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Kim Jia had a very soft corner for cats, which led her to pursue a degree in veterinary and once she was twenty-two and graduated, she opened a shelter after jumping through government loops of paperwork. She helped in rescuing multiple cats who unfortunately were stuck in abusive households.
Jia opened the door of her shelter, and immediately was greeted by the meows of the cats. Her assistant was on leave and other employees had one more hour to show up. “Hey, little guys. How are you?” Jia greeted the cats as she placed her satchel on her desk.
She removed her coat and draped it on the rotating chair’s head before heading to the room where the cats were kept. She believed in keeping the cats free instead of small cages. It was difficult of course, but the cats were clearly happy with that arrangement. Though they were placed in their comfortable cages at night, so nobody hurts each other in the absence of Jia.
“I am here. Don’t worry.” She spoke up in a baby voice as she opened the doors of the cages one by one and the cats jumped out of the cages, stretching their bodies. Jia chuckled as a black cat pounced on her leg, trying to get her attention. “Artemis, how are you?” Jia asked, bending down and picking up the cat. Artemis instantly started to lick Jia’s face.
Jia giggled as she held the cat like a baby and let the cat lick her face. “Oh, you are already here, Dr. Jia.” One of her employees greeted her by bowing to her. “Can you feel the bowls of the cat, Chan-ho?” Jia asked, setting down Artemis, who let out loud meows in protest, but Jia just scratched her head before heading towards the front desk. “I will do it.” Chan Ho said, before walking towards the store room.
Jia sat on her chair and booted on her computer and fixed her things on the desk. Around the afternoon, when Jia thought that she would be taking a break because of no new cat adopters, three men stepped through the door, talking.
Jia gave them a friendly smile and bowed her head. “Welcome to Jia’s rescue shelter. Are you looking to adopt a cat?” Jia asked, standing from her chair. “Yes. We are actually looking to adopt two cats. I already have three cats, but I would like to adopt one more.” The man with blonde hair spoke up, smiling back.
“And the second cat will be adopted by me. My girlfriend’s cat recently passed away, she loves them.” The other blond man said, smiling as well. “And I just tagged along.” The brunette man said, shrugging his shoulders. Jia chuckled, nodding her head.
“Follow me, gentlemen.” Jia said, turning towards the cat room. Seungmin was staring at her with an open mouth. She was pretty. “Close your mouth, Min. She will think you are creepy.” Chan joked, poking his side.
“Oh shut up, you old man.” Seungmin scoffed, as they followed Jia, who was oblivious to their talk. “Seungmin, don’t tell me you are already in love?” Minho whispered to Seungmin, who in return just glared at him. “You were the one who fell in love with Han at first sight.” Seungmin whispered back, before diverting his attention toward Jia, who was waiting for them.
“What are your names?” Jia asked, picking up a ginger cat. “I am Lee Minho.” Minho introduced himself. “I am Bang Chan.” Chan introduced himself before nudging Seungmin, who looked like he was in a trance.
Seungmin blinked thrice before stuttering. “I-I am Kim Seungmin.” Seungmin introduced himself, blushing brightly. Jia gave him a smile while nodding her head. “Well, what type of cats are you interested in?” She asked, setting down the ginger cat, who approached Minho curiously.
“I don’t have a preference.” Minho said, looking around the place. It was the first time he saw the cats walking freely around the place. A satisfied smile formed on his face as he bent down and lifted the curious ginger cat. “I have never seen a shelter like this. Especially the cats being in a healthy state.” Minho said, scratching the top of the cat’s head.
“I pride myself with that. They deserve to be as free as they can get. Sadly they can’t be on their own, so they either grow old here or some sweet humans adopt them.” Jia said, blushing. “How old is this sweet angel?” Minho asked, looking at Jia.
“Tweet is six months old. She was rescued just last month from an illegal breeder. Her mother sadly passed away. She doesn’t have any siblings.” Jia said, as a ragdoll sprinted towards Chan, who jumped in surprise.
“Ella, No. You do not climb on guests.” Jia reprimanded, walking forward to pick up the cat. “No, let her. She is sweet.” Chan said, letting the cat climb him before settling on his shoulder and letting out a purr loudly. “She likes you. Interesting.” Jia chuckled, folding her hands in front of her chest.
