My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

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But I couldn't do that, so I took it outside the apartment building and released it before my family returned. The kitten looked back at me, meowed once, and then ran away.

Loneliness is loneliness, but I tell myself that this is fine.

...Actually, the story isn't over yet.

But I'm a little tired, I'll rest for a bit first.

"..."

After Yuihama shut her mouth, I was speechless for a long time.

What she did as a child was somewhat wrong, but it was indeed an act of kindness, and the kitten was saved.

I think this is a touching story.

My chest ached intermittently, perhaps because I already knew how the story would end.

"People who seem carefree, if you knock on their hearts, will still find a sad voice...?" (Note 16)

I quoted a line from the book I read last night, and Yuihama looked puzzled.

"...Are you talking about watermelons?"

"We're talking about humans."

"You really like Natsume Soseki..."

Yukinoshita understands my jokes, which makes me feel at ease.

"...That means cats really are magical creatures."

"Demonic?"

Yuhihama asked in return.

"Yes. They captivate humans, sometimes to the point of madness. Cats possess that incredible magic. For example, this dates back to 3000 BC."

"It feels like this is going to take a long time..."

Ignoring Yukina's rambling, I continued:

"In ancient Egypt, cats were worshipped as gods. During the witch hunts, they were persecuted as symbols of bad luck. Despite the different times and cultural backgrounds, why such a stark difference in treatment? Yui, do you know?"

"Huh? Hmm... why?"

"Listen carefully. It's because... cats are cute."

Yui's expression turned very cold. A super serious expression...

"Don't make that face... You see, humans are creatures who love to find reasons for everything, right? That's why people in the past noticed how cute cats were. There must be a reason why such creatures are so cute. So, humans with twisted personalities always think that even cute cats have dangers, just like beautiful flowers have thorns. That's why cats are said to be the familiars of witches."

"Is there a source for this information?"

I answered Yukinoshita's question with unwavering certainty.

"No. Because I just thought of it..."

After discussing such heavy topics, I thought I'd insert a short story. I assumed they'd enjoy it, but Yuigahama and Yukinoshita just stared at me coldly. Huh—?

"Why... it's fictional, what's the harm... it sounds plausible, doesn't it?"

"It's not interesting at all."

Yukino's words were so direct, even I felt a little frustrated. I guess I'll just stay quietly in the corner of the clubroom, like a cat that's ended up in someone else's house...

"...Yes, cats are indeed very cute."

Yuihama said softly.

Yuigahama once poured a lot of love into cats and was captivated by them. Although the outcome made her reject cats, it doesn't mean she forgot their charm.

She sat up straight in the chair, perked up, and began to speak:

"Then it's about time to continue."

"Have you rested enough?"

Yukinoshita asked worriedly.

"Hmm. If we delay too long, we won't have time to go to the cat cafe."

"...That's true."

Yukinoshita nodded, and Yuihama started the conversation again.

"I soon saw the kitten again."

I thought I'd never see it again, but the day after I rescued the kitten from the drain, I found it in the atrium of my apartment building. It was definitely that calico cat. As soon as our eyes met, it rushed towards me. It seemed to remember me; when I petted its head, it purred contentedly.

I was delighted and decided to secretly keep it in the atrium of the apartment building.

Although I say I'm taking care of it, the things I do are no different from before. I just feed it when it goes to and from school, play with it on weekends, and don't put a collar on it anymore.

However, the kitten appears in the same spot every day and is willing to eat the food I feed it. And if I squat in front of it, it will lie on my lap. Its paws dig in a little, which hurts, but I'm so touched.

Although cats were still prohibited in the apartment building, I wasn't bothered at the time. On the contrary, I felt a thrill from sneaking over to see it, like a secret rendezvous.

...So, I panicked when the kids in the same apartment building saw me with the cat.

I hurriedly hid the cat, but it was too late; it had been seen clearly.

That child? It's a girl.

I remember she was two years older than me. Her name was... I've forgotten. I only remember she was the class monitor in school.

...Then let's call her class monitor.

The class monitor, as expected of someone who's been a class monitor in school, seems very reliable. She seems very mature. When I was in elementary school, even people a year older than me seemed mature, so she's even more so.

Perhaps that's why. I thought the class monitor would definitely talk to the adults living in the apartment building about the kitten.

I didn't want to be separated from the kitten, so I desperately begged her not to tell the adults. I was really nervous then, and I almost cried.

This is how the class monitor responded to my request.

"I won't tell."

"Really?" I asked.

"Because I'm also secretly keeping a cat."

