Monet-Chan
((Dedicated to the sweetest fur baby that had ever wondered into my life. May he rest in peace.))
"Alright, that's the last of them." Yoshiki wiped his brow after setting a tight knit plastic wrapped rice ball in nice little bundle of several other rice balls. "Here's hoping for the best." He sighed to himself.
"Hmm?" He was interrupted in his daily preparations for school by an annoying scratching sound on his door. With an irritated grunt he opened the door a bit and peeked out of his apartment room. "There's not even anyone here."
"Meow!" He jumped a bit at the loud cry that emanated upward and looked down. A blue/grey cat with big, bright blue eyes looked up at him. "Meow!"
"A cat, wonder who this cat belongs to?" He knelt down in front of the little visitor who purred softly, closing those big eyes at him in a sort of kitty like smile. "You look rather familiar though."
"Mmmmerow." The kitty responded back.
"Are you?... No, you can't be." Yoshiki pondered as he looked at the purring creature who now rubbed up against his leg, he stroked the cats back making the kitty purr even louder. He was pretty sure from all the pictures he was shown that he knew this cat, but he had to make himself absolutely sure. "Monet-Chan? Yeah, I think that's it." The cat's ears perked at the mention of the name. "Is that you, Monet-Chan?"
"Brrrreow!" He gave a positive response to the name.
"Ah, you are, you're Yui Sensei's cat." He chuckled a bit and leaned down face to face with Monet. "Do you remember Yui Sensei?"
"Meow!" Monet booped his head against Yoshiki's forehead with nuzzles.
He stood back up and laughed. "I'll take that as a yes." He felt a little comforted by the cat's response to his name, since no one else except his friends remembered Yui, it made him feel better to think her cat remembered. "Hang on little guy, I have some cooked chicken inside. I bet you're pretty hungry."
Monet swished his tail happily. "Meow!"
"Again, that's most likely a yes." He rushed back inside and quickly cut up some chicken for the hungry kitty, serving it to Monet in a small bowl once he returned. He smiled as he watched the cat scarf down the meal then glanced over at his clock on the wall. "Ah crap, I'm going to be late if I don't hurry." After Monet had finished his meal and began licking his chops and washing his face, Yoshiki scooped up the empty bowl and quickly placed it in the sink. He then walked back out the door, rice balls in hand, closing it behind him. He rubbed Monet's head, "Later, little guy."
Later on that day at school during the lunch break, he found it was the same as usual. Same rumors, same ere of confusion, same feeling that someone was missing.
"She didn't show up for school today again. I heard that at least she's out of the hospital." One girl whispered sadly to her friends.
"Yeah, it's been a couple weeks now hasn't it? Poor, class rep; my heart goes out to her." Her friend responded lowering her head.
"The class rep and Nakashima-San, I'm surprised she actually showed up at school, poor thing looks so depressed. I wish we could do something for them, for the both of them." All three of the girls nodded in agreement.
It's been all a buzz over the school, a shroud of sorrow draped over them ever since the news broke. Two traumatized students found with the remains of a young woman, one of the girls had to be hospitalized.
"Hey Satoshi!" Yoshiki called out to his friend and waved.
"O-oh, hey Yoshiki." Satoshi sighed. "I lost track of Naomi once lunch started." He gestured to the rice balls he was holding. "Is that for what I think it is again?"
Yoshiki nodded. "Yeah, maybe it will make her feel better."
"I'm not so sure. It was her sister."
"I know." At that exact time Naomi slowly made her way across the hall.
"H-hey there Naomi, want to have lunch together?" She paused when Satoshi called out to her. Glancing up, her tear streaked face matched her all around demeanor.
"Oh…. No….. I'm…. Not hungry." She then turned and made her way away from the two.
"Wait, hey wait up Naomi." Satoshi turned briefly to Yoshiki and muttered a 'Good luck' before darting after Naomi.
Later that day…
Yoshiki sighed sorrowfully as he exited the building, the bell indicting that school was out. Various chatter ran amongst the students and became monotonous noise at he looked down at the rice balls in his hands. His best friend soon caught up to him.
"I'm gonna go see if I can walk Naomi home. It's a long walk for you, you sure you don't want our company?"
"Nah, you need to focus on your job. Nakashima is a wreck, get to it."
"Heh, you got a point." He chuckled a bit but was interrupted by a loud noise. Yoshiki knew it from this morning.
"Meow!"
"Hey, who's cat?" "Aww, kitty. So cute." Came the voices of the students as Yoshiki's eyes focused on Monet waiting patiently for him outside the gates.
