The thing that grabbed Taehyung's attention in the morning more than the annoying beeping of his alarm was the long ear that was resting across his face. He was lying on his back, his bunny hybrid curled up against his side. Carefully, he moved the floppy white ear off of his face and grabbed the alarm, turning it off."It's time to get up, Seokie."

Hoseok, the bunny hybrid, didn't even open his eyes, just snuggled more against Taehyung's side."Still sleepy..." he mumbled, completely willing to let sleep take him back to dreamland.

Sitting up, Taehyung began to gently stroke one of Hoseok's ears."You can stay in bed while I make breakfast. What do you want to eat? Boiled cabbage and carrots?"

"Yes please, Master Taetae..." Hoseok rubbed his head against the pillow a bit and still didn't bother to open his eyes. He just wanted to sleep more. It was the only thing currently occupying his tired mind.

Taehyung leaned down and pressed a tender kiss to the bunny's head."I'll see you when breakfast is ready." He knew Hoseok would smell the food and know when it was ready. His hybrid's nose was sensitive like that. Getting off the bed, Taehyung didn't bother getting dressed yet. He just headed to the kitchen in his pajamas. He would need to shower and get dressed after breakfast though because he had to go to work.

Today was going to be Taehyung's first shift at his new job. He'd been out of work for a while because of an injury, and he adopted Hoseok during that time. So he really hoped Hoseok would do well while being home alone for the first time. As he began to boil some cabbage and carrots for his cute hybrid, Taehyung wondered how long it was going to take Hoseok to stop calling him Master. He had told the bunny that he didn't need to call him that, but Hoseok still did it.

It wasn't even a moment too soon that Hoseok appeared in the kitchen doorway, ready to eat. He still had the desire to sleep evident in his expression though. The sleepy bunny had one floppy ear hanging down as his other ear was flopped across the top of his head to lay atop his other ear. He hated it when his ears did that but never fixed it himself. He was always worried that he might poke himself in a more sensitive part of his ear and hurt himself."Master Taetae..."

As soon as Taehyung looked at Hoseok, he noticed the issue."Come here, and I'll fix it, Seokie."

Hoseok padded his way across the kitchen to Taehyung, a pout on his lips."My ear hurts..." he whined softly.

"It hurts? How much does it hurt?" Since he now knew that Hoseok's ear was hurting, Taehyung was extra careful as he gently flipped it over to its correct side.

"I don't know. A lot?" Hoseok didn't really know how to describe the pain in his ear. It was really bothering him.

Well, this wasn't good, but it was probably nothing, right?"Do you think you just laid on it during the night?"

"Maybe." Now that his ear was fixed, Hoseok looked at the cabbage and carrots, waiting for some to be put into a bowl for him to eat.

Taehyung knew that look well and grabbed a bowl for his hybrid's breakfast."Now don't forget that I start my new job today." he reminded the bunny."You're going to be here alone until I get home this afternoon. Will you be okay by yourself?" He knew Hoseok shouldn't have any difficulties, but he was still a little worried."Should I call someone over to stay with you while I'm gone?"

"I'll be fine." In truth, Hoseok was not looking forward to being home alone for several hours. He had never been home alone before."I'll miss you though, Master."

"I'll miss you too, bunbun." It was no secret that Taehyung was going to miss Hoseok while he'd be at work. He was worried that something might go wrong while he was gone. What could go wrong? He didn't know. Still, the possibility of anything going wrong worried him.

As soon as his bowl was full of cabbage and carrots, Hoseok made grabby hands toward it, pouting cutely."Food..." His tired eyes lit up a little when the bowl was handed to him.

A chuckle slipped out from Taehyung when he saw Hoseok grab a carrot slice then immediately drop it back into the bowl."It's hot, silly. Use a fork."

"Fork." Hoseok repeated the word a few times as he opened the appropriate cabinet drawer and grabbed the utensil."Food." The bunny certainly had a one-track mind whenever food was involved.

Taehyung loved how adorable the hybrid was whenever he was hungry. When presented with food, Hoseok seemed to fail at paying attention to anything else. For himself, Taehyung simply reheated some leftover pork and noodles from last night."After we eat, I need to take a shower and get dressed. If you wait until I get back later, I can give you a bath. Or you can take a bath while I'm gone, as long as you're careful with your ears." It was always a concern that Hoseok might get soap in his ears while washing, so Taehyung normally did it.

