CHAPTER FIVE
Jumin was surprised when Catherine the Great jumped straight at V. Her immediate attachment to the other man actually caused him to reconsider. What if his kitten preferred V and didn't want to stay with him anymore?
It was a good thing that he didn't tell V what he was planning. Now, he just needed to grab her back…
"Yeow!" Catherine suddenly jumped away from V after knocking his sunglasses off. She quickly scampered off and disappeared beneath the couch.
"Catherine!" He knelt down, peeking into the small crevice to see her trembling in the dark. She was curled up so tightly that she could probably fit on his palm.
"I'm sorry. I must've scared her," V apologised. "Perhaps I should come back another day?" He had a sad smile on his face.
Jumin shook his head. "No. Stay. I had the chef cook for two today."
"Very well," V agreed with a nod.
"Kitten, come out," he urged one more time, but instead of going towards him like she usually did, she darted off out of sight. Something heavy settled in his heart.
Catherine the Great had never behaved in such a way before. She was very affectionate, never shying away from him. The last time he had seen her so frightened was when he first found her in the alley. What had done this to her? V was possibly one of the least threatening people he knew.
With a sigh, he sat down across from his childhood friend. "How have you been? It feels as if I haven't seen you in a very long time."
"I'm well. Just came back to organise a few things at home." V had been different ever since Rika died. Yoosung always thought that V got over her death too quickly, but it was clear to Jumin that that wasn't the case. V was grieving in his own way. He was much more distant and it was nearly impossible to reach him sometimes.
It was worrying that he was alone so often and how his health was visibly deteriorating.
"The others all miss you."
V gave him another closed-lipped smile that never reached his eyes. "I miss them as well."
Why did it feel as if they were now two strangers making small talk? Hadn't they grown up together? They had been best friends since childhood.
Now, he was barely someone he knew and he wasn't sure how to fix it.
When they finished eating, he was dissatisfied with the reunion.
"I should get going, now." V stood up as soon as he finished the rest of his wine. "Thank you for inviting me over. I truly do miss you and I apologise again for scaring her."
"I missed you, too. Take care. If you need help, you know you can come to me." Even with this offer, it seemed unlikely that V would accept it.
Once he was gone, Jumin ran his hand through his hair. He had to go find Catherine the Great and figure out why removing V's sunglasses had spooked her so much.
"Catherine the Great? Come out. V's gone." He looked around for her, but she was nowhere to be found.
He systematically went through each room a second time before consulting Elizabeth the 3rd. 'Hello, princess…" He gathered her into his arms. "Do you know where you little sister is hiding?"
"Meow." She rolled in his lap, staring innocently at him.
He sighed.
He had to find Catherine the Great, soon. She was small enough to get stuck in places that could be dangerous for her.
"Meow!" Elizabeth the 3rd leapt off his lap and turned her head to look at him.
Feeling fortunate to have such a faithful companion, he was taken into his room and into the walk-in closet. There didn't seem to be anything out of place.
He pushed away suits and ties, opened drawers and looked behind shoes. It wasn't until he peered into his laundry basket did he notice a white fluffy tail peeking out from beneath an equally white dress shirt.
Lifting the shift, he was met with a heartbreaking sight.
Large green eyes, sad and fearful stared back at him. She shrunk back as he reached down towards her, causing him to hesitate. Her reaction hurt. He thought they had become close. Had he lost her trust when he tried to hand her over to V?
"Kitten…"
Thankfully, she didn't try to run away again. Instead, she did something else that shot another arrow into his heart.
"Mew…" She let out a heart-wrenching whimper, her tiny body trembled as she continued to stare at him. If she could cry, he knew the tears would be flowing.
"What's wrong?" he quietly asked. "I apologise how things turned out. If you do not want anyone else to look after you, I will figure something else out."
She cried again, her small ears were pressed flat against her head.
He pressed the heel of his palm against his eyes. He had to fix this.
"Catherine the Great, why are you looking at me as if I've betrayed your trust? I would never do anything to hurt you. If you don't want to see V, I won't ever force you." He reached out again and this time, he was able to gently stroke her head.
"Mew…"
"Don't look at me this way," he mumbled, carefully gathering her into his arms. There were some half-hearted struggles, but after a minute, she was cuddled against his chest.
Once he was certain that she wasn't going to run, he carried her to his bed. He gently ran his hand through her fur until her eyes drooped and she finally fell asleep.
[Update]
707: Seven, Defender of Justice is here!
V has entered the chatroom.
707: It's V!
V: Hello, Luciel.
Jumin Han has entered the chatroom.
V: Hello, Jumin.
Is Catherine the Great feeling better?
707: Something happened to my cutie pie?!
Jumin Han: Catherine the Great is sleeping now.
I found her in my laundry basket.
Do you know why she reacted that way with you?
707: What happened?
What happened?
V: I am uncertain why she was scared of me, but allow me to apologise once more.
The last thing I wanted to do was frighten her.
707: Stop ignoring me!
I want to know how my Cutie Catie is doing!
Jumin Han: Her name is Catherine the Great and I told you she is sleeping right now.
707: Send me a photo!
I wanna seeeee!
Jumin Han: No.
Your eyes are unworthy.
V: Did you have something to update us about?
707: Yes!
I have a new project and won't be coming on here for a while
Jumin Han: …
I do not see how that pertains to us.
V: I hope you stay safe.
707: Thank V!
Juju! Why you gotta be so mean?
Jumin Han: I am merely stating the obvious.
But if it appeases you, I do hope you stay safe, as well.
707: Thanks! Does that mean I get to say goodbye to Elly and Catty Cakes first?
Who know when I'll see them again…
Jumin Han: I will never allow you to be near Elizabeth the 3rd nor Catherine the Great,
Cat abuser.
