The phone rang and rang, and on the fifth call, Kyro picked it up. "Have you returned them home?"
"No! I—"
Kyro ended the call. He then waited another four minutes before picking it up again.
"Hear me out first!" Gale shouted out before he could even say a word. "I met the two of them in the hotel in Italy and we struck it off right away. I promised them to show them around if they came back with me."
"And you brought them to my place why?"
"All girls love pets! Of cou—" Kyro dropped the call again, and Gale's scream came from outside the door. "Let me finish for once!"
At that, Marge came into the room with a smile on her face. "Are you going to let him in?"
"Still considering if it's worth it." They all laughed, then Kyro waved for Marge. "You can open the door for him. I don't have it in myself."
Iris had mostly ignored the commotion. She simply lay by the side, wondering how long this evening was going to last. Would everyone stay till late? Probably, judging by how much beer she saw brought over by the stranger named Jimmy. If they drank all of it, she didn't expect them to leave till the weekend was over.
And that was a damn long time. With a sigh, she looked to the side, at the newcomers. The two girls who had to be around twenty were laughing merrily. They looked like dolls, with their hourglass figures, short skimpy dresses, and auburn hair that fell in waves over their shoulders.
One of them noticed Iris and squealed in delight. Feeling at home in her stilettos, she ran over like it was nothing and picked her into the air. Iris squirmed in her grasp, not enjoying this kind of attention, but decided against scratching in the end. If she damaged this doll, what would show up through the cracks? She didn't think she wanted to see.
"It's so cute! Phi, look at its ears! They're so large! Hehe, it looks so cute!" the girl squealed again, shifting to put Iris on display before what could only be her sister.
"Yeah! And its fur, it's so soft! That little tail is so adorable, it looks much better than the one on my purse!" She then raised her purse to show the rabbit tail attached to it, and a cold shiver ran down Iris' back.
This was dangerous! She no longer held back and bit into the finger of the sister holding her, because of which she was thrown without care to the side when the girl screamed out in pain.
Something was said then, but Iris didn't catch it, too focused on landing. To her surprise, she actually managed to hit the ground feet first. For a second, she stood still, stunned, then rushed away into the bedroom and under the bed. There, she met Lucifer, who didn't look the least bit embarrassed to have been found hiding.
'I should follow him more often. He seems to always know the best thing to do in any situation.' This thought sounded familiar, but she didn't dwell on it and just lay down by the cat. It wasn't safe outside, so she might as well follow a good example and try to sleep through everything.
But there was too much noise for that. Once everyone was present, they went to the living room and sat down on the sofa there. First, the girls introduced themselves and shared some funny stories from staying with Gale in the hotel in Italy, then everyone else began recounting their trips abroad as well.
Laughter and loud voices never ended, people often talking over one another to make sure the other didn't tell the wrong version of the story. On the side, alcohol and snacks weren't lacking, and so the merriment was only raising in volume.
In the bedroom, Iris lay with closed eyes next to Lucifer. She couldn't sleep with so much noise, and so she listened. It was hard not to, with how loud they were to her ears.
Sometimes, a smile would grace her lips, but it was a small, sad thing. There they were, having fun and enjoying themselves, while she was here, alone in the darkness of under the bed.