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The clouds hanging above them still look dark and heavy with the promise of an oncoming storm. Lynx spotted them while he was brushing his teeth, looking outside the bedroom window early this morning. Tiger’s face was still pressed into the pillow on Lynx’s side of the bed – which is technically the entirety of the bed – but a few minutes later Lynx already had him ushered outside to help rescue the laundry.
“This could have waited until I had my first coffee,” Tiger grumbles, his eyes still heavy with sleep.
“I’m not washing this load another time.The hamper is already overflowing as it is.” Lynx grabs one of the many aprons, folds it, puts it in the basket and lastly throws the clothespin in Tiger’s direction. It hits his arm, falls to the floor and earns Lynx a tired and unimpressed frown from his husband.
“Lynx.”
“More folding, then coffee,” he promises, this time throwing a shirt Tiger’s way. It lands on the ground just the same.
They work in silence like they usually do. Too many of their days start like this: folding the laundry together, one continues to make coffee, the other feeds the cats and then all the other chores that come with running a popular cat café determine pretty much the rest of the day. Lynx never really imagined himself to be in the position he is right now. He’s following his late mother’s legacy after all, many years after her passing. He has a bunch of feline children and he’s scored himself a hot husband. A lifetime ago he used to be an interpreter, ready to leave this country and the last part of his family behind, content with a life in solitude.
Lynx gets a little lost in his head as he reminiscences about the journey of his relationship with Tiger that changed everything. The ups and down, the good times and the bad times and whatever else they say about marriage. It’s when he’s sorting the clean laundry in the bedroom, making two piles of work attire and their everyday clothes, he realizes the first pile is massive compared to the second.
Jiro raises his head from his resting spot on the pillow when he notices Lynx’s frozen state. What’s wrong now?
Lynx blinks a couple of times. Have they not gone out for dinner lately where they dressed up all nicely? Jiro follows him as he dashes into the bathroom and searches the hamper for the colorful shirt Tiger wore that night like a detective looking for the key piece of evidence – but it’s not there.
“It can’t be that long ago, right?”
Jiro jumps up on the bathroom cabinet and tilts his head. Lynx, are you alright? Should I get Tiger? Are you sleepwalking?
Lynx turns towards Jiro and takes his little, squishy face into his hands. “When’s the last time I went out with Tiger?”
It takes Jiro a moment to reply to Lynx’s question, seeing that he’s busy rubbing his head into Lynx’s touch enthusiastically. Between purrs he finally confirms Lynx’s suspicion. A month ago, or maybe two. I’m not sure. It’s not important anyway, keep scratching that spot behind my ear please.
With worries nagging his mind instantly, Lynx somewhat reluctantly obeys to Jiro’s wishes for a total of two minutes. Then he leaves the laundry where it is and trots down the stairs with a heavy heart. He stops at the last step where Jumbo sits and observes Tiger behind the main counter of the café. Lynx perches on the end of the stairs next to the cat and watches too.
Tiger looks content, but still tired as he effortlessly prepares coffee for them. Every movement is natural, the hours upon hours he’s worked beside Lynx evident. Within a minute he’s got two cups ready. A moment later Jiro comes down the stairs too and silently pokes Lynx’s arm with his wet nose. Lynx takes it as a sign and walks up to his husband, gaze fixed on his face to watch out for any signs of unhappiness.
Tiger does give Lynx a small peck to his cheek when he hands him his coffee – unaware that he was just being watched. Lynx can’t remember the last time he realized that it makes his skin tingle pleasantly. Suddenly his heart is racing when they sip their coffee together, shoulders touching as they lean against the counter in silence. It’s not like their everyday life has become so mundane that he doesn’t notice Tiger’s effect on him at all anymore. Or has it?
“I think we need to look over our grocery order again if you plan to go through with the special menu for the anniversary celebrations,” Tiger mumbles into the silence at some point, his toe touching Lynx’s through the thick plush of his well-loved cat slippers.
Lynx’s mind is entirely somewhere else. He twists the silver band – that’s not as shiny and flawless as it once was years ago – on his ring finger. Then he lifts his eyes and exhales in relief to find the identical ring on Tiger’s hand too. The once so ecstatic view has become so common that Lynx can’t even tell if he’s paid attention to whether Tiger wears the ring in weeks, if not months. But then again: has he? It’s become so second nature to immediately put it back on after a shower or a day at the beach.
“Lynx? You’re so quiet. Are you okay?”
Lynx gapes at Tiger who is now right in front of him. Worry swims in his eyes as he looks down at him. And suddenly the need to address the doubts becomes overpowering and Lynx doesn’t beat around the bush, his mind pinpointing on the one question he can’t help but wonder about.
“Are you unhappy with our marriage?”
“W-What?!” Tiger stumbles back a bit, catching himself on the cupboard behind him. “I was only asking about the grocery delivery! Where is this coming from?”
Lynx puts his coffee cup on the counter behind him and does the same with Tiger’s. Then he reaches for his hands. Something inside of him already feels a little soothed when he rubs his thumb over Tiger’s wedding ring that’s warm underneath his touch. “I’m worried that things have become too boring, too monotone, that we’re working endlessly without taking time for ourselves.”
Tiger’s gaze roams around his face until his eyebrows eventually pull together in concern. “You really think so?”
“Answer this one question for me: When was the last time we went out on a date?”
“It was just the other day, no?”
“Do you remember where we went?”
“That new Vietnamese restaurant. We were invited for the soft opening,” Tiger’s reply comes instantly, but with wariness in his voice nonetheless.
It was five weeks ago, Tiger. Jiro comments as he passes by them to snatch his beloved plastic bag from one of the shelves. He dashes off with it without a single care in his feline world.
A slight hint of panic shows on Tiger’s face now. He steps closer into Lynx’s space and clutches onto his hands in return. “Are you unhappy?”
Lynx shrugs. “I wouldn’t say so.” For a moment they stare at each other in silence, hands locked together. Lynx sighs eventually. “I know things are busy with the café and with Leo properly moving out sooner or later, but things have always been busy and we still had time for each other. What has changed now?”
“It’s normal for ordinary life to happen and to have periods where all of it takes up the majority of our time and energy,” Tiger explains calmly. “But that doesn’t mean our relationship is suddenly falling apart. It’s taken a step back at the moment, I have to admit that.”
“And how can we fix that?”
As they both begin to ponder over the question there’s suddenly Jumbo behind them, chirping in on their conversation. I want a new play buddy. Giant is only hanging out with Jenny these days. That’s a far more important problem!
Lynx turns around and he feels Tiger’s hand on his waist a second later. Despite there being a younger addition to their cat family by now, Jumbo still remains their youngest by heart. Always playful, always in need of attention or playmates. That’s why he’s still the favorite among the younger visitors of the café.
“I already explained to you that there’s no room for more cats right now, Jumbo,” Lynx says. “Or do you want to share your favorite spot at the cat tree with someone else, hm?”
Jumbo looks unimpressed, even with Tiger reaching out to pet his head. There’s still plenty of room for more in your bed. It’s gigantic. At least twenty more kittens can fit in there. If you only wouldn’t keep the door locked anymore.
Lynx sucks in a breath to switch into strict parenting mode, ready to explain once more that the cat-free bedroom is a non-negotiable rule he established for good reasons – which Jumbo knows. But Tiger has a better idea to dissolve Jumbo’s problems. “Food first. Who’s hungry?”
The morning silence changes within seconds and suddenly there’s cats crawling out from underneath tables and cupboards and boxes, meowing their way.
“Give me a second,” Tiger whispers to Lynx, places a soft kiss on Lynx's cheek and then follows the army of cats into their room.
A second turns into fifteen minutes in which Lynx makes another round of coffee and fixes them a quick meal. Once Tiger makes it to the kitchen without any more cats clinging to his legs, Lynx earns himself a longer smooch from his husband, closer to his lips now.
“So, any suggestions from you?” Tiger asks and sits down next to him, reaching for the cutlery.
“Hm?”
“How to save our crumbling marriage.”
Lynx gives him the side-eye. “Are you making fun of me?”
“No, I just think it’s adorable that you’re so concerned all of a sudden. You know, you could just tell me you love me every morning and that would be fine with me too.”
Lynx points the end of his spoon a centimeter before Tiger’s nose. “I don’t want fine, I want you to be my servant forever. That was the whole point of getting married.”
Tiger snorts. “And I love you too.”
Lynx lowers his hand again and instead reaches for his beloved paw print cup. It was a birthday present from Leo a few years back, the first birthday after Granny Ju had passed. It has her paw prints all over it. He only lets his hand rest against the porcelain, the fresh coffee inside hot against his palm. “I’m serious, Tiger. I want us to live a little again, be ourselves and not just two business partners running this cat café together.”
It’s not a surprise that Lynx feels Tiger’s firm hand on his thigh a moment later. He looks up and immediately sees the understanding in Tiger’s brown eyes reflecting back at him. “Okay, let’s do something then. What do you suggest? A trip? A long vacation? Should we finally take Dr. Pom up on the offer to look after the cats to do the honeymoon trip we never got to do before he’s the one leaving us for his travels abroad soon?”
“Uhm, maybe we should start smaller, no? It sounds like a lot of preperation and planning and-”
“And you getting used to the idea of leaving the kids behind, I get it,” Tiger finishes for him, smiling fondly – as if he’s not the one that demands video calls when he’s running errands for a day. “A faster solution then.”
“A date night?” Lynx offers.
“I have an even quicker idea.”
Tiger’s hands on him swaps into two devilish fingers slowly crawling up his thigh. Lynx catches his wrist quickly.
