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Like its owner, the white cat looks so uninterested in anything even with the blueberries you are trying to lure it with.
You have always wanted a cat, but not enough want to actually own one. You do not really want to deal with the responsibilities of actually having at least one for yourself.
Luckily, the man who has just moved two months ago in the apartment next door has the most graceful cat you have ever seen. Though unlike most cats you have encountered in the streets, public spaces, or other people's houses, this one always minds its own business, which is usually ignoring you.
You have never thought that befriending the neighbor's cat will be more difficult than avoiding its owner, who you always happen to run into outside the apartment complex. He does not know you live right beside his unit anyway, you tell yourself, so you never bother to greet him even with an awkward forced smile.
His cat, of course, knows, but it will not waste any of its precious free time to tell its owner that you always find it at your doorstep when you get home from work. There is no way this ball of fluff will inform its human that you will always pet it whenever you have the chance, then it will just walk and wait next door.
Within two months of pretending you own a cat, however, it has never shown any sign of satisfaction. No purring, no gentle closing of eyes. Its expression remains unbothered just like its owner.
Sometimes, you can not help but think that there is no pet at all, that your neighbor can simply transform into a cat and uses that ability to prank you as a revenge for never welcoming him as a neighbor. But in your defense, it is never your or anyone's duty to act friendly with a new person you encounter.
Pondering the idea that your neighbor is a magical creature, you find the white cat standing at your doorstep like usual, though it is looking at its owner who seems to be calling it to go home. How you can casually avoid any possible awkward conversation or greeting with the neighbor you always see somewhere else fills your thoughts that you even ignore his cat when you unlock your door.
"Meow." It looks at you, its expression unchanged, but you know what it means. You are touched, for it is the first time it calls you, though your name is not 'meow'.
You bend down to pet it, and then it walks to its owner.
You try the quickest you can to glance at its owner. He is looking at you. His cat is already inside his apartment, so there is no reason for you to look that way. You stand up and hold the doorknob to turn it.
"Smoked salmon is her favorite. Freya doesn't eat blueberries." The cat's owner says before closing his door.
"Damn expensive responsibility." You mutter as you go inside your apartment.
The day of giving him an awkward forced smile comes when you meet him in the hallway. Have you not needed to go back for the folder you have forgotten on the table, you will not have to walk outside the apartment building with him.
"Morning." He says as you walk past him by the stairs.
You stop and greet back with an unpracticed smile. He does not smile back.
And the days after that, sometimes both of you greet each other 'good mornings'. Other times you smile, but Lukas never does.
His expression remains neutrally uninterested even when you speak of topics that interests him. Yet you are satisfied with his monotonous responses, slight nods and shrugs, and dry humor. Though unlike his cat Freya, Lukas can actually smile. You luckily capture his smile in a photograph, which is now your screensaver.
You do not realize when and how you both seem to own both spaces, until the two of you live in just one apartment and share almost everything, including the bed and bills.
And then the time has come: Freya is pregnant.
"Damn expensive responsibility." You sigh.
"I know, right?" Lukas agrees in a flat tone. "That's why I moved here in your apartment." He looks at you.
You roll your eyes, and he smirks.
"Just kidding. We'll teach the kittens to eat blueberries." He says.
You chuckle, and you are fine with that.
You have always wanted a cat, and now you have one with bonus kittens. Not to mention their owner, whose arms are wrapped around you, while he bends down and his right ear is pressed onto your belly. You see him smile contentedly.
You do not know how you can handle this new big responsibility you have never really thought of experiencing, but maybe you can learn from Freya and how she takes care of her kittens. You smile contentedly.