Philia [Taegi]

4. The Best Man

"Wait, what? You just picked a cat up from the street and took her home?" Jisoo asked in disbelief. "I didn't just pick her up. Do you know what a hassle it was to get her to my sister's place? She bit and scratched me even when I tried to free her from the trash." Yoongi held up his hands as proof, which were covered with bite marks and scratches. "And then she pooped all over my room and broke shit, I don't even have money to replace that, and then I had to take her to the vet. In a cat cage. I don't own a damn cat cage, and I couldn't buy one, so I had to ring literally every single neighbour's doorbell just to find someone with a fucking cage. I have never talked to these people in my life, but what choice did I have? And it was almost impossible to lure her into that thing." Yoongi complained, already kind of regretting his decision of taking the animal with him. Jisoo just laughed while trying to get her hair out of her face with her wrist. Her hands were covered in flower since she was preparing fresh muffins while Yoongi was sitting on a chair in the kitchen, keeping her company. "So she keeps you busy?" Jisoo asked, giving Yoongi a knowing smile, who was nice enough to tuck her hair strand behind her ear.
It felt odd being back at the café again, especially after he had left so abruptly the last time, and he hadn't even had therapy that day. Yoongi just really needed to get out of the house to get a break, and for him, there was no other place than the Magic Shop to do so. That's how he ended up standing in front of the café on a Saturday evening, after closing time. Luckily for him though, the Kim's were still there, preparing for the next day, and had been nice enough to let him stay until they were done. So, he was sitting in the kitchen, that sadly was way less exciting than he had anticipated, with Jisoo, while Seokjin was outside cleaning the windows.
 
"On my feet, 24/7. I wanted to finish my show, but every time I leave the room, she starts making a crazy amount of noise. I swear, this cat is driving me nuts." Yoongi continued to dwell in his self-pity. "So you just left her there to drive your sister insane instead?" Jisoo chuckled. "Eh... She flew out on a business trip on Friday morning, and when I came home on Thursday, she had been asleep already." he admitted. Jisoo just stared at him. "Are you telling me she doesn't know about the cat yet?" "Well..." "Yoongi, that's horrible. Does she even like cats? Would she even be okay with that?" Jisoo started to question. It wasn't like Yoongi was not aware of what kind of trouble he had gotten himself into with Jennie. He was sure that she would complete lose her shit once she was going to meet her new roommate, not only because she wasn't a big fan of animals in general but because it had broken two pieces of her decor. "I guess it will be okay." Yoongi lied, "I will just try to get the cat house clean by the time she comes back." "And when will that be?" Jisoo asked. "Monday evening." Yoongi mumbled. "Oh fucking hell, that is never going to work. Did you even give this one second of thought?" Jisoo seemed more stressed about the whole situation than Yoongi was. "What was I supposed to do? She needed help and I was the only one around." Yoongi defended himself. Jisoo let out a big sigh. "You have a kind heart, Yoongi, you know that?" He cringed at the compliment. Every time someone would praise him, he couldn't help but feel like they were mocking him. "But if you were my brother, I'd murder you." Jisoo added, laughing in a slightly unsettling way. Yoongi wanted to respond something, but at that moment, Seokjin entered the kitchen. "We should really think about hiring someone to clean. These windows are a pain in the ass." he announced. Jisoo just rolled her eyes. Yoongi promptly felt a bit uneasy, though he had a quick talk with Seokjin outside, he still felt weird because of their last encounter. Yoongi knew he was being a bit dramatic, but the Kims were people whose opinion Yoongi cared about, and that was a rare thing.
"I guess I should go home to my problem child, I'm sure she has already dismantled half of my room by now." he announced. "Then you should really get going." said Seokjin lightly laughing, though, he sounded a bit concerned. Jisoo just shook her head while focusing on the dough she was making. "Alright then, bye you two... and thank you for letting me stay here." Yoongi said a bit awkward while getting up. "No problem, we like having you around." Seokjin said sincerely. Again, Yoongi couldn't help but cringe, nevertheless he gave a quick smile in response as he left. But just as he stepped outside, he heard Seokjin's voice: "Yoongi, wait." He stopped in front of him, while Yoongi was already in the middle of lighting up a cigarette. "What's up?" he asked a bit confused. "We are good right? You know you don't have to be ashamed around me and Jisoo." Yoongi was taken by surprise, not only by Seokjin's directness but also by how easily he picked up on Yoongi's mood. Was he that easy to read? "Listen, I think, I know why you are hanging out in this area of town, and I just want to let you know, that I understand that some things are a bit more complicated for you than for others. I have a friend who is also dealing with some stuff, so don't worry about it, okay?" Yoongi didn't know what to say at first. "Eh, thank you, but I promise I'm good, I just have to get back to the cat." he finally said, unsure why he still felt the need to lie when the truth was so obvious. "Alright then, I'm relieved. Have a nice evening." Seokjin said though Yoongi was sure he didn't believe a word he said. Yoongi nodded, then left, still feeling weird about what had just happend.