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Taii was not the type to ignore people in need. Naturally, of course, considering their occupation as a counselor, but some would say they were a bit too eager to help anyone and everyone. Taii disagreed, but people would have their opinions. Rose and Catt made sure to teach them not to worry too much about that.
It wasn’t just people that Taii felt the need to help. They had a high amount of empathy for plants, animals, even toys. It wasn’t unlike Taii to bring home a damaged stuffed bear they found on the sidewalk and fix it up brand-new. Likewise, Taii would often volunteer at the local animal shelter and would buy wilting plants from stores to nourish them back to full health.
It happened to be not long after Taii, Catt, and Rose had recently moved in together when Taii was walking home from work. They walked on the sidewalk, casually and amicably greeting people who passed them by. It wasn’t long before something caught their eye: The garbage can near their favorite bakery shaking slightly. A small, muffled noise came from inside it as they stopped to check it out.
Upon lifting the garbage can’s cover, Taii let out a screech–a small, furry…thing had leapt out onto their chest. After recovering from the surprise, Taii realized it was a cat. A small, black-and-white one, likely no older than a few months. The shock that Taii had felt moments ago was swiftly replaced with concern. As they felt the kitten in their hands, they couldn’t help but notice how skinny it was, its fur dirty and ridden with fleas. A pang of compassion hit Taii like a truck.
“Oh, you poor thing…” They whispered, looking it in the eyes with their brows upturned, concern lacing their voice. They hugged the kitten close, not all that worried about the fleas or dirt in the moment. The kitten mewled softly before wiggling in their grasp. Taii loosened their grip on it, though not enough that the kitten could free itself. “You’re coming with me, little guy.”
Taii spun on their heel and began walking home, ignoring the odd looks from passersby. The kitten squirmed in their arms a couple more times before settling down, its eyes wide in confusion and fear. Taii hummed softly and stroked the kitten’s back as they walked, trying their best to keep it calm. Luckily, their apartment was only a couple minutes away, and soon they made their way inside–but not before struggling to unlock the door with a kitten in their arms.
“I’m home!” Taii called as they closed the door behind them. They slipped out of their shoes and walked into the living room, their partners immediately noticing the small, ragged kitten in their arms.
Rose spoke first, the pitch of their voice noticeably heightened as they gasped and leaned forward. “Is that a kitten???”
Taii nodded. “Yup! Found them in the garbage near the baker’s…I couldn’t just leave them behind!” They scratched the kitten behind the ear before turning to Catt, who sat there staring at the kitten with an indiscernible expression on their face. “What do you think, Catt?”
Catt, expression indifferent, closed their eyes and shrugged. “Catt wonders if we can afford to pay for another mouth to feed.”
“Of course we can!” Taii responded, their tone a bit urgent. “If we need to, I’ll pick up more hours at work. I’d hate to have left this kitten to die…”
“I thought you liked cats. Your chosen name would certainly suggest so.” Rose said to Catt. They reached over to scratch the kitten’s chin, the kitten purring in response. Rose smiled wide. “This kitten even looks a bit like you! How cute.”
Catt pouted and looked away, a faint blush dusting their cheeks. “Catt’s name is Catt’s name. It has nothing to do with anything…”
Taii exhaled softly. Catt was always a bit distant, and hard to understand… but they loved Catt, and Catt loved them. That was one thing that Taii understood completely. Another thing that Taii understood was that Catt was quite…well, catlike. Independent and aloof much of the time, and showed affection in their own unique way that many others wouldn’t fully understand. The fact Catt wasn’t outright saying no to taking the kitten in meant that Catt wanted to keep the kitten around. With that in mind, Taii stood, picked up the kitten, and placed it on Catt’s lap.
Catt’s eyes widened and they stiffened up a bit as the kitten sat on their legs, looking up at them with big blue eyes. Within a moment, the kitten placed its paws on Catt’s chest and mewed softly. The stiffness apparent in Catt’s body melted away, and they reached up to pet the kitten on the back. They weren’t smiling, but Taii could tell they were happy.
“We need to give them a name!” Rose suddenly interjected, clapping their hands together–though not so hard as to startle the kitten. “Taii found them, so I suppose the naming privilege goes to them…?”
Taii shook their head. “I’d like for this to be a group decision. The kitten is essentially our new baby! We should all have input on their name.”
“Oh, right!” Rose nodded in understanding, a faint blush dusting their cheeks. “That makes sense. Well…I think–”
“We should bring the kitten to the vet before anything,” Catt interrupted. “It’s thin, dehydrated, and infested with fleas. It won’t survive long without proper care.”
“Oh, goodness, they’re right…” Rose leaned closer to the kitten before looking up at Taii with concern. “Is the vet clinic still open?”
