he tugged at pochi's leash again. this time pochi sat one foot away

"draken" he called, beckoning him over to hand him pochi's leash before walking towards you and crouching to face you 

"oi." he said 

you flinched, eyes unfocused switching to look at the dog behind him then back to his scary face 

baji noticed that, so he deduced that you are in fact really really really scared of dogs 

"this dog is pochi. he doesn't just bark or bite out of nowhere" 

you begged to differ, "dude!" you screeched, "it literally just barked at me earlier!" 

on cue, pochi loudly let out a bark

"ah!" it was as if the dog was teasing you, "there it goes again!" 

and baji can't help but grin. now he's sure that pochi's just really playing with you seeing that its tail is swishing back and forth excitedly 

you want to run away but you're scared that the dog might run after you since these guys look like they'll let go of its leash just to watch you scream and run 

"pochi's like that because you're overreacting, stupid" 

"i'm overreacting?!" and he dares to call you stupid? "that dog can bite me! and i'll die! and i don't want to d-die, you– you boar face!" 

if that comment of yours didn't make his blood boil, draken's laugh from behind him sure did 

"stop laughing damn it!" 

grinning, draken's coming down from laughter as he said that he does kind of look like a boar that only made baji angrier 

if baji could just strangle you, he would have done it already. but he would never in his life hurt a girl

then he hears a snicker coming from you. the audacity of you to make fun of him when you're on your butt on the ground who was shaking in fear just minutes ago 

"listen here, girlie" he grabs you by your forearm, intimidating you in the process from how near his face was to yours

you got scared again. the dog is forgotten at the moment, your vision focusing solely on his intense eyes glaring at you like a– like a wild boar…

"you don't get to act so tough when you're fucking scared of a fucking nice dog like pochi" he's angry, he really is. right now he's acting on impulse 

"stop acting like a wimp and say hello to the god damn dog!" 

"eh?"

the gist of what baji learned from his picture books is that to be friends with animals, you have to be nice and introduce yourself first 

so that's what he's going to make you do

he called for pochi. you immediately got up to your feet and were about to run away but baji caught your wrist and pulled you back down to crouch in front of pochi the dog 

you protested of course, but baji was determined to make you and pochi friends. he doesn't let go of his hold on you and damn was his grip tight. you told him this and he loosens his grip, but only for a little so you don't try to escape 

but seeing the dog… so near you, you scrambled away and went behind baji

"hey!" 

he tells you to calm down and pulls you to his side. yet you push away his shoulders spouting things like you're really really going to die just by breathing the same air as the dog. he tries to calm you down by telling you that pochi got his vaccine but you were adamant about your belief that dogs can kill you 

so he grabs your other hand, "will you be quiet for a sec!?"  this had you shut your mouth 

"good" he nods at you before turning you both to the patient dog sitting so gracefully in front of you…

and it makes your insides badly quiver from what you're about to go through, "this dog is pochi. pochi this is..?" he turns to you in question for your name. he felt you freeze up the moment he turned you to the dog and right now, he sees your eyes wide open and lips quivering but you still did your best to say your name 

"y-y…" you gulped, "y/n" you say 

"y/n" he repeats, looking in your eyes for just a second and he immediately regrets it

as cliche as it was, he got captivated. baji never really cared for crushes so he's not familiar with this.. fluttering warmth he's feeling in his heart from looking at your eyes 

he brushes it off and turns back to the dog. "pochi this is y/n. and y/n, this is pochi" 

said dog barked in greeting and you jumped, but this stranger's hold on you had you stayed in place

"okay, next you pat pochi's head"

you screeched "i what!?"

baji lets out an exasperated sigh at your reaction, "you pat the dog to show 'em affection. the name's baji by the way" you gawked at him, breaking your terror-stricken stare at the dog 

"in case you haven't noticed, i'm super scared of dogs. and fear doesn't just go away from one instance of dog meets human and human meets dog" 

he gives you a once over, obviously having enough of your whining. he could just let you go and not talk to you ever again but this unfamiliar feeling doesn't want to let you go

like literally, he's still holding onto your wrist and hand and he's so not blushing from it, not that he realizes it

draken does tho, he's watching everything unfold right in front of his eyes, and god, baji's so awkward he's trying so hard not to snicker

it seems like you're too distracted by your bickering with baji that you didn't notice baji placing your hand on top of pochi's head 

"this isn't finding nemo. i can't just act like 'fishes are friends not food'"

ah yes, it's baji's springtime. his first time having a crush 

"this is a dog so it doesn't count. don't you know that dogs are man's best friend?"

you rolled your eyes at him, "friends don't bark and attempt to kill you! you won't get me to pat one" 

"your hand on top of pochi's head says otherwise" and you flinched clearly not registering that you're touching the dog 

he grins, thinking that he succeeded in making you be 'friends' with pochi but the moment you finally registered what's happening…

you panicked 

and you're back to jumping like a kangaroo hiding behind baji's back and accidentally hitting him multiple times 

and baji's back to calming you down with a steaming face because of how you're clinging to him 

you were shouting 'i hate you i hate you' to baji because he made you pat the dog