"You-You followed me here?" Yoshiki muttered in disbelief.
"Meow." The cat responded.
"Is that your cat Kishinuma?" One student asked. Knowing that bringing up Yui would only confuse the students just as much as it did the last time, there was only one answer he could give.
"Y-Yeah."
"Aww, he loves his owner so much he came to visit." Another student gushed.
"H-hey, isn't that?..." Satoshi began.
"Monet-Chan."
The two spun around to see a sullen Naomi behind them.
"Yes….." Satoshi nodded, not wanting to draw on the fact that Yui's cat has attached itself to Yoshiki, he decided to go along with the sudden charade. "That's a cat who loves his owner. Hey, Naomi you want to walk home together?"
She seemed to be in a trance as she stared at the cat that was rubbing against Yoshiki's legs. "O…..Kay."
She kept her eyes on the kitty as Satoshi grabbed a hold of her arm and walked away with her. Yoshiki scooped up Monet and tucked him into his red undershirt, the kitty purred loudly and cuddled up to him causing many of the female students to gush and squeal.
"Well, as long as you're here now, maybe you'll be able to make her happy." With that, Yoshiki made his way to his destination.
After a long walk…
It took about an hour but he had made it to his stop, the small estate looked calm on the outside, but it was filled with sorrow and misery on the inside. He took in a deep breath and walked up to the door ringing the bell. It only took a few moments before the door was opened and he was greeted by its residence.
"Hello Mister and Misses Shinozaki. I have her assignments with me, along with some snacks." He greeted.
"It's nice to see you back again Kishinuma, you've been so kind to our daughter; especially after recent events." Ms. Shinozaki began to tear up, her husband held her close.
"It's no big deal really; I know her sister would want her to feel better as soon as possible. I'm just trying to help." He tried his best to reassure the grieving mother.
"Meow."
"Oh, you even brought her a friend. That your kitty?" She giggled.
"Yes, his name is Monet."
"Aw, how cute."
"She's up and talking now, so she's doing a bit better." Mr. Shinozaki smiled a bit. "Thanks for your support; we'll take you to her.
"Ayumi honey, Kishinuma is here to see you again." Ms. Shinozaki said as they directed him into her room. "We'll leave you two alone."
The two parents left as he wondered over to her bed and sat down in her chair next to the sketch table. She was sitting up in her bed clad in her pink pajamas; she turned to look at him once her parents walked in with him. Her now dull and listless blue eyes unwavering from him as soon as he entered the room, she had her hands folded in her lap and she remained expressionless.
"Hey Shinozaki, I thought you might like something to eat. So I brought some rice balls I made. Oh, and I have your current assignments too." He placed the rice balls in her lap and her eyes turned their focus on them. Slowly she pulled one out and unwrapped it. She took small nibbles and lowered her head.
"They're really salty."
"Oh, sorry, that's how I usually like them; guess I just made them the same way out of force of habit."
"You're cooking and overuse of Sodium makes me sick." She whined much to his discontent, he sighed as his brow furrowed.
"Meow!" Monet leapt out of his shirt and onto her bed. She gasped at the sight of him.
"M-Monet-Chan!"
Yoshiki chuckled, "Yeah, he showed up on my door step this morning. Weird huh?" He paused when he noticed tears slowly form in her eyes and trickle down her face as she pulled off pieces of the rice ball and fed it to Monet, who gladly gobbled it up purring loudly.
"I think he remembers Yui Sensei. That's something right?"
"What does it matter?!" She blurted out as she pulled her knees to her chest and curled up into a ball. "I've lost so much, so much Kishinuma! Even if Monet remembers or not, Sensei is still gone!" She was bawling now and his expression faltered, he had no idea on how to comfort her right now. "Our friends had gone so horribly, I just wanted to bring them back, I just wanted our friends back! I was so stupid! Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! If I hadn't of done that Onee-Chan would still be here. If I hadn't found that stupid charm! It's all my fault! It's all….. My fault." She held her head crying for her sister.
"Meeooww!" Monet rubbed against Ayumi's face as if desperately trying to dry her tears. She paused and ran her hand along his back.
"Shi-Shinozaki. Your sister wouldn't want you to suffer like this. Nothing is your fault."
"How in the fuck would you know what my sister would want?! It's all my fault, it's my fault that she, that they're all gone. Suzumoto, Shinohara, Yui Sensei, Morishige. Even my sister, why? Why did she have to be there?" She broke out into more sobbing fits. "Why did I even have to get Nakashima involved in that, I know I just wanted her to be happy with Shinohara again, but I should have known, from what my sister said…. Look what I did to her?!" She cried out.
