Raindrops reflect on the mirror that is created on the road with clogged rainwater.
Holding the camera Aki keeps looking straight there for a long time without blinking as he is lost in thoughts. He regains his posture when a bus passes by interrupting his gaze from the night road. Rubbing his forehead with his fingers, he keeps massaging his tired eyes. His heterochromia in the eye sometimes causes problems as it was not inherited from his family.
The right eye has a golden color and red in its center while the other has light brown which is still foreign to him. Flash or high projection of light hurts him. So he is used to carrying sunglasses with him. Though he can adjust when he forgets but he tries not to. Standing up from the waiting seat of the bus stop, he steps down to go over the other side. He sees a drunken man in the middle out of nowhere.
Face drenched in the rain, bottle in one hand smiling at him. Aki knows him too well. A bus suddenly hits the drunken man and gets away without stopping.
Blood that screams of a monster.
Red Blood reaches under his feet. He steps on it, keeps walking while keeping his eye set on the drunken man's dead body, he passes by, never looking back to help the dead man.
The sound of a cat made him turn around. The dead body lying over the white zebra crossing and the white color was already filled with red except where the cat was standing.
Aki knows him.
His body stops as he knows what the cat is thinking. His chest tightens as the black cat steps forward without blinking while slightly making sound, it takes another step. Aki forgets to breathe. His chest starts to feel heavy but it never happened before. He stumbles and takes a step back. The cat doesn't stop. The eyes with green color are set on Aki as it gets near to Aki. The heartfelt like it was gonna explode and he couldn't breathe anymore.
The right eye turns back to normal from red to golden. He can breathe now. Full Body was covered in sweat and Blackie on his chest felt which felt to Aki as surreal. Of course, he forgot he has a cat now.
'Heavy, aren't you?!!' Aki let's go off a breath to relax his heart. His voice sounded too burdened with nightmares and a heavy cat.
'Meow' the cat answers as if it understood.
Aki laughs and pets the back of the cat. Takes a full breath while caressing through its fur. Then gets up as Blackie goes down.
Blackie has the same eye of green color. They both stared at each other which ended after a short while with a meow. Aki sighs. He gets up from the bed and goes to take a shower. He gives the cat some food. The room is already filled with the toys and other necessities that a cat parent would need but he is feeling too exhausted from the nightmare. He takes his eyeglass and reads the newspaper. A small headline with news of a Road accident due to heavy rain. Aki lifts up his head and half folds back the newspaper and stares blankly straight thinking if he will be surprised or not. Putting the paper down, he leans back on the sofa.
Blackie jumps up to him and sits on the news of the accident and keeps staring there. Aki notices how the cat was looking at the news and felt strange so he asks,' Are you aware of my nightmares?'
Aki thought animals can feel the change in their owner's body so blackie must have felt it but can they actually match it up with reality which is not even from a living thing?
'You sure are weird!' He smiles a bit while patting the cat.
He hears some sound. The door was getting unlocked with the password. He gets up and sees Noah was getting in.
'Noah! What's up?' Noah usually comes on his day off but today is not his day off.
"What's up?"? Really!!?' Noah was frustrated at Aki's question. Aki has no idea what turned Noah's mood off. Noah sighs seeing Aki's clueless face.
'You texted me saying you were running a fever last night. So I came to check again.'
Aki is dumbfounded. 'I did?!'
'You don't remember?' Noah seriously was so surprised to see Aki not remembering. Aki tried to recall but he couldn't.
'You got back here yesterday from my home. I knew you would catch a fever as you were drenched. So I called to check but you didn't receive it. After a while, you texted "I have got a fever. Help". So I came and saw you stupid went to bed with your drenched cloth on. Your cat was caged. How irresponsible can you be!!' Noah explained everything in one breath.
Aki silently checked his phone while getting scolded. There was really a text that was sent to Noah. But no matter how much he tried he couldn't remember bringing Blackie back home from the vet nor sending the text. Noah keeps setting up the food and keeps on scolding. Aki sits down without making any sound and keeps absorbing whatever Noah was saying.
After eating a whole set of food they talked about news in the newspaper. Noah has always been there for him even though Aki is not always there for him but Noah never complained. Noah gives him the space that he needs and doesn't pry much. He waits for him to share and listens no matter how weird it is. Though Aki feels sometimes Noah has a hard time believing him but he knows Noah will always give him importance and respect no matter what, unlike others who fake sympathy.
'What's the name of the cat?' Noah asked Aki and Aki smiled while answering, 'Blackie.'
'I knew it that you would name him something easy but to think that you won't select something this obvious as its color was stupid of me.' Noah was disappointed.
'Well, it's black!' Aki tries to be reasonable but Noah starts to poke Aki by adoring the cat and talking with it, 'You poor baby! You are so unlucky to have a master like him. you poor baby!'
Aki got confused why Noah would say those while he brought all the toys, food, and necessary things just for the cat. Still, Aki couldn't pursue Noah.
'So unfortunate! How insincere are you to name him something so easy!' Noah was trying to irritate Aki with the fact that Aki didn't think much while naming the cat
'Ok! Ok! You name him!' Aki understood Noah wanted to change the name of the cat so he allowed Noah to do so.
'Seriously! Can I!? May I?!!' Noah asked. Seeing Noah's enthusiasm, Aki smiles, 'Like you would let me keep that name!'
Noah widely smiles, 'That's True!'