Chapter Text
Hatano was in his crush’s room. Hatano. Was in. His. Crush’s. Room. Room. His room. His crush’s! That room? Something may be wrong with him. He was inside! In there! That place!
Ayato’s brother didn't react to Hatano’s odd stiffness. Rather, it was Miiku-chan- who sniffed Hatano earlier and didn't freak out- that was the strange one. Hatano thought it had to do with the fact that he wasn't a cat, or Miiku-chan could somehow tell that he was Hatano. It wasn't expected, but he was extremely grateful for it. Getting into a cat fight with Mii-Chan… well, someone had been a cat their whole life, and the other had been a cat for less than 12 hours.
Hatano was laying on his crush’s bed, freaking out over the whole, Being In His Crush’s Room. For his sanity, he should leave. Right now.
Except Ayato refused to house the stray cat in his own room, and since Hatano was “so clingy,” they assumed he wouldn't freak out over being in a locked house if he stayed with someone he liked. And, well, it's not like Hatano could say anything to the contrary.
He was not a creep.
His crush of 9 years was changing next to him.
Again, just to be clear:
He. Was. Not. A. Creep.
Hatano kept his face firmly pressed against the arch of his leg. Being curled into a ball was more comfortable than he anticipated. The flexibility of his limbs was new and, though it was difficult to use them, he could make just about any position comfortable.
It didn't help the burning in his cat-face.
The movement of fabric shifting around was way, way too much for his imagination.
He wasn't thinking about a pale and soft stomach, or the thighs that flex as he moves to remove his pants, or the collarbones that lead up to his neck, or down towards his chest…
The fur on the back of his neck rises abruptly. Jumping to his feet involuntarily at the imagery, he goes completely stiff, and stares at the wall across the room with a will he didn't know existed in him, until this very moment. He doesn't even notice his nails extending and digging into the blankets under him.
He feels very uncomfortable.
Hatano has had fantasies before, of course- and how could he not? But that's where they stayed until he would eventually make some progress with their relationship. It felt… dangerous, when the person in his dreams was next to him, and completely unaware of it.
Something strokes over his back and he flinches.
“Shh, shh, it's okay.” His crush was casually petting his back.
The image of his crush in nothing but his boxers was still fresh on his mind.
Stiff as a board, he could do nothing but slowly lower himself back to the bed.
The hand on his back continued to stroke, up and down, whispering reassurances and praise. Wha- what plot was this? Why is he here? Is this form some cruel device, used to accelerate his descent into the love he has for someone who doesn't reciprocate in any way?
It's not like he had given up. Especially not when the object of his affections was so, so close, but his intense feelings felt acrid when the man was placed just out of Hatano’s reach. It was like putting noise canceling headphones on and being tied to a chair, forced to watch a world-famous orchestra play live music but being unable to hear it. How could he not salivate and yearn, yet be in equal amounts of anguish and self-depreciation?
It was painful.
Of course it was.
“You are such a pretty breed... Your eyes are so beautiful.”
But it was not something he could turn away from.
Even when he was brought into this house, this room, and placed on this bed, he hadn't run. He hadn't even thought of it.
How could he?
It was precious. So, so precious to him.
So here he lay.
Dying on the inside as the man of his dreams, with an unknown amount of clothing on, strokes his back in a comforting but torturous manner, telling him what sounds like sweet nothings as if they were the most obvious things in the world.
He may never get to experience this again.
No, he was almost certain.
Hatano Ryuuji was not someone without confidence. It could be said that he had an appropriate amount of it after so many confessions and compliments, but only to that extent. They could never supply him with what he really wants to hear. He only wants to hear those things from one person.
But that person was someone that would not easily let himself be loved, much less love Hatano back.
Surely there was a reason behind it.
However, Hatano had no idea how to figure out what it was.
So what is he supposed to do?
The stinging in his chest cools the heat in his cat-face, and he lays down completely and closes his eyes, listening to the comforting words of his crush.
Whatever.
