Cat Therapy Chapter 2.4

Whether she was trustworthy or not, Seo Yongwoo greeted her comfortably. The woman, who seemed to be the owner operating this restaurant, continued the conversation without hesitation, mentioning that recently other directors had also visited.

However, Haedong could not let go of his wariness and quietly put down his chopsticks. Then, the owner asked Haedong in a kind tone.

“You seem to be someone I have never seen before?”

“······.”

“It is autumn, so I prepared seasonal dishes. Do you have any particularly preferred foods?”

“···It’s fine. Everything is delicious.”

“There are also desserts that young people like. Shall I recommend some for you?”

“Th···, yes.”

Even to the affectionate questions, Haedong averted his gaze slightly and gradually pressed closer to Seo Yongwoo. He was trying to show some manners in his own way, but the clichéd tone came out from the start, and he could not hide the awkwardness in his expression at all.

In the end, due to his anxiety, Haedong gripped Seo Yongwoo’s wrist under the table.

“······.”

Seo Yongwoo glanced down at that hand without moving it.

He already knew well that cats were wary of others. The fact that making eye contact in an unfamiliar place meant a challenge to fight, and that they hated it.

Seo Yongwoo quietly smiled.

‘As expected.’

It was a bit thrilling that Haedong had pressed against him when he was on guard. It meant that the reliable presence he sought out in his tension was himself. It was a感動 like the day the cat had first hugged his wrist and fallen asleep.

In the meantime, the owner, who had seen Haedong’s awkwardness, tried to wrap up the conversation appropriately.

“You should eat comfortably, but I came in unnecessarily. If you need anything more, just call me.”

“Wait a moment.”

Seo Yongwoo deliberately called back the owner who was turning away. It seemed so unexpected that the owner flinched in surprise and her eyes hardened. She quickly smiled again and asked why Mr. Yongwoo was calling her first, but unlike just before, a hint of unease was faintly visible.

It might have been upsetting for the person she had been treating casually to suddenly change attitude, but it did not even register in Seo Yongwoo’s eyes. It was a reaction he was familiar with from living as a tiger, and more importantly, what mattered now was something else.

For now, he pretended to just chat more and tossed out some random words.

“What was that traditional liquor you recommended last time? It was really good. Do you happen to have any left?”

“Oh, goodness. That one was specially prepared for you, Mr. Yongwoo. It keeps coming to mind, doesn’t it?”

She seemed quite proud of it, as the owner became talkative again.

As the conversation dragged on, Haedong pressed even closer to Seo Yongwoo, and eventually even curled his tail prettily around his waist, tapping the end against him repeatedly. It was an urging that said he was uncomfortable, so send her away quickly.

But Seo Yongwoo listened leisurely just as the owner explained. In reality, he was only paying attention to Haedong’s reactions.

‘Pretending to like it forcibly.’

As expected, deep down, he only trusted and relied on him. Knowing how much that meant to cats, Seo Yongwoo felt a bit pleased. He knew it was a childish emotion, but he wanted to savor a little more the fact that Haedong felt comfortable only with him.

In the meantime, as the owner’s explanation came to an end, Seo Yongwoo barely held back a laugh and said to the owner.

“Then, next time I come in, please prepare some. Before it runs out, I should just buy it all myself.”

“Of course, I should prepare it for you. Come anytime.”

The owner said with a friendly smile. Even so, she did not ask any questions about privacy or personal matters at all, and she did not speak further to Haedong, who was uncomfortable. She seemed skilled at dealing with cats. Thanks to that, Haedong had managed to endure it somehow, and as soon as the owner left, he finally picked up his chopsticks again. What he targeted right away was the grilled fish that was golden brown and perfectly cooked.

However, one hand was still hooked around Seo Yongwoo’s wrist. Seo Yongwoo, who had been looking at that with satisfaction for a long while, casually asked.

“Is the food here good?”

“Yes, this is my first time eating this kind of grilled fish.”

“Grilled dol-dom.”

“Dol-dom, grilled dol-dom.”

Haedong repeated it, as if he wanted to remember the name.

He should have fed him more delicious things from the start. Seo Yongwoo preferred watching Haedong eat well over the meal itself. Even after learning that his cat was actually a beastman and a thief, it was still pleasing that the picky eater was eating well.

As Seo Yongwoo neatly filleted the fish meat, he subtly asked.

“Were you uncomfortable with the owner earlier?”

“Yes.”

Haedong answered curtly, as if asking why he was asking something so obvious.

Seo Yongwoo also disliked hearing obvious questions, so he had no particular complaints. What he really wanted to poke at unnecessarily was who he had leaned on when uncomfortable, so he did not mind Haedong’s annoyed gaze at all.

Seo Yongwoo asked again slyly.

“You used to hit even the manager you saw every day.”

“······.”

“Do you originally dislike strangers?”

At the question, Haedong just chewed on the fish meat. It felt like he was being ignored, but Seo Yongwoo brushed it off familiarly and filleted more fish meat for him. Since he had experienced Haedong’s haughty personality from the time he was a cat, being ignored was familiar now.

Around the time the peaceful silence had become accustomed, Haedong, who had been glancing cautiously for a moment, gave an answer.

“I originally dislike most people···.”

“I know. Me?”

“······.”