“I wasn’t complaining about our sex life. We had sex two nights ago.”
“Yeah, at night. You want us to spice things up? Then let’s do it in the morning.” In one swift movement Tiger has freed his hand and he’s back to feeling up Lynx.
“We need to open up the café.”
“It can wait for an hour.”
“An hour?!”
“I can make two or three out of it, if you want,” Tiger grins with a joyful glimmer in his eyes.
“Tiger!” Lynx whines.“I want us to go on dates more, not for you to rile me up first thing in the morning!” Despite his complaints he has given up on keeping Tiger’s hand away from him. Because of course he has. He wants his touch on him.
“We can start tomorrow. Come, the kids are busy and we have no reservations until afternoon.” By now his husband is giving him the worst case of puppy eyes. A feature that Lynx is still not immune to after this many years. At last Tiger puts the final nail in the coffin by asking, “Do you really want to leave your poor, unhappy husband like this?”
Lynx puts his coffee aside wordlessly, takes Tiger’s hand that’s already found its way underneath his shirt, and drags him out the kitchen and towards their bedroom. “You better have some good ideas afterwards,” Lynx reminds his poor, unhappy husband before he kisses him hungrily, showing him that there truly is nothing to complain about when it comes to their sex life at least.
🐱
It’s predictable that the first attempt to go on an actual date fails. Lynx knows it’s destined to happen the moment he comes up with the idea to have a picnic in the park. Running a business themselves with no additional employees besides his brother is like playing the lottery every day: your chances to come out as the winner are basically nonexistent.
Still, with vigorous hope and determination to appreciate the relationship with his husband more, Lynx spends quite some time preparing all kinds of snacks early in the morning. He’s already got a backpack filled with necessities like blankets and sun protection, but also things for fun activities like a badminton set or a card game Leo recommended to try out. Lastly he reaches for the thermos cups to make them some coffee and promptly spots the white fuzzy cat in the tote bag on the floor.
“Jenny, my pretty girl,” Lynx coos and immediately crouches down to pet her. He puts her pink satin bow into place again.
Why can’t I come with you? I’d love another stroll in the park and cat watch.
Lynx’s heart feels a little heavy having to deny her and the other cats to come along – but he’s seeing now why it’s so important. Both he and Tiger love their cats so much, they are quite literally the center of their lives, and thus the focus has been solely on them for too long. He needs to create more space for his relationship too. It might not be falling apart, but they both want for this to last forever. Which is kind of the point of marriage.
“I’ll take you another time. Just the two of us, I promise. And then we can gossip about all the new cats in town.”
Jenny doesn’t look satisfied. She turns 180 degrees and settles deeper into the bag, resting her head on the box of strawberries already inside. Lynx tries to swallow the guilt. He reminds himself that it’s all good, the cats will be looked after for the day by Leo and Dr. Pug.
“Need any help?”
Lynx whips his head around to find his husband, all gorgeous and breathtaking right next to him. He nearly drops the two thermos cups. It’s been about five years and Tiger still has that effect on him just by wearing a simple white shirt with one button more undone than necessary. And Lynx is happy to find that it makes his heart race just the same as it did at the beginning of their relationship.
“Just need to make the coffee and then get changed,” Lynx mumbles, turning away to hide the blush spreading on his face. “Did you-”
“Yes, I gave Giant a bath, John Wick had his medicine, bowls are filled to the brim, litter boxes are all clean.”
“What about-”
“Yes,” Tiger interrupts again. He crosses the small distance there is until he can wrap his hand around Lynx’s waist to pull him closer. He places a gentle kiss on the corner of Lynx’s lips. “Laundry is done.”
“And did you think-”
“I prepared everything for Leo to take over the café easily today. Snacks and drinks and everything else is on hand. And he’s not entirely by himself.”
Lynx sighs in relief and returns the gesture by also kissing Tiger on the cheek. “Thank you. Glad to call you my business partner.”
Tiger chuckles and squeezes Lynx’s hip. “I thought I was your servant for life.”
“That too.”
They grin at each other like they did in the early years. Always full of love for one another.
“Do you want me to make the coffee so you can go and get dressed?” Tiger asks eventually, gesturing at the coffee maker before them. It’s the same old model that Lynx’s mother invested in all those years ago when she opened up this business. By now the red machine has its own mind, at least Lynx thinks so. It can be quite stubborn if you don’t know how to work it correctly – which is why Lynx stuck some cat ear stickers on it and pets it occasionally when they have busy days ahead and he needs the old thing to work. Tiger, having watched Je Meow back in the day and then Lynx, got the hang of it easily and sometimes it feels like it behaves better around him than Lynx. Leo on the other hand still has his issues with it.
“I’ve got this. Besides, I don’t want you to ruin your beautiful shirt.”
Tiger drops his gaze as if he doesn’t remember the clothes he just put on. “Is it too much?”
Lynx immediately catches Tiger's hand, preventing him from buttoning the shirt all the way up. “Not at all. Let me appreciate the view today.”
He flicks Tiger’s chin with a finger and winks at him. Tiger gives Lynx another peck and then leaves him be. “I’ll leave you to it then.”
Lynx stares after him, sighing dreamily, too entranced by his husband dressed up nicely just for him.
I’ll rather stay here anyway. You only have eyes for each other. It’s Jenny, who’s still curled up inside the tote bag, who makes him snap out of his haze and remember what he’s been trying to do for ten minutes.
Finally he attends to the coffee machine, hands working fast. By now he can operate blindly, which he often has to do when things are busy. Making coffee, taking orders, arranging reservations – it all has to happen at the same time. So Lynx notices right away that something’s wrong now. The noise of the machine is off. He stops in his tracks and stares at the weird substance dripping from the filter down into the espresso cup. It’s milky and beige and anything but fresh coffee. And also not an issue he’s had before.
Just as he empties the funky liquid into the sink and starts a second attempt, the front door opens up and Leo and his boyfriend, Dr. Pug, step inside the café.
“Lynx, my favorite brother!” Leo enthusiastically skips towards him behind the counter and almost makes them topple over as he throws his arms around Lynx’s back.
“I’m your only brother.”
“Hello Lynx.” Dr. Pug greets him with less enthusiasm, but still in a friendly manner. Lynx throws Leo off his shoulders, which makes Jenny jump out of the bag and run away.
“Great start to your shift,” Lynx comments.
“I didn’t know she was in there!” Leo looks after her before quickly averting his attention back to Lynx. There’s a devilish smirk on his face. “Ready for your big date with Tiger, hm? Just like the old days.”
“Shut up.”
“Is there something I can help with already?”
Lynx is more than grateful that Dr. Pug is still polite and a little too courteous. He’s acting as if Lynx is Leo’s parent and he needs to earn the approval of him – despite them dating for years at this point.
“You can get him off my back please. I need to finish up here and then we can get going.”
“Where’s Tiger?” Leo continues to ask despite his boyfriend pulling on the sleeve of his shirt. “Is he getting dressed up for you?”
Just on time, his all dressed up and gorgeous and breathtaking and amazing and beautiful husband comes down the stairs. All three of them stare up at him and Lynx lowers the sachet of sugar out of sight that he was about to throw against Leo’s head.
“Leo. Dr. Pug,” he greets them with a wide smile. “Thank you for covering for us today.”
The two of them mumble something, while Lynx still can’t stop staring. They need to get out of here promptly. His man is only for him to lay his eyes on. Which makes the picnic in the park now seem like a rather silly idea.
“You’re still not done with the coffee?” Tiger directs his attention towards him, looking a little worried.
“I’m on it,” Lynx whines and gestures with the tools right before him. “Something wasn’t working properly.”
Tiger nods and thankfully drags Leo and Dr. Pug towards one of the tables to run through the agenda of the day. Leo knows his way around the café, but there’s a lot of reservations for the day which require more attention than just the usual walk-in guests. Besides, Dr. Pug is the type to rather be prepared than to drown in chaos.
Finally focusing on the task on hand, Lynx attempts to get the espresso shots out of the machine this time. Unsuccessfully. He ends up with four more cups of beige liquid. The three of them look up from their table when he throws the towel quite literally.
“Why doesn’t this work?!”
Within a second Tiger is right beside him again, taking everything out of his hands. “Let me try.”
Lynx hops up on the counter with a huff and then groans when the same thing happens to Tiger. Beige liquid.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen an espresso like this.”
“I have!” Leo chirps in as he leans over the counter to look at the contents of the cup. “It looked the same when I was trying to teach Pug last night how to work the coffee maker.”
“You did what last night?! Why did you sneak in?”
“I have a key, idiot. There’s no sneaking in required. Besides, it’s not like you old people will be found in any compromising positions for me to give you a heads up.”
Dr. Pug tugs at Leo’s shirt from behind, pulling him away from the stare-off he has with Lynx. “Be nice, Leo.”
While Tiger ignores their argument and gives the coffee machine another try, Lynx is now fully provoked. “Why were you even messing with the machine anyway? Look what happened now!”
“I know how this stupid thing works, I was here before all of you and watched Je Meow do it. Just let me try.”
Leo stomps around the counter. Just when he wants to shove Tiger out of the way, the machine suddenly makes a loud sizzling noise before the brownish liquid sprays out of it for a few seconds ultimately ruining Tiger’s pristine white shirt from top to bottom. While Tiger gapes at the coffee maker, the other three blink at the sight of him in silent shock. Lynx’s heart drops into his stomach. There’s no way they can leave now, especially not if the machine is broken and they have so many guests today.
The stunned silence gets broken by Jenny suddenly jumping up on the counter. She cocks her head at the four of them with something like bemusement in her eyes. Her paws stay exactly a centimeter away from the mess all over the counter
This is quite the view. Please continue, this is very entertaining to watch.
