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“Simon, look.” Bram whispered, something of awe in his low voice.
Simon looked up from his phone at his boyfriend. Bram pointed to the yard full of bushes and tall grass. Hidden under one leafy bush was a small cat. It spotted Bram and Simon, his tiny eyes never leaving them. Bram crouched, holding his hand out to the cat that was fifteen feet away. The cat stared and Bram made a cute chirp-like noise, trying to encourage it to come out. Curious, the cat stepped forward out of the bushes. Then Simon realized it wasn’t a small cat, it was a kitten. A cute little ginger kitten with dark orange stripes on its body.
“Wow, it’s tiny,” Simon murmured, watching the kitten as it edged over towards Bram.
Bram made another chirpish noise and Simon looked down at his feet, hiding a wide smile at how adorable he found Bram.
Slowly, the kitten approached Bram enough to sniff him. Bram remained statue-still as the cat sniffed his fingers. Then the cat pushed its head into Bram’s hand and insistently asked for attention, which Bram happily gave. Simon couldn’t handle how adorable Bram’s wide, innocent smile was.
“I didn’t know you were a cat person,” Simon murmured, smiling down at his boyfriend.
Bram gave him a sheepish smile and didn’t respond, turning his attention back down to the kitten.
“Do you think he lives here?” Bram asked.
“He looks pretty dirty, I don’t think he’s had anyone to look after him.” Simon answered. He frowned. “Most pet owners wouldn’t let a cat so young out of the house. He could get hurt or lost.”
Bram frowned. “Maybe he just got out on accident. Will you go to the door of the house and ask if the cat is theirs?” He asked.
Simon nodded, for his adorable boyfriend he would do anything, even chase down potential cat homes.
He knocked on the door and waited, casting the occasional glance at Bram and the orange kitten. The door opened and Simon turned back to the thirty-something woman. She didn’t look pleased.
“Can I help you?” She asked.
“I’m sorry to bother you but we found a kitten outside your lawn and we were wondering if he was yours and got out somehow.” He explained.
Her expression softened and she looked past Simon to watch Bram and the kitten. “No, I’ve never seen him before.” She answered quietly.
“Could he belong to one of your neighbors?” Simon asked.
She shook her head. “Most of my neighbors have dogs.” She answered. She looked sadly at the kitten. “I’d take him but my husband’s allergic to animals.”
Simon nodded, frowning sadly. “Okay, thanks. We’ll figure something out,” Simon answered, stepping away from the door.
She nodded, looking sadly at the kitten and closed the front door. Simon walked back to Bram.
“What’d she say?” Bram asked, eyes squinting in the bright sunlight.
“The kitten isn’t hers, and she doesn’t think it belongs to any of her neighbors because they have dogs.” Simon answered. He watched as the ginger kitten rubbed himself against Bram’s hand eagerly for more attention, not liking that Bram was suddenly focused on Simon.
“He can’t stay here, outside and alone,” Simon added. “He could get hurt.”
Bram nodded. “Well, my house isn’t far from here. Maybe we could just take him there until we figure it out,” He suggested.
Simon nodded. Reaching over, Bram gently picked up the kitten. It struggled for a moment, twisting in Bram’s hands because it was too tiny to balance in his arms. Bram tucked the kitten into the collar of the hoodie he stole from Simon, and held the kitten to his chest. It calmed down, stopped squirming and relaxed against Bram’s chest. Quietly, Bram and Simon walked the three blocks to Bram’s house. Simon googled how to care for a kitten on his phone as they walked.
The article had info for cats who were less than eight weeks old, but judging by its size compared to the photos of the article, Simon figured the cat might be a little older than eight weeks. He changed his google search and found an article fit for adopting a kitten that was two to three months.
“Okay, so it says when we get to your house we have to keep it in one room where it can’t escape so that it can adjust to its new environment. It also needs special food. I can go and get that for you while you stay with the cat.” Simon told Bram.
“You should also consider getting a litter box and some litter.” Bram added thoughtfully.
Simon nodded. They walked up to Bram’s front door and Bram unlocked it. They carried the kitten, still snuggled to Bram’s chest, up to Bram’s room.
“Okay, I’ll go get the things,” Simon mentioned as Bram gently set the kitten down on the floor.
He pressed a quick kiss to Bram’s lips and left.
The trip to PetSmart was… enlightening.
Who knew there were so many different brands of cat food, and how many varieties there were. Cat food for old cats, fat cats, underweight cats, regular healthy cats, and kittens. Simon got enough canned food to last the kitten two days. He’d get more once he figured out if the kitten could stay with Bram. For all they knew his mom could throw a fit when she found out. He grabbed a litter box and used it as the basket to hold all the cans of kitten food while awkwardly grabbing a small bag of litter with his free arm.