“Mmmm…” Taii pulled out their phone and looked the local vet clinic up. “They are, but they charge a huge fee for walk-ins… We’ll have to call ahead of time and schedule an appointment.”
“Sorry, little guy. You’re gonna have to wait a little bit for treatment.” Catt spoke gently, scratching behind the kitten’s ear. The kitten purred softly, lifting its back leg to scratch where Catt’s finger was. Catt’s hand retreated for a moment, and once the kitten was done scratching, they pet it along its back. Catt then looked up at their partners. “Can one of you run to the store to get some canned kitten food for it…? And the other can grab some water.”
“Absolutely, I’ll run out real quick!” Rose leaned over and gave Catt a kiss on the cheek before standing, retrieving their coat and wallet and then getting their shoes on and heading out the door.
Taii stood as well, heading into the kitchen to fill a small dish with water for the kitten to drink out of.
As they returned, they noticed Catt smiling softly as the kitten batted at their hoodie strings. Compared to their partners, Catt barely smiled, so seeing it was always something that made Taii happy.
Taii set the dish of water down on the coffee table in front of the couch and sat next to Catt, whose smile faded as they realized their partner was near them. Which, of course, was fine–Taii knew Catt didn’t mean anything negative by it. They simply expressed themself differently from others; Taii and Rose both understood that. They all understood each other.
Catt moved the kitten off their lap and onto the table, and the kitten, after some coaxing, began to lap at the water fervently. Taii caught Catt smiling again, and took a moment to take in their partner’s beauty while Catt wasn’t looking at them… God, they were in love.
After a while, the kitten finished drinking and looked back to Catt before waddling over to them, mewing softly. Catt reached out to grab it and placed it back on their lap, stroking its back gently as it purred once more. They looked over to Taii, and when they were met with Taii’s soft gaze, their face flushed, their cheeks dusted pink.
“When Rose returns, we’ll feed the kitten and then it should fall asleep.” Catt said, trying not to sound flustered. “Catt thinks then will be a good time to call and schedule an appointment at the vet clinic.”
Taii nodded, giving Catt two thumbs-up. “You got it! We’ll be the best kitten parents ever.”
Catt couldn’t help but snort a bit, laughing in their own little way and charming Taii even more. “You’re awfully excited.”
“I am!” Taii leaned closer to Catt. “I know none of us can afford to think about human kids, but I’ve always loved the idea of being a pet parent! And so far, you’re doing great at it. The kitten loves you!”
“Cats have always loved Catt.” Catt responded softly, still petting the kitten. “It’s why I chose the name I did.”
“So Rose was right, huh?” Taii said, smiling. “You really like cats.”
Almost as if on cue, the two heard the door unlock and open, and Rose walked into the room with a paper bag in their arms. It looked a bit fuller than it should have, since they had only gone out to get kitten food, but…
“I’m home!” Rose said, placing the paper bag down on the table. They began pulling things out of it, starting with food, and then toys, catnip, treats… “I got a few extra things... There’s also some litter and a litterbox by the door! Had to set them down though.”
The kitten, excited by the sound of crinkling plastic from the bag of treats Rose had pulled out, jumped out of Catt’s lap and began investigating the new items. Rose reached down to pet it lightly before picking up one of the cans of kitten food and opening it. This got the kitten’s attention solely on them, putting its paws up on Rose’s legs and mewing expectantly.
“Can one of you go get a small plate for this? And a fork, to get the food out.” Rose asked.
“I’ll do it!” Taii jumped up immediately, hurrying to the kitchen to grab what was needed.
As quickly as they could, the trio prepped the food for the kitten. Soon enough, the kitten was given its food, purring happily as it chowed down on its admittedly slop-like meal.
“Look at that!” Rose said, placing their hands on their hips. “Someone’s a happy camper.”
Taii giggled a bit, smiling brightly. “I bet they were really hungry. They were in a trash can by the bakery!” They sighed a bit, contentedly, and leaned back in their seat. “I’m really glad we could rescue them. I know we’re not out of the woods yet, but…”
“The kitten will be fine.” Catt replied. “Cats are very hardy animals. Stubborn and strong.”
“Just like you, huh~?” Rose responded playfully, a smile on their face as they looked at Catt. “They’re also lovable, sweet, cute…”
Catt blushed deeply and averted their gaze away from the rest of the living inhabitants of the room. “Enough talk for now. Let’s call the vet clinic and then wind down for the day.”
Rose grinned from ear-to-ear. “You got it!” They replied.
Taii was beaming, with love for their partners, and with love for the newest addition to their family, as well. They pulled out their phone and dialed the number for the vet clinic. As the phone rang, Taii thought about just how lucky they were to have Rose and Catt… and the little kitten now, too, who seemed to bring them all even closer together.
Love was truly a wonderful thing.