Silence.
“Just the wind.” True or only an attempt to reassure myself? The million-dollar question.
Another rustle sounded, this one much closer.
Okay, maybe not the wind after all. Surely, if it was some wild beast, it wouldn’t attack in broad daylight. Probably just a squirrel.
Please let it be a squirrel.Just hopefully not a demonic one with red beady eyes and sharp teeth.
And it was in that moment, as images of a bloodthirsty, monstrous squirrel ran through my head, that something large and furry leapt from the bushes and pounced on me.My high-pitched scream was undoubtedly heard in the next town over. The document flew from my hand, and I landed on my ass in the grass.
The pressure on my chest lightened as whatever evil creature it was pulled back.Rainbow-colored eyes blinked at me before a familiar face came into view. White-tipped cat ears jutted from his reddish-brown hair, and a tail flicked behind him. He wore a purple crop top that showed his tanned belly and loose-fitting pants that fanned out at the bottom.
“Kuya?” I asked.
He grinned, flashing a snaggletooth. “Kuya scared you.”
“Scared is an understatement,” I said, trying to calm my racing heart. “You almost made me piss myself.”
He scurried off me and snatched the document from the grass. “What’s this?”
“I need to take it to the accounting department.” I slowly pushed to my feet. “It’s a budget request for the clinic. But I think I’m lost.”
Kuya stuck it in his mouth and started to scamper down the path.
“Hey!” I called after him. “Get back here!”
When I woke up that morning, the last thing I expected was to be pounced on by a cat boy and forced to chase him around the castle grounds. Yet there I was, chasing a cat boy who seemed to be having way too much fun playing “keep-away-from-the-Evan” as he ran with the paper I needed in his mouth.
“Give that back!” My lungs burned, and my legs wobbled as I turned another corner in pursuit of him.
I wasn’t a cardio person. Far from it. I was a sit-on-the-couch-and-snack-on-chips-while-reading person. The walks to and from the café was about the extent of my exercise. I’d almost prefer to face off with a demonic squirrel than endure another second of running.
Luckily, the mischievous cat boy put me out of my misery.
Kuya squatted in the grass up ahead, the document still in his mouth. I came to a sharp stop, fighting for my life as I breathed hard. Slowly, I neared him, one hand held up like I’d seen people do in movies when they were approaching a skittish animal.
“I’m not going to hurt you.” I took another slow step toward him. “Please don’t run away again.”
Humor shone in his rainbow eyes, the colors swirling as the sunlight bounced off the irises. His ears wiggled as I inched closer.
“That’s it,” I said in the same tone used to speak to babies. “Just stay right there.”
He grabbed the document from his mouth and leapt back to his feet. “Kuya showed you the way! See?” He nodded to the building behind him. “The accounting department.”
“You… you were guiding me?”
With a huge toothy grin, he handed me the paper. “Evan is no longer lost. Kuya helped.”
I grabbed it, still trying to catch my breath. “Guess I should thank you. Even if you did almost kill me.”
“Kuya?” a man called from a distance. “Where have you gone?”
The cat boy snapped his head in that direction, grin widening. A man then appeared from around the same corner we’d come from. Despite the casualness of his clothes, there was something regal about the way he carried himself. Golden hair fell to the middle of his ears, and he was tall with an athletic build. His expression lit up like the sun as he saw Kuya. “There you are.”
“Prince Sawyer.” Kuya ran over to him. “You found Kuya.”
Wait…prince?