If this is a test of his will, of his love, then so be it. He can handle this much at least.
It doesn't change the fact that he will overcome it.
He’ll find a way to make his crush fall for him. The stinging in his chest is a testament to the fact that he won't ever be satisfied with this much. Hatano wants to hold him, kiss him, run his fingers through his crush’s light purple hair and press a kiss against that cute beauty mark– he wants to be able to love him without restraint. That's impossible unless he’s a human.
Two more years.
Hatano can wait.
He’s already waited this long.
However… he did not expect that when he fell asleep, he would wake up in the middle of the night as a human again.
What is happening?!
By the mercy of some being, he still had the clothes on that he had been wearing before he changed into a cat, but laying on a bed next to his crush was not on any bingo card he’d made, ever. No, he’s never made a bingo card, but really, if he had, this still wouldn't be on any of them even if he’d written a hundred bingo cards!
This is weird. This is weird, right? But no, before he can think about that, he’s gotta do something! What if his crush wakes up and sees him?! His chances might be dashed forever!
Hatano purses his trembling lips, forced to stare at the sleeping face of his crush, unable to move out of sheer nervousness. Forced to look at that delicate face, the cute nose, the beauty mark under his right eye, the mouth which is slightly open and breathing at a steady rate, blowing a warm stream of air at Hatano…
He closes his eyes, the image burned into his retinas.
Hatano explodes.
Well, he wishes he did. Is this what it means to be in heaven and hell at the same time?
Carefully, with the grace of a jaguar moving through the dense forest, he extracts himself from the bed of his crush and, once he succeeds, takes a very long moment to crouch on the floor and contemplate his situation.
Breathe in, breathe out. This is no normal day, but that's fine, it wasn't normal from the first moment he woke up as a cat. What can he do about it? Maybe there's a way to trigger his human appearance. If he can become a human at will, then surely he can go back to being a cat at will too, right?
Even though he thinks about it, he can't think about anything that he did before falling asleep that could've caused it. Besides, well, being very determined to continue pursuing his crush.
… that train of thought may have more merit than he wants to admit. But, really, would it be such a cliche?
He wants to keep thinking, but his crush shuffles a little in bed and his hackles go up like they did when he was a cat- which is incredibly humiliating. The cat-stincts have infected him. He really can't stay a cat for so long again, it isn't good for his mental health.
Hatano makes the decision to quietly, as quietly as he can, leave his crushes room. He leaves the door ever so slightly cracked open. That way, Ayato and his brother can make the assumption that the door was simply left ajar, and the cat escaped into the night.
It isn't like he has any reason to stay here now that he’s a human, right? He has his wallet on him, he can get a room at a hotel, or just return home and say that he changed his mind about the trip.
Being a cat was more fun than he expected, purely because he got to spend so much time next to his crush, but it's also an intrusion. Which is very rude. Hatano is 18 now, too. He can be held responsible at the full extent of the law.
… definitely, he should leave.
He passes into the living room, heart pounding.
“... Hatano-kun?” A voice comes from behind him.
Stiff, Hatano turns to look at Ayato’s brother, excuses coming to his mind but all sounding way too suspicious to be reasonable.
Oh, if only he could be a cat right now.
Ayato, holding a mug of steaming water, looks at him with his classic blank face. He rubs his eyes. Looks again.
“Oh, it's the cat ni-san brought home. How’d you get out of his room?”
Hatano, suddenly much shorter, finds his little cat-legs collapsing from the adrenaline rush. To Ayato, he just lays down suddenly.
“Let's get you back to your room.” Putting his cup of water down, Ayato picks up the melted pool of Hatano and delivers it to his brother's room. “Oh, ni-san left the door open. No wonder you got out, huh?”
Ayato places Hatano on the bed, pets him an appropriate amount, and closes the door on the way out.
…
Hatano lays down. This is too messed up.
Thanks to his rapidly beating heart, he doesn't fall asleep for a long time. What in the world is he going to do…?