Milkshake Hearts

Chapter 125: Escape Artist and Art Cult

Shayne and Courtney had spent most of their three-day work week listening to Damien – and some of their other cat-owning crew – tell them everything they could think of that might be useful for new cat owners. They're both prepared to walk downstairs on Saturday morning to the cats hiding somewhere or having knocked their things all over the place, but instead, they walk downstairs to find both cats curled on the floor, back-to-back, in the dead-centre of their open plan downstairs space.

"Oh my god, they're so adorable," Courtney laughs, opening the pet gate to step through, Shayne close behind her. The cats' heads both perk up at the sound of her voice and Shayne's laugh.

Nutmeg is the first to move off the floor, stretching his front paws forward and bumping Mocha in the process. It prompts her to get up much more quickly, trotting happily to run straight into Shayne's legs, and then Courtney's.

"I have a feeling Mocha is a headbutter," Shayne deadpans, leaning down to let Mocha sniff his hand. She rubs her face against his hand after she does, and he shifts to gently scratching from between her ears across her head and down her back.

Nutmeg, for his part, walks slowly towards them, and then straight past them, to stand by the laundry door and let out a meow.

"I'll get them breakfast if you get our breakfast?" Courtney offers, Shayne putting on a pout at being relegated to dealing with human tendencies instead of the cats, although he quickly transitions into a nod as he moves further into the kitchen. Courtney walks the couple of steps back into the laundry, unsurprised when both cats calmly follow her in.

The shelter had told them both were relatively well-behaved cats – both food-motivated, Nutmeg a bit more than Mocha, but neither of them were greedy or over-eaters. They do wait almost – almost, there is some pleading meowing and headbutting of Courtney's shins – patiently for her to tip some of their food into two bowls, placing both down on the floor opposite the laundry counter. They immediately each move to one of the two bowls to nibble at the food, although they don't scarf it. Courtney watches fondly for a moment before carefully moving out to the kitchen to join Shayne for their own breakfast.

As had already become blatantly obvious, Nutmeg and Mocha were both well-socialised cats: they'd come from a loving family who had only regretfully given them up, and had done so in the best way they could find, passing them on to a welfare-focussed no-kill shelter. Still, Shayne and Courtney are acutely aware that as much as they're intrigued and curious and existing in their space now, they need to do more than just be around to ensure the cats are truly comfortable and socialised to be theirs, now.

They engage on Nutmeg and Mocha's terms, but Shayne and Courtney spend much of Saturday morning sitting on the sofa or the floor in their living area and letting the cats play and move around and with them. They both immediately take a liking to a catnip-infused butterfly-shaped toy Courtney had added to their Amazon haul of cat things, darting around the living room after it and wrestling around with it. When Nutmeg tires of playing with the toy and instead sits at the edge of the carpeted living area watching Mocha and Shayne play-fighting over another rattling mouse toy, Courtney moves herself to sit just beside him, grinning widely at Shayne when Nutmeg shifts on his side to press his back against her thigh.

Courtney can't help herself from taking endless pictures of Mocha and Mutmeg, too, as their weekend continues through much the same pattern of giving them space when they want it, and cuddling up with or playing around with them when they want it too. She manages to hold back from actually posting any of the pictures online for a while, but late on Sunday evening she snaps a picture of Shayne lying stomach-down beside their coffee table, twisted to look underneath for a toy Mocha had batted underneath it, both cats crouched down beside him to look, too.