“Need any help?”
Simon looked over at the blonde woman in the blue vest as she approached Simon with a friendly smile.
“I’m fine,” Simon forced out, not wanting to admit he didn’t think he could balance everything.
The woman took the bag of litter from him and Simon used his free arm to grip the litter box more carefully.
“Looks like you have a new kitten.” She commented, smiling widely.
Simon nodded nervously.
“Do you have bowls for the food and water?” She asked.
Simon nodded with a tight smile. They didn’t, but kitten food was apparently very expensive and Simon figured they could use the paper bowls Bram saved from Garrett’s last party as temporary food and water bowls.
“What about toys?” She asked.
Simon hesitated. He hadn’t thought about that.
“Well, we have plenty of great cat toys. My personal favorite is the dancing feather toy. It’s like a fishing rod but with a colorful feather on the string. You wave it around for the cat to chase, hunt. It’s very fun to watch.” She explained.
Simon hesitated. He thought maybe he would have ten dollars left from this, so maybe he could get it. His next allowance was tomorrow anyway. So he nodded and she lead him over to the toy section. At first he backed out, maybe that was too much money, but then he saw a toy with a clearance tag. It was a green and red Christmas themed feather toy, and because it was April, it was way out of season. It was half-off actually. So Simon grabbed that and the woman smiled and led him to the check out area.
It turned out Simon didn’t have enough for everything. He was a few dollars short. The woman watched him frown and grew concerned.
“I don’t have enough for the cat toy. We’re not sure what we’re going to do with him. We thought about maybe just holding onto him until we can find someone to take him.” Simon explained quietly, cheeks burning from embarrassment.
She nodded, a look of determination on her face, and opened a drawer underneath the register. “I know I saw some coupons for kitten food, so maybe we can bring the total down for you.”
They found a “buy two, get one free” coupon for the brand of kitten food Simon got, and the total was down considerably. Then she punched in a code and knocked an extra fifteen percent off.
“Is that another coupon?” Simon asked, confused.
She gave him a sly smile. “Employee discount.” She answered. “The world and cat-kind need people like you and your friend.”
Simon blushed and quickly paid for everything. He hurried to get everything to his car and drove back to Bram’s. When he got there he carried everything up in one trip, nearly tripping on the stairs with the weight of the bags, but it was worth it.
Why was it worth it?
Because when he opened Bram’s bedroom door he found Bram sprawled across his bed with the kitten resting on his chest. Bram had this soft, content smile, and Simon knew they were both goners. Bram had quickly fallen in love with this tiny cat, and Simon had fallen in love with how happy the cat made Bram.
“I got everything,” Simon mentioned as he stepped in, smiling at the way Bram lazily turned his attention to Simon, his fingers brushing over the kitten’s head. “I even got a cat toy.”
“Really?” Bram asked, smiling.
Simon nodded and heavily dropped the bags on the floor. “Lady at the store recommended it. Even gave me a serious discount so I could get it.” He answered.
Bram smiled.
“I’m going to go get some paper bowls for his food and water,” Simon mentioned. He smiled down at Bram. “You stay right there. You look happy.”
Bram hummed. “I am,” He whispered.
Simon returned with the bowls and gave the kitten the recommended serving of food. The little thing quickly abandoned Bram in favor of food, and neither of the two boys could fault it.
“I wonder if it’s a boy or a girl,” Simon murmured.
“Don’t know,” Bram answered. “It had me thinking about names though.”
Simon laughed. Bram was in love with that cat. “Oh no, you really like him,” Simon teased.
Bram smiled sheepishly. “I know I shouldn’t. My mom probably won’t let me keep the kitten, but I really want to.” Bram looked longingly at the tiny orange ball of fluff sitting in the corner, eating away.
“So, names?” Simon asked. Maybe Bram wouldn’t be able to keep it, and Simon didn’t want to raise his hopes unnecessarily, but he was curious.
“Hobbs if it’s a boy, and I haven’t figured out a girl name yet.” Bram answered.
“Calvin and Hobbs,” Simon murmured, smiling softly at his boyfriend.
“It was my favorite cartoon growing up,” Bram told him.
Simon smiled and sat down beside Bram, wrapping his arm over Bram’s shoulders. Bram leaned into him, watching the cat fondly. That happy expression made Simon determined to find a way to convince Bram’s mom to let him keep the cat. Maybe when she saw how happy this little fluff ball made Bram, she’d agree.
Simon got up and prepared the litter box for when the kitten inevitably needed to use it, and undid the packaging around the cat toy he’d gotten.
“Is it Christmas themed?” Bram asked, eyeing it with an amused smile.
Simon smirked. “Christmas is never out of season,” He joked.
