Cat K

The youth hurriedly bowed his head as if he was scared to meet Calix"s eyes. Most of his reactions said the same thing. Calix already knew the reason. It was because of his lips. Calix touched his lip with his finger.

Last night, as their lips were pressed together, all the youth did was breathe shallowly for a long time. Drunk on the soft feeling and breath full of the scent of fresh cookies, Calix had forgotten the pa.s.sing of time and held themselves against each other far longer than he realized.

What happened next was only to be expected.

Suddenly the youth bit down on Calix"s lip and  kicked his shin at the same time. He must have bitten hard, as the wounds he had torn were still clear even now. His shin that had been kicked by the youth hurt enough that it still stung. It was to the degree that he would be lucky if it didn"t bruise.

The youth, who had chewed his lip and kicked his shin, panted for a bit before he suddenly shouted and chased Calix out. His force was so fierce that Calix was chased out the door without a chance to get a word out.

What had he said… You pervert b.a.s.t.a.r.d, was it?

Recalling the shout, as if it were still ringing in his ears, Calix touched the wound on his lip.

He already knew about the boy"s prideful and stubborn personality, but this was a reaction beyond his expectations. Of course, the endless trust and oddly slow reactions he displayed were only because he had opened his heart to that extent.

Even if he was able to grope the youth as much as he pleased under ordinary circ.u.mstances while getting away with giving the flimsiest  excuses, there would still be a limit to it. The youth was one to make a ruckus if someone to whom he hadn"t opened his heart to did that sort of thing.

The little one, who seemed thoroughly mad now, hadn"t even looked his way since the morning. He remained like that even now as the sun was setting. Since he didn"t come near him at all, there was never any chance to soothe him. But since half a day had pa.s.sed, perhaps now an opportunity to calm him down might appear. Calix proceeded forward as he considered his chances.

But how should he calm him…

Calix was worrying about these matters as he saw the approaching bedchamber doors ahead of him.

The little one was angry at him. He was probably a bit shocked, but he was mostly mad. If he just tried to soothe him the same way he did when the youth was sulking, he might end up provoking him even more. But since the youth was still in his cat form, he wasn"t in a position where he could hold him and whisper his apologies.

"Your Highness."

Still worrying, he was about to enter his bedchambers when a maid standing before the doors stepped forward toward him. Seeing her face, he recognized her as the maid the little one followed frequently. Her name was Julia.

"What is it?"

As he asked, the maid carefully held out a basket. Calix looked at the basket held before him. Inside the deep basket, there was merely a single red ball of yarn. She lifted her face and spoke with a voice tinged with laughter.

"b.u.t.terfly really liked this, Your Highness. It unraveled as they tried to sneak away with it, so b.u.t.terfly is very upset right now."

Calix looked at the basket again. He saw the plain basket that wasn"t fancy at all and the yarn ball inside it. He took the basket handed to him by the maid. Holding that, his steps as he entered his bedchambers were lighter.

Inside the bedchambers, everything was quiet. As he expected, he didn"t see the little one walk lightly to him to greet him. Calix approached the place where the sound of the little one"s breathing was faintly coming from.

In the middle of the wide bed, the sheets rose in a mound. If he didn"t look carefully, he might have missed it. Looking at the round shape, it seemed he had curled his body tightly into a ball.

The little one should have been aware that he was right beside him, as Calix had intentionally walked loudly, but he made no reaction. He was still lying motionlessly curled up beneath the sheets. Calix sat on the bed and stroked the mound of sheets that was the little cat.

The cat flinched at his touch and squirmed under the sheets. Then he crawled in the opposite direction of where Calix was sitting, laid down, and curled up again. Calix inwardly tutted his tongue as he approached the mound under the sheet.

As he carefully removed the sheet, the little one lying curled up underneath it came into view. He could feel the cat"s stubbornness from the way the little one remained still with his eyes closed even with the sheet removed. Calix set down the basket he had been holding at the foot of the bed and bent over.

The little one"s body flinched as he slowly pressed his lips to his small head. Calix removed his lips and sat down, beginning to stroke his small back. Unlike his usual behaviour, he didn"t purr, and his body even stiffened at his touch, expressing his rejection.

