Chapter 47: Jealousy

Assuming, or even hoping, that I would be ignored during this visit was naive on my part. No one I know would leave a guest out of the loop in their own house. 

Natsume is such a person, and so he keeps trying to include me in the conversation, though I imagine he would much rather talk to Ema. No hate to Natsume, but I'd prefer that, too!"How are you, Tsukiyo-san? I bet your new place must be nicer than Sunrise Residence," Natsume says. He turns to me, his violet eyes clear."I'm fine, thank you. If anything it's a lot quieter. I do miss seeing Ema-chan every day, and it feels strange to be on my own again," I add. "Now I know why some people choose to have roommates during school.""I know what you mean," Natsume says."Did you live with roommates, too?" I ask. Ema leans forward as well. Natsume shakes his head. "No. I mean, I guess I can't our brothers as roommates in the sense you're thinking of. The closest I've come to that is living with those two." He gestures to the cats, who by now have both settled between me and Ema. They're still more inclined toward her, since she's been here before. Cats are not always so friendly to strangers, so that's another good reason for me to be glad of her being here.Ordinarily, I would think to visit a few more times for the cats to get used to me, but I remind myself that this is a one time thing. It's already enough that Natsume invited me here once. I'm not about to invite myself over a second time.I'll enjoy today and then content myself with cat cafés.At least until I get a chance to visit home. There's more cats in my hometown than there are in my neighbourhood in Tokyo."When did you get them?" I ask, trying to move the conversation along. I don't have much to contribute to any conversation between the siblings, so if I have to talk I may as well suggest topics that I can actually contribute to.Natsume smirks, and I notice the mole on his chin. Tsubaki and Azusa (the humans) both have moles as well, but Natsume's is more noticeable, owing to its place near his mouth. Not that I'm paying extra attention to his lips—it's simply easier to digest what a person is saying when you're looking at their face."It was a while ago," he starts, leaning back a little at the memory.Ema sets her glass down. "You mentioned it happened back when you first moved in, right?""Yeah. I was supposed to be doing work that night, but then Tsubaki decided to drop by without warning." His tone implies irritation, but Ema chuckles. "That sounds like him."Natsume closes his eyes and tilts his head back. "Tsubaki didn't say anything until he got here. I let him in, but he just shoved a box at me and then left. He told me I should look after what's inside.""How... thoughtful of him." I'm all for finding cats a good home, but the way Tsubaki went about doing it doesn't really endear him to me at all. For all he knew, Natsume's landlord might not have allowed pets in the building. He's so lucky that's not the case.I pet the nearest cat—Azusa(?). Yeah. You two are pretty lucky, aren't you?"What happened next?" Ema prompts. She strokes Azusa's head gently. His little ears flick back and he purrs for more. Jealous, Tsubaki curls his lip and head butts Ema's neck. Wow. I'm jealous. Should I try holding them again?"Well, I couldn't just get rid of them," Natsume says. "When I asked Azusa what happened I couldn't get a clear picture, but he said they thought I'd have better luck taking care of them since Kyo-nii didn't think it was a good idea for them to stay at the mansion."By "mansion" he means Sunrise Residence. Mansions don't always have to be giant estates.Though I wouldn't be surprised if the Asahina family have any."They must've thought you'd like having roommates," I tease.Natsume scoffs. "I couldn't have a place to myself even after moving out. Trust Tsubaki to make himself at home without even being here.""And you decided to name them after your brothers, too." I can't help but wonder if their names are an affectionate gesture or an facetious one."I couldn't think of any other names," Natsume admits. "Something about them reminded me of those two, so it suited them in the end. They're just as annoying at times.""I... see." Both cats now focus all of their attention to Ema, leaving Natsume and me without any feline affection. I guess I should be grateful to even see them at all. What else can you expect from cats, anyway?With a resigned smile I give Tsubaki a gentle rub. My fingers trace his fur from the back of his head down to his long tail, which twitches as I brush past the tip. He's so very fluffy, so despite ignoring me he still brings a smile to my face."He likes you," Natsume comments."Does he?" I wonder. "You're a natural with them, Ema-chan."Ema blushes. "I'm not, really. I think they remember me from last time. They must like visitors.""Not really. They're normally indifferent," Natsume says. "Well, at least when the guys come to visit."Instantly, the picture of Tsubaki trying to win the cats' affection and failing comes to mine. I laugh. He'd totally try to cozy up to them despite being the one to drop them off here. Who knows where he found them in the first place? Noting my deranged laugh, Natsume shoots me a confused look. Embarrassed, I clear my throat and move on. "Are they indoor cats?" "Mostly," Natsume says. "Sometimes I let them out on the balcony if the weather is nice. It's too hot today, otherwise I'd crack open the doors."Ema and I turn to look outside. The AC trills in the apartment overhead, but we can both see the effects of the heat outside. Below the balcony people dab handkerchiefs to their foreheads and chug water on the go. This weather can't be good for long-distant travels."It's great to meet them," I say. "It's been a while since I've met cats who live at home. My neighbours have a cat, but they let it outdoors, so it's more like the neighbourhood cat.""Is that at your parents' house?" Natsume asks."Mn." I nod. "Shin—my younger brother—and I used to feed her bits of our lunches on the way to school. I'm sure we weren't the only ones, but it was bad for her health. Our mom told