🐱🐱
The next time they opt for a safer option. Something that’s already planned weeks ahead and has always worked out so far. Once every six months they travel to Korat to visit Lynx’s grandparents for an overnight stay. Even if Lynx and Tiger have created their own family which consists of their friends and their feline children, it’s still important to them to keep in touch with Lynx’s only maternal relatives.
They shut down the café for three days this time, all their friends taking turns to look after the cats only so they can add another night to the trip to go camping this time. To reminisce about the good old times and our magical first kiss, Tiger said when they were discussing how to make up for the first failed date.
Lynx’s hunch that something will prevent them from going evaporates the moment they arrive in Korat and they don't receive any emergency phone calls from back home.
Spending time revisiting some of the inanimate cats from Je Meow’s journal is a must. They don’t have time to go up the hill to see all of them, since traveling all the way here alongside all the stress of the last work week still sits heavy in their bones. Nevertheless, it’s lovely to retrace the paths of their journey while also remembering Lynx’s mother.
Later that day his grandparents greet the two of them warmly. It’s evident that they always look forward to Lynx’s and Tiger’s visit. The older they get the more of a hustle it is for them to visit the cat café. That’s why they pamper them immediately whenever they are in Korat. His grandmother cooks a variety of dishes but she still needs Lynx’s help with the few things she hasn’t already prepared in advance. In the meantime his grandfather takes Tiger outside to chat.
Dinner is lovely and so is sleeping squished together on the small bed in Je Meow’s old bedroom turned guest room. Before they leave for their stay at the camping site the next day, the pair gets roped into helping with some gardening work that Lynx’s grandparents can’t really do anymore.
“Lunch is a must after so much hard work,” Lynx’s grandmother insists and she also packs them all the leftovers to have later on.
“I can’t believe it’s been more than 24 hours and we are still here,” Lynx reveals to Tiger after they say their goodbyes and head to the campsite.
“Is that why you’ve been looking so worried?” Tiger parks the car and once the engine is shut off he already raises a hand to greet the campsite manager through the window.
“I’m more worried about my grandfather actually.”
“Because he asked us to do the gardening for him?”
Lynx nods and slowly moves to release his seatbelt. He smiles thankfully when Tiger places his hand on his thigh, squeezing lightly. “He’s usually not the type to ask for help, you know that too.”
“I think if there’s anything to truly worry about your grandmother would tell us, no? He seemed to be doing fine whenever I talked to him.”
“Was he still giving you lessons to look after me?”
Tiger huffs and leans over the middle console to give Lynx a peck on the cheek. “They love you as much as I do, so I can’t blame them. Besides, I’m doing a good job – hopefully?”
Aware of the manager still waiting for them to get out of the car, Lynx withstands the urge to kiss his husband and demonstrate to him he’s doing a great job actually. Instead he pats his face lovingly and teases, “If you carry our bags to the tent then I will reconsider my answer.”
With only a one night stay they don’t have many things with them, except for the tons of food Lynx’s grandmother gave them. Nevertheless, Tiger dutifully takes care of bringing the stuff from the car to their tent, setting everything up while Lynx has a chat with the manager.
“This looks quite romantic,” Lynx comments when Tiger brings him towards their place for the night. Just like on that night so many years ago, fairy lights illuminate the tent with warm twinkling lights while at the same time a lot of electric candles flicker in a silent dance.
Tiger only smirks at him and gestured towards a lounging chair set up in front of the small camping table, loaded with the many tins of food.
“I’m not hungry yet, maybe not even for the next few hours.”
“We have the entire evening and night to get through it. Or we can take some of it home. I’m pretty sure your brother would appreciate it.”
For a while they just sit there and watch the sky turn all colors of the rainbow while the sun is setting. Their fingers are intertwined, the toes of their feet are touching in the grass and there’s a silence that Lynx is not used to anymore. He suddenly remembers the eerie stillness of his apartment from a time before he took over Cat Cheer Café and also the times when he had to get used to the many noises the cats made when he moved into the café. Right now, this silence gives him mixed feelings. And as he turns his head to look at his husband, he sees that he’s not the only one.
“Is it weird that it feels so wrong?”
Tiger shakes his head, eyes still fixed on the purplish pink sky for another moment. Then he turns his attention towards Lynx. His gaze is full of adoration and also some kind longing. “It’s not weird that we miss them. They are our family.”
“Next time we’re bringing them all out for a camping trip. Get a new car where we can fit them all and then have an extra cat tent.”
“Sure,” Tiger chuckles and brushes his thumb over the back of Lynx’s hand and his wedding ring. “I’m sure all the cats are thrilled for a three hour car ride when some of them can’t even handle the few minutes to Dr. Pom’s office.” He squeezes his hand next. “Let’s try and enjoy the silence together. The kids are in good hands and we can have a moment for ourselves. Absence makes the heart grow fonder or something like that.”
“Okay,” Lynx whispers his agreement, kisses Tiger softly and then relaxes.
A minute later, one of their phones is ringing. The sound is audible throughout the entire camping site, that’s how loud it slices through the quietness of the evening. Lynx’s heart sinks immediately.
Half an hour later they are surrounded by the sounds of children crying, people whispering into their phones, nurses directing patients and the buzzing of a cheap coffee vending machine. Tiger has a cup of it in his hand. It saddens Lynx even more that it’s a dull beige paper cup without anything printed on. He shakes his head wordlessly when Tiger offers it to him. His heart is heavy as it is while his hands have been shaking the moment they arrived at the local hospital, caffeine would only make things even worse.
An eternity later, Lynx dashes towards his grandmother the moment he sees her coming out of an examination room of the ER. He holds her tightly. Tears well in his eyes when he feels Tiger behind them, enveloping them both at the same time.
“Oh dear, he’s fine. It’s nothing to be concerned about,” she says when she gets to take a look at Lynx’s miserable state. But her smile is just as unstable, while her eyes speak of the same tiredness that Lynx feels. “The ECG looks good. It was low blood pressure that caused him to fall. Just to be sure, they want to keep him here for the night and I will stay with him. There’s no need to bring me back.”
“No, no,” Lynx is quick to disagree with her plans. “You need rest just as much as him. I can’t have you sleep on a chair all night. Let me stay and Tiger will get you home safely.”
Her hand comes down on his shoulder, patting it gently. The panic with which she called them earlier has vanished now. When she speaks to him, she radiates calmness despite the uproar. “If you want to help then go and look after the cat for us. You can bring a change of clothes in the morning, hm? Don’t look so worried, this is not the first time I stayed here. I know how to bribe the nurses into giving me a sleeping chair.”
“But-”
“Tiger, my dear,” she interrupts Lynx and turns her attention towards his husband instead. “Look after our cat and him. Will you do that for me?”
Tiger winds his arm around Lynx’s waist protectively. “Of course.”
An hour later, it’s the two of them trying to calm down his grandparents’ cat. But the gray cat just keeps on going without letting them say anything.
I always tell him to look after his health more, to take things easy and rest more, but he’s just as stubborn as Je Meow and Lynx. All the same with this family. I hope you better remember what I told you the first time you were here, Tiger.
And thus the camping date turns into coddling a cat for the night, listening to him complain – which is his way of showing how much he cares about his family. At least Lynx gets to cuddle with Tiger during the very short night, sharing the small bed in the guest room yet again. But that’s about it for togetherness.
🐱🐱🐱
For the next attempt Lynx doesn’t even bother to declare it a date anymore. There’s no way this isn’t a streak of bad luck or some kind of curse. One night he stands in front of the picture of his late mother holding Granny Ju in her arms. He straight up asks her if she’s the one responsible for this streak of disasters. Maybe he’s really been neglecting his husband for too long that his mother has to intervene – even from the afterlife. All clues lead to her after all: the coffee machine and his grandparents. So instead of coming up with a date date Lynx uses the upcoming festivities at the café as an opportunity to spend time with Tiger.
Since most of the cats celebrate their birthdays some time in spring or summer Krapor established a summer festival two years ago. There’s games for children, arts and crafts, makeup, a special menu with various kinds of iced coffee and frozen deserts and lastly a raffle where all proceeds will be donated to the local animal shelter. It requires effort, teamwork and a lot of time to set everything up, but once all the organization is settled, Lynx can plan the decoration. Which is where Tiger comes into play.
“Do I really have to?” his husband whines. They just closed down the café for the day and while they are cleaning up Lynx suggested crafting the decoration together instead of watching TV. “You know I’m useless when it comes to creative things.”
Lynx throws the towel he was just wiping the counter with at Tiger. “You want me to do all the work alone?”
With an elegant and swift move Tiger grabs the towel before it can land on the floor. Then he uses it to wrap it behind Lynx’s back and pull him in. Their noses touch and Tiger smiles affectionately. “I can be a great moral support. Or cut things out for you if you have stencils prepared.” He lightly pushes Lynx’s nose with his own. “If you let me help, I’ll just ruin it and you have double the amount of work to do.”
Lynx gets his point, but at the same time he wants to push through with his secret plan. Lots of couples use crafting of all kinds for a chance at togetherness. So Lynx unveils his strongest argument that still works on Tiger after all those years. He purses his lips into a pout, looks up at him through his eyelashes with pleading eyes and then traces the tip of his index finger slowly down Tiger’s chest. “Please? For me?”
By the time he reaches the center of his sternum, Tiger already falters. He sighs and gives Lynx a kiss that lingers a little longer than their usual pecks. “But don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
Lynx only beams at him in triumph.
