Pinkmilk || English

3

"Pinkmilk is here for a bath."

With the cat in her arms, Queen moves to place her in the sink where they had previously bathed Mr. Giggles. From the sink, Pinkmilk looks up at Kong with her big, blue eyes.

And then, Kongpob reacts.

He runs out of the room, through the doors until he reaches the reception area. His eyes search for Arthit, Pinkmilk's owner, but soon realises that he's too late. Arthit has already left.

"What's the matter with you, Kong?"

Queen's voice pipes up from behind him. She sounds worried, and Kong confirms this when he turns to look at her.

"My phone," he replies, taking the device that he'd left on the surface of the counter and showing it to his sister. He can't tell her that, for the past days, he'd been anxiously waiting for that boy to come back. "I thought I heard it ringing."

Queen rolls her eyes.

"Come on, Pinkmilk is waiting. And then, I want you to help me bathe the dogs."

Nodding, Kong takes his phone and puts it in his pocket, simultaneously following his sister back into the area with the animals.

They bathe Pinkmilk between them, Kong much contented with the prospect of seeing Arthit again at the end of the afternoon when he would return to pick up his cat.

And that is what happens.

While Queen attends to a client in another room, Kong is in the back area of the clinic feeding the animals, when, suddenly, for the umpteenth time that day, the doorbell chimes to indicate the opening of the door.

Immediately, he puts down the plate of food inside Onyx's cage and closes it before running in the direction of the reception area. When he gets there, the smile that he had diligently practised over the last few days finally appears on his lips, and following a short breath, he greets him:

"Hello."

There, in front of him, the same boy from a few days ago is back. This time, Arthit doesn't look at the floor, or least not at first. He looks back at Kongpob, with the trace of a small smile and his cheeks turning slightly pink.

How cute, Kongpob thinks.

"Hello. Um...I'm here for my cat." the boy says. "I mean, um, my sister's cat. Pinkmilk. Yes, definitely not my cat. My sister's cat."

So cute, Kongpob repeats to himself.

"Oh," he nods after several moments of not being able to take his eyes off of such an adorable human being. "Sure, come with me."

Kong gestures at the door leading to the back room of the clinic, and Arthit follows, looking around curiously as they pass through another door, until they reach the area with the animals.

"Pinkmilk behaved very well," Kong says, opening the cage where she is, and pulling her out carefully. He can't help pressing his nose into her fur to give her a small kiss on the head. "She's a very...sweet cat." he laughs at his own joke.

In front of him, Arthit also gives a small laugh that sounds beautiful to Kong. He stretches out his arms to hand him his pet.

"She's always been like that," Arthit responds as he takes her, stroking her fur, now whiter and softer from the bath. The sweet aroma reaches his nostrils, and his smiles. "Thanks."

Spellbound by the boy's smile, Kong is unable to do more than simply nod. His gaze rises from his lips to his eyes. He realises that they're looking at him, and that, like his lips, they're smiling in his direction. He sighs.

"So..."

Kong snaps out of his trance, blinking a couple of times noticing that he'd been frozen in place for at least a minute. Arthit's smile becomes wider, and he appears amused.

"Oh, right. I'll walk you out."

Arthit is about to say something, but seems to change his mind and simply nods and follows Kong back to the reception.

The two boys stop again next to the counter.

Arthit, with his cat now leaning on his shoulder, reaches into his back pocket and pulls out a couple of bills.

Kong would be lying if, for a moment, he'd thought that Arthit had been about to give him his number.

"I almost forgot," Arthit says, offering him the bills. "It's the other half for the bath. I already paid an advance to the woman who attended to me earlier."

"Ah, right. My sister," Kong says, taking the bills, still a little flustered about his previous thought. "Thanks."

"Oh, I see," Arthit murmurs. There's something in his expression that intrigues Kong, and he raises an eyebrow in his direction. "No, it's nothing. It's just...aren't you too young to be working here?"

Kong purses his lips, holding back a giggle.

"It's just a part-time job. You know, for the summer."

"Oh, right," the boy nods. "It must be nice working with animals."

"Only when I get to play with them," Kong replies, letting out a chuckle that he'd been biting back. "And only with the cats. Especially the ones that are as affectionate as Pinkmilk."

"Yeah, well..." Arthit continues to stroke the cat's fur, his sentence trailing off to sink them back into another silence that lasts only a few moments. "Well, I'll see you...um...?"

"Kongpob."

"Kongpob," Arthit repeats with a smile. "I'll see you later, and thanks again for taking care of my cat. I-I mean, my sister's cat." he quickly corrects himself.

Kongpob laughs, aloud this time.

"Sure, Arthit. It's been a pleasure. Bye, Pinkmilk." he gently waves goodbye.

Nodding a few times, Arthit turns around and leaves the clinic. The last thing Kongpob sees are Pinkmilk's big blue eyes looking in his direction.

--

"Why didn't you ask him out?"

Kong glares at M, snorting as his friend waggles his eyebrows up and down suggestively.

They'd agreed to meet that same afternoon after finishing their respective jobs. They're at a cafe down the street, an intermediate point between their workplaces.

Since their arrival about an hour ago, M has been questioning Kong about his progress with the adorable owner of the adorable cat named Pinkmilk. Of course, Kong had told him about what had happened a little while ago.

"No, M. I don't even know if he likes me. I don't even know if he's gay or bisexual, or if there's anything that indicates that I have a chance."

"I can't believe it. I honestly don't recognise you, Kong."

Kong puffs his lips into a pout, staring at the straw in his glass of iced coffee.

"Where's the popular guy who makes all the high school girls fall at his feet? Come on, even I've already got a date with the boss's daughter."

M sighs so peculiarly that it makes Kong look up, observing him with an amused expression.

"I'm truly happy for you," he says with a beguiled grin. "You're finally going on your first date, and, if you're lucky, you're going to have your first girlfriend."

"It's just you left, Kong!" M exclaims. "Ask him out! It's not that hard to just say 'Hey,'" he says with a more serious tone, attempting to imitate his best friend's voice. "'Let's grab a drink. I get off in fifteen minutes.' And then you wink at him. Guaranteed success!"

Kong starts to laugh.

"If that's how you asked your poor boss's daughter out, then I feel sorry for her."

"Fine, but at least I have a date."

"M!"