Archive of Our Own ^beta

“No,” Nicholas said adamantly, shaking his head at Jensen. “Absolutely not.”

Jensen paid absolutely no attention to him, and picked up the kitten he was petting, cradling it in his arms. Nicholas hoped the kitten did something -- squirmed, scratched, meowed in disapproval he wasn’t picky --anything to discourage Jensen.

The kitten does not oblige him, just licks Jensen’s hand. Jensen held the animal with such care and affection it wasn’t hard to guess that Jensen ha’d become very attached while he was paying for their groceries.

Bloody Hell, they’ve bonded. This was going to be difficult.

“I think she likes you,” the woman manning the table said.

Not helping Nicholas thinks, and shoots the woman a scornful look.

“He’s not allowed to have a pet.”

The woman looked at Jensen, and gave him a pitying look. Probably realizing the mess she made. Jensen was now scratching behind the kitten’s ears, it was clearly enjoying the attention. Nicholas guessed that if he was close enough he could hear the cat purring.

Jensen looked up, giving him his best puppy dog eyes. “Please, you know I’ll take care of her.”

It was true, but that didn’t change the fact that Alan Ackles would like him ursurping his authority. As much as it felt like it at times, he wasn’t Jensen’s father. Allowing Jensen to have a pet wasn’t a decision he should make.

Nicholas saw the smile on Jensen’s face as he held the kitten, how content it looked in Jensen’s arms, and all his arguments faded away. The kid needed something normal, something other than school to make him happy. He’d bonded with the kitten and Nicholas didn’t have the heart to separate them.

“You’ve named it, haven’t you?” It wasn’t really a question.

Jensen nods, beaming, but didn’t say the name he had in mind.

Nicholas sighed, that was the last straw. He’s not normally a pushover, but it would make him a cold bastard to take this away from Jensen. Screw it, Jensen could have a pet and Nicholas would suffer the consequences. “All right. We’ll take the cat.”

“Really?” Jensen looked dubious.

“Yes,” he replied. “What do I have to sign?” He asked the woman. Jensen grinned, and cuddled the kitten closer. Nicholas pushed the shopping cart out of the way and accepted the clipboard the woman held out for him.

“This is the adoption form.” From the relief on her face, he wondered how rare adoptions were. “There’s an $85 adoption fee. We take check or cash.”

A half an hour later, cart leaden down with cat supplies. They left the grocery store with a new and unexpected member to he family, a calico kitten named Cipher.