time passed quickly for the two best friends...

ten and taeyong got busier every day, having to work on their performance day and night to make sure it would be good enough.

the talent show they were participating in was one month away, and it was starting to stress the two boys very much.

hopefully, their cute little hybrid was waiting for them at home, ready to get cuddled to death when his two owners would come back from work.

it felt as if they had bought him the day before, when in fact, he had been here for around three months.

the lion cub had grown a lot now.

he was twice bigger than before, and a brownish mane was starting to grow around his head.

the fact he had grown up didn't make him less cuddly.

yuta would jump on ten and taeyong as soon as they would open the front door, his tail wiggling happily, and his ears flattening. that was the cutest sight ever, and neither taeyong nor ten would want it to disappear.

yuta truly felt like their baby.

whenever ten and taeyong would watch tv on the couch, he would snuggle between them, making sure to have both of them caressing him, and not one more than the other.

he loved them both so much, and couldn't think about his life if these two perfect humans hadn't picked him up at the hybrid store.

they were meant to be together.

as for ten and taeyong, their love for each other only grew.

being in love with your best friend is sure hard, but knowing that your best friend loves you back, and that you can't get together seems even harder.

winwin kept bothering them, saying that their logic was completely messed up, and that they shouldn't suffer this way.

but ten and taeyong still refused to listen to him.

and this broke them from the inside, but none of them knew that. 

"ten." taeyong called the dancer who was watching a music video on his phone.

"huh?" he replied, pausing the video.

"we should have a talk."

taeyong entered ten's room slowly, closing the door behind his back before sitting on the bed, not so far away from his best friend.

"what do you want to talk about?" ten asked.

"us." taeyong replied without a hint of hesitation in his voice.

"y-yeah?" ten raised a brow.

"ten, i know that we have mutual feelings. you know it as well."

the dancer nodded.

"we both agree that mixing our career and a love story isn't an option." taeyong continued.

"yes. it never ends well." ten confirmed, trying not to meet taeyong's eyes.

taeyong stayed silent for a few seconds, thinking wisely about the words he was about to pronounce.

sweat started forming on his forehead, and ten could see it. the thai male gently used one of the sleeves of his hoodie to wipe it off, and caress the smooth forehead of his best friend softly.

"tell me, taeyong." ten whispered, encouraging his best friend to speak.

"i-i... i think..."

"take your time." ten reassured him, his hand lingering on the other's skin, tracing the details of his flawless face.

"i think we should try to look for someone else."

ten's hand abruptly stopped on taeyong's chin, his body freezing for a few seconds before regaining his spirits.

"w-w-what...?" he stammered.

"we should find another lover, to forget each other." taeyong clarified.

ten's hand dropped on his knees, and ten hesitated to look at his best friend in the eye, but he eventually did, and found his eyes teary, and red.

"a-another..."

"this is what's best for us." taeyong assured. "it hurts a lot, but it's the best. you know it as well as me." 

ten nodded slowly.

they couldn't keep living like this.

taeyong was entirely right.

staying together, being in love, but not fulfilling their wishes was just torturing them.

they didn't deserve that.

they deserved to be happy, to feel loved.

and this meant that they needed someone to take care of them like they take care of each other.

"yeah..." ten replied in a low voice. "you're right."

"i'm sorry ten." taeyong lowered his head.

"don't be. by saying this, you're helping both of us." ten gave him a small smile.

an awkward silence filled the room, the two boys being too focused on their erratic thoughts to say anything or realise how the atmosphere of the room had dullened.

the sound of something scratching against the wooden door woke them up from their trance.

"so... best friends?" ten coughed.

taeyong nodded. "best friends."

they both rose to their feet, walking towards the door, but stopping before opening it.

"you'll find someone?" taeyong asked.

"i'll try." ten shrugged. "but you have to try too."

taeyong nodded curtly before opening the door.

the two humans were greeted by a bouncy lion, trying to jump on them.

"you thought we had abandoned you?" taeyong asked in a baby voice, picking the lion up in his arms.

"we would never, baby." ten smiled, caressing the lion's head. "we love you too much for that."