“What’s her story?” Chan asked, letting the cat stay on his shoulder. “Ella was found in an abandoned building. My best theory is that she was used as a breeding machine because of the things I found. She is four years old. She is sweet, but it takes time for her to trust people, which is why it is interesting that she didn’t take a minute to get comfortable with you.” Jia said, looking at the cat.
“What is that cat’s story?” Seungmin asked, as he noticed a black cat sitting on a cat tree, away from the other cats. Jia looked in the direction of Seungmin’s finger. Ah, Artemis. “That is Artemis. She is American short hair, illegally brought to Korea. She is two years old. She was abused in a way no animal should be abused. She was brought to me last year and it took me six months to gain her trust and for her to recover from her injuries.” Jia said, a sad look passed her face.
“She is one of the cats which I think will never be adopted because of her lack of trust and hostile nature.” Jia said, looking back at the trio. “I am always reminded that there are monsters walking on this very earth.” Minho grumbled, looking at the said cat sadly.
Seungmin thought for a minute before walking to the cat tree, surprising Jia. “Mr. Kim, she is hostile. Be careful.” Jia warned the man as she saw him approach the cat, who instantly narrowed her eyes, but like usual didn’t hissed at him, but rather observed the man.
“Hey, sweet girl. How are you?” Seungmin let the cat sniff his fingers. “I know you didn’t exactly have the best experience when it comes to humans.” Seungmin continued, as Artemis’s eyes relaxed and sniffed the fingers, trying to find the danger but there was none.
Artemis stood up, Jia already ready to jump to separate the cat from the man, but to her astonishment, Artemis rubbed her head against the fingers of Seungmin, making the man smile widely. “I love you my dear cat.” Seungmin said, testing the waters by extending both of his hands to lift the cat. Artemis let herself lift up and brought the man’s chest. She purred happily, rubbing her head against his chest.
“I am adopting her.” Seungmin announced, scratching the head of the cat. Jia looked at the scene, with the tears reflecting in her eyes. She sniffed before letting out a relieved laugh, wiping away the tears. “You have no idea how much you are doing for her. I thought she would grow old here with me. Her chances of getting adopted were slim, but now. Thank you so much, Mr. Kim. You might just have saved her.” Jia said, smiling.
“Well, let’s get to paperwork then.” Minho said, smiling proudly at Seungmin who was busy staring at Jia and scratching Artemis’s head at the same time. Jia nodded her head happily before heading towards the section where cages to transport cats were kept. “Choose anyone, it's on the house.” Jia said, switching on the light.
“No, we are buying them. We won’t let you give us anything free when we can clearly afford it.” Minho denied, shaking his head. “I agree with Minho. No free stuff.” Chan agreed, looking at Seungmin who was happily scratching the cat’s head who was enjoying it.
“You like her.” Chan commented once he was sure Jia was out of the earshot. “I do.” Seungmin agreed, looking at the cat fondly. “I am talking about Jia.” Chan said, shaking his head in disbelief. Seungmin looked at Chan with an open mouth.
“I don’t!” Seungmin exclaimed quietly, looking at where Jia was busy showing the carriage for cats to Minho. “You do. You haven’t been subtle, my man.” Chan snorted, looking at the girl who slowly kept the ginger cat into the carriage.
“What in the delusion are you talking about, Chan?” Seungmin asked, but his face gave him away as he blushed heavily. “Ha. You can’t lie to me.” Chan grinned, before walking to Jia who called for him and Seungmin. Seungmin shook his head before following Chan.
After the completion of the paperwork, the trio was ready to leave. Seungmin looked at the woman as they approached the door, and he realised that maybe he does like her. And maybe he can get to know her more.
Jia watched her most beloved cat leave with the three men who, according to her, were like angels and haven’t seen anyone like them in the longest time, especially Kim Seungmin. He smiled at her before vanishing behind the door, leaving her with her thoughts. Was it the only time they would ever meet?
Jia sighed and went back to her work, with a certain brunette on her mind. She was sure it was the last time she saw him.
