"Meow," something pats the tip of my noes. I frown, and squeeze my eyes shut. "Meow." Something hits my noes this time, and then does so in recession.
"Mmm..." I sit up slowly, and am eye to eye wish a pair of soft, mossy green spheres.
"Meow." Then something strange happens. The cat nods. I instinctively look to where it was indication, to see the window. But I instantly get what he wants. The clouds are brewing. It's getting bad.
"Okay, time to go to the cellar." I grab my back pack, make sure I have some food for both me and the cat, and flashlights, and a couple blankets. I grab the first aid kit and a few towels too, just in case, as well as the pills and medicinal supplies. All of that gets crammed into the back pack, and I gently pick up the cat. He looks a little better, but scared.
"It's okay. Nothing is going to hurt you, sweety." I say, and then head for the broom closet. I push the door shut behind me before opening the little on floor door and climbing done the stairs. I sit him down and start lighting candles before I go back up and pull the door shut.
The is a loud bang, and I quickly go back down the stairs. The cat is laying on the blanket. He looks distressed, upset. I reach out and brush my fingers against his ears. "Shh. It's just a storm, sweety." I murmur. He starts to purr quietly, and his front legs make a move towards me. I shake my head at him, and reach for him, gently bringing him to lay between my knees on the floor.
"Just go to sleep for a little bit. Everything is fine." I murmur. "Everything is fine." Quiet purrs answer me, and the little cat is very soon off to sleep.
My hand continues to stroke the cat, and I listen to the storm howling above my head. I lean back, and pull my glasses off. I've gotten so used to wearing them that it doesn't effect me much to see and understand the variations of color in actual shade, but when I take the glasses off, and my eyes find the ceiling of the room once more, I'm struck by its lightness. It's comforting, in a way, it makes things less... nerve racking.
My eye slowly drifts shut, and sleep takes me over.
———
When I wake up; it's to the door being open.
My heart freezes in my chest, and I look around. There is no light. But I can hear the quiet foot steps defending the stairs... it sounds like whoever it is has a limp, but that is all I can hear.
I quickly reach for the cat, but I don't feel it. Shit! How can I lose a freaking cat that was in his condition?
Suddenly a lighter is being lit, and then several candles consecutively follow.
A small guy on a familiars looking pair of boxer shorts and a jacket- the same jacket I was wearing earlier, stands there. He has odd silver hair. But he is really... beautiful? I guess.
I mean, I like guys, always have. But I've never seen someone quiet as perfect as him. He's a little skinny- nothing a good few months wouldn't help fix- what the fuck am I thinking?! This guy is in my house- he got in my house and my cat is gone and he just is lighting candles like it's no big deal.
"Who the hell are you?!" I demand, more mad at myself for not asking sooner. The boy jumps, and turns to face me. His left leg, that's what he is limping on.
"N-no one." He says quickly. "I-"
"Well, no one, what are you doing? And have you seen a cat?" I look around, but I can't find him.
The boy suddenly burst out laughing.
My eyes lock on his and my anger flairs. "What the hell are you, nuts? My cat is gone- and in his condition, in this weather, it could kill him."
"I'm not your cat." He frowns at me me, and I look at him.
"I never said that you were my- why would I call some weird boy my cat? No, I'm looking for a cat, he's is grey, and had green eyes, and his back left leg is h-h-hurt..."
"Yeah, and my name isn't sweety either... but thanks for the medical treatment." The boy says, and then he comes over to me, and I catch something behind him flickering. "Let's get this straight. I'm not a human. I'm not a cat. I'm a neko. See?" He sits in front of me and the thing that was flicking behind him lands in his lap. "Here." He takes my hand and pulls it over. My eyes are fixed onto his tail. His freaking tail... and then I'm touching it.
"It's soft." I mumble, and gently graze the soft fur.
"Well, I took a risk and used the shower upstairs." He says, and then his eyes fall. "Why aren't you freaking out? Most people would freak out about this."
"Well, swee-heh, Sorry, habit. Umm... I don't know? I'm not a person that likes to judge others..." Shit. I look around desperately, and squeeze my eye shut when I don't see my glasses- "Oh, God." I grumble, and reach up, covering my scared over eye with my hair.
"What's the matter?" He asks quickly, and I shake my head, looking down at my lap.
"Nothing... I just can't find my glasses." I say, keeping my head down cast.
"Hey." He Damn near snaps at me, and then his hand is under my chin and lifting my face. "Don't hide it from me. You didn't before."
"Before you were just a cat. Not some guy." I grumble, trying to pull away, but he stops me, his fingers tightening on my chin. "Let me go."