"Nakashima is only depressed because she witnessed you lose someone special. She cares about you!" Yoshiki felt himself choke up.
"She was there because of me, because of my foolishness! She shouldn't have seen that, I shouldn't have seen that; to see her die in my arms, to be in that situation, where she just died over me! My sister is dead! She's dead because of me!" She began to tremble. "You know what it's like to witness someone you care deeply about die?!"
"Of course….." Were the only words that escaped his lips. "I remember Suzumoto's and Yui Sensei's end quite vividly."
"And it's because of me that you do! Because of me that they're gone! Because I had to do that stupid charm."
"You had no idea-."
"But I should have known what I was dealing with by trying to bring them back. How stupid of me!"
"You just wanted us all to be happy again, you had the best intentions."
"It was my fault that they're all gone. That she's gone! She shouldn't have taken my place. I should have accepted my fate. I should have died that night!"
"Shinozaki!" He lunged at her, enveloping her in a tight embrace, pinning her to her bed. She gasped loudly at his actions. Monet wondered up and stood his front paws on her leg, gazing at them with concern. Tears were streaming down his face. "Stop saying this. There's no reason…. No reason for you to be saying such things. This is not your fault; it's not your fault at all!" He buried her face against her neck. "We've lost our friends, our Sensei… And, we…. I can't lose you. I've lost so much already, I can't lose a person I truly care deeply about. You mean so much to me….."
"W-Why?" She muttered. "Why have you been coming over to see me every day since the day my sister died? What makes me so important?"
He held her tighter as he felt more tears forming in his eyes. "That day that we met, I could never forget what you did for me. You know, by stopping me from punching that asshole in his ugly smug face."
"That was important to you? I was only concerned for another student's wellbeing!"
"Not many have done that Shinozaki. You're very special to me, I don't want to lose you, and I don't want you to even think of dying because I…." His breath hitched a bit but, he couldn't just end it there he had already came this far so quickly, so now for him there was no turning back. "Because I love you." He whispered feeling his body tremble.
She felt more tears streak down her cheeks. "Wh-what? Wh-wh-." She stuttered.
"You mean everything to me, that's why I've been here for you. I want to be by your side when you're down like this. In fact, I want to be by your side when you're happy too. I just want to be with you. I know you like Satoshi and all and it's a little frustrating but, for now I just want you to know how I feel and I know you don't feel the same way. But right now, I just want to be here for you. Just let me be here, by your side."
"I…. I. Kishinuma-Kun." Tears flowed from her eyes. "I'm not sure I understand. I wish I had my parents to talk to about this, about that damn charm, about these feelings, about this guilt of what I've done."
"Someday, you will understand, and you will always have me to talk to and our friends." He pulled away from her and looked into her eyes and smiled. "But you did nothing, you're not at fault for anything, remember that. If you don't you have me to remind you."
"Meow." Monet had curled up next to them, purring softly.
"And we have Monet. He'll always listen and be there for everyone."
"What makes you say that?"
"Because, that's what pets like cats do, they're always here to listen and love you and be there for you." He paused and rubbed the back of his neck. "I hope I'm not crossing the line, but I hope one day that I'll be like that for you some day." He smiled a bit as he looked back into her eyes. She was still trembling but smiled genuinely back at him and held his hand in hers, it made him blush quite a bit.
"I think I'll be able to go to school tomorrow. Thanks Yoshiki-kun." She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "Thanks for bringing Monet-Chan. He's very comforting."
He blushed a bit more at the sweet gesture and the fact that she referred to him by his first name. "I'm glad he showed up with me, it's good to have him around."
"Meow!"
"I just assume that means yes." He laughed his red face becoming its normal color again. She giggled as well wiping away her tears. She then reached up and wiped away his, making his blush return.
"Really, thank you. And thank you too Monet-Chan."
Monet looked up at her purring and closing his eyes at her as if he was saying 'You're welcome.'
"Of course, thank you too." He smiled leaning against her. She wrapped her arms around him and gave him a squeeze, it appeared as though she understood what he meant then.
"Meow." Monet spoke up, stretching out a paw and closing his eyes at them smiling his little kitty smile as if to say 'I'll always be there for you. Forever.'
((Gah, I felt so many feels about my kitty Tigg when I edited this! I'll miss my kitty, but I know he'll always be there for me. It's been a week since he's passed on to the rainbow bridge, and I still feel like crying. May he frolic in fields of cat nip for all eternity. *Ahem* Feels aside, I will be posting more chapters once I figure out all the kinks. Stay posted peeps, Imma go look at pictures of my Tigg in remembrance.))