Seungmin was deep in thought as he entered their shared apartment. “Someone is in love!” Chan exclaimed as he entered the living room. Seungmin flinched, glaring at the man. “I am not!” Seungmin protested, placing the cat carrier down.
“Seungi, you adopted a cat?” Athena asked, standing up from the couch. “Not only him. Me and Minho did too.” Chan said, lifting the carrier before placing it on the ground and opening the door at the same time as Seungmin and Minho.
“You adopted a cat, Channie?” Athena asked, slowly approaching the green carrier. “Yes. I noticed how much you missed Hera. So I thought you need a new partner.” Chan said, watching the sweet ragdoll cautiously walking out of the carrier, sniffing the environment.
Athena’s eyes watered as she crouched on the ground, letting the cat come to her. Ella narrowed her eyes at the woman, walking carefully towards her. “Hey sweetie, how are you?” Athena greeted the curious cat with a baby voice. “Her name is Ella. She is very curious.” Chan said, smiling as he watched the cat rubbing her head against Athena’s fingers.
“And where is my cat, Min?” Han jokingly asked, propping his head against his right palm. “Well, I hope you take good care of Tweet.” Minho said as he lifted the ginger cat in his arms. Han’s mouth was wide open when his eyes met the cat’s green ones.
Han stood up from the chair and approached Minho, who was smiling as he scratched the cat’s head who purred in satisfaction. “Wow, she is such a sweetheart.” Han commented, carefully extending his fingers for the cat to get familiar with him. “Hey there tweet, I am your other dad.” Han introduced himself to Kitty, who sniffed his fingers and after a crucial minute gave them a lick.
“This is so sweet. I am going to throw up.” Felix said, watching the scene unfold. “Thank god Hyunjin is not here.” Jeongin commented, making Felix nod his head. “He would be sneezing mess if he was here.” Felix said, chuckling a little.
Seungmin coaxed the cat to leave the carrier, and lifted her in his arms. “This is Artemis. She has major trust issues. And she is a little bit hostile towards new people, so forgive her if she hisses at you or tries to bite you.” Seungmin said, watching the cat look at everyone in curiosity but didn’t make any attempt to leap out of his arms.
“Which reminds me, Seungmin is in love with the owner of the shelter.” Chan teased Seungmin, who blushed heavily but shook his head. “Athena, tell your boyfriend that not everyone is him. I am not in love with Jia.” Seungmin scoffed half-heartedly, and everyone noticed.
“YOU ARE SO IN LOVE!” Everyone exclaimed, making Seungmin groan and shake his head. “You all are assholes.” Seungmin muttered, walking towards an empty chair to sit on it. Artemus
The next afternoon, Jia found herself absent-mindedly scrolling through her Instagram yawning because the cats were snoozing in their room and her employees were out on a break, leaving her alone with her thoughts.
Just then the bell sounded, announcing that someone had entered the shelter. Jia hastily kept her phone down, and stood up to greet the potential adopter but to her shock it was Seungmin. He grinned shyly and waved his hand.
“Hi, I was just passing by and thought why not say hi.” Seungmin said, his cheeks were pink. Maybe because it was cold as heck outside. “You really love cats?” Jia asked, smiling. “Yeah, I do.” Seungmin said, making eye contact.
“How is Artemis doing?” Jia asked, tilting her head. “Oh, she is doing fine. She got along with the other cats just fine. Especially with Tweet. Doongie, Minho’s cat, is fond of her.” Seungmin said, stepping inside, and removing his woolen scarf.
“Want to sit with cats? Chan Ho and Hyunja are out.” Jia suggested, biting her lower lip in nervousness. “I would love that.” Seungmin said, smiling as he followed the girl to the room where the majority of the cats were snoozing.
“They usually take their power nap in the afternoon. After this, they will have their zoomies.” Jia chuckled, noticing the cats lifting their heads up at the entry of their caretaker. Seungmin laughed as Jia led him to a secluded corner of the room.
“So, you were just passing by, huh?” Jia asked, sitting on a pillow that was placed there by her when she wants to spend time with her cats. Seungmin blushed, sitting beside her. “Is it that hard to believe?” Seungmin asked, glancing at Jia. “well it is not that hard, but the adopters don’t usually show up at the shelter on the second day.” Jia said, lifting the grey cat who had made his way toward them.
