The first morning with the cat under the same roof was a disaster.

The cat had teared at the back of the sofa, and also made sure to spread all his sand all over the bathroom. It took Brian most of the day to clean after him, because the moment he wasn't looking at the cat, he did something naughty.

The second day was even worse.

Brian hadn't closed the bedroom door all the way, and the first thing he saw when he opened his eyes was a pair of big blue eyes staring at him curiously. Sadly, it wasn't the blue eyes he wanted to see next to him.

"Fuck off," he muttered to the cat. He pushed him away, tugging the blanket over his head. Next thing Brian knew was the cat jumping on his face, with the blanket between them. "Are you crazy?" Brian got out of the bed, leaving the furball trapped under the blanket.

After showering, he sat on the edge of the bed to get his socks on. A weak meow came from behind him, scaring him to death.

"Still here?" Brian picked the kitten, holding him in the crook of his elbow, and went downstairs. "Your place is here." He deposited him in the basket.

On his way back upstairs, the kitten followed him, making Brian groan loudly. He got dressed under the inquisitive eyes of the feline.

Back in the kitchen, he made himself coffee and a toast, watching the cat rolling around on the floor, playing with one of the toys.

Justin better accept his present, because Brian wasn't sure he could live with the cat.

While Brian put all the files he'd brought home over the weekend in his briefcase, the kitten started mewling loudly and rubbing between his ankles.

"Go away, or I might step on you."

His warnings went unheard, and the closer he got to leave for work, the worse the mewling got.

"For fuck's sake! Look, I'll be back later. Stop this whining."

The kitten stared back at him sadly, giving another weak meow, before jumping on the sofa and curling into a tiny ball.

Brian smiled, rubbing between his ears. "See? We can get along."

On the way to work, he kept thinking of the small cat he'd left all alone in his condo. This was the very reason he'd been against pets. They spent most of the time alone, and when the owners were with them, they rarely had the time for them.

Throughout the day, Brian tried to think of the right way to send Justin the cat. He didn't trust anyone to deliver the furball, and he was afraid the delivery guy would hurt or steal the cat. The best way was to give the cat to Justin in person, which wasn't the case.

By the end of the day, Brian decided to keep the cat until he figured out the best way to proceed.

He'd stepped out of the elevator and was searching for his keys when his phone rang.

"What, Steele?" He asked, exasperated.

"I just got an idea for the way we can show the new phone in the storyboards we have to present the officials."

Tucking the phone between his shoulder and ear, Brian unlocked the door and pushed it open. "That's what we've tried doing the whole day. All we did in the end was scream. Holy fuck!" He was taken by surprise when the kitten did a spectacular somersault and landed on his stomach, his claws catching in his jacket. Brian dropped his briefcase and keys in time to catch the kitten, who started sliding down. "You're one crazy fucker, huh?"

"You haven't even heard my idea," Evan said, amused.

"Oh, I wasn't talking to you. Remember my new companion. He thinks he's a torpedo and just jumped me when I stepped through the door."

"You still have the cat?"

"Yep. I decided to keep him until I think of a way to give it to Justin."

"I still can't believe you're willingly keeping the cat."

"What was your idea?" Brian changed the subject. He'd had enough of arguing with Evan over their account, he wasn't ready to fight over a cat, too.

"You know, never mind. It's not that good. We'll talk tomorrow."

"Whatever." Brian hung up, closing the door with his foot.

He went to sit on the sofa with the cat still attached to him. It surprised him that he wasn't more upset he'd dug his claws in his Armani coat, but the little one had no idea what he was doing. He was actually cute, the way he purred and kept rubbing his head to Brian's chest, looking at him with his big blue eyes.

"Yeah, I guess I missed you, too," he whispered, stroking between his ears, earning louder purrs.

Brian stared at the Dali painting across the sofa, pondering what was the best way to introduce Justin to his pet. He could drop by his place, but it was likely for Justin to send them both away. Maybe he could ring the doorbell and leave the cage with the cat and his supplies at Justin's door, but he had no idea when Justin was home. And he had no idea if Izzy had a policy against pets.