us not to or else she'd get overweight and develop more health problems.""I try not to overfeed these two," Natsume says. "They both eat well. A little too well, if you ask me.""You take such good care of them. I'm sure they're happy that you do," Ema says. She giggles as Tsubaki drops over her shoulder and into her lap. Azusa startles and pins back his ears. Unperturbed, Tsubaki plops down next to his brother, shoving him over so his bottom practically hangs off over Ema's knee. Azusa doesn't take this well, and soon the two are facing off, tails lowered and eyes narrowed. They haven't resorted to hissing yet, but they're close."Knock it off, you two." Natsume flicks them both on the forehead. That does little to dissuade them from fighting. Poor Ema is caught in the crossfire and is desperately trying to show them that there's more than enough room for both of them."Oh, why don't one of you sit with Mai-chan?" she says nervously. "Good idea." Without warning Natsume pinches Tsubaki by the scruff and drops him onto my lap. I tense at the suddenness, but quickly relax in the hopes that Tsubaki (the cat) will stay. He doesn't.Tsubaki lets out a hiss at Azusa as he tries to regain his position with Ema."Please don't fight!" Ema places a hand on both their heads, an attempt to convince them that she's there for both of them. I've never seen two cats so adamantly fight over a single human, but I suppose it's hard not to resist someone as sweet as Ema. She's got a knack for endearing both humans and animals. How I wish I had her natural charisma. Since there's no hope of reconciling the two, Natsume loses patience and picks both of them up under his arms. He stands and slides the balcony doors open with his foot. "Outside, both of you." He sets both cats down on the balcony and closes the door. "Cool your heads. Then you can come back inside."Tsubaki and Azusa (the cats) glare at him from behind the glass. They've all but forgotten Ema on account of their own human having turned against them. I can't imagine this is the first time Natsume's resorted to giving them time-outs, but it doesn't seem to be working."Is it okay to leave them out there like that?""They'll be fine," Natsume says nonchalantly, dusting off his hands. "I put water dishes out there for them earlier. And it's just for a few minutes while they calm down."Upon second glance I see the metal dish on the balcony next to the wall. There's more than enough for the two of them, and as Natsume predicted, they gradually calm down. Their fur smoothes and their ears flick forward again. Without a human to fight over both cats come to a mutual truce. They might as well be good for us guests before we have to go.We squeeze in more stories about the cats before Ema's and my worries prompt Natsume to let Tsubaki and Azusa back in. A warm rush of humidity floods the apartment when he opens the door. Tsubaki and Azusa dart in and hide under the table in the shade. They choose to curl up next to each other over fighting, which is honestly the cutest thing I've ever seen.As I gush over the sight of them loafing together, Natsume asks Ema how she has been. The two of them jump into a conversation about their family, so I take the chance to gracefully fade into the background like I wanted in the first place. There's something theraputic about simply sitting back and watching a pair of felines go about their day. Even when they're doing nothing I find them adorable and entertaining to watch. Tsubaki, true to his namesake, takes the lead and wraps his tail around Azusa in protective brotherly fashion. Azusa follows his brother and leaves space for Tsubaki to rest his head next to him. The pair of them enter a prelude to sleep, eyes shut and bodies stilled. That's when Ema nervously raises her head. "Ano, Natsume-san, I don't know if Masaomi-san or anyone has told you yet, but we've heard from Subaru-san."It's slight, but Natsume stiffens. If I hadn't been paying attention I wouldn't have noticed his frown deepening, the tips of his mouth curling downward to match his brows. Whatever he's thinking about, I gather that news of the elusive Asahina Subaru must be important to him."Is that so?" he says, his voice low. To smooth over his reaction Natsume takes a long sip of tea. With a soft sigh he sets the glass down again and faces Ema. "What did he say?""It's been over two weeks since he was in Kyushu, but he's been living in the university dorms for a while to focus on his training," Ema begins. Her voice wavers a little, her cheeks flushing a subtle pink. I shoot her a side stare. What's up with that reaction? I've only met Subaru once in passing, and it was by chance, so we didn't get a chance to talk. Ema doesn't talk about him as much as she used to back when we first met, so I can't help but wonder if something has happened since. "Ema-chan?" I ask. "Does this mean Subaru-san will be staying in the dorms for a while longer?""He might be," she says. "He really wants to give the team his all.""Right. He came back from the pros," Natsume remembers. "Has he mentioned anything about what he wants to do now... or later?""I-I'm not sure." Ema ducks her head. "I haven't talked to him in person since... before he left.""I... see..." Again, the two of them drift into silence. If I recall correctly, didn't this happen before? I can't quite remember what the conversation was about at the time, the feeling is uncomfortably familiar.I bite my lip and focus back to the cats. They've settled down to sleep now, so there's no harm in me just watching them. If I at least pretend I haven't been completely listening in on the conversation, maybe Ema and Natsume will be okay to change the subject of... whatever is happening. And then, as if things couldn't get any more awkward, my phone rings. Ema and I jump, startled."I'm so, so sorry!" I grab at my pocket. Who in the world would be calling me? My expression darkens upon reading the caller ID.Ema sees my reaction and asks worriedly, "Who is it, Mai-chan?"I tell myself to calm down. I show Ema, then frown."It's my mother. It looks like I've missed three calls from her today?!"