"Last night…"

As he slowly began to speak, the little one"s ears twitched slightly. Calix paused shortly as he stroked his back and then continued.

"Last night I kissed someone without thinking."

His black tail-tip flicked.

The little one was still curled up with his eyes closed stubbornly. But his perked ears turned toward him, and his distractedly waving tail told Calix all his attention was on edge at his words.

He could give excuses or tell him an obscure answer. But Calix had no intention of doing that.

He knew for sure after feeling that giddy sensation from the youth"s lips and sweet breath. He knew that it wasn"t just endearment he felt for a small and tender being. And he also knew that it was not just a continued curiosity and interest for the strange youth.

"It looked like he was startled and upset."

The little one"s nose twitched. It seemed he was thinking of what happened last night.

Calix continuously stroked the little one"s back with a gentle touch and spoke again in a low voice.

"Tonight, I think I"ll apologize."

A snort puffed from his small, wet nose. Calix suppressed the smile forming at the corners of his lips. Then he bent down and whispered into his ear.

"I"ll apologize and say it was my fault. And then I think I"ll tell him this, "I think I"ve fallen for you.""

The little one"s body stiffened. Calix held his breath and gazed at the frozen little one. The momentarily frozen body let out a hiccup and jerked.

Hic. Hic.

The little one, eyes round and hiccuping, looked at Calix. Calix smiled softly, and as if making sure, he whispered once more.

"If I tell him I like him, do you think he would accept me?"

He whispered as the round, black eyes stared at him. Suddenly the little one, who had been staring blankly, pushed hard with his front paws and hurriedly backed away. The next second, he shot underneath the bed like an arrow.

Listening to the hiccuping from beneath the bed, Calix chuckled quietly. How was it that everything he did was so adorable.

He had been planning on staying where he was sitting when the hiccuping from under the bed died down. In its place, he could feel the movements of the little one anxiously fidgeting. He could clearly feel how bewildered he was.

Calix retrieved the basket he had set down below the bed and took out the red yarn ball, then placed it right in front of where the little one was hiding.

He must have seen the yarn ball, because Calix felt the movement stop. Calix quietly observed the yarn ball from where he was sitting on the bed. In order for the little one to reach it, he would have to stretch his paw out from under the bed, and so all he had to do was wait.

Some time pa.s.sed.

There had been no sign of movement at all, but Calix continued to watch the bait with patient eyes. A little more time pa.s.sed and, as expected, a dainty black paw reached stealthily out from beneath the bed.

The black paw batted the yarn ball and slipped back inside. After a little while, it slowly reached out again, tapped it, and slipped back inside. He stayed still, and the black paw emerged once more. But this time, unlike before, he hooked the yarn ball with a sharp claw and slowly dragged it under the bed.

Calix discreetly swallowed his chuckle as heard the little onle roll around under the bed. He then pushed the basket under the bed as well.

He could feel the little one moving busily now that he had gained both the red yarn ball and the basket. Calix sat leaning against the headboard of the bed and closed his eyes, feeling those small movements through the bed.

From the rustlings and sc.r.a.pes that he could hear, Calix guessed he had picked up and put the yarn ball inside the basket. Now the noisy movements told him he was probably inside the basket rolling from side to side holding the yarn ball. He must have been moving quite violently, as the sound of the basket rattling against the floor could be heard.

After a long time, when the sound of his playing suddenly stopped, Calix opened his eyes.

He turned his head and saw the two perky ears slowly emerge from under the bed. Then, the little one with the yarn ball in his mouth peeked out. As Calix smiled calmly, he hopped up onto the bed holding the yarn ball. Then he trotted up to him and curled up at Calix"s hip.

As soon as the black eyes that had been sneakily looking at him met his gaze, he spun his head away. Then he turned his back toward Calix"s side and began tossing and turning while holding the red yarn ball. In any case, it seemed he had calmed down a little.

Calix watched the little one with the red yarn ball at his side with pleased eyes.

We"re back at it with Calix"s man-killing, and it"s glorious.

Thanks to TB for the coffees this chapter; I appreciate your support!

Sorry for the slow update even though I thought I would have a lot of time with being done with finals and all. My summer"s been pretty hectic so far as I"ve been running around trying to find part-time work, and I got my driver"s license at long last! Hope everyone has a great summer!