Page 20 of We’ll Prescribe You Another Cat

“She’s like a stuffed animal. I wonder if Hajime will get jealous.”

“If Hajime doesn’t like her, just keep them apart. Shasha can stay in my room.”

Sensing a presence, Reona turned around. Hajime was peering at her from the gap between the sliding doors. Her black pupils were sharp like knives, and her yellow-green irises were narrowed.

Cats are inscrutable. Unlike humans, the corners of their mouths don’t curve into a smile, and their eyes don’t turn into half-moons when they are happy. Yet, after living with her for fourteen years, Reona could read Hajime so well.

She entered the living room in silence, taking careful steps, her tail held high and gently swaying from side to side.

In an instant, Shasha was thrashing wildly in Reona’s hands, trying to get down. But Reona held her tightly. Shasha was a na?ve little kitten, believing that the other cat would welcome her. Even calm Hajime would not be so pleased if Shasha suddenly pounced on her. It was crucial not to get Hajime on the offensive.

Hajime drew closer, sniffing, nose in the air, as she circled Reona, who was now crouching. She leaned in toward Shasha and began poking her with her snout. Shasha twitched restlessly in response.

“Shasha, hold still. Hajime hasn’t finished checking you out.”

“That’s right, little kitty. Hajime’s inspections are thorough.”

Mother and daughter bent their heads together nervously toward the cats as they interacted. Hajime pressed her head against Reona’s side and began sniffing Shasha’s behind. Shasha flapped her short legs.

“Oh, dear, how embarrassing, little kitty! She’s sniffing your butt.”

Reona’s mother laughed.

After thoroughly sniffing Shasha’s butt, Hajime sat down on the tatami as if to say, “That’s enough.”

“Is Hajime done with her inspection?”

“Looks like it. Seems like the kitty passed.”

Reona set Shasha down on the tatami. The kitten bounded over to Hajime and began prodding her with her front legs, evidently wanting to sniff Hajime’s butt like she had done hers earlier.

But Hajime’s behind was planted firmly on the floor, leaving no gap. And because her coat matched the light brown of the tatami, it almost seemed as though she had grown out of the floor itself. Still, Shasha didn’t give up and continued to sniff around where Hajime’s butt met the tatami. Hajime remained poker-faced.

“Hajime’s completely ignoring her.”

Reona held in her laughter. Her mother was also smirking.

Suddenly, Hajime stood up and began chasing Shasha’s tail. Shasha, not wanting to have her butt sniffed, darted away, but she couldn’t outrun Hajime. Hajime nudged Shasha from behind with her nose, and Shasha’s legs lifted into the air.

“Oh, dear, kitty, you got your bottom sniffed again. How embarrassing.”

“Come on, Shasha! You got this! Don’t lose the battle of bottoms!”

“Look, here comes Hajime again. She’s coming in for a sniff!”

“Ah, look, this is your chance, Shasha! Hajime is doing the flehmen response!”

Reona and her mother watched the two cats circle each other. Reona’s face was in a permanent grin.

It was an overwhelming victory for Hajime in that night’s battle of the bottoms. She didn’t have her butt sniffed even once.

* * *

How many times had she carried the generously filled clay pots to the tables?

When the cherry blossoms began to bud, the number of tourists in Kyoto surged. The same happened when the leaves changed color. All the eateries around Nanzen-ji Temple were packed with people waiting for seats, and the boiled tofu restaurant where Reona worked also had a wait of several hours.

Reona rushed to the restaurant after class, put on her uniform kimono, and commenced working tirelessly until eight p.m. Her primary responsibility was serving tables, but she also took it upon herself to handle the heavy lifting, which included clay pots and cases of beer.

During a brief break, Reona finally found a chance to use the bathroom. She had been holding it in for hours. A coworker rushed into the bathroom with her.

“That was close. One day, I’m going to pee my pants in front of the customers.”

“Me, too. I just barely made it,”

said Reona, adjusting the sleeves of her kimono. She’d been working part-time at this restaurant for two years, and it was always like this during the super busy season.

Her coworker let out a heavy sigh. Her kimono was wrinkled, perhaps from also working long hours without breaks.

“I had no days off this week, and I have shifts all weekend, too. How about you, Reona?”

“I have a few days off starting tomorrow.”

“Really? Exam week at school?”

“I have a cat over.”

“A cat?”

“Just for a few days. A Munchkin kitten. She is unbelievably adorable.”

“A kitten!”

Her coworker let out a groan.

“Definitely not the time to be working. I have a cat at home, too, and kittens grow up so quickly. You can’t miss this moment. Go home early. There’s just some cleaning left, and I can take care of it.”

“Thank you.”

The cat effect is powerful. Reona couldn’t help but laugh. But indeed, it was a rare opportunity to be able to interact with a kitten. Because she had swapped yesterday’s shift, she couldn’t take the day off today, but she planned to stay at home as much as possible while Shasha was there. She helped quickly with the cleanup and rushed home.