As he turns around to continue cleaning there’s suddenly an orange fur ball right on the sink. Jiro squints at him. Don’t forget about dinner. You promised an extra large portion in exchange for my cuteness. Did you see how many pictures and videos that group of girls took of me? That costs extra, Lynx.
“I’ll take it from here,” Tiger chirps in from behind his back before Lynx can react to Jiro’s demands. “You can go and set up the crafting supplies.”
Lynx doesn’t step away immediately. With all the other plans so far in ruins he somehow suspects Jiro to be the next one his mother sends from the afterlife. Jiro is still as mischievous as on the first day. It’s his way of showing affection. Most of the time Lynx needs to bribe him in some way to have him behave. Therefore Lynx pats Tiger’s hand that’s on his shoulder now. “Let me do the cats. I think Jiro wants to spend some extra time with me today, am I right?”
Always. Jiro jumps down and shows Lynx the way to the food bowls with his swinging, fluffy tail in front.
For almost an hour Lynx does everything there is to care for their cats. He brushes their fur. He listens to each of them telling him about their day. He plays with the youngest who still have some energy to burn after dinner. Most importantly he cuddles with Jiro the longest and makes notes of all the things he’s asking Lynx to buy for him as compensation. A new collar, those delicious salmon treats from Mom Choice, a billion more plastic bags and toys, a new bed. The list is so long that Jiro eventually falls asleep in his lap like that.
Tiger finds them cuddled up together. There’s a softness in his face that makes Lynx’s heart beat faster.
“You two seem close tonight. Do I even dare to interrupt?”
Even if Lynx enjoys feeling Jiro’s purring beneath his hand, he still holds onto his plan. Tiger helps to safely transfer Jiro to his old cat bed (it’s only 3 months old, what does he need a new one for?) and then Lynx quickly gets changed.
Before he finally joins Tiger downstairs Lynx stands before his mother’s picture once more. It’s hung in the center of the upstairs hallway, surrounded by photos of Leo’s graduation, his own, from the wedding and a family picture of the two of them with all the cats. He doesn’t say anything to her this time, just gives her a long glance.
He sits down next to Tiger at the laden tables with crafting supplies, four of the small tables pushed together to have enough space. Before they get started he sends a silent prayer to the sky. And he thinks himself safe from any disaster once they hit the one hour mark of being uninterrupted.
They are shoulder to shoulder while Tiger obediently does everything Lynx tells him to do. As expected he’s not as disastrous as he claimed to be. Together they craft some easy cat-shaped garlands and summer themed mocktail decorations. Even if the workweek loaded with all the organization was long and exhausting, Lynx is over the moon that for once he has some uninterrupted quality time with Tiger. They talk quietly until the sun is down and they need to turn on the lights to keep working. Then they continue some more.
Lynx is in the middle of searching Pinterest for inspiration pictures for the small lanterns made out of old jars he wants to paint with summery motifs. He snaps his head up in surprise when Tiger suddenly exclaims, “Jiro! What’s wrong?”
Jiro stands at the edge between the cat room and café. His back is arched all the way up, his tail so thick, Lynx barely recognizes him like that. Both him and Tiger are alerted immediately.
“Jiro?”
Then it’s John Wick who appears from behind frightened Jiro, his head turned towards the front door. There’s someone out there.
Lynx sucks in a sharp breath. There hasn’t been a break-in in years, all the dark traces of Leo’s past long gone – but they still have unpleasant people showing up every now and then. A price they pay for their online popularity.
Tiger holds Lynx back by his arm. “Stay here with them, I’ll look.”
“Tiger,” he whisper-shouts in protest uselessly. Tiger only needs to throw him a stern glance and Lynx stays in place. He grabs for his phone again, his only weapon in situations like this. His husband cautiously sneaks towards the door. Some of the cats stay behind like a row of backup officers. Wouldn’t it be for the seriousness of the situation, it would make for a pretty funny picture. Thankfully, the tension in Lynx’s body deflates the moment he sees Tiger’s raised shoulders drop. “There’s a cat,” he declares and dashed out the door. Lynx jumps up from his seat and holds back their kids, ushering them back into the safety of their own room.
“Lynx, can you come and help me please?” He finds Tiger outside with a basket in his arms, just beside his car. There’s a tote bag filled to the brim right at his feet. “Someone must have dropped the poor thing off here.”
Lynx comes up to him and peaks into the bundle of blankets in the round basket. A black cat with golden eyes blinks up at him with wide pupils. Wordlessly Tiger brings them inside while Lynx carries the heavy bag. He spots a folded paper stuck between various cans of high quality cat food.
“What’s that?” Tiger asks as he puts the basket down on a vacant table, his arms still wrapped around it protectively.
Lynx skims over the hastily written note. I’m really sorry to have to do this. My life is changing in a way that’s keeping me from taking care of him for longer. My partner only heard great things about your place and was a customer a while ago when Je Meow was still running the place. So I sincerely hope you can take care of him for me. Once again, I’m truly sorry, but this is my last resort. I’ll miss Home terribly, but at least he’s with good people now.
“Did someone mistake our place for the shelter?” Tiger voices his assumption when Lynx lowers the letter. He shakes his head no. A heavy feeling spreads inside his chest after having read those words. Somehow he’s absolutely certain that this person really had no other choice and that it wasn’t a decision made easily. And he feels that pain too.
“Looks like we got another foster child on our hands,” he finally says. His eyes fall onto the scared cat again. He hasn’t said a single word yet. He also doesn’t know yet that both Tiger and him will be able to understand him fully.
“What do you mean another?”
Lynx resists the urge to pat the little head affectionately. “Leo was our first one, wasn’t he?”
“I know that. What does the letter say? The cat is really meant for us?”
He nods and then takes his eyes off the cat to look at Tiger instead. There’s a glimmer in his gaze that reflects the same pain that he still feels. At the same time, his eyes are fierce, filled with the responsibility that’s been given to them. It reminds Lynx immediately why Tiger is his husband, his companion through this unpredictable life. There’s no one else he’d rather do all of this with.
“I’ll call Dr. Pom so he can check the little guy immediately.”
Crisis mode is activated right away. Which is why only a little sigh escapes Lynx’s chest when he spots his phone on the chaotic crafting table. There are more important things to attend to right now than to fuss about yet another failed date attempt.
🐱🐱🐱🐱
All thoughts about dates or spending more quality time with Tiger get pushed to the back of Lynx’s mind. For the next few days, weeks even, everything revolves around their new foster child. He’s, well, not as easily adjustable as Giant was, their last newcomer. While Home initially was deemed all healthy and well-nourished by Dr. Pom, he tends to get himself into dangerous situations constantly.
He comes too close to the coffee machine, almost burning his whiskers on the milk steamer. He tends to hide beneath dark colored blankets or pillows and people have tried to sit on him countless of times, including Lynx himself. He almost falls asleep with his face in the water bowl once (Tiger promptly replaces the bowls with shallow plates instead). One time he even sneaks into the takeout bag from Tiger’s favorite burger joint and manages to gorge down the second burger before they even notice it. It’s needless to say that Lynx is stressed. And all that stress turns him grumpy which promptly reflects on all the other cats as well. Which, of course, the customers notice too.
“How are you calling this a cat café when I haven’t seen a single cat around for almost the entire hour I’ve been here?!” A man, approximately in his fifties or older, demands answers from Lynx.
Lynx is in the middle of making the third coffee for said man with an absurd amount of flavored syrups in there. You can barely call the concoction a coffee anymore. Usually he has no issues at all doing custom orders for their guests – however, this man is getting on his already thin nerves. He complained about the last two drinks he’s got and claimed they weren’t sweet enough. Lynx blood is boiling more than the next espresso he pulls out the machine. It takes some mental strength not to throw the cup into the man’s face who’s leaning over the counter like an annoying inspector.
When Lynx spots fluffy, cute Giant hopping onto the barstool at the window to the cat room, he feels a smile tug on his lips. He then points his chin towards him. “There’s a cat for you,” he tells the customer, trying to suppress the viciousness in his voice. The sarcasm on the other hand slips into it on its own. “Giant is a very cuddly cat, who lets friendly customers pet him or brush his fur with gusto.”
It’s visible in the man’s surprised then turned sour face that it takes a second for him to understand Lynx’s jab at him. “Are you telling me I’m not friendly?”
Lynx shrugs and doesn’t look at him as he pumps the ridiculous amounts of syrups into a cup. “Not my words. If you want to interpret them that way then that’s all on you.”
“Hey!” The man throws an accusing finger at him. “Is this how you treat your paying customers?”
Him raising his voice at Lynx has Giant fleeing again, his fluffy tail disappearing beneath one of the tables within a second. Additionally, Tiger also pops out of the kitchen where he’s disappeared earlier to bake some cakes.
“What’s going on here?”
Lynx only squints at the man still leaning over the counter like he wants to lay down over it.
“Your employee refuses to make my drink the way I’ve been asking for it two times now,” the man starts to yap, now pointing his finger at Tiger who’s slowly coming to stand besides Lynx. His arms are crossed over his chest, while his face remains neutral. At least to strangers it seems neutral. Lynx knows better and he hides his content smirk behind a cough. The furious customer doesn’t pay attention to him at all anymore, he keeps going at Tiger now, “And then he has the audacity to imply that I’m unfriendly or impolite because your cats refused to come out of their hiding spot. That’s not what I’m paying money for! You should better train your workers and cats and teach them some manners.”
There’s a beat of silence, then you can only hear the heavy breathing after his rant comes to an end. He almost looks satisfied, having vented his anger to who he assumes to be the owner of this café.