"Do I have to get dressed too?" Hoseok asked without looking at his owner, attention fixated on his bowl of food.

"You don't have to. If you want to stay in your pajamas all day, you can." That wouldn't matter to Taehyung one bit. He saw no point in telling Hoseok to get dressed if he wasn't going to take him anywhere. Besides, Hoseok looked adorable in his pajamas.

"I'll stay in my pajamas." Hoseok loved his pajamas. They were soft like satin and blue with little carrots all over.

While they ate, Taehyung expected Hoseok to hum with each bite as he usually did, but that didn't happen. The hybrid seemed to stop eating about halfway through and frown."Is something wrong with your breakfast, Seokie?" Taehyung asked.

Hoseok shook his head a little and placed his hands onto his lap."No. I'm just done."

This was highly unusual. Hoseok normally ate all of his food and often asked for more."Are you just not as hungry this morning?" When the bunny shook his head, Taehyung tried not to think too deeply into it. It was normal to have a shifting appetite sometimes."Alright. Put the rest of it away for later. You can reheat it whenever you get hungry while I'm at work."

"Okay." Not feeling up to being talkative or active this morning, Hoseok slumped his shoulders."Can I go back to bed, Master Taetae?"

Now that definitely made Taehyung think something was wrong."Sure. Sleep as much as you need to, Seokie." Was Hoseok just extra sleepy today because they stayed up a little later than usual last night? Maybe that was the case, but Hoseok's tiredness and smaller appetite made Taehyung wonder if his cute hybrid was possibly getting sick."Are you feeling okay?" he asked as the bunny took his bowl of half-eaten cabbage and carrots to the counter.

Hoseok nodded as he got out a lid for his bowl."I'm okay. Just sleepy." Being a little extra tired wasn't a big deal, right?

"Alright. Sleep well, bunbun." Taehyung wondered if Hoseok indeed just needed some more sleep. Maybe they shouldn't have stayed up to watch a movie last night. They could have saved it for another night. After Hoseok put away his food and left the kitchen, Taehyung scarfed down his own food. He ate quicker whenever he ate alone. Once he finished, he put his bowl and fork into the sink and grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge for a drink. This was when it hit him that Hoseok hadn't drank anything. Normally, the hybrid would grab a bottle of water or pour himself some milk. He hadn't done that this morning."Odd."

Taehyung went to the bedroom to grab a clean outfit and saw that Hoseok had already made himself comfortable on the bed. Hoseok had his own bed in his own room, but he rarely slept in there. The hybrid seemed to prefer sleeping in Taehyung's bed, which Taehyung didn't mind. He took his clothes to the bathroom and proceeded to take a shower, thinking about Hoseok as he washed himself. He kept hoping everything was okay and would remain okay while he would be at work. He didn't want his bunny to need him for anything important while he wouldn't be home.

After showering and getting dressed, Taehyung peeked into the bedroom to check on Hoseok. The hybrid was asleep, snuggled against Taehyung's pillow. He didn't want to disturb his cute bunny, so he left quietly, heading to work. Even as he walked away from the house, he already missed Hoseok.

---

When Taehyung returned home in the afternoon, he was greeted by a big mess in the kitchen. Dishes were strewn all over the floor. Thankfully, they were plastic dishes, so none of them were broken. Seeing the kitchen in such disarray made Taehyung think something might have happened to Hoseok. Did someone break in while he was gone? Was Hoseok hurt? Did someone steal the hybrid?

With those scary thoughts in mind, Taehyung rushed to the bedroom to see if Hoseok was in there. To his relief, Hoseok was in there. However, the state of the bedroom brought up more questions. It was even more messed up than the kitchen. All of Taehyung's clothes were on the bed, clothes hangers left all over the floor. All the drawers of his dresser were open and empty. Hoseok was in the middle of the bed, curled up with all of Taehyung's clothes surrounding him.