Sitting back down on the bed, Simon watched with Bram as the kitten explored the bedroom, crawling under the desk and slinking through the legs of the chair. Simon gave Bram a conspirator smile and held up the feathery cat toy. Carefully, sneakily, he lowered the feather so it was brushed the ground and rustled it across the carpet. It caught the kitten’s attention quickly, and suddenly it pounced on the feather. Simon saw Bram grin widely from ear to ear and pulled the feather so that it was just out of the kitten’s grasp. They watched as the kitten jumped around after the feather, leaping here and there to catch it. Of course Simon let him have it a few times, encouraging him, and then pulled it away so that there was the challenge of again.
He let Bram try and Bram was having the time of his life playing with the kitten. They did that for fifteen minutes before the kitten tired out. Reaching down, Bram picked up the cat and laid back on the mattress, settling the cat over his chest. Simon laid beside him, gently brushing his index finger over the kitten’s tiny head.
They laid there in content silence as the kitten purred softly, drifting off to sleep on Bram’s chest.
A little while later they heard the front door open. Bram’s mom was coming home from work. Bram almost sat up to go talk to her before he remembered the tiny fluff on his chest. Gently holding it in his hand, he stood and walked down the stairs, Simon following.
“Mom, I have to talk to you about something,” Bram spoke up as he entered the living room.
Mrs. Greenfeld was sitting on the couch, rubbing her tired feet. She started to ask what it was before her eyes drifted to what Bram was holding.
“Honey,” She started slowly, preparing to let him down easily.
“No, let me explain for a moment,” Bram begged.
She hesitated and sighed, nodding for him to talk.
“We just found him lying in someone’s front yard. We thought maybe he’d just gotten out, so we knocked on the woman’s door, but she said she didn’t have a cat. She said it didn’t belong to her neighbors either. I didn’t want to just leave him there, where he could get hurt, that seemed to irresponsible, so I carried him home.” Bram explained. “We’re planning to just hold onto him for a few days until we can find him a home. We’re going to make signs and ask friends if they want a kitten.”
Bram looked down at the cat that stirred in his arms, half asleep. “I couldn’t just leave him there, alone and with no home,” He whispered, his thumb stroking the tiny thing’s cheek.
Mrs. Greenfeld looked at him sadly. “A few days wouldn’t hurt.” She murmured. “Do I need to go get cat food now?”
Simon shook his head. “I got enough food for a few days, special kitten food.” He answered.
She looked between them. “Do you know for sure that it’s a him?” She asked.
Bram looked away nervously. “No, but we’re just sort of assuming. I don’t really want to call the cat an ‘it.’”
She smiled and stood, holding her hand out to hold the kitten. Bram transferred him into her hands, careful not to shake him or jerk him around. Mrs. Greenfeld held the cat up by it’s armpits and examined it quickly.
“That is indeed a male cat,” She informed him.
Simon and Bram shared a look, both wondering how she could be so certain. She was a doctor, perhaps she had gained some secret cat biology knowledge along the way.
Bram carefully took the kitten from her and held him gently in his arms. Mrs. Greenfeld’s expression softened at the sight.
“That’s an look I thought you would wear if you ever had kids.” She murmured thoughtfully.
Bram looked down suddenly, embarrassed. “Mom.” He grumbled.
Simon almost laughed. Maybe instead of adopting kids, Bram could just adopt cats. The thought of living in a small apartment with Bram and a cat and maybe Bieber too, if his parents let him take Bieber, warmed his heart.
Simon saw the way Mrs. Greenfeld was smiling, and he had hope that maybe she’d fall in love with the cat too, or maybe just in love with how happy Bram was.
The next few days were quietly eventful. Simon had made a post on his Facebook about Hobbs, because yes Bram was still naming him, but Simon hadn’t gotten definitive answers on the post. Some people commented that they wanted to adopt him, but already had pets, or would have to talk to their parents first. Secretly Simon hoped they never found Hobbs another family, that Bram could just keep him.
He thought maybe that was becoming a real possibility as he sat on the couch with Bram and his mom, watching Hobbs jump around with the cat toy. Mrs. Greenfeld was laughing so hard she had tears in her eyes.
She didn’t even blink when Bram accidentally let it slip that he’d already named the kitten Hobbs, and that gave Simon more hope.
Nothing made Bram smile more than when his mom brought home a red collar with a shiny tag attached. It had Hobbs’ name with his mom’s phone number attached. She told him she’d made a vet appointment for the next morning. Bram hugged her and immediately went to go put the collar on Hobbs. As Simon watched Bram hold Hobbs, he realized he never wanted to look away from that smile. He wanted to just watch Bram be that happy forever. Nothing made him happier than how happy Bram was.