The bed felt strange. It was soft, but prickly. The fresh scent of grass permeated the air. Taekwoon blinked open his eyes, but he was not met with the familiar view of his bedroom.

He felt like he was on the ground.

He stretched and yawned groggily, turning to lie on his back.

“Did the storm yesterday blow off the roof of the house,” he thought. “It’s the only reason I’m seeing the night sky instead of my ing ceiling.”

He felt the snap of twigs. He looked down immediately.

He wasn’t in his bedroom, but outdoors.

And upon seeing the mass of fur that was now his body, he felt a knot form in his throat. His eyes widened with every second as he began to take in the information that had presented itself before him.

And then, he let out a scream…but that was only the beginning of his nightmare.

He was not prepared to hear the montrosity that had become of his voice.

***********

Hongbin tightened his grip on his laptop and started to walk a litte faster. He navigated around corners swiftly, as though the maze that made up the student hostels were not unfamiliar territory.

Well, he’d been living here for two whole years.

He darted past another corner, but halted his steps. He retreated slightly and bent down, reaching out to pet the black kitten that had almost escaped his sight. The cat continued to stare blankly into space as though no one had come near.

As quickly as he’d stopped, Hongbin retracted his hand and straightened his back, preparing to leave. But the sound of footsteps behind him was enough to let him know that he really shouldn’t have stopped for that cat.

He let out a sigh.

“Just who are you,” he snapped.

It took Taekwoon a few seconds to register Hongbin’s words. He broke out of his daze, his heart clenching with both fear and excitement. Has someone finally wanted to know his true identity? No, has someone finally realised that a cat like him could in fact have a true identity?

This was his chance.

“Meow meow meow.”

Hongbin looked back at the black cat distractedly, unsatisfied that he was not given the answers he wanted.

“Damn it,” Taekwoon spat at himself inwardly. “Forgot I couldn’t ing talk.”

Hongbin peeled his eyes away from the cat. He turned around, shifting his attention back onto the figure hidden behind a tree nine feet from him.

“Who are you and why do you keep following me around?” His words were left hanging in the air as silence answered.

Taekwoon cocked his little skull, a little disappointed that Hongbin wasn’t talking to him. He eyed the mysterious figure with curiosity.

“And just in case you didn’t know,” Hongbin chuckled, half-yelling to get his words across. “Your shoulders may be pretty small, but that tree’s even smaller. I don’t know why you think it can hide you.”

There was still no reply. The figure remained frozen in its spot like a cardboard cutout, his face buried behind the tree, the rest of his frame sticking out conspicuously.

“Meow meow meow meow meow,” Taekwoon chimed in. You know what that means in Cat language? It means You’re A in Idiot.

From behind the tree, Hakyeon’s heart sank. Not only was Hongbin ridiculing him, it seemed like some random cat was mocking him too.

“A-as long as you can’t see my face, you’ll never know who I am…” he gulped.

Hongbin threw him a cold laugh and shook his head. “Your voice has given you away.” He turned his back to Hakyeon and took began to walk off. “And so from now on,” he yelled back, loud enough for him to hear. “Don’t come any closer.”

Hakyeon felt his muscles stiffen. He stood rigid in his spot, because orders from Hongbin were too cool to disobey. He picked at the tree bark with his fingernails, refusing to take another look in case Hongbin was still there to catch him. He bit his lip, his heart still thumping wildly from the short and ridiculous conversation with the man he really admired.

“He knows…my voice?” Hakyeon whispered to himself, a smile creeping up his lips. He traced the bark with his fingers, staring endearingly at the texture of the tree, lost in thought. “Then he- Ahh!”

He jumped back at the sudden sensation of fur at his calves.

“He’s gone, you idiot,” Taekwoon rolled his eyes. At least, he imagined himself doing so because he’s now a cat and cats can’t do that.

“Oh?” Hakyeon blinked and stuck his head around the tree to take a peek. “He really just left like that…”

“Wait, you can understand me?” Taekwoon attempted to form a frown with his feline facial muscles.

Hakyeon let out a small sigh and sat down against the tree. “I’ve seen you around here on my patrols,” he reached out and slid his fingers down Taekwoon’s back, his fingers tingling a little because Hongbin was the last person to touch the cat and he was now feeling the remnants of the contact. “You’re exceptionally vocal today, aren’t you?”

Taekwoon flinched a little. Being touched was not something he particularly liked. Heck, he really shouldn’t have been so nosey.