Tiger nods very slowly, then he turns towards Lynx and gestures at the cup in his hand. Lynx hands it over immediately. Wordlessly Tiger pours the criminally sweet coffee into a paper cup that hasn’t been decorated neither with a cat sticker nor one of their cute cat quotes. He pushes the coffee over the counter, clicking his tongue once. “Here’s your coffee, made by my husband, who was the one to teach me how to make coffee art, who’s the one running this café for several years very successfully and who would never accuse anyone of being unfriendly unless that’s actually the case. On top of that, if our kids don’t want to be around you then that’s even more of an indicator of your ill character. As written there on the bottom right of our giant menu,” Tiger points behind him without breaking eye contact, “it’s specified that the price doesn’t guarantee you time with the cats. They are their own living beings with their own mind. If they don’t want to be around you then I would advise you to rethink your behavior next time you come here. For today you got your coffee – the third one, mind you, without paying extra – so I’m asking you to leave now.”
Flabergasted, the man has been slowly making himself smaller and smaller the longer Tiger speaks. In the end his head is red as a tomato and his mouth opens and closes like a fish in its tank. “You… you–” he stutters, but still snatches the coffee away after all.
Tiger leans over the counter, puffing up his broad chest. “I’m not asking another time. Leave. Now.”
“I’ll certainly give you a bad review! This is outrageous behavior towards your paying customers,” the man yells but finally turns around and almost runs out of the door, because he’s finally sensing that Tiger is not taking his bullshit any longer.
All that fuss certainly drew some attention from the other customers. Tiger steps forward, his whole body language friendly and polite again. “I apologize for the inconvenience. I’d like to invite you to a piece of cake that’s fresh out of the oven, completely free of charge. Chocolate or lemon flavor. I’ll come and take your orders in a minute.”
The few guests already look much happier at the promise of free cake. The cats also slowly crawl out of their hiding spots now that the reason for so much disturbance is finally gone.
“Are you alright?” Tiger finally turns towards Lynx, hands roaming over him as if the rude customer laid hands on him.
Lynx nods. “Thank you for helping.”
“That’s what I’m here for.” He gives Lynx a quick kiss on the crown of his head. “Let’s talk after the shift.”
Thankfully for Lynx’s minimally soothed nerves, the remaining few hours of the work day pass without any more disturbance.
“What a day,” he sighs deeply once he falls on top of their bed, hair still wet from the long shower he just took.
Tiger, the poster child of doing things right, is smiling fondly at him while he’s using the hair drier. Lynx whines when he comes over to him to try and do his hair too. “Tiger.”
“Come on, you know how easily you get sick if you go to bed with wet hair.”
“I have no energy left for this today.”
“Of course I’ll do it for you, silly. Sit up properly for me.”
With some grumpy noises, Lynx reluctantly moves and turns his back towards Tiger who immediately starts drying his hair. After just a minute of feeling Tiger’s fingers card through his hair and lightly massage his scalp at the same time, Lynx can feel his body relaxing little by little. His eyes fall shut slowly and he notices it a moment too late that Tiger’s already done and turned off the drier.
“Do you want to talk about it?” Tiger’s voice is suddenly right by his ear. Shivers spread across Lynx’s skin like tiny waves of drizzle.
“Hm?” Lynx murmurs. He blinks his eyes open and just as he turns around Tiger sits down next to him. It’s minimally distracting that there’s still only a towel wrapped around his waist, his silver necklace twinkling on his naked chest.
Tiger smirks. Once he places a finger under Lynx’s chin to keep his eyes fixed on his own, his expression turns softer again. “You seem stressed. I had to save you from fighting with a customer.”
Lynx huffs and pushes Tiger’s hand away. Maybe he accidentally brushes over his chest as he does so. Just maybe and totally accidentally. “Had to? I could have easily handled the situation myself!”
“I saw it in your eyes that you almost threw the coffee right into his face if I wouldn’t have stepped in.”
“So what?” he juts his chin forward and crosses his arms over his chest. “He deserved it! He was an asshole and he complained about our children, for which he deserved to be thrown at with two coffees at least.”
Small giggles shake Tiger’s body. “I love you so much, do you know that?”
Playfully Lynx rolls his eyes and doesn’t say anything. He only smiles smugly when Tiger kisses his cheek that is most certainly only red from the heat of the hairdryer. It’s silent for a moment. And while Lynx enjoys Tiger’s presence, his warmth against his side and then his hand on his thigh drawing small circles and other shapes, the stress is still settled too deeply in his bones. His head comes to fall onto Tiger’s bare shoulder almost on his own – just the same way that Tiger’s arm winds its way around Lynx’s body, pulling him in.
“I feel like I’m doing everything wrong with Home, it makes me think that I’ve traveled back in time and I just got handed this place with all the cats and all those responsibilities again and I don’t know what to do. One part of my brain is sure that he’s missing his former owner a lot and that’s why he barely talks or tries to settle in with the others. The other part, however, is convinced that it’s me. That I’m just constantly trying to correct his behavior and thus he gets himself into even more dangerous situations. I’m wondering if he’s even happy to be here at all. What if we can’t give him what he needs?”
“Oh, love,” Tiger sighs. He rubs Lynx’s side soothingly. “You’re being so hard on yourself.”
“Aren’t you worried at all?” Lynx blinks up at Tiger and meets his eyes full of concern.
“Of course I am, but it’s one of those situations where we can’t do much. We provide him with the best care we can give him, the cats are all welcoming, only time can tell now if he’s going to be able to fit in within our family. A loss like that is not easy to get over with soon, right?”
While the pain of losing his mother doesn’t feel as aching and horrible as it used to do, it still stings to be reminded that Home is going through a similar phase. It’s taken Lynx a long time and maybe he really needs to practice more patience with the new cat and only make sure that he doesn’t accidentally hurt himself.
“Anything else in that pretty head of yours?” Tiger asks when he notices the silence from Lynx.
Of course there’s more. Now that Tiger has got him digging through his mind, a worry that’s been nagging on him for weeks now comes to the forefront again. And even more so the miserable feeling of having failed to change anything about it so many times now.
Lynx sighs and nuzzles his nose into the crook of Tiger’s neck. “We still haven’t managed to spend more time together. The two of us, alone,” he murmurs into his skin.
“You’re still hung up on that? Lynx, I told you I’m fine with how things are going. I’m not unhappy with our marriage, I promise.”
“I still want to change things and make it happen more regularly and with more intention. Is that so bad?”
Tiger laughs softly. “Of course not, I want the same. But I have this feeling that you’re stressing out about something that you don’t need to worry about too much. I won’t be going anywhere.”
Forming his lips into a pout, Lynx only makes some unsatisfied noises and wiggles in Tiger’s arms.
“Okay, okay.” His strong arms both wrap around Lynx firmer. “How about we use the time right now, hm? The cats are taken care of, plus we have nothing on the agenda tomorrow that requires us to wake up early.”
“It’s so late,” Lynx whines like a toddler on the edge of throwing a tantrum. But with how many times he’s attempted to do this – no matter if it was a big, planned date or anything spontaneous – it’s understandable that he’s frustrated and pessimistic. This won’t work out, he knows it. “What is there that we can do right now? And don’t say going out. It’s too late and I’m old and grumpy and need to have at least six hours of sleep to even function tomorrow.”
God bless Tiger for having the patience of a monk. He places a gentle kiss to Lynx’s temple and points his chin behind him. “Lay down and relax. I will give you a massage. Haven’t done that in a while.”
“And what if I fall asleep?”
“Then you will have a great night of sleep with your muscles all relaxed. Come on now, I’ll go get the oil and put on some clothes.”
Lynx, who was just about to pull out of Tiger’s hold, halts immediately. He squints at his husband. “Why?”
“Because it’s not that kind of massage, silly.” Tiger flicks his nose and smirks at him again. It turns into a giggle when he gets up, plays with the loose knot of the towel, and then disappears into the bathroom the moment the white fabric falls to the floor.
Lynx can only laugh to himself. He’s not a hundred percent convinced. There’s still this uneasy feeling inside his chest, like there’s no way Tiger can just spontaneously pull the very thing off that Lynx has been failing to do so for weeks now. Nevertheless, he would be an idiot to turn down a massage from his husband who knows all too well how to tend to Lynx’s hurting body.
Moments later Lynx is obediently laid down on his stomach, head resting on his folded hands. Tiger has placed a fresh towel beneath him and tucked another one into the elastic of his underwear. Apparently it’s really not going to be that kind of massage. But he isn’t and hasn’t been in the mood for sex anyway for the past few weeks. Not even the view of a shirtless Tiger can change anything about it. Lynx is sadly too stressed out.
For the next hour Tiger works his strong hands all over Lynx’s back. He draws softer circles with the tips of his fingers around Lynx’s neck, kneads his tense shoulders and massages the full expanse of his back until Lynx is nothing but a groaning puddle beneath him. It’s wonderful, heavenly even to be cared for like this.
However, Lynx can’t shake the thought off that their roles should be reversed right now. After telling Tiger so, he shushes him immediately and starts to praise Lynx in ways that feel even better than the touch on his skin. Once those worries are shooed away by Tiger’s whispers of how wonderful it is to be married to Lynx, the next ones arise promptly.
“We will be fine,” Tiger promises over and over, his fingers working Lynx’s neck once more. “Home will get used to it, just like everyone else did. Give him time. Give yourself some time and grace, love.”
Even if Tiger tries really hard and Lynx believes his words wholeheartedly, it still doesn’t completely erase Lynx’s presentiment. He grumbles into his clasped hands which Tiger seems to interpret as agreement.
