Neko

PJ and Chris

Phil's POV

I guided Dan over to the hallway in which held all the rooms where sick, and well, Nekos stayed in. Eventually, we came across room '09, and I opened the door to let Dan in.

Each room was slightly different, and this one was too. On the left, there was a door to the bathroom, which was just a toilet and sink, and on the opposite wall, there was a metal plank coming out from the wall, held up by metal bars under it, that had a small white matress and baby blue blanket on top. On the counter in front of us there were toys, treats, and food plates for the Nekos to eat on. The floor was a carpet in a really light brown color, and the walls were a cozy cream.

"What's this room for?" Dan asked, stepping in hesitantly. "It's where you'll stay until someone adopts you, or you get set free." I smiled kindly, and he nodded.

He sniffed around, making sure no other Neko's scent was on anything, and happily jumped onto the bed coming out of the wall when he couldn't find a trace of another Neko.

"Alright, little one. I'm gonna bring in PJ and Chris and we'll decide how to treat you and your wounds, alright?" I said, and he frowned. He shook his head quickly, so quickly I thought his ears would fall off. "I know, you don't want to," I said, and began to pet him so he'd listen to me. "but PJ and Chris are really nice. Give him a chance, ok?" I asked, stroking his ears gently, and he purred, nodding. "Ok, good. I'll be right back." I smiled, lifting my hand from his deep mop of brown hair.

He whimpered as I left, and curled himself in a little ball of fear on the raised bed. I felt bad, I thought as I walked down the hallway, that I had left him. I really don't think he'll like PJ and Chris to be honest, but there are some Nekos that don't like me, too. I guess it's just up to the Neko who takes care of them.

"PJ, Chris?" I called once I got to the waiting room in the front of the building. "Yeah?" Chris asked, leaning against the counter, reading a book. "You've gotta come look at this little Neko I found. He's really hurt." Chris nodded, setting the book down, "Do we need PJ?" "We don't need him, but he should take a look too." I stated.

Once we found PJ, and I had informed them of what happened, we walked down the hall, and soon were standing in front of Dan's door.

"Ok, his name is Dan. He's extremely shy, and he's a sucker for touch, though he seems really picky about who he likes." I said before we went in. "So he's very quick to love or hate?" Peej asked, and I nodded.

I gently opened the door to find Dan in the same spot. He looked happy at first to see me, but then curled in a super tiny ball as he scrunched himself closer against the wall.

"Shh, it's ok. This is Chris, and this is PJ." I walked over to him. "We're just gonna check your bruises and scratches, ok?" Chris reassured, stepping closer. Dan began hissing at him, and arched his back to make himself look bigger. "Dan, shh," I pet the top of his head, and he relaxed. "We're not gonna hurt you. I promise." He seemed to realize what I was doing, and ignored me petting him as he hissed at the two again.

"Leave...please." Dan squeaked, terrified. PJ and Chris exchanged a look, and then turned to me. "It's ok, I can do this on my own." I smiled, and they nodded, leaving quickly to not disturb Dan further.

"I'm sorry." Dan said, looking down sadly, burying his face in his hands like a little kitten. "It's ok. I can't imagine how it must feel to be scared of everyone you meet. But you're not scared of me, right?" I asked, and he nodded, looking up at me.

We talked a little more about his history, and I began to clean him up.

"This may hurt a bit." I said, and gently dabbed his face with a disinfectant wipe. He hissed, "Ow." "I know, it's ok." I said soothingly before taking it off and putting a couple band aids on his cheek and hands.

"There, better?" I asked, and he nodded, curling himself back into a ball on his bed. He closed his eyes, as relaxed as ever, and I decided to leave.

I put my hand on the doorknob when Dan said, "Wait." I turned around, confused. He sat up, "Please don't leave me alone." "But Dan, I have to help Chris and Peej with the other Nekos." I calmly stated. "Oh...ok. Promise you'll come back to say goodbye?" "I promise." I smiled, and then left.