“You hardly approach people, either,” Hakyeon frowned. He paused for some thought. “Look, if you’re just asking for food you’re not in for any luck. Because I’m not on duty today. But I’d say you’re still pretty smart. You recognise me, don’t you?”

“So you’re one of those food providers I’ve seen,” Taekwoon deduced. He hardly bothered to remember the people around here. He wanted to shrug, but he was now a cat and cats can’t do that.

“If you can understand me though, take my word seriously and give me better food for a change. Those crackers are drier than the goddamn Sahara. Pizza or spaghetti would be great.”

Hakyeon did not answer. He was lost in thought, as though something had struck him.

“Right, feeders…” he muttered. His eyes lit up. “I need to go and get some facts right.”

He sprang up from his seat and left hurriedly. “See you again Ash!” he yelled.

Taekwoon cocked his head. He wanted to add that perhaps they could consider giving him steamed fish instead of that raw , but Hakyeon was already gone.

“He’d better be off channelling all that eagerness into fixing my diet,” he scoffed. He his paws, a behaviour that he’d grown to like. “But first, he needs to fix that nauseating nickname of mine.”

***********

“Don’t you think it’s weird?”

“What?”

“I’ve seen him feed them discreetly. And he always does so outside of our designated feeding times,” Hakyeon rested a pen against his chin. “But first things first. Who’d have thought that such a low-profile man like him actually likes cats?”

“What, you mean, like a normal human being like you and I? Oh, how miraculous. I would never have expected that, like wow, what a huge breakthrough.”

“No no no, listen. It’s too weird. He’s being too secretive. Like why doesn’t he just come with us?” Hakyeon furrowed his brows. He wanted to admit that joining the club was something he wished Hongbin would do. For his own selfish reasons.

“And he uses a different brand of cat food,” he continued. "As though he’s actively avoiding us. Or going against us.”

Shinjoon seemed to consider Hakyeon’s words seriously. He raised an eyebrow. “So which type do the cats like? Maybe it’s time we conducted new research on their dietary preferences.”

“That’s not the point, wtf.”

“Look,” Shinjoon laughed. “As long as he’s not doing this on a scale large enough to affect our work, a little treat here and there wouldn’t hurt. If he’s not part of the club, that’s not really our business to recruit him either.”

“But you’ve been here for two years now. Don’t you know anything more? Was he not even once a part of us?” Hakyeon began nibbling on the pen. “I mean, I feel like he probably had been at some point in time. He knows our schedules inside out.”

Shinjoon’s face changed for a brief moment, but he regained his calm in no time.

“You’re thinking too far into it,” he shook his head. “Look, if he really was out against us he wouldn’t be taking extra effort to be discreet. You only discovered this because you were being too creepy. And this has to stop. Or the police station’s your next home.”

“But-”

Shinjoon raised his eyebrow.

“I mean, if that was the case,” Hakyeon’s eyes were lit with a scary hint of passion. “It wouldn’t hurt if I personally went to get him to join us, would it? I think he’d be super interested.”

Shinjoon almost rolled his eyes. “I don’t remember a time when you’ve ever been brave enough to approach him directly.”

“What- Yes. Exactly. This is it. It’s my chance. I finally have a legitimate reason to talk to him.”

“Well,” Shinjoon stared back at him blankly. “You’ll have to change your mind right now.”

“Wh-”

“It’s not gonna work. Think about it, Hakyeon. If he wanted to join us he would have. No need to wait two years for you to come get him.”

“I- well,” Hakyeon slumped down heavily against Shinjoon’s desk. “I could still try…”

Shinjoon shook his head slowly. “Hakyeon,” he began. “It’s not that I don’t want him here or something, but you need to know your limits.”

“I just don’t understand why he’s behaving like this. It’s baffling me.”

“Well you weren’t even supposed to be tailing him like that in the first place,” Shinjoon scoffed. “You brought this upon yourself.”

“But I…”

“You really need to stop, Hakyeon,” he continued. He pushed his glasses up. “And move your .”

“Huh?”

Shinjoon gestured to the pile of documents that had been sandwiched between his Hakyeon’s and the tabletop.

“Oh. Sorry,” Hakyeon scooted aside, but Shinjoon was still staring at him expectantly.

“Okay. Okay. Point taken.” He stood up after a long silence. “Because your unfinished work ain’t gonna do itself, I know.” 

He started retreating towards the door, but flashed Shinjoon a bright smile. “Not sorry for the interruption.”