Page 31 of We’ll Prescribe You Another Cat

“Nikké, I’m home!”

As the door opened, Nikké took a few steps toward him. For the past five days, whenever Tomoya got home, Nikké had been awake. The sight of his cat’s eyes open—after Tomoya had almost lost hope—overwhelmed him with emotion. He had started to leave the pen door open, allowing Nikké to wander freely. Tomoya didn’t mind if the apartment got messy.

“Okay, give me a second.”

Putting off his own dinner preparations, Tomoya began building a cardboard house. The holes on the side of the structure that he had built the previous day were apparently too big. Nikké had shown little interest, and with a blank expression that still exuded some dissatisfaction, he refused to enter it.

I won’t mess this up today. Using a utility knife, he meticulously carved a hole in the box. It was smaller than yesterday’s, just large enough for Nikké to poke his head out.

“Perfect.”

Tomoya was very satisfied with the end product. But when he looked for Nikké, he found him sitting inside yesterday’s failed cardboard house. Sticking only his head out from the box, he narrowed his eyes.

“Hey! This one’s turned out a lot nicer, Nikké. Use this one.”

Not wanting the better-structured cardboard house he had made to go to waste, he eagerly stuck his hand through the hole, pressing his cheek to the floor to peer through the opening, and did other sorts of things to appeal to Nikké. But Nikké, with only his head visible, gazed intently at the spot where the ceiling and wall met.

“I get it. Today, you’re feeling that other one more. I guess I understand.”

Cats’ behaviors were unpredictable. He wasn’t remotely disappointed or surprised that the house he had delayed his dinner to build was going unused. Instead, the betrayal of his expectations brought a smile to his face.

Tomoya sat cross-legged and watched Nikké staring at the wall.

“Listen, Nikké. You’re pretending not to look at the new house, but I know you saw it. I can sense you making comments about it in your head.”

Nikké ignored him. Didn’t even flinch.

But he was absolutely listening. And observing. And secretly poking fun at Tomoya with his entire being. His owner amused him, as he continued to flail frantically without getting any reaction from him.

“You’re a good boy, Nikké. You really are.”

Tomoya couldn’t stop himself from talking to Nikké, who now resembled a toy popping out of a jack-in-the-box. He truly was a good boy. There was nothing more to say.

Tomoya’s phone sounded—it was a message from his mother, urging him to let her know when he’d be visiting next. He smiled wryly; he had just seen them last month. Even then, he hadn’t intended to stop by. He had felt an unexpected urge to do the normal thing of visiting his parents and had squeezed it into his schedule.

He became so busy on the day he had initially planned to go that he ultimately had to delay his visit until the next day. His sister found Tomoya’s behavior unusual and became suspicious.

Tomoya had wanted to do something out of the ordinary to occupy his time. Eager to stay busy, he had pushed himself to take on more work. Consequently, he became unusually distracted, avoided going home to his apartment. Yet now, he was dashing up the stairs of his building, his feet light with joy.

Before he knew it, Nikké had emerged from the cardboard box and was making his approach. He gently pawed at Tomoya’s leg before climbing up. Despite the instability, he settled atop Tomoya’s knee and closed his eyes. When Nikké shut his full-moon eyes, he transformed into darkness. Tomoya felt a chill run down his spine.

“No, Nikké, you can’t go to sleep.”

Tomoya shook his knee; Nikké instantly opened his eyes. Gracefully, he returned to his pen and curled up into a ball. His eyes remained open, as Tomoya had wished. His eyes, which seemed to gaze into a void, appeared emotionless.

But surely, Nikké was aware of the truth. He knew what Tomoya was thinking. People around him might call him kind, but in reality, he was selfish and cold. Nikké understood the real reason Tomoya hadn’t wanted to return to his apartment until recently—he saw right through it all.

Even so, the tenderness of Nikké staying awake for him was almost enough to crush Tomoya’s heart.