After ordering take-out food, Brian settled on a movie, before digging in. The cat sat curled next to him, sleeping peacefully.

Once the movie was over, Brian went to bed, exhausted after the long and tiring day at work. While he got ready for bed, he didn't pay attention to the kitten slinking through the ajar door and curling on the pillow next to Brian.

Only when he got in bed, he noticed his companion.

"Your bed is downstairs," he muttered, turning around and closing his eyes. To his surprise, the low purrs lulled him to sleep, but they needed rules. The cat had to understand sleeping with him was not going to become a habit.

On their third day together, Brian had Mimi make an appointment to the best vet clinic in the city. He even left work early to go home and collect his furry friend to take him for his first check-up.

The first thing he noticed when he got into the condo was a black something in the middle of the room. He went closer to inspect the thing, repulsed.

The kitten had surprisingly taken to his litter box from the first moment, and to see that thing in the middle of the room, repulsed Brian to no end. Upon closer inspection, it didn't look like cat poop, which freaked him out.

As he pick what looked like a ball of hair in a tissue and threw it away in the trash, he found the cat perched on one of the kitchen stool, snoring. It gave him time to grab the cage and think of a way to lure him inside. He could remember the cat not being a fan of the cage when he'd brought him from the pet store.

"Hey there," Brian said, petting the kitten. "Time to wake up."

The small ears twitched, but otherwise the cat remained asleep.

"Are you kidding me? Come on. I don't want to shove you in this cage." Brian nudged the stool a little. "Wakey-wakey."

A low purr and a twitch of tail was his only answer.

"Okay, you're asking for it." Brian deposited the open cage on the counter, then picked up the sleepy kitten. He hissed, clawing at the air, clinging to Brian's jacket, staring at him panicked. "Yeah, you asked for it. Sorry for the brutal wake-up call, but time's tight. Now get in there like a good kitty."

The kitten dug his claws deeper into Brian's jacket, refusing to go into the cage.

"For fuck's sake, you silly kitty. We'll be late."

A weak mew made Brian forgo the cage, understanding the cat didn't like it. He slipped him in his jacket's pocket, smiling when the small head poked out, looking around from a different perspective at the world.

Since he'd brought his car from Pittsburgh, Brian arrived fairly quickly at the vet clinic, but traffic was lighter than usual. He knew when he returned it would be rush hour when people left work and he'd be stuck in traffic for hours.

The visit was as traumatizing for Brian as it was for the cat. He was ready to beat the doctor with a stick for making his furry friend mewl so pathetically and try escaping the exam table when he stuck a third needle into his neck.

The doctor explained to Brian what the shots were, and that the kitten should have had at least one of them, and he had no idea how the pet store hadn't taken care of it.

"Uh, I have a question," Brian said once the doctor was done with his torment on his kitten.

"I can tell it's your first pet, so go on, ask anything. So far, you've done a stellar job."

Brian beamed, petting the cat's head. "When I got home earlier to get him, I found something on the floor. It looked like poop, but I don't think it was. He did his business only in the litter box."

The doctor pointed to a picture on the wall. "Did it look like that?"

"Yeah. Exactly. He's not sick, is he?"

"It's quite normal. It's called hairball. Cats lick their own fur as you must have noticed. They ingest it, and then vomit it out. I can give him some meds to make it easier for him, but it's something normal. And if it happens when you're home, you don't have to panic. You'll hear retching sounds."

"Hairball?" Brian pulled a repulsed face. "And can't he hide that gross thing?"

"That's one of the things that cats don't hide. So get used to it. It won't happen often, only when his stomach can't take it anymore."

"Well, fuck. It will be often. Look at him. He's so tiny." Brian scratched behind his kitten's ears. "Maybe I can save him this torture by washing him? I mean taking him to a salon to be washed."

The doctor chuckled. "He wouldn't appreciate it. This is a cat's nature, so let it be." He handed Brian his card, smiling. "I bet you'll have many questions as a new pet owner."

Brian eyed the card amused, catching the double meaning immediately. For once, getting into the doctor's pants was the farthest thing on his mind. He wanted his kitten to be well.