At the shameless question, Haedong’s face rapidly turned to one of exhaustion. He narrowed his sharp eyes thinly and glared, and even the white and soft skin, along with the cat ears perked up on his head lying back in displeasure, overlapped to make him look only cute.

He understood why one would want to keep teasing a cat even knowing they would get scratched.

With his long eyes folded in a smile, Seo Yongwoo gradually laughed. The kid was so haughty that even a little reaction from him was enjoyable and cute. For a cat that sensitive, even a small amount of attention held deep meaning.

Belatedly, as if receiving punishment, Haedong made a pouty face and answered.

“Ah, Mister is the least disliked among them···.”

“Then that means you like only me?”

“Ah··· yes.”

Haedong openly showed his reluctant expression on his face. But even seeing that, Seo Yongwoo felt pleased to the point of not being able to hide his gradually emerging smile.

He knew that because he was also of the cat family. To cats, all beastmen in the world were enemies as long as they entered a certain range, but among them, Seo Yongwoo was the least disliked. In fact, that might be the maximum extent to which Haedong could open his heart.

‘Then isn’t that almost a confession?’

Seo Yongwoo, who interpreted it in his own way, smiled quite pleased and draped his arm around Haedong’s shoulder, patting his cheek. But as if he disliked being touched on the cheek, Haedong bit his finger hard. Still, fortunately, he did not push the arm away, so he left it and continued eating.

In the meantime, Haedong seemed to have roughly finished his meal. Originally, Haedong had a rather small appetite, but even so, today he had eaten almost to the center of the rice bowl and put down his spoon.

Whoosh—

“······.”

Then, Haedong silently stared blankly at the artificial waterfall visible through the window of the room. The unique upturned eye corners held the blue scenery entirely within them. Even when he was a cat, there were times he would stare blankly out the window like that, but what on earth was he thinking.

Seo Yongwoo finished his meal and asked.

“What are you thinking about?”

“···Can I say it?”

“You won’t care about my reaction anyway.”

Seeming convinced, Haedong muttered obediently.

“I was thinking that Mister seems a bit of an attention seeker···.”

“It fits for you.”

It was the first time in his life hearing such a word, but the tiger did not mind. Seo Yongwoo simply savored and mulled over the confession his cat had made just before while eating his slow meal. He wanted to feel more of Haedong tapping his tail in dissatisfaction, yet gripping his wrist tightly whenever he heard footsteps outside.

Was it because his cat had eaten well? Today, the meat that had seemed utterly unexciting tasted much better.

Seo Yongwoo mainly stayed at home but occasionally handled simple tasks.

Among them, there was a recent job that had come up, which was posting Dodong’s photos on SNS. He had decided to gradually reduce SNS use in preparation for the future, but until the broadcast, he planned to upload just a few photos taken with Haedong. It seemed like the broadcasting station had presented conditions along with money, but Haedong had no interest, so he did not interfere up to that point.

However, since Seo Yongwoo was so bad at taking photos, Haedong ended up in charge, but taking photos turned out to be a more burdensome task than expected.

Nyaah!

“Ah, why, again. I took it pretty.”

Haedong, sitting on the desk in the study, got annoyed and swung his tail threateningly. Seo Yongwoo, who had been taking a few rough shots, responded but made a face as if he could not figure out the problem at all. In the photo, the pitch-black cat showed only its eyes again, but to him, it just looked cute.

That made Haedong’s insides burst with frustration.

‘In the photo, only my eyes are visible, what the heck.’

Seo Yongwoo did not even recognize the problem itself, which only made him more outrageous. It seemed he had gotten into the habit of taking rough photos because even when taken casually, his distinct features came out well, but for Haedong, who knew that tens of thousands of people would see those photos, it was a sensitive issue.

In frustration, Haedong fiercely confronted him using body language.

‘Are your hands just for show?’

“I am that kind of person.”

As Seo Yongwoo replied shamelessly, Haedong’s eyes turned triangular from exhaustion. He knew his knuckles were prominent and his fingers were long, making them look nice, but the shameless attitude was ridiculous.

Still, it was fortunate that Seo Yongwoo understood his body language.

Originally, even among the same cat family, there were many dialects, so cases where they could not understand each other were common, but Seo Yongwoo, being an actor, skillfully understood the body languages of various animals.

For now, Haedong began manually manipulating the tiger who only looked decent on the outside. But since Seo Yongwoo was weak to him as a cat, he could throw a tantrum as much as he wanted.

‘Hand higher. Tilt the phone. Tilt forward··· rat bastard!’

“Ah, ouch! You’re puffing your cheeks again.”

Only after Haedong could not hold back his annoyance and bit Seo Yongwoo’s arm three more times did he finally find the desired angle.

In the study, Seo Yongwoo struggling because of the cat sitting on the tablet PC. Still, as if he understood the concept, Seo Yongwoo came out looking plausibly affectionate.

Haedong, who had found a screen where the concept was finally captured, urgently grumbled.

‘Wait a moment.’

“Why?”

‘I need to groom a bit.’

“······?”

The cat hurriedly did a cat wash. He frantically licked his front paw and rubbed it on his face, and later, in a hurry, he used both front paws to mess up his round head wildly.

He could feel Seo Yongwoo watching that with a look of utter bewilderment and laughing, but Haedong finished his grooming frantically and looked at the camera again.