Looking back now, the expression on her face when she said that still strikes me as incredibly mature…

Knowing she was on my side, I calmed down and asked her a lot of questions. Then I learned that it's now fashionable to keep cats in apartment buildings. Besides me and the class monitor, it seems there are a few other kids keeping cats without their parents' knowledge.

I was quite surprised because I thought I was the only one who owned a cat. But the thought that someone else was in the same situation as me made me feel a little relieved.

The class monitor also told me many other things.

For example, it's best not to feed cats kitchen waste.

If you keep a cat in an apartment building, other kids will be envious.

There's also the apartment building manager.

I heard that the caretaker really dislikes cats and will immediately take any stray cats she sees to the animal shelter. So she explicitly told me that I must not let the caretaker find out that I was keeping a cat.

I nodded silently, as if listening to a teacher giving a lecture.

After our chat, I thanked the class monitor and said goodbye. I didn't see her for a while after that… Ah, nothing awkward happened. It seems the class monitor was busy learning a new skill. It's just that our schedules didn't match.

Therefore, my life remained unchanged after I parted ways with the class monitor.

My life changed after I secretly kept a kitten for about a month.

One day after school, I walked towards the atrium of the apartment building as usual and saw a girl I didn't recognize playing with a kitten. Upon closer inspection, I realized the kitten was my pet calico cat. I hesitated for a moment whether to call out to her, but seeing that she was a girl younger than me, I mustered up my courage and struck up a conversation.

"What are you doing?"

The child was startled and turned to apologize to me.

"sorry!"

She's a girl who looks like a small animal. She seems timid and has her hair in braids.

She seemed to be a child who lived in this apartment building. I asked her age; she was a year younger than me. I think I also asked her name… um—I don't remember. Because it was a long time ago.

In short, just like the class monitor from before, let's call that kid "Little Sister with Braids".

I asked the girl with braided pigtails why she apologized, and she told me:

"Because I touched someone else's cat without permission."

I asked her more probing questions, and she said she knew beforehand that I would play with the kittens here, and she was envious, so she approached the kittens when I wasn't around.

"It's okay, it's not my cat."

After hearing this, the girl with the braided pigtails asked me:

"Can I touch it again?"

I agreed.

The little girl with braided pigtails was very happy.

From that day on, we often played with the kitten together after school.

We chatted a lot while playing.

I told her everything the class monitor had told me: the zookeeper dislikes cats, the games kittens like to play, and so on. The girl with the braided pigtails also shared her own stories with me.

She has two close friends who live in the same apartment building, and recently those two started getting cats. Just like me, they're secretly keeping them somewhere in the building. They're taking care of one cat together.

The two men were both focused on the cat and wouldn't play with the girl with the braided pigtails. The girl with the braided pigtails seemed very lonely.

I can understand how she feels.

There are popular games in the class, and it's hard to join a conversation if you don't have that game. The same goes for the girl with the braided pigtails.

A few days later, I remember it was a Sunday.

The girl with braided pigtails said to me:

"Can I take care of Yui's cat?"

I asked her why, and she said tactfully:

"Because animal feed seems to be very expensive."

The girl with the braided pigtails is right. For elementary school students, the cost of feed is a considerable burden on their allowance.

That cat is basically a stray cat and doesn't necessarily need to be fed by people, but I feel that if it's not fed, it will run away to a far place and can't control itself.

Therefore, the suggestion from the girl with the braided hair was indeed very appealing.

But I ultimately refused.

At the time, I strongly felt that I had rescued this cat and that I had to take care of it until the end. Perhaps the elementary school student wanted to take responsibility for the kitten in their own way… or perhaps they just wanted to possess the kitten exclusively.

Anyway, I really value it. So I don't really want to hand it over to someone else.

I told her honestly, and the girl with the braided hair just replied, "I know," and then didn't say anything more.

And then, that day I was thinking.

Should we tell our parents about the kitten?

If you're going to take responsibility for it, you should keep it at home, not let it roam outside. If your parents agree, they might help you talk to the zookeeper.

But what if they say no... The thought of that makes me uneasy, and it's kept me from speaking up.

As a result, I didn't dare tell my parents until the very end, and then Monday came, and I went to school.

The kitten disappeared after I returned from school.

I'm sure it was still there this morning. I also remember feeding it and saying hello to it.

It seems to have disappeared while I was in school.

I searched frantically throughout the apartment building, but I couldn't find it anywhere. The parking lot, the rooftop, even the drains…

The next day, I expanded my search to outside the apartment building, but I still couldn't find it.

Can't find it at all.

I was really devastated. I couldn't eat anything for two days, and my parents were very worried.

On the third day, I also desperately searched for the cat and met the class monitor in the courtyard.