Now that he was no longer scared for the hybrid's safety, Taehyung was perhaps a bit mad. Why had Hoseok created such a mess while he was gone? Why were the dishes all over the floor? Why were all of his clothes on the bed?"Hoseok." Taehyung said with a stern tone to wake up the sleeping bunny."Wake up, Hoseok."

When he awoke, Hoseok didn't even bother to lift his head. He just opened his eyes and peeked at Taehyung."I was bad, Master Taetae." He knew what he had done, and he knew it was bad.

"Why did you do it?" It made no sense to Taehyung."Why did you leave the dishes all over the kitchen floor? And why have you put all of my clothes on the bed?"

"I don't know..." Hoseok knew it was bad, but he'd done it anyway. He had acted out and done things that he knew would get him in trouble. Being bad wasn't really his intent, but he didn't know what else to blame.

"I was hoping you would behave while I was gone. I was going to give you a bath when I got back and maybe even watch a movie." Taehyung paused when he noticed something. He watched Hoseok move a hand up and start tugging on his ear a little, the same one that had been hurting this morning."Seokie, is your ear still hurting?"

Hoseok tugged on his ear a bit more before nodding."It hurts, Master Taetae." He didn't know what to do about the pain in his ear. It had been getting worse all day long.

With a sigh, Taehyung decided to forget the messes for now. If his hybrid was still in pain, he needed to do something about that first."Alright, get dressed, Seokie. I'll take you to the vet."

"Don't wanna go~" Hoseok whined, cuddling with some of Taehyung's clothes in the bed.

"You need to. We need to see if there's something wrong with your ear." Leaving the bedroom, Taehyung went to Hoseok's room to gather a clean outfit for the bunny hybrid. When he returned to his own bedroom, he sighed when he saw that Hoseok was still bundled up in the mountain of clothes on the bed."Hoseok. Get up." He hated to be stern, but it was needed sometimes.

Hoseok whined loudly and childishly when his master started pulling him up to a sitting position. He didn't cooperate at all, much like a tired toddler. He cried and squirmed as his pajamas were pulled off, and he was re-dressed in the outfit Taehyung had fetched for him.

"Stop being difficult, you butthole." Taehyung said as he managed to get Hoseok to stand up fully."I'm taking you to the vet because I don't like to see you in pain. I'm worried about you, Seokie. Don't you want to feel better?"

With tears in his eyes, Hoseok pouted and nodded."Yes, Master Taetae..."

"Let's go then." Grabbing Hoseok's hand, Taehyung led the bunny hybrid to the front door and helped him put on his shoes. Then, he took him out to the car to drive to the vet.

---

The visit to the vet definitely proved to be a good idea. Taehyung waited nervously through Hoseok's check-up, hoping nothing would be wrong. However, he did end up getting prescribed medication for an ear infection. Taehyung would need to give Hoseok medicated ear drops for a week.

"The behavior you described makes perfect sense with this infection." the vet told Taehyung."Loss of appetite, drowsiness, dizziness, unusual behavior, and tugging on his ear are all signs of an ear infection. That's just how rabbits and other animals handle the distress the infection puts them under. Just be very careful with his ear and make sure you give him those ear drops twice per day for a week. If the infection doesn't clear up by then, bring him in for another check-up."

"Alright. Thank you." Taehyung reached a hand out to Hoseok."Are you ready to go back home, bunbun?"

Hoseok nodded and grabbed Taehyung's hand. He hated visiting the vet. Though that was mainly due to him not liking his ears to be touched by anyone other than Taehyung. His ears were super sensitive, and he trusted Taehyung to not hurt them whether on purpose or by accident.

In the car on the way home, Taehyung noticed that Hoseok was really quiet, so he got an idea."Let's get some ice cream. You were really good during that vet trip, so I think you deserve a treat."

"But I was bad while you were at work." Hoseok said as he lowered his gaze.

Taehyung peeked at Hoseok through the rear view mirror."I forgive you for that. You weren't feeling well. These ear drops from the vet will help with that. Now let's get some ice cream then go home. You can watch some TV while I cook dinner."

Hoseok definitely perked up."Okay, Master Taetae." He smiled, feeling lucky to have such a caring owner. He loved Taehyung so much and wouldn't want to belong to anyone else. And he knew Taehyung loved him just as much.