Silence falls upon them as Tiger successfully massages away all those tense spots and knots on Lynx’s back. But some of the worries stay stubbornly. And just like Lynx predicted it, moments later there’s a loud clattering noise coming from the hallway. It’s followed by the prominent hissing and screaming of fighting cats. Lynx almost throws Tiger off of him, that’s how fast he shoots up.
“No, Lynx. Let me,” Tiger pleads and reaches out for him, but Lynx is faster. He’s already got a hand on his discarded clothes from earlier. All the tension that Tiger tediously spent massaging away gets sucked up into his body once again like it was never truly gone.
“I knew it,” Lynx grumbles and hastily gets dressed again. “I just knew it.”
He’s out the door despite Tiger calling him back a few more times. With his hands balled into first, his jaw clenched and a very uneasy feeling swirling like a tornado inside his stomach, Lynx is at least glad he doesn’t need to search for long to find the trouble makers. The door to their bathroom is wide open. Some of their cats are in the doorway, peaking inside. Lynx feels Tiger’s presence already behind him when he looks further into the room and finds – well, there’s no other way to explain this more elegantly – the rest of their cats standing in a circle around the toilet. The lid is open and Giant, Jumbo and John Wick peek over the rim as if there’s some treasure hidden inside. Only Jiro sits on top of the cistern, while Home is looking down into the bowl from his place on the sink next to it. They’re all laser focused on the toilet, not even one of them acknowledging their presence.
“What’s going on here?” Lynx whispers in disbelief and confusion both. Ever so slowly the cats turn their head towards him one by one, but otherwise stay silent. A few seconds, then a minute passes in complete silence. Lynx’s suspicions only grow wilder.
It’s Jiro, obviously, who rises to speak. Do you have a diving suit? We could really need it here. All because someonerefuses to correct his mistake himself. He swishes his orange tail into Home’s direction but doesn’t look his way even once. And thus another verbal cat fight starts between the two.
How is it my mistake when you’re the one who startled me?
I told you the bathroom is off limits for all of us and now look what happened! The ring is deep down there, no chance of retrieving it without the help of a plumber.
“Ring?!” Tiger’s voice is an octave higher. He steps forward in panic, the cats around the toilet scattering away like little mice.
It was all him, Tiger. He kicked your ring into the toilet.
And you stepped on the flush when you jumped up on it. Otherwise we could have saved it!
Lynx is too shocked to even comprehend what the back and forth between the two cats means.
When Tiger turns towards him and there’s pure devastation written on his face, Lynx understands at last that it’s nothing good. His heart plummets into his already hurting stomach.
“My wedding ring,” Tiger says breathlessly, his eyes wide in disbelief. “I… I took it off and left it here before I came into the bedroom.”
And now it’s flushed down the toilet, Jiro concludes the ridiculously tragic events. He jumps down, activating the flush another time which makes them gasp in surprise.
“I knew it,” Lynx repeats from earlier and he stares into the toilet together with his husband, watching the swirling of the clean water. Home shuffles around their legs for a moment and then he leaves them wordlessly too.
🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱
The final attempt is born out of Tiger’s unwillingness to believe Lynx that there’s a curse upon them.
“Why would you think so, love? And why exactly would your mother do this?”
They’ve already been arguing all the way back in the car from their trip to the nearest jeweler in town. It continues over lunch as well. Lynx points his spoon into Tiger’s face, wildly drawing circles in the air.
“I already told you why. She’s aware I've been neglecting you as my husband and this is my punishment.”
Tiger fights back with his own spoon, spilling grains of rice as he does so. “First of all: that’s up to me to decide whether or not I feel neglected and not your mother. Second, if that were the case then why do I get punished too when – according to you – it's all on you.”
Lynx shrugs with one shoulder. “Collateral damage?”
“Right,” Tiger deadpans. Lowering his cutlery to shovel some food onto it instead, he shakes his head to himself. “How about we go to Korat-”
“We don’t have time to go on a trip again,” Lynx is quick to interrupt him, frustration making him whine. “We have a twenty people reservation on Saturday, in case you forgot.”
Tiger rolls his eyes and sucks in air sharply. “How about,” he repeats and leaves a pause for Lynx to not interrupt him again, “we go to the temple and make merit and see then if your theory is right?”
Too impatient to open up the café and too annoyed with everything else, Lynx already takes his half finished plate and empties it into a storage container for tonight to eat. Or whenever he feels hungry again, which probably won’t be very soon. “What do you think I’ve been doing on all these walks I’m taking recently?” he asks over his shoulder.
“Uhm,” Tiger elegantly mumbles around a mouthful of food he then swallows quickly. “Going on walks? Enjoying some time alone?”
Lynx snatches his plate away from him the moment he clears it all up. “I’ve been talking, praying, giving offerings and doing god knows what else to make it stop. And at this point I’m convinced I can hear my mother laughing at me in my sleep, in my thoughts, all the time.” He rinses the dirty dishes clean within seconds, that’s how fast he’s scrubbing it under the running faucet. “I feel like I’ve lost my mind, haven’t I?”
It takes mere seconds until Lynx feels Tiger behind him, wrapping his strong arms around him. He props his chin up on Lynx’s shoulder. “Let me prove to you that there’s no curse, that you’re doing nothing wrong, that it’s purely just coincidence. I will take you out on a date tonight. Leo and Dr. Pug will be here to look after the cats, Krapor is coming too. We don’t have to stay here to play complicated and honestly rather boring boardgames with them all night." The moment Lynx tenses up to voice his protest, Tiger shushes him by squeezing his arms around his middle tighter. “Give me at least a chance and don’t say no right away,” he says, nuzzling his nose against Lynx’s cheek. “It will work out. Trust me.”
Trust is one thing, being cursed is another. However, if Tiger has some hope left then Lynx will let him keep it. For approximately half the work day – then things start to go downhill again because of course it does. Lynx is cursed after all.
A group of students shows up during their midday break, meaning they are both hungry and thirsty. With the help of Leo, who luckily arrives earlier than planned, they are able to meet their demands and serve them in a timely manner. At the end of their rather hectic visit some of them also order coffees to take to their late afternoon classes. Lynx, completely focused by the mix of workflow and hecticness doesn’t notice one of them in particular giggling his way. He barely even registers Tiger right by his side, making the espressos, because that’s just second nature to him.
“Hey,” the student pulls Lynx’s out of his focus with a blinding smile. “Can I have a sticker on my cup too? My friend told me about it and I think it’s really cute.”
Lynx finally looks up from where he was just placing the cups on the counter for Tiger to fill them up. The young man’s eyes twinkle behind the pair of silver rimmed glasses on his nose. Strands of dark hair fall into his face, that he pushes back momentarily, the white shirt of his school uniform lifting for a second.
“Of course, yes,” Lynx smiles at him in a friendly manner and waves the sticker sheet in the air. Without thinking too much about it he writes three short messages on each cup and then moves them back towards Tiger. It really only takes Tiger a minute to skillfully mix the coffee and milk together for the desired lattes.
“Cute. See you hopefully soon,” the guy singsongs as he gets his drink handed over and reads Lynx’s scribbled words. Finally he gets pulled away by his peers.
Lynx only laughs his reaction off. That is until Tiger grabs his arm firmly the second the door closes shut. “What was that about?” he demands.
Startled by Tiger’s words Lynx turns towards him. He’s even more perplexed to see his husband frown almost angrily. “Huh?”
Tiger’s gaze is fixed on the front door as if it personally offended him. “That kid was checking you out the entire time he’s stayed here. He didn’t even look at the cats once.”
With a short chuckle Lynx shakes Tiger off of him. “Nonsense. If anything he was looking at Jenny right behind us.”
As they turn around there’s Jumbo on the shelf behind them. He’s lying between the trays of dirty dishes that have yet to be brought to the kitchen. Jumbo looks up at them with his already big, wide eyes. I didn’t do anything. I’ve only been here for a minute.
Tiger redirects his frightening stare towards Lynx now. “What did you write on his cup?”
Lynx has to take a step back, that's how close Tiger is in his face. “What?! The usual,” he answers, a little annoyed. “What exactly is your problem right now?”
Like a ghost plopping up at the most inconvenient times, Jiro is now right beside Jumbo. He licks his paw once and lets a spoon clatter to the floor when he stretches out his body. His problem is that you wrote something flirtatious on the cup of a guy who was obviously flirting with you in return.
Lynx scoffs, “That’s nonsense.”
“Are you saying that I’m lying? I saw it with my own eyes,” Tiger says, voice still laced with anger.
“Oh no,” Leo, the next unannounced ghost shows up. “The parents are fighting.”
“We’re not fighting!” Lynx tells, or more so yells at him. He crosses his arms over his sweaty work shirt.
“Sure,” Leo says. He points at the laden trays behind them. “Take the dirty dishes and your dirty business back to the kitchen where nobody can see it. The next customers are coming.”
“Are you genuinely jealous right now?” Lynx asks Tiger once he lets the dishes clatter into the sink.
“I’m not jealous,” Tiger huffs beside him, a towel already in his hand to dry the dishes right away.
“Then what’s all this fuss about if you’re not jealous?” The sponge squeaks across the plates with how much force Lynx uses to scrub them clean.
“I didn’t like the way he was looking at you. And I certainly didn’t like the message you wrote on his cup.”
A wave of water splashes to the floor when Lynx points the sopping wet sponge at him. “It wasn’t anything flirtatious! And what was I supposed to do against him looking at me? Tell him to close his eyes? Get out of our café?”
“You shouldn’t have flirted back.”