"No." He says it like it is the simplest thing in the whole world, and then soft hair is brushing against the side of my face and I flinch away from him. "Stop." He whispers, and then he leans in and presses his cool lips gently to my cheek bone, just under my eye. "You are the most beautiful boy I have ever seen. And your scar is so intriguing."
"It just shows how weak I am." I mutter, my cheeks full blown burning. He isn't pulling back. His warm breathe caresses the sensitive skin around the place my eye used to be, as I shiver slightly.
"No. You survived it. You lived, and the scar is here to remind you of that every single day. It's like a Medal of Honor. You should be proud." Then he gently kisses the scar it's self.
My heart is beating out of my chest at this point, and I look up in time to see him looking down at me strangely. His green eyes meet my eye, and he gives me a small smile.
"And for your information, sweety. My name is Alec." He pulls away, and sits down directly in front of me. I shake my head, trying to get myself to stop blushing, and am low key grateful as all fuck that he can't see my cheeks in the low light of candles.
"Umm... I hate to sound like a needy brat and all, but can you re wrap my leg? The bone is better, but the infection- you just did a really good job on it the first time-"
"Sure- why didn't you ask before? It's better to keep these things dry- and oh! You must be in pain, here." I grab out one of the pain pills and an antibiotic too, handing it too him- alone with a can of soup. "It's best not to take them on an empty stomach, sorry the soup isn't warm." I say, and then look down at his leg... "could you put your foot in my lap?" I ask, and he is quick to do so, and when I look up, I see him eating his soup. "Did you take them?"
"Yeah." He says, and I nod once before I pull my hair back into a low ponytail like I did the first time.
I turn his leg to get a look at it. My eye nearly falls out of my head when I see how the lacerations has healed. It's damn near gone, hardly something I would consider lethal "Your bone should have taken at least three weeks to heal, and the cut- how did you-"
"I'm a mythical creature, do you honestly think I don't also have some mythical abilities? If it weren't for the severity of the infection before you cleaned it, it would have healed all ready. And after you set the bone, well, that started healing instantly. This should be a lot better than before, but I don't want to take chances." He says, and I nod.
"Okay- so just- be still, okay?" I ask, and set to work on his leg, cleaning it, and then pouring iodine over it before slathering the edges in a gel like substance to keep it from sticking to the bandage, which I quickly wrap around his calf, followed by an ace bandage to keep it held in place, only to wrap it in a thine later of clear plastic, to keep the bandage dry, but give it room to breathe, so that he doesn't self infect it further with his sweat.
"There we go, Alec." I say and look up to him. I'm not surprised to find him asleep, his back laying on the floor.
Hmm... I gently set his leg aside and then grab the small cot. I am quick to unfold it and lay it on the floor. I look at him- he is skinny, so this should definitely be a peice if cake.
I was wrong. It's not a piece of cake. Never underestimate a persons weight because they appear to suffer from malnutrition. I do, however, mange to get him onto the thin cot and prop his leg up, before covering him and stuffing a pillow under his head.
I sigh, and then look around. I pick up a small radio and pull the headphones out of my backpack. I listen to weather updates.
Most of them say the same thing, on repeat. To take shelfer, and stay in said shelter. Warnings of tornadoes have not passed. I am severely tempted to go upstairs and look around, but I don't. I stay in the cellar and keep my hands on the radio.
"Hey! Hey, wake up!" I sit up quickly, and look around, the room is dark. Completely dark. And the ear buds are letting out a piercing screech sound. I look up, but I can't see anything in the pitch dark.
"Alec?" I ask quietly. "I can't see you- it's too dark."
"Yeah, it's me. I know it's dark- the candles ran down. But the radio, it's telling people to that they need to stay down stairs. I think it would be a good idea if I-"
"Your not going up." I quickly say. "No- you can't."
"You can't see, though. It has to be uncomfortable.
"In my backpack, there is a flashlight... can you see? I mean-".
"Yea, I can see. Give me a second." There is a quiet tussling sound, and then a beam of light is being shined at me. "Okay, Captain. Next?"
"Just sit." I tell him, and then go to one of the small doors. "We're probably gonna be down here for a couple more days at the least. So, tour time. This is the bathroom. There is enough water in the tank leading directly to this room to last a single person a month on a request use. So it should last us at least a couple week if it gets to that."
Then I go over to the little cabinet- "just can foods. There is a fridge down here, that is connected to a solar panel, but it only has extra things like butter- I think it has a bit of meat- but nothing really. Sorry about that. Umm... there are clothes under the stairs, in the dresser... oh, and under the sink is a first aid kit."
"You sure have this place prepared." He says, his code sounds confused. "The storms aren't usually this bad. Why do you have everything down here?" He asks,