After another five hours of work, Chris, PJ, and I sat down in the break room (basically a room with vending machines everywhere, a giant couch, chairs, and a foosball table in it).

"So, Phil. I gotta ask you about Dan. I mean, Nekos almost never chose only one person to care for them. Sure they prefer people, but they never want only one person to care for them." Chris said, plopping down beside me on the couch with two soft drinks. I took the one he offered to me and shrugged. "I don't know either. I guess he just likes me." I chuckled awkwardly. "Do you remember anything from when you rescued him?" PJ asked, leaning over the couch on the opposite side of me. "Well, there was this one thing..." I thought, thinking hard and trying to remember what all had happened. "Well, what was it?" Chris nudged me. "Well, I was sweet-talking him, trying to get him to trust me, and he asked for me to come closer to him. He sniffed me, and from there on forward he just trusted me, I guess." "So it's your scent?" PJ questioned, and I shrugged back. "Whatever. At least he likes one of us." Chris said. I nodded in response.

Peej jumped over the couch and sat beside me, "So. You've got a Neko of your own yet?" "No... but I will soon." I reassured with a fake smile. "Well, you better hurry. I don't wanna fire you because you do something stupid. I gotta get back to Christy anyways. See you two tomorrow." Chris patted my shoulder and left (Christy is his roommate Neko he cares for). "I'm gonna go make a couple more rounds. I'll see you when we close up." PJ smiled, and left too.

I decided to get up and go visit Dan. I brought him some cooked fish and cheese, seeing as he's probably starving.

I gently pushed his door open, and he flinched back before realizing it was me. "Phil!" He sprung up, and ran over to me. "Hey, what's wrong?" I asked, rubbing his back as I balanced his tray of food in one hand. "I just missed you. Chris tried to come in and befriend me, I guess. I was just so scared of him." he let go of me, and began playing with his tail nervously. "It's ok. Here, I brought you some food." I handed him the tray. "Thank you." he smiled.

When he was done eating, I put the tray in the trash (inside the counter) and began talking with Dan.

Dan had laid down on his bed, half under the blanket. I was stood beside him, and the bed was so high in the air, it met my hip, so Dan's head was just at my stomach. "So Dan, why did you not like Chris?" I asked, laying a hand on his side, petting him gently. "H-He smelt of Rick, Leah, and other Nekos." "Aww, I'm sorry." I pet him, and he rubbed his head into my palm roughly. "Woah, what's up with you?" I giggled, petting him gently and slowly. "You don't smell bad, or like Rick and Leah. I like that." He grinned, rubbing his cheek against my wrist.

I rubbed his ears, and they twitched back and fourth as he purred. "Dan, I've gotta go." I said sadly. His eyes went wide, "No. You can't leave me here again." I thought for a minute, but then decided there was nothing I could do to stay with him. "No, I'm sorry. But I'll get up extra early in the morning to come meet you again, ok?" "No. I don't want PJ or Chris to come near me again." his voice cracked in fear as he began shaking. "They won't. They'll leave too. No one will hurt you, ok?" "O-Ok..." Dan said sadly. "But I'll stay here until you fall asleep, if you'd like." I offered, and he nodded.

I stood there beside him for a while, petting his head, back, and side. Soon, Dan's eyes got droopy, and he relaxed even more. His blinking and breathing slowed down until his eyes stayed closed.

I waited about ten minutes until I turned the light off (leaving a small night-light on, just in case), and left.

"Ready?" Peej asked me at the front door as we left, and I nodded, locking the door behind me. We walked beside each other silently for a while until I spoke up. "Should I adopt Dan? When he's ready, I mean." I looked at PJ. "I doubt anyone else will take him in, and you need to adopt one anyways. You two are like a perfect match." He said casually. "Really?" "Heck yeah. Maybe you should surprise him." "Maybe." I shrugged, and soon we went down two different streets.