Lynx gapes at him, left absolutely speechless and upset now. Anger flips his stomach and makes his hands tremble. “You’re an idiot, Tiger!” Almost, just almost, he throws the sponge right into Tiger’s face, but he somehow still has some decency left. Instead he slams it back into the sink until soap bubbles explode all over the kitchen counter. “People make heart eyes at you or flirt with you all the time and yet do you see me getting angry with you in return? No, of course not! And you want to know why? Because we made a promise to each other.” He waves his still dripping hand with the wedding band on in the space between them. “You’re acting like a silly caveman right now for absolutely no reason. Do you actually think I’d pack my bags and go after a twenty something kid that laughs at me once and leave you?!” Lynx’s voice cracks a little. “How fucking stupid of me for trying so hard the past weeks to make you happier, to show you how much I care about you and appreciate you and that’s the acknowledgment I get? To be accused of flirting with strangers?” A humorless chuckle falls from his lips, while his chest aches more and more. “I know I’ve been constantly failing and life is one disaster after another right now, but please: do you really think so low of me?”
While a well of tears have sprung into Lynx’s eyes by now, Tiger’s facial expression has fallen in return. He swallows hard, his eyes all soft now. He reaches for Lynx, but not fast enough. Lynx takes a step away from him.
“Lynx,” Tiger whispers, eyebrows knit together when Lynx moves even further away.
“Don’t Lynx me right now,” he wags an accusing finger in his husband’s direction. Blinking the burning in his eyes away, Lynx lets him stand where he is and returns to the café.
“Do I need to defend my brother’s honor and punch him in the face?” Leo asks the moment Lynx has wiped away his tears.
“Just leave it,” Lynx grumbles and busies himself with all the annoying cleaning tasks that nobody likes to do for the rest of the day.
All the cats, even some of the customers notice the black, heavy cloud above Lynx’s head. Thankfully nobody confronts him and instead they all turn to Leo or Tiger who eventually returns to business as usual. When Dr. Pug and Krapor show up with beer and snacks and boardgames in the evening Lynx uses the first chance to hide. There’s no way he’s either going on a date tonight nor playing along with his friends. Instead he hides upstairs on the balcony that they added to the house last year and is wonderful to sulk alone on. Lynx sits there in complete silence, still wearing his work clothes and he ignores the noises from downstairs echoing around the yard.
Was he too harsh with Tiger? Having had so many hours to himself now to overthink the fight, Lynx is at the point of blaming himself again. If he’s being honest with himself he can’t even remember what he wrote on the silly paper cup at all, that’s how shut off his mind was from handling the sudden rush of customers. So, if the roles were reversed and Lynx imagines Tiger writing a rather suggestive quote for a customer he would most likely get upset and jealous too. That’s something they do for each other only, it’s their thing. He understands why Tiger would be upset about something like this.
Do you mind if I interrupt your solitude? Lynx turns his head to see Jiro at the exit of the cat flap, his adorable head cocked to the side.
The balcony was more of an idea for the cats to get some fresh air whenever they want, compared to only when they find the time to bring them to the nearby park. However, Lynx can tell that Jiro is not here for fresh air. He’s not here for cuddling either even if he jumps into Lynx’s lap without waiting for an answer. Jiro is sent by Tiger to check on him. It’s not their first fight so Lynx knows this is Tiger’s version of an olive branch. And Jiro would do anything for Tiger. He’s Tiger’s cat the same way that Jumbo is Leo’s.
Lynx softly combs through Jiro’s orange fur with his fingers. He loves all of them so deeply, but he can’t stop longing for his cat at that moment, his Granny Ju. She would have already set his head straight in her soft, comforting manner. There would be no fights on her watch, he’s sure of it.
With Jiro now nuzzling against his palm, he instead directs his question to him. “Did I really write something that bad on the cup?”
Jiro blinks up at him lazily. He buries his nose in the crook of his arm again. You did. Jumbo saw it too.
Lynx sighs and punches the bridge of his nose. Great. He could have just-
You could have just asked Tiger instead of gearing up against him like that. He wasn’t making things up to provoke you.
Bowing his head down, he buries his nose in the thick fur of Jiro in return. “I know,” he mumbles once the cat hair tickles him too much and he needs to sit back up before he sneezes.
I gave him a whole speech too, don’t worry. You’re both idiots. A match made in heaven – good thing you’re already married.
Lynx chuckles wetly. He drags the back of his unoccupied hand over his face to get rid of the tickling cat hair and not the tears that are definitely not rolling down his face again. His sniffles get interrupted by the shrill laughter from downstairs that makes Lynx settle further into the lounging sofa.
At some point Home comes outside too. The black cat meets Lynx’s eyes once and then decides to settle down against his legs and feet. Lynx is aware he could be out on a date with Tiger right now if it weren’t for both their stubbornness, but having a private cuddle session with Jiro and Home at least gives him the chance to breathe and figure out how to mend things.
After a very nasty fight during their first year of marriage where Tiger fled to his parents’ house for two days and all their kids went crazy for those two nights without him, they made a promise to each other to at least go to bed at night in peace. Simply putting any fight aside until the next day if they are really that upset with the other. More than often it’s Tiger who makes the first move.
Therefore Lynx doesn’t even open his eyes when he hears the sliding door swish open behind him. He listens to the soft taps on the wooden planks then there’s a cold object pressed against his arm, drops of condensation cooling his skin. He looks up after all and finds Tiger above him, two cans of beer in each hand. His face is neutral, tired, but Lynx can easily spot the worry that his husband is trying to hide.
“Thank you,” Lynx says timidly. It’s not a coincidence when Tiger’s fingers brush over his for a moment when he takes the offered beer from him.
“Can I?” Tiger points at the narrow space between Lynx and the unoccupied corner of the sofa. With a protective hand against Jiro’s back, Lynx moves slightly to the side so Tiger can walk over him and lay down. Their shoulders and legs press together, because that’s surely not enough space for a man of Tiger’s size. But they make it work.
“Open it for me please?” Lynx points his nose excusatory at the sleeping Jiro on his stomach.
To his surprise, Tiger shakes his head slightly. “There’s a message for you. Don’t you want to read it?”
And sure enough as Lynx tears his stunned gaze away and twists the can in his hand, there’s the usual cat sticker stuck on top of the brand name and a small, yellow post-it note below.
'You’re still and always will be my favorite cat that I found ♡'
“Tiger,” Lynx says, voice small. The strings of his heart ache as he struggles for words.
“I’m sorry about earlier,” Tiger apologizes and beats Lynx to it. “I overreacted and I’d never think you’d do something like that to me or our family. It was stupid of me to act like you’ve cheated on me.”
A breeze of air shuffles through the trees around them, making Home’s tail wiggle in his sleep.
“I have to apologize too,” Lynx is quick to say now. “Even if it wasn’t on purpose, I still hurt your feelings and didn’t really listen to you or gave you the chance to talk things out properly. Would you believe me if I told you I really didn’t pay attention to what I was writing at all?”
Lynx twists his head to find Tiger’s gaze on him. It’s warm now, full of understanding. A look that’s never changed. “I believe you.”
Tiger wiggles a little until he’s further down on the sofa and can rest his head on Lynx’s shoulder. Reflexively Lynx brushes his nose over his hair, smelling the clean scent of Tiger’s favorite shampoo. He hears a comfortable, happy rumble from Tiger’s chest. The beers are forgotten while they cuddle together and listen to the cat's soft purrs, the rustling of the wind and the continuous laughter from downstairs. However, Lynx’s chest still feels a little heavy even if the other part of heart is with him again.
“Do you see now that there’s a curse? We wanted to go out on a date tonight and I ruined it again.”
Tiger looks up at him through his lashes and sighs. “Lynx, you didn’t ruin it. If anything then it was a team effort from both of us.” His eyebrows furrow when he notices his joke doesn’t really land. He takes the beer out of Lynx’s hand, stuffs them somewhere behind the sofa to then take his hand into his own. “There’s no curse, because I don’t think there’s anything unusually wrong with us and our lives,” he begins to explain, fingers now interlocked with Lynx. “Do we have a streak of bad luck and a few disasters chasing us lately? Of course, but that’s life. Especially with so many kids and running our own café and helping friends and family. Nevertheless, this, all of it, is my dream life. This is how I imagined my happiness to look like – all of it with you by my side. Through the good and the bad times, that was my promise to you. Whatever has gotten into that pretty head of yours lately that I’m unsatisfied because we haven’t gone out all that often in the last few months, it’s untrue. Of course I love spending time with you alone and we can absolutely prioritize it more if you feel like we’re drifting apart, but that is only a fraction that makes our relationship. I really didn’t expect you to fret so much about this and somehow end up thinking you’re failing me or us.”
Tiger takes a breather and lets the words hang in the air between them for a moment. Simultaneously Lynx senses that he’s taking a second to build up the courage for his following question. “Are you by any chance unhappy with me? Or do you have regrets about the life we built?”
Not only Tiger’s eyes are fixed on him, waiting for an answer. Lynx catches the moment Jiro opens one eye to peek at him while Home also lifts his head up. Tiger’s thumb that was caressing the back of his hand comes to a halt.
“No, of course not,” Lynx says and the three of them let out a huff of relief. He presses a reassuring kiss to Tiger’s head while patting Jiro’s back soothingly. “I haven’t known a single day of unhappiness since you, all of you, came into my life. I guess, I only wanted to show you that more, because I had the feeling that it was getting pushed to the back more and more.”
“Lynx.”
Suddenly Jiro lifts himself out of Lynx’s lap, stretching his body once before he jumps away. Ugh, you two lovebirds. You’re just as bad as on day one. He trots inside again and Home is promptly on his paws, following him. The hinge of the cat flap squeaks a little once they disappear. Tiger only chuckles in amusement.
