Cat-Sitting Catastrophe

(Photos from Pinterest!)

When Ashton took a step out into the living room, he instantly sneezed. That was odd. There weren't a ton of things that he was allergic to. In fact, he could count them in one hand since well, there was only one thing he was allergic of.

"Meow!"

Cats.

He flinched upon seeing the orange little devil resting upon his couch like she belonged there. She was in between Zack and Dina, his roommates who no doubt had a hand in this just to make him suffer.

Lyra wasn't the worst pet in the world. Stories from both Mari and Caleb, another guy with a cat allergy, would tell him that the cat was a saint. They would claim that she never caused them any problems or made them struggle in any way. Ashton would believe his friends, of course but that still didn't ease his fear of the pet.

He crosses his arms and coughs awkwardly to make his presence known. "What is Lyra doing in our apartment?" Both Mari and Caleb knew about his distaste for cats so they made sure to steer her out of his way. While he always felt bad for it, he appreciated his friends even more because of it.

Zack shrugged his shoulders. "We found her outside the hotel and she wouldn't leave us alone until we picked her up." He smirked, tilting his head to look right at Ashton. "Besides, what's the big deal? You scared of this little furball, Campbell?"

A silence stretches between the three of them. The first one to break it was Dina who laughed. She actually laughed. Ashton has known her for a while and he doesn't think she has ever even smiled at his presence. But here she was, cracking up about a fear that he was now ashamed of.

"Wait... Actually?!" Zack laughed as much as she did. It's no surprise he would join in. Ashton knew that he never took anything seriously. He picks up Lyra and starts approaching him. "Come on, Campbell! She wants a hug!"

He doesn't even respond to it. He just backs up into his room and shuts the door on Zack's face.

Divine, how was he even able to end up in this situation?! He sent a text to Mari and Caleb in their group chat about how their cat was in this apartment and he, begrudgingly, pleaded with them to get her back. They haven't answered yet. Great, just his luck.

He presses his ear against the door and hears his name being brought up before his roommates laugh about it. He decides to block it out and go back to sleep. Maybe he could escape having to deal with not only his allergies but with sharing a space with Lyra.

---

Despite what most think, it was never a bad experience with a cat that made him have these sorts of reactions. No, the true reason was even more pathetic in his eyes. He would wake up as a kid in a cold sweat all because of a nightmare wherein a cat transforms into a terrifying being. It had many eyes, multiple limbs and was always staring at him and running for the kill.

He never knew why he had dreams like these. He never knew why it was always so vivid or why he would regularly remember it. His parents were concerned when he brought it up to them. Hell, his fear of cats was way worse when he was a kid. Back then, he would usually cry when in the presence of one. It was such an irrational fear when looking back on it that he couldn't help but want to burn the memory away from his brain. His parents actually thought it was due to a past trauma that they were unaware of. However, since he couldn't remember anything before they took him in, their theory was unlikely.

Thankfully though, while he would rather not be in the same room as a cat, he could deal with it. The grudge against the animal was stupid so his reaction wasn't as extreme as it would have been before. Especially since he has read multiple articles and news sources that don't say anything about cats or if they're secretly evil. Therefore, he can just chalk it up to being a weird fear that he can never let go.

After running some errands, all he wanted to do was take a nap. He checked his phone and got a text from Mari, apologizing about the trouble and she planned to pick up Lyra soon in a couple of hours. That gives him enough time to stay in his room while Dina and Zack can play with her.

He opened the door to his apartment, shaking his head in exhaustion until Lyra leaps on foot. He flinches, backing away only to notice a cat toy attached to a string. "Zack!" He sneezes. "Are you kidding me?!"

"Hey! We had to give her something to stop moving!" Zack rushes up to him, holding tight on the handle of whatever cat toy he and Dina had impulsively bought. For once, his signature taunting grin was not on his face. He actually looked tired and stressed out. He looks behind Zack and sees the couch being covered in fur, the kitchen counter muddy and a few pillows look scratched up.

He noticed one major thing though. "You made her chew on my comics?"

"She wouldn't chew on anything else!"

"I didn't even finish the volume!"

"Who cares?!"

"I do!" He buries his face in his palms. "This is fine. It'll be fine. We're lucky I managed to buy stuff we can clean with." He looks up at Zack then glances back at the chaos that's going on behind him. "Where's Dina?"

"She'll kill me if I told you. But uh, the kitty really doesn't like her." He cackles. "First you and now, Dina! Nice to know I'm the animal whisper...er..." He looks down, his face pales. "Ashton. We are so screwed. She's gone."

Ashton mirrors his facial expression. "WHAT?!" He looks out the door and finds no cat outside. "You are coming with me and we are finding her!" He grabs Zack's hand.

"Don't hold my hand, you weirdo! And why me?!" His cries fell onto deaf ears when Ashton drags him across the hall, sprinting to make sure nothing bad happened to Lyra.

"Because Mari will never let me live it down!" He wasn't watching where he was going. His mind was purely in panic mode so he wasn't able to see the woman in his way. That ended up with him crashing down onto the floor with Zack in tow.

"Meow!"

"Great going, Campbell! Wait..."

Zack stands up. Not even bothering to help Ashton up but someone else does. The lady that he had bumped into. She had ginger hair similar to the fur of Lyra. She kept a portion of her hair in a small braid, had the greenest of eyes and wore a white dress with black bows all around.

"I'm sorry! Didn't watch where I was going!" She says with a guilty smile. As she was helping Ashton up, Zack picked up Lyra who was in her arms. "Oh? Is that cat yours?"

"A friend's." He said sheepishly. "Her name's Lyra. Thanks for finding her... uh...?" He stared at her for a bit. Zack muttered an unhelpful comment about him scaring her before walking off, leaving him to suffer on his own. "Your name? If you mind sharing...?"

She laughs. "I'm... Robin!" She walks with him back to his apartment. "I'm actually here to find Ashton Campbell!" His steps start to slow. "Hm? Do you know him?"

"I am him." He replies awkwardly. "Why? And who told you about me?"

"Well! I'm looking for a place to stay!" They stop right outside his door. "And apparently, your apartment is one of the more spacious ones! So I was wondering if you still had space for one person? I won't take up much room! Honest! Just until I can find another place to crash!"

He doesn't reply, still reeling from the request. He doesn't know this lady. Sure, he kind of owes her one because she ended up finding Lyra but who's to say that she won't attack him in his sleep? He opens the front door just slightly, peeking at what his roommates were doing.

It was no surprise that they were bickering again, leaving Lyra to make more of a mess around the apartment before eventually settling down on the couch.

Now that he thinks about it. Having a more sane roommate would be way better than what he has right now. How bad could it really be? He looks at Robin. "I have to ask my other roommates about the technicalities of it but I wouldn't be opposed."

"Thank you!" She beams at him. "Just let me know what your answer will be soon! See you!" She waves before she runs off until he can't see her anymore.

Ashton smiles to himself. She seemed like a nice woman and even if Dina and Zack vote against it, which he wouldn't be surprised if they did, then he could ask some of his coworkers for help or even Caleb or Mari.

With a sigh, he opens the front door to let himself back in his apartment. Only a couple of hours until Mari picks Lyra up. Guess he'll have to put up with this for longer than he has to.

It's gonna be a long day.