“Well, I like your company, so I decided to visit you. And most of my friends are out on a date with their partners.” Seungmin said, noticing a kitten making its way to him. “You don’t have a girlfriend?” Jia asked, her eyebrows raised in surprise. “No, I don’t.” Seungmin said, shrugging his shoulders. He smiled and picked up the baby sphynx cat.
Jia made a surprised expression before looking at her cat. “So, what do you do? Like are you an IT guy?” Jia asked. Seungmin looked at her in surprise and a little bit of suspicion. “You don’t know who I am?” He asked, his head fully turned to look at her.
“Should I have?” Jia asked, confused. “You don’t know about stray kids?” He asked, getting more surprised. “Well I have heard about them, but I am not exactly into K-pop, so I don’t know much about any group.” Jia said, shrugging her shoulders.
Seungmin smiled at her innocence before removing his phone from his pocket and unlocked it. He went on the internet and searched for them before extending his phone for Jia to take. Jia looked at the screen and her eyes went wide. “You are an idol?!” Jia exclaimed, her mouth open in disbelief.
“So you seriously didn’t know us?” Seungmin asked, now amused. “I didn’t. You can tell I live under a rock.” Jia said, her cheeks red with embarrassment. “It's no worries. That means i can make you listen to my songs and get the honest reactions.” Seungmin said, smiling his brilliant smile.
Jia chuckled, handing his phone back to him. “And you? How long have you been doing this?” Seungmin asked, pocketing his phone. “Three years. I was in my final year when I was offered to intern for the greatest vet in existence. I realised I didn't just wanted to be an animal doctor, I wanted to rescue them and take care of them. Cats are close to me as my grandmother had a shelter of her own before it was shut down a few years ago.” Jia explained, smiling as she scratched the top of the cat sitting on her lap.
“That’s nice. It is actually nice to see cats out and about.” Seungmin said, looking around the place. “It’s kind of out of the books, but this is what they deserve. I let them sleep in their cage but in the morning, they are bounding around. If some of them are destined to live in a shelter, the least I could do is give them a comfortable life.” Jia said, looking at her cats fondly.
As the evening rolled in, Jia walked Seungmin to the door. They exchanged their numbers and Seungmin couldn’t be happier. “So, I will see you around.” Jia said, shyly tucking the strand of her hair behind her ear. “Well, you definitely will.” Seungmin said, wrapping his scarf around his neck.
Seungmin stepped out and waved at Jia before turning around and walking away. Jia did a happy dance hiding her face. She did find him cute, so him showing interest in her was definitely amazing according to her.
And he kept visiting Jia every single day, growing close to each other and they loved every moment of it. Seungmin started to bring small gifts for Jia which she cherished more than she liked to admit.
They slowly got closer to each other, going on random outings here and there when they were free. Talking through nights was one of the things they looked forward to. Seungmin didn’t hide the fact that he was flirting with the girl. He shared cheesy memes making Jia blush every time he would share them.
Yet because of his career, both of them were apprehensive about whether they should give in to their feelings or should they just remain friends. Seungmin was scared for Jia’s safety, and Jia was worried about his management. Jeongin dating a girl from a normal career made Seungmin hopeful, but he was still scared.
Jia was so used to Seungmin dropping by her shelter, that when one day he didn’t appear at his given, it made her anxious. She was worried that management caught up with him sneaking out to meet her. She kept waiting for him but he didn’t appear. She understood that he might be busy in his practice. But she started to worry when he didn’t show up for an entire week and there was no response to her messages.
Jia sighed as she locked the cage of the last cat and walked out of the room. Maybe she was too hopeful about the plausible romance. She locked the door of the room, sighing again. She was startled when the bell of her door went off, making her look back.
Seungmin huffed as he tried to gather his breath. “Seungmin?” Jia asked, forgetting that the key was still in the lock. “I had to get here before you closed your shelter.” Seungmin managed to say, his hands on his knees.
“Did you run all the way here or something?” Jia asked, approaching her. “Precisely. Because if I walked till here, I would have missed you.” Seungmin said, standing a little straighter. He was still out of breath. “I would have been here tomorrow.” Jia said, staring at the man. Oh, how she missed the man.
