Part 3The Cat Who Came Back for Her Ex

That night, I patrolled my new territory.

Wes, wearing rubber gloves, pointed a finger at me and yelled, "Liam! It's me or the cat! One of us goes!"

Hearing Liam’s footsteps, I immediately flopped over and let out a weak, pathetic meow.

Liam panicked, scooped me up, and put me in the cat bed.

"Keep your voice down. The kitten is new; it'll get stressed."

"Then send it back! I'll buy extra cat food for the strays tomorrow, okay?"

Absolutely not.

"Meow~"

I shivered. I was weak. I was helpless.

I wobbled to my feet and put my paws together in a begging motion.

Liam immediately blocked me from Wes’s view. "Wes, calm down. We need to talk."

"There's nothing to talk about."

Wes turned and slammed the door to the guest bedroom, locking it.

I gritted my teeth. I hand-picked every piece of furniture in this apartment. How dare he slam my door?

Liam looked upset. He turned to comfort me, then went to the guest room.

He knocked and spoke quietly for a long time before Wes opened the door.

They both went inside.

I hesitated, then tiptoed to the door to eavesdrop.

Thanks to my superior cat hearing, I caught bits and pieces.

"...Are you crazy? That's a cat!"

"I know, but she might..."

"You're seriously sick. Send it away tomorrow!"

"..."

It was like they had a censor filter on. I couldn't hear the keywords.

I spun around anxiously, trying different poses to hear better.

Suddenly, the door opened.

I tumbled into the room, limbs splayed.

"Meow?"

Wes sneered down at me. "Look at that. Eavesdropping? I thought it was 'stressed'?"

"What does a kitten know?"

Liam picked me up and carried me out.

"It understood when I insulted it earlier, but now it knows nothing?"

"Wes! Listen to yourself. It's a cat! It’s not even a month old!"

"You better hope it's just a cat."

I didn't understand what they were arguing about, but I knew Wes was up to no good.

Liam carried me away, looking downcast. He was angry.

I extended a paw toward Wes, who looked equally annoyed. I stretched my toes, retracted the others, and left one specific claw out. The middle one.

Being flipped off by a kitten must be a first for him.

But Wes didn't get mad. He just stared at my claw, stunned.

What’s his deal? Is he a masochist? When I’m cute, he hates me. When I abuse him, he shuts up.

I was put back in the cat bed.

Since I arrived at night, they didn't have supplies. Liam rummaged around and finally pulled out a big red scarf to cover me.

Hey! Liam! It took me half a month to knit that scarf! You're giving it to a cat?

Even though the cat is me, I still felt salty about it.

"Have a good sleep. Goodnight."

Liam kissed my head, his tone sickeningly sweet.

If I weren't a cat right now, I’d think I’d traveled back to the old days.