Austin's POV

The grey clouds rolled in at about nine o'clock with light rain to drizzle on the dreary landscape. My parents were downstairs in their bedroom, watching a movie. I was sitting in the living room, strumming on my guitar and fiddling around with some chords. The thunder clapped high overhead and a pop of lightning scarred the sky. Putting the old guitar back in its case, I lay back on the couch, closing my eyes and letting the rain lull me to a sleep.

I was out of college and looking for a job, just like Alan. When we talked last, we chatted about our plans for the future. I hoped to be a musician and I wasn't surprised that Alan wanted to follow the same path. Our parents both agreed to let us stay at their houses for the summer, but after that we were on our own.

I had already applied to a few jobs, but had yet to hear back from them. Most of them were places inside the Barrier. It would be about a half hour trek into the city, but they would pay well.

The thunder boomed high overhead again. Something small, a tiny squeak followed it. That definitely wasn't thunder.It sounded like an animal struggling out in the rain. Getting up, I peered through the windows but saw nothing. The street was devoid of any life as the rain pounded harder on the road. Shrugging, I walked to the kitchen to get a glass of water. The noise sounded again, this time by the front door.

Sneaking a peek at the closed door to my parent's room, I opened the front door, peering out. On the front step, an orange, bedraggled looking cat mewling at the door. It's large dark eyes begged to be let in.

Now my parents didn't like pets. There was a whole process enacted by the government to Tag all registered animals to assure they weren't Shapeshifters in hiding. They weren't exactly keen to the entire idea of having to go through the long and expensive process.

"Hey, little guy." I cooed to the cat. I was much more of a pit bull person, preferring dogs to cats, but I felt bad for the cat. The cat rushed up to the glass door that separated us. It meowed, scarred as the thunder cracked like a whip.

I checked behind me, and seeing my parents were still behind closed doors, I quickly opened the door and scooped the cat into my arms. The ginger cat sat there, shivering violently.

Alan would've loved the cat! He's always been more the of the feline person and this would've been the perfect match for him. I whipped my phone out of my pocket and instantly sent a picture of the little cat to Alan. It didn't have any tags. Maybe he would take it?

The cat softly purred as I stroked the damp fur. Rushing over to my kitchen, I grabbed a towel and wrapped the shivering creature in the warm cloth. I took the stairs two at a time, closing the door to my room after I entered.

I rubbed the fur of the ginger cat, the brown eyes gleaming up at me. It finally shook itself off, letting drops of water fly. I threw the towel in a corner and studied as the cat rubbed its face with the small paw. It looked like a full grown American Shorthair cat. My neighbors used to have one and I cared for it when they went out of town.

"You're going to have to stay in my room, little guy." I told him, stroking under his chin. The cat purred happily. I couldn't just throw him back out in the rain and he had no tags, no one to belong to! Besides, I've always kinda wanted a pet. This might not be the tough pit bull I imagined, but it was better than a goldfish.

"Meow." The car replied happily. I stroked behind its ears as the rumble of pleasure grew in its chest. He needed a name.

"Hmm. I'll call you...Ashton." I finally decided. The name just popped into my head. The cat grumbled as I fell back into my bed.

"Hey, it's better than Fabio." I concluded the one sided conversation. A light thump on the bed announced the cat bouncing up onto the covers beside me. The sleep I fell into was easy and peaceful.

The only thing I could worry about was how long I could keep this little secret from my parents.

Notes

So Ashton (Alan) finally found a home :D How long will it last? Subscribe to find out!

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