“I can’t wait till tomorrow. I got to tell you something.” Seungmin said, but he was tackled into a hug. “I missed you!” Jia exclaimed, her eyes closed tightly. Seungmin let out a chuckle as he hugged her back. “So did I.” He said, resting his head on Jia’s shoulder. She was short.
“So why didn’t you answer any of my texts?!” Jia asked, pulling away from the hug. Her eyebrows furrowed, her hands on her hips. “I was in Japan. I was so busy. It was an emergency trip that I didn't even get to tell where I was.” Seungmin answered, smiling at her.
“You look adorable when you are mad.” Seungmin said, looping his hands around Jia’s waist. Jia’s eyes went wide with surprise. “Am I now?” She asked, her eyes still wide. “Yes.” Seungmin answered, moving his right hand and resting it on Jia’s cheek and stroking it with his thumb.
“I like you, Kim Jia.” Seungmin said, before lowering his head a little and pressing a soft kiss against her lips. It took a moment for Jia to process what was happening before she closed her eyes and looped her arms around Seungmin’s neck and kissed him back. Seungmin smiled in the kiss before pulling away.
“Does that mean you like me too?” He asked, stroking her cheek and making her smile. “I love you, Seungi. I just don’t like you. I love you.” Jia said, smiling at the man. Seungmin grinned before lifting her up slightly and twirled her around causing her to squeal lightly.
“You really do?” Seungmin asked, letting her feet touch the ground again. “Yes, I do.” Jia answered, giggling as she gazed into Seungmin’s eyes. “You have no idea how happy I am.” Seungmin said, resting his forehead against hers as he let out an exhilarated laugh.
“I can’t wait for you to meet my family.” Seungmin said, placing a kiss on her forehead. “Wait, they live here?” Jia asked, her brows knotted in confusion. “Yeah, they do. But I am talking about stray kids. They are family too.” Seungmin said, smiling.
“When are you taking me to meet them?” Jia asked, tilting her head a little. “How about tomorrow? We have a free day, thanks to Athena.” Seungmin suggested, tilting his head as well. “Well pick me up from here, my cats do need my assistance.” Jia said, moving her right towards Seungmin’s cheek and squishing it a little.
Jia was waiting for Seungmin as she handed the keys to Jenny, who went back to work. Today it was Jenny’s duty to close the shelter as Jia wished to spend the day with Seungmin. But to her astonishment, it was a whole group that came to pick her up.
She recognised all of them as Seungmin told her everything about them, especially about the girls. “Hey, there is our Seungmin’s girlfriend.” Chan exclaimed, grinning. “Oh, will you shut up old man?” Seungmin groaned, giving him a glare before greeting Jia.
He pecked her cheek, making Jia blush and everyone let out a wolf whistle. “Ignore them.” Seungmin groaned, glaring at everyone. Jia grinned before she introduced herself. “I am Kim Jia.” She said, bowing to everyone.
“Oh, we know. Seungmin couldn’t shut up about you.” Minho said, wiggling his eyebrows at Seungmin who just let out a sigh. “I wasn’t this bad when you started dating Han. This is what I get for that?” Seungmin asked, moving him backward. “Oh please, you teased me senseless.” Han scoffed, shaking his head.
“Ignore the boys. I am Victoria.” Changbin's girlfriend introduced herself. “Ah, I know you! You are currently working in Hollywood, right?” Jia asked, her eyes twinkling with mirth. “Yeah, you know me.” Victoria said, chuckling.
“And I am Irene.” Jeongin’s girlfriend introduced herself. “It’s good to see you.” Jia said, bowing her head in respect. “Same here.” Irene said, holding Jeongin’s hand. “And I am Athena. It’s quite amazing to meet you, Jia.” Athena greeted the girl with a warm smile.
“Well, introductions can wait. I am hungry.” Changbin complained. “You are always hungry.” Felix said, but the group moved towards the cafe. Jia smiled, knowing this was the thing she always wanted, a happy family. She shyly wrapped her hands around Seungmin’s arm which prompted Chan to tease the new couple. Perfect.