On the ride home, the black furball sat curled up on the passenger seat, purring in tune with the car's engine. It took Brian about an hour to make a fifteen minutes drive.

Once inside the condo, the cat simply jumped out of Brian's hand as he was juggling between shutting the door and not dropping his keys. He went to one of his toys, digging his claws into it, playing.

Brian let him be, knowing he needed some time alone after visiting the doctor, so he took advantage of the time to shower and order dinner. When he was out of the shower, he was shocked to find the cat on top of the vanity, staring at him. All his fur was fuzzy due to the high humidity in the bathroom.

"You're a creep, you know that?" Brian snatched his towel, drying himself under the cat's inquisitive eyes. "Hear that?" He grinned, when the doorbell rang. "It's my food. Let's go."

It took Brian to arrive downstairs and open the door to realize the cat hadn't followed. After paying for his food, he took it to the counter and pulled out the boxes.

When the cat still didn't appear, rubbing between his legs, he decided to track him down, because it was too suspicious.

He'd barely reached the upstairs area when he was greeted by loud mewls.

Shit, he thought worried. Maybe he was afraid to jump off the vanity.

Brian rushed into the bathroom. The cat wasn't on the vanity anymore.

"Hey? Where did you run off?" He made to turn around and check in his room, when he heard another mewl.

With a few more steps deeper into the bathroom, he found the drenched cat in the toilet, not looking pleased.

"Oh, for fuck's sake! I don't even want to know how you got there. Thirsty?"

The cat looked relieved to be saved from the water, but he had no idea that he was in for more water. Brian put him into the sink he never used, which was supposed to be Justin's, plugged in the sink, filled it with slightly warm water and some of his shampoo.

"I don't care how much you hate it, but I won't have you reeking of toilet water." After a long battle, Brian had the cat washed, and without being scratched. He deemed it a good thing.

Next, he blow dried the cat, who kept trying to escape the warm air.

Needless to say, after such a horrible day, the kitten hid in his basket, refusing to even look at his human. Not even when he tried feeding him later that night.

The being upset at his human lasted through the following day and the next morning, but it was all gone when Brian returned home late at night, tired and irritated after a long day at work. The cat kept his distance until Brian got in bed.

When he decided to join his human, he found the door shut. Planting his ass in front of the wood wall between him and his human, the cat started mewling loudly.

It worked wonders when the door was snatched open. But instead of being invited in that big, fluffy bed, he found himself being carried to his own bed. After a short petting, his human disappeared up the stairs again.

He tried his new trick several times, until he was sure he'd simply be invited to sleep next to his human. His human never opened the door on his seventh try, but there was a loud growl from the other side of the wood wall.

In the morning, Brian found the kitten asleep in front of his room. He sprang up the second he heard the door opening, alert and ready to play with his human. He had little precious time, before he left, and he'd find himself all alone for longer than appropriate.

Brian went to make the strongest coffee he could make, throwing nasty looks to the evil kitten. He'd been in quite a mood the previous night, but he'd resisted under the pressure of letting him sleep in his bed. He knew that if he allowed him in there too often, he'd think it was his bed, and claim it as his own. Especially if...when Justin returned to him. They'd fight over the spot next to him.

Being a Saturday, he decided to not think of anything work related. He lazed on the sofa with the newspaper and his coffee, playing catch with the cat. The feline must have been a dog in another lifetime, because he brought back the toy mouse Brian kept throwing away when the kitten deposited it on his lap.

"What part of playing on your own don't you get? Can't I read the paper in peace?"

He rolled his eyes when the cat curled next to him, stretching one of his legs and gently pawing at Brian's pant, staring at him pleadingly.

"Oh, for fuck's sake. What do you want?" He deposited his paper and coffee on the table, picking the kitten with both hands, bringing him above his head. "No, no. Claws in. We won't play if they're out." He brought him down slowly, until the cat was cuddled against his chest, purring softly.

As he stroked his furry friend, Brian contemplated his new life. He'd never thought of himself as a cat person, as a pet person in general, but the cat had gotten under his skin.

He couldn't wait for his plan to get Justin back to work and to bring him home. He'd adore the cat, and without doubt, the cat would love him too.