Outside, the rain poured heavily, with thunder crashing and lightning slicing through the dark night sky. Evan tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep. Suddenly, a faint meowing drifted to his ears, as if calling for help, its sound reaching him even through the relentless rain. At first, he tried to ignore it, but the helpless tone in the meow made him hesitate—it felt wrong to just lie there and do nothing.
He remembered that his guest room was quite close to the pet room.
"What a hassle…" he grumbled, though his heart was already set on checking it out. He slipped on a coat and stepped quietly into the hallway, only to be met with an unsettling silence. The long, dark corridor was barely lit, with flickering candle flames casting eerie shadows. The whole mansion looked especially grim and mysterious on such a stormy night. He couldn't help but wonder: in such a huge place, where was the night patrol?
With a slight unease, Evan carefully made his way towards the pet room. As he opened the door, several pairs of shining eyes turned to him in the darkness, making his skin crawl, and he almost stepped back. But as he steadied himself, he realized it was just the cats, staring at him silently. He scanned the room, but there was no sign of Leo.
A pang of worry hit him. He began looking around, following the faint sound, which he now realized was coming from near the window. When he glanced up, he saw the window was wide open. Outside, under the small roof ledge, a small figure was shivering—Leo! He'd been trapped outside in the storm!
Evan froze in shock. How had the window opened? Was it the wind? Before he could think further, he saw Leo huddled under the rain, drenched and looking so small and defenseless, like he could be swept away by the wind at any moment. Watching the poor cat curl up in despair, Evan threw open the window and climbed out to bring him back inside.
Just as he reached out, a blinding flash of lightning cut through the sky, followed by a deafening boom of thunder. Evan felt everything go dark as he lost consciousness.
When he opened his eyes again, he found the world had shifted. Everything around him seemed bigger, and he could see remarkably well, as if his vision had improved. He blinked, a thrill of excitement bubbling up—was this like in the novels where you get superpowers after being struck by lightning? Had his vision improved? Was he about to become a superhero?
Filled with anticipation, he instinctively reached up to adjust his glasses, but instead, he saw a small, furry paw stretched out before him…!
He froze in shock, then looked around. Right next to him, a thin young man lay sprawled on the ground—his own human body! Evan was stunned. Trembling, he looked down at the reflection in a puddle: a wet, wide-eyed cat stared back at him. He had become Leo!
"Heavens! All I wanted was a thrilling lightning strike experience and maybe to gain some kind of superpower! Not Spider-Man, not the Hulk, but at least something, right? How did I end up as a cat? Does this mean I'm destined to become 'Catman'?" Evan despaired inwardly.
"Stay calm, stay calm…" He took a deep breath, reassuring himself. "According to stories and comics, maybe my powers just haven't shown up yet. There's got to be some hidden energy within me!" Feeling a surge of confidence, he gathered all his strength to let out a thunderous roar—"Meow~~~!"
But what came out was a tiny, squeaky mewl. Evan was mortified, his head lowering in embarrassment as he instinctively licked his paw.
Realizing he had just acted like a real cat, Evan felt utterly helpless, his heart sinking. Sure, he loved cats, but this wasn't what he had in mind.
"What am I going to do? What if someone finds my 'body' tomorrow, reports it to the police, and then they go and cremate or bury it? I'll be trapped like this forever!" He panicked, pacing around his human body in little circles, his mind swirling with anxiety. Just then, another massive clap of thunder crashed down, shaking the ground slightly.
Evan stopped short, struck by a sudden realization: it was only after the lightning hit that his soul had entered Leo's body. What if he could switch back by getting struck again? Filled with new hope, Evan's eyes gleamed with determination.
But as he looked up, he saw that he and his "real self" were still under the shelter of the roof—a freak accident had led to him getting struck the first time. As the thought filled him with despair, the sky flashed again. A split second later, another deafening crack of thunder hit, straight at both his cat body and his original one!
As he began to lose consciousness again, Evan's last thought was a mix of resignation and disbelief: "Who knew you could get struck by lightning twice in one night? I can't tell if this is good luck or just pure misfortune!"