707: Don't be mean!
You always keep the princesses locked up in your tower!
Evil wizard!
I, The Defender of Justice, shall rescue them one day!
Jumin Han has left the chatroom.
He sighed, laying down beside Catherine the Great as he placed his phone down on the mattress beside him.
She looked so comfortable slumbering here that he didn't have the heart to move her back to her own bed.
He bade Elizabeth and 3rd good night before washing up. When he was done, the kitchen managed to slip into his pillow case, leaving only her small pink nose visible.
Laying down, he was careful not to disturb her and only used the only side of the pillow. Even from there, he could feel her warmth.
It was comforting – welcomed.
He wouldn't mind it if she stayed here every night. Elizabeth the 3rd was a little more independent, so she tended to go wherever she wanted in the penthouse.
Catherine the Great, however, demanded more attention.
If he could, he'd spoil her all day – spend every second of every minute with her.
Perhaps he should just bring her to work with him. He could install a television there. He knew for a fact that she'd enjoy that.
What else could he give her?
He fell asleep with dreams of kittens and toys dancing around him.
The next day, he was woken up by something tickling his nose. He reached up to find something warm and fluffy where his face should've been.
He opened one eye to see Catherine curled up against him. Her face was screwed into an expression of fear.
The hope that she would wake up happy again the next day was instantly dashed away.
He gently tapped her nose, causing it to crinkle before she let out a soft sneeze.
"Mew?"
"Good morning, kitten."
She mewed again and snuggled closer.
"It heartens me to know that you have forgive me," he mumbled, stroking her soft fur. "Would it make you happy if I took you to work with me?"
"Mew!" She licked his cheek, rubbing his face with the top of her head.
He smiled.
Yes, he was going to keep her with him everywhere he went. That should resolve the issue.
And so, he took Catherine the Great with him to work just as planned and everything went smoothly. She wrapped herself around him like a warm, soft scarf for most of the day and diligently reminded him of his meals.
During meetings, he unfortunately had to keep her in his office.
He had requested a few changes to be made there, but unfortunately, it wouldn't be done until later on in the day.
"Mr. Han, here are the minutes from today's meeting." Assistant Kang handed him a perfectly organised folder with all the notes that detailed every important point – as expected from her.
"Thank you, Assistant Kang." He was eager to go back to his kitten nd it seemed that his assistant noticed it too.
"Is something wrong?" she asked with a look of confusion on her face.
She had never known her boss to be emotional, except towards Elizabeth the 3rds, so did that mean he was thinking of her or was this about his new cat – Catherine the Great?
The names were such a mouthful…
But she knew better than to shorten any of them.
They were as strange as her boss, so why was she even surprised?
With a sigh and a shake of her head, she went back to her desk to find something already occupying her chair.
"Mew?" The fur ball tilted her head.
Jaehee groaned. "How did you get here? Didn't lock you in his office?"
"Mew!"
"You're getting fur everywhere!" she huffed, taking out a lint roller from the top drawer and began to clean up after the kitten who leapt towards the table, but fell short and landed on the keyboard pull-out panel. It was going to be a nightmare cleaning that. She'd have to take out each key to get all the C hair out.
"Mew…" Round green eyes blinked innocently at her.
Oh…
She was very cute, but Jaehee would've appreciated her more as a photo. What was she going to do if wanted her to catsit two of them?
One was enough to drive her up the wall, another would be the end of her. Would her boss really be so cruel?
She thought of all the things asked of her and immediately knew the answer. He didn't care for her hatred of C hair.
Yes.
was a monster.
"Catherine?"
At her name, her ears perked up and she immediately ran to her owner. She stepped on to his shoes to rub her head against his leg.
Jaehee saw his lips quirk up.
The gentle look was only ever reserved for felines, so many Mr. Han wasn't always a monster.
"Mew!"
He sighed, scooping her into his arms. "How did you even get out?"
She blinked her wide, innocent eyes, pawing at the air towards his face.
He affectionately rubbed the top of her head.
Was she always going to be such a mystery? It was at the point of frustration, but he couldn't bring himself to dislike her in any way.
[My Dream]
ZEN: I had a strange dream last night. I don't know whether it was good or bad.
I dreamed that there was a beautiful woman with long blonde hair and large green eyes. She was everything I could've hoped for, but…
Yoosung entered the chatroom.
Yoosung: u woke up?
ZEN: No!
Just let me finish my story!
The girl was perfect, except…
She had cat ears and a tail!
Yoosung: u dreamt about cats?
maybe u're actually secretly in love with them
ZEN: That's definitely not it!
My dream didn't end there
I saw her in a cage and she looked really sad
Even though I'm allergic to cats, I really wanted to save her.
Jumin Han has entered the chatroom.
Jumin Han: It would be wonderful if there is truly such things as cat girls.
ZEN: Don't tell me you're actually into those kinds of things!
Jumin Han: I think they would be lovely and someone I could truly love.
Yoosung: i would mind meeting them either
it'd be like some of the avatars on LOLOL
707 has entered the chatroom
707: The lady of my dreams!
After dear Elly, of course.
Jumin Han: I will dedicate all my power to keep them safe from you.
707: But think of how wonderful it'd be!
God Seven needs to make this happen!
ZEN: Ugh!
That's the last thing this world needs…
More cats!
Yoosung : i don't think even u can make cats
707: Do not underestimate God Seven!
I will show all of you that cat girls exist!
707 has left the chatroom.
Jumin Han:
I do not think they are real, but I hope to dream of her tonight.
ZEN: is actually thinking of something other than work?
Yoosung : maybe he just needs someone like that to change him
ZEN: Which means he'll never change, right?
Cat girls don't exist
Jumin Han: I shall leave now.
I look forward to meeting her as I slumber.
Jumin Han has left the chatroom.