Employee of the Multiverse and His Darling Cat

7| Log 002 Pt. 2

The rest of that night and the following morning at work, I was full of resentment.

During lunch break, I told Darcy about what happened as we sat in the building's employee courtyard. I figured a native to this world would know what to do.

Having heard the whole story, Darcy said, "Can't you report it to police? There is probably CCTV to support your case and help them find the culprit. I swear, my bro has never had a customer come back with complaints. The ID is good."

I frowned and shook my head. "Even so, I don't want to risk getting the law involved. What if they want to charge me for cat theft instead of settling?" Seeing as I had no good defense, the thought was terrifying.

"What you need is a third party to intervene." Darcy let out an exasperated sigh, then gnawed at their sandwich. "I know some people who can track down Sweetie's owner if you've got the description. Do you still have their number?"

I reminded Darcy that the person had blocked me the second I said who I was.

"I'm not saying call them again. I'm saying the number can help us track them down."

I informed Darcy I'd deleted it from my call log because just seeing it triggered the memory and my distress.

"Oh, well if you have the flyer still—"

I told Darcy I didn't but left out that I'd used it to scrub down Sweetie's litter box.

"Maybe it's still up around town. My friends can check."

Occasionally, I still fight my curiosity to ask Darcy about their past and connections to all these underground "friends." Instead of replying, I wiped the mustard off Darcy's face with a napkin. It helped relieve some anxiety. I wondered if it was worth the effort and heartache. If the person told me I could never see Sweetie again...

I asked, "Will you take a trip to the department store with me? You wanted a new record player, right? And I can buy another PlushFriend."

Darcy wrinkled their brow. "Your place is full of stuffed animals; is there even room for more?"

"There's always room."

"Why don't you just go to the animal adoption center and get yourself a cat?"

"It's not organic."

"Huh?"

"I want to meet someone organically."

As their eyes darted around with a frown, it seemed like Darcy wanted to say something but decided against it.

"I won't be here for long and no one has tested the safety of sending animals through the portal, right? I don't want to get attached." I slurped my iced chocolate, a wave of sadness washing over again. "Sweetie was a slip-up. Maybe it's better that she's gone."

"She's not gone," Darcy said with an impatient vocal fry. "She's just with her owner." They clapped my shoulder. "Shoving animal companionship to the side, so do you wanna find Sweetie's owner for settlement or not?"

"Let me think about it."

We finished the remainder of our lunch break chatting about other things before the speakers posted into the flower beds played the chime signifying lunch's end.

We cleaned up, then went back to our respective departments, agreeing to meet in the lobby immediately when the workday ended.

When I returned to my desk, my coworker Forest waved to get my attention.

"I saw AM Young in the hallway on my way back," she told me. "He said he wants you to go to his office."

I clicked my tongue, causing Forest to laugh. "Hm? Why are you laughing?"