“He successfully completed his mission, hm?” Lynx asks his husband. Tiger replies with a short shrug. With the cats gone now, they rearrange themselves and finally crack open the beer. Their gazes meet as they cheer wordlessly. A sip later Tiger already takes the can from Lynx again.
“Wha-” Lynx’s question turns into a yelp as Tiger pulls his body on top of his own.
“I love you,” he says, wrapping his arms around him. Their faces are merely centimeters apart. “And I will continue to do so as long as I get to wake up next to you, have my first coffee of the day with you and then look after our family. This is all that I need. Everything else, dates, presents and such, that’s lovely, but I only need you to be happy, Lynx. And – this part would be much more effective if I already had my new ring and could wave it in front of your face right now–” he laughs shortly and instead pushes Lynx’s nose with his own, “that’s why I married you.”
Tiger’s eyes are dark in the purplish blue hue of the ending day, speckles of stars from the fairy lights around them glimmer inside his pupils. Lynx looks at him for a few breaths. There’s so much happening inside his heart and it’s too complicated to translate those overwhelming feelings into words. He attempts to do so by whispering, “I love you”, back at Tiger, but instinct pulls him forward immediately. His eyes shut close and another happy hum rumbles from Tiger below when Lynx captures his lips with his own. As sudden as the worries wormed their way into Lynx’s head, just as sudden do they clear like the oncoming sunshine after a chaotic storm. Warmth spreads from Lynx’s core when Tiger tilts his head with his hand and deepens the kiss. Everything about that moment evokes the satisfied and content feeling Lynx has been so desperately looking for all this time. How silly of him, he realizes now, that he assumed he was going to find it anywhere else but in Tiger’s embrace.
The kiss is endless and perfect and-
“Tiger!” Leo yells loudly and rips the door open a nanosecond later. Lynx and Tiger startle apart like two teenagers caught kissing in the shrubs and bonk their heads together. “Ugh, stop being disgusting,” Lynx’s brother complains with his face twisted in discomfort. “I need you downstairs, Tiger. Pug is trying to cheat again and Krapor is only hyping him up. I need you to be my referee, our referee.” Next he wiggles a finger in Lynx’s direction. “And you could get changed out of your work clothes for once and join us instead of moping about the entire day. As if the two of you would ever separate, come on.”
Lynx lets out a breath he was holding in when Leo leaves just as fast as he interrupted them. You can hear him stomping down the stairs. Tiger exhales as well and rests his forehead against Lynx’s, which is still throbbing a little from the collision. Ever so slowly he crawls his fingers out from where they already wandered beneath Lynx’s shirt.
“You heard him,” Lynx says. He places a sweet peck to the tip of Tiger’s nose. “That's the family you chose. So you go and help.”
“Alright, alright,” Tiger laughs, but pulls Lynx in for another round of kisses instead.
It’s Jumbo who gets sent up next to break them apart at last. But for the rest of the evening, halfheartedly playing games with their family, they hold onto each other. Linked fingers, clasped hands, Lynx falling asleep on top of Tiger’s chest at the end of the day. The world finally at peace again.
🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱 + 🧡
Life goes on like it usually does with all the little disasters and happy moments sprinkled in between.
Jiro and Home become best friends which will probably keep the entire household and café on their toes and paws in the foreseeable future.
Tiger gets his wedding ring replacement with an additional necklace for safekeeping purposes.
Lynx’s grandparents sadly have to cancel their trip to the café due to more checkup appointments that Lynx insists on – instead Lynx takes Jenny with him on a day trip to their home where Jenny immediately talks the grandparents cat’s ear off about all the gossip of the café.
The group of students returns to the café and Leo makes sure that the one with heart eyes for Lynx gets the message that he’s a married man this time – Lynx notices his absence in the following week when his friends show up and become regulars but he’s not with them anymore.
The red, old coffee machine coughs its last breath by spraying Leo one final time and it takes the whole family weeks to both grieve another lost part of Je Meow’s hand-me-downs and to get used to the new, way too modern coffee filter.
At last, once Dr. Pom returns from traveling abroad with his partner, all friends and family get to witness Dr. Pug proposing to Leo after all. Compared to Lynx and Tiger who skipped the whole celebration and instead had a home cooked dinner with their loved ones after signing their legal documents, the doctor’s family insist on a traditional wedding. For weeks Lynx is even more busy helping with the entire organization and it’s truly the light at the end of the tunnel for him to at least have some alone time with his husband by cuddling in bed together.
Lynx is in the middle of emailing graphic designers for the artwork of the invitation cards that Jiro startles him by jumping right on his keyboard. His fluffy tail hits Lynx’s nose twice in a row.
“What is it? Unless there’s a fire I don’t want to be disturbed. I told Tiger so.”
Jiro flops down on the desk without a care in the world. It’s not exactly a fire but it’s pretty urgent.
“Then he can come up and tell me himself. I’m busy.”
Lynx shoves his hands under Jiro’s belly to retrieve the keyboard from underneath, but the cat is faster. He puts his paws on Lynx’s hand and stares up at him.
I think he’s having an allergic reaction. You should check on him.
For exactly one heartbeat Lynx freezes and blinks at Jiro. Then, despite knowing that he’s absolutely just messing with him, Lynx shoots out of his seat, his notebook and pens clattering to the floor. He can’t take the risk. Never.
“Tiger!” he yells through the entire house. Both upstairs bedrooms are vacant so he runs down the stairs immediately. Some of the cats resting on shelves and chairs and tables raise their heads as he storms around, but Tiger is nowhere to be found. Lynx stands in the middle of the café, limbs shaking with panic now and he whips his head around. Just as he’s about to dash outside, John Wick comes up to him, swirling around his legs. There’s no need to panic, Lynx.
Lynx picks him up right away. “Where is he?”
John Wick wiggles out of his grip to climb on top of his shoulders instead. He points his whiskers towards the front door. Lynx gestures for him to jump on the shelf before he goes outside. The white BMW is still in its spot and Lynx doesn’t find Tiger behind the wheel either. The clothesline is empty too, no space for Tiger to hide anywhere else.
The suspicion that Jiro was of course just messing with him becomes stronger. Just as he’s about to call out for the most cunning cat of the lot, Tiger pops up out of nowhere. “Lynx! Are you okay?” he asks breathlessly and stands in the doorframe for half a second before he closes the distance quickly. His hands roam over Lynx immediately in hurried, panicked motions.
“I think the cats-” Lynx starts to voice his suspicions but it’s interrupted by the door slamming close, making them yelp in surprise. Tiger has his arms wrapped tightly around Lynx out of reflex. Together they stare at the front door and then their attention gets turned towards all the cats lined up behind the window of the café. First in the row is Jiro, who holds his head up high in obvious triumph. His tail is tangled with Home’s next to him, their feline way of high-fiving each other.
“Jiro, what is this?” Tiger demands, still holding Lynx protectively.
Look behind you and thank me later.
In all the rush and panic both Lynx and Tiger didn’t notice the large basket placed at the driver’s door of the car. Their hands brush together as they curiously look through the contents of the basket they usually make use of during picnics with the cats. There’s an array of lunch boxes filled with all kinds of snacks, soda cans, strawberries and napkins with cat paw prints. Lynx also finds the card game that Leo raved about but Tiger and Lynx didn’t have the time to try out on the first date that they planned all those weeks ago. Tiger even gets his hands on a bottle of champagne.
“How did the cats do this?” Lynx asks his husband in astonishment. But Tiger’s eyes are not on him and instead somewhere behind him. He turns around to see Leo and Dr. Pug now behind the cats peeking outside too. Dr. Pug looks more than content with his arms around his fiancé. Leo, smug as usual, wiggles his fingers at them. “Have fun on your special date,” he calls through the window. “This time the cats and I are making sure it will work out. There’s everything you need in the basket, the car keys are beneath the empty laundry basket. The doors will be locked until tomorrow so don’t even try and come up with an excuse to stay here.”
“Leo!”
But Leo ignores Lynx’s call. He snaps his fingers instead and all at once the cats disappear from the window to follow him obediently to inside the café. Dr. Pug throws Lynx and Tiger an apologetic shrug and then they’re all by themselves, locked out of their own home by their family.
“Can you believe this?” Lynx huffs exasperated and turns towards Tiger, just to see him look both pleased and amused at the same time.
“That the cats have come together to grant you the wish that’s been weighing on your mind for months? Yeah, I can actually believe that.”
Crossing his arms and rolling his eyes, Lynx lets out another grumble.
“Hey there,” Tiger pulls at the shirt that Lynx is wearing – which is actually his own. Lynx just had to steal it for comfort purposes while he was working all alone in the office. He didn’t think he was going to have to leave the house again today. “Let’s enjoy this gift.”
“But I need-”
“What you need,” his husband interrupts him by kissing the tip of his nose, “is to relax and have a lovely rest of the day with me. This is our chance.”
Lynx pouts a little while Tiger gives it his best to pepper his face with more little kisses. His plan works out, because Lynx starts to laugh eventually. Tiger tugs him towards the car. “Ready to make your husband happy?”
He holds the passenger’s door open for Lynx. Without any hesitation Lynx kisses Tiger eagerly. “Always,” he smiles at him after and gets into the car.
And with the help of their family, they finally spend almost 24 hours together, remembering how great it is to be married. Lynx is only slightly bitter that Leo one-upped him again. But it doesn't really matter when he gets to watch Tiger’s eyes sparkle with the same love that still runs through his own veins and gives his heart the needed spark to keep beating. Lynx promises to always keep fighting for his happiness, no matter the many upcoming disasters they will encounter in the meantime.
Happy End 🐱