To Be

To Be Cared For

Well hey there guys! 

Sorry it's been so long. I kind of forgot I was writing the story on this website, heh heh. In other words yeah, updates are still slow. When are they not slow, am I right?

The chapter itself is not one of my finest, but the next chapter will feature Mark's POV. Yay, how exciting!

Anyways, on with Chapter 5.

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After getting Mark out of the crate, the next step was to introduce him to the house layout, and show him where his room was. Sean really hoped Mark liked his room, and would be excited about customizing it. There was also an empty closet that Sean would help him fill. They might want to go get him some clothes soon, seeing as all he had was what he was wearing.

Mark was still very cautious as Sean led him around. He always kept a grip on Mark's elbow, to help support Mark since he was limping from the wound on his leg. The Neko never stopped trembling and his ears were always plastered to his head, but as they went on through the house the trembling lessened slightly, and his ears came up to a normal position. This made Sean hopeful that Mark wasn't past saving. That was something Audrey had warned him about. Mark might be so scarred by what he went through that he could be this way the rest of his life. The idea made him so sad he tried not to think about if he couldn't help him.

Sean led Mark up the stairs to where the bedrooms were. Sean showed Mark his room first, wanting to leave Mark's as a best for last moment.

"And this is my room. Normally it's super messy, but I wanted it to be clean for your arrival," Sean brought him deeper into the room, "There's my bed and my computer. Oh and that's my wall of little figurines!" Mark looked around while trying to look like he wasn't. Sean would've chuckled if he wasn't worried about scaring him.

"I-I-It's n-n-nice," Mark said quietly. Sean was surprised that Mark spoke considering he hadn't said anything since thanking him earlier. Sean smiled, "Thank you! I'm glad you like it. I spend most of my time in here. It's my job to shout into a microphone and play games. You can come in here anytime you need something. Alright?" Mark nodded.

"Now I've saved the best room for last," Sean said, excitement glowing through his voice. He didn't see Mark's slightly worried face but he did feel his trembles pick up again as he led him to the last room of the tour. Sean opened the white door and revealed to Mark his room. The walls were a whitish color and the floor was hardwood, like most of the rest of the house. Against the far wall was a full sized bed. The wall to the right of the bed was dominated by a window with blue curtains and white blinds. There was another door in the room across from the bed, which led to a small walk in closet, and to the left of the bed was a computer desk with Sean's old computer and computer chair.

Mark looked around the room, fearing that more than one person lived with Sean. He didn't think he'd be up to meeting more people. He was also wondering where he'd sleep. There hadn't been a kennel in any of the rooms his Master had shown him. He knew his Master had said he had his own room, but Mark was quite sure that was wasn't true. He wasn't good enough to get his own room, with a bed that was probably better than sleeping on the floor.

When Mark didn't immediately wander around his room, Sean got worried. Did Mark not like the room? "Ah, Mark?" Mark immediately turned to him as though Sean had yelled his name, "This is your room. Remember I told you about it earlier?"

Mark's eyes widened a little, and he looked at the room and back at Sean a couple of times before he quietly asked, "W-Wha-?" His voice cracked in the middle of his question, causing him to wince and rub his throat. Sean watched him sadly, when he saw a hint of panic in his eyes. He decided to leave Mark in the room and go grab him a glass of water. "I'll be right back, okay Mark?" he asked. Mark's ears flicked and he nodded, but didn't look up at Sean.

Sean came back to find Mark was still standing where he'd left him. Sean brought the cup of water to Mark and placed it in one of his clenched hands. Mark looked at the cup before glancing at Sean through his bangs, as though he was waiting for something. Internally, he smacked himself in the forehead. Mark only ate or drank things when told too. He suddenly felt determined, that if there was one thing he was going to do, it was going to be to teach Mark he could eat and drink when he wanted to. For now though he should get Mark comfortable in his new setting. That was advice the class had given him.

"It's okay to drink," Sean said softly, trying to make it sound like he was being casual.

Immediately after he said that, Mark started to drink the water, but not with the same fervor as the cream. Sean waited till he was done, before taking Mark's hand into his own and raising his chin to look at him in the eyes. "Mark," he started, "this is a new home, and I'm a new owner. I won't be anything like your old one, and the rules of this house will definitely not be the same. I want you to be comfortable and when you're not I want you to feel like you can tell me that you want something to make you comfortable. I want you to know that whenever you want to eat something it's alright. You don't have to wait for me to tell you it's okay. If there was ever something I didn't want you to have I'd tell you," Sean realised his chin here, but Mark kept looking at Sean, "This is a new start for you, and I promise that you are going to be treated with respect. I won't ever hit you Mark, and I hope in time you can believe me when I tell you that."

Mark looked at the floor again with bangs covering his eyes. Sean was immediately worried that he'd made Mark afraid. He hadn't meant to get so passionate in his speech, but words had just started coming out of his mouth and they'd felt right to say. He did want Mark to know all this, but maybe saying it all at once was to overwhelming for Mark.

His worrying was interrupted by Mark squeezing his hand. Sean was surprised, but focused his full attention on Mark.

"B-But w-w-why wo-uld you d-do that?" Mark asked tearfully, "I'm a b-bad Ne-e-ko. I-I deserve the p-punish-m-ment I get."

Sean swallowed back a lump in his throat. Did Mark really believe he deserved the way he had been treated? Had anyone ever told him he was good or that he should have better?

'No, they haven't' He answered in his head.

Slowly, Sean let go of Mark's hand before reaching up and scratching behind his ear. Mark flinched at first, but when he realized it felt good he relaxed slightly. "Whoever told you that is wrong, Mark. No one deserves to be treated that way. Not even the worst Neko." Sean stood there petting Mark before he heard a soft rumbling noise. The source was coming from Mark, and Sean smiled as he realized Mark was purring. He gave him a few last scratches before going on to explain that this was his room. There'd be no pet bed or uncomfortable floor for him. He also explained they'd go out and get Mark new clothes, which Sean was happy to say, Mark looked mildly excited about.

He was confident that Mark wasn't past help. He'd be okay with a lot of TLC and love.

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So yeah, look forward to Chapter 6. Thanks so much for reading!!

Also, on a last quick note, would anyone want to see Neko!Felix be included? I mean like as another Neko Sean adopts? Other people on other websites seem to want this and I'm just looking to see if it's a common want.

Welp that's it for now. See you next time!