Chaeyoung hummed to a tune that she couldn't remember the name of. It's an old melody from long ago, when things were much different. She tapped her feet to the cheery music while cutting the cabbage into thin lines, ignoring the feeling of being watched. She's used to it now, but it made her heart almost jump out of her chest the first time she turned around to grab a tomato, and saw Mina sitting on a chair, watching her closely. The cat girl walked around without a sound - maybe it's a cat thing - would be the death of her if she continued to surprise Chaeyoung like that. Seriously!

But now, it turned into a routine for them. Chaeyoung didn't mind being watched, or having someone here with her, someone for her to cook for. That was a dangerous thought, she reminded herself one day, and Mina would leave at any moment, they all did. But she couldn't push down the secured feeling of having company.

"I'm going to the store tomorrow. Do you want to come with me?"

They had just finished dinner and Chaeyoung thought she needed to go to the big store this time, not only to buy more food, but also the sanitary products.

"No." If Mina was honest, she was afraid of going out of this house. She's comfortable here. She has a room to stay in, food, comfortable clothes, and a human she didn't loathe to be with. Mina was worried, if she ever set foot outside of this house, it would all disappear and she would be on the streets, or worse, being in an abusive hellhole again. Nope. Not gonna risk that.

"Alright then." Chaeyoung nodded, she understood why Mina didn't want to go out. "Do you need something? I'm going to the big supermarket, and there are lots of things there."

"Things?" She heard Mina mumble to herself. She doubted if the hybrid was ever brought to a supermarket before.

"Yeah. Maybe some new clothes. My clothes were short, and my sister's clothes were a tad long for you, I think. Do you need some new ones?"

She hesitated before walking to the couch and settled down. She didn't mean to mention her sister, and this was the first time she mentioned any family member to Mina. Wanting to avoid the unpleasant feeling rising in her chest, she picked up the remote and shuffled through the channels, hoping to take her mind off the topic.

"This is fine." Mina looked down at the clothes she's wearing. She knew it wasn't Chaeyoung's but she didn't know it's her sister's. It's comfortable enough for her. She also noticed Chaeyoung didn't like to talk about her family, so she didn't question further.

"Anything else? Food?"

"Hmm." Mina pondered, asking herself if there was anything she wanted. While her mind racked through all the food Chaeyoung had made, her body mindlessly sat down on the other end of the couch. She didn't know if it was because she didn't have much experience, she had only ever given stale cold food before, but Chaeyoung's cooking was good. There's just this one taste she had been missing.

"The one you made on that day? When I first met you?"

"If I remember correctly, you didn't even want to meet me." Chaeyoung chuckled, trying to remember which food she made that day, something that was very cat-related. "Tuna sandwich! Yeah I should buy some more canned tuna."

The TV stopped at a nature channel, showing a documentary about cats, with little kittens chasing a silly swinger and struggling to get out of a litter box. The screen turned to a female host, who was using a treat to lure a black kitten into her lap. As soon as the cat settled down, she started scratching the cat’s nape, prompting it to purr loudly, eyes shut contentedly.

Chaeyoung turned to her side, only to see Mina's eyes fixed on the screen, her tail flickered from side to side, fluffy black ears pointed forward. The hair under her ears looked so soft, so enticing. Chaeyoung wondered if it was as soft as it looked. She just needed to reach out and...

Her hand was halfway there when Mina's head snapped to her. The hybrid hissed, quickly jumped up and went out of the room, not before throwing a glare at her direction. Meanwhile, Chaeyoung sat there, stunned, not at Mina's reaction but at her own. Her hand seemed to have a mind of its own. After a few minutes, her attention was pulled back in when the cats on TV meowed loudly asking for food. Cats on TV were much nicer than this one, Chaeyoung thought to herself, but not as cute.

Wait, what?

No, Mina wasn't cute, right? She's aloof, blunt and impolite and not at all the definition of cute. But Chaeyoung couldn't deny how adorable Mina's ears were, poking out from under her hair, moving back and forth when her attention changed. Mina might not know it herself, that even though she tried not to show emotions on her face, her ears and tail betrayed her. Not that Chaeyoung could specify the emotions, she didn't have cats before, but she could notice the shift of mood, or if Mina's attention was focused on her when her ears pointed at Chaeyoung's direction. And how her ears laid flat on her head when Chaeyoung complained about how staying too long in her bath made her wounds soggy. If it wasn't the cutest sight in the world, she didn't know what was.

Chaeyoung shook her head to clear those thoughts. It's just Mina and she were living under the same roof, and she wanted to make Mina feel comfortable here. Not that she's attracted to the hybrid or somethi