A sharp pain suddenly woke him up from his reverie. Looking down, he saw that Tabby had her claws in his thigh.

“Ouch. Tabby, you don’t need to do that to me. I’m still here, don’t worry sweetie,” he whispered to his familiar. Putting down his pen, he picked up the cat and tousled her fur all over. She purred gently and settled down in his arms, with a look akin to a lover’s glaze.

However hard he tried to bluff himself, there was always this void in his heart, or rather in place of his heart. It was too much effort for him to reach into it. He carried too much pain with him. Too much sorrow in his baggage. And he wasn’t sure he could take it anymore. Sometimes, there was this awful pain in his chest. Other times, it was just a dull throbbing, like a headache. Only that it last forever. No aspirin could have solved the problem. He longed for the past, where the pain didn’t exist and he was complete. He had everything back then. Now he had lost all of them. His friends, his companions, his lover.

“Come Tabby, let’s go for a walk. I sure do need one, how about you?” Tabby began to growl. She didn’t like walks, especially not in this weather. The weather here now was particularly gloomy. There was almost distinct difference between winter and autumn. It poured most of the time. If it didn’t, well, it drizzled.

“You do realize you have no say in this, do you?” he smirked at her. She attempted to lunge at him with her claws outstretched, ready to draw his blood, but he sidestepped it neatly at the last moment.

“Tabby, don’t be a wet blanket. Come on. No supper for you if you don’t.” With that, he stepped out of the room, dead sure that she would follow.

“Where are you going?” A voice sounded out from the den. He had totally forgotten about his landlord, a pretty young thing in her twenties. Very attractive, he must admit. Her facial features were very distinct. A sharp nose, not too sharp that it turned him off and with eyes of blue, perhaps green. Perhaps black too. He was a bit colour blind and he couldn’t really tell from this distance. She had raven black hair past her shoulders. It looked well-cared for, smooth and satin. His eyes traveled past her shoulders. Her breasts were small, perhaps a B or A. He hadn’t had much experience in this kind of matters. But they were just the right size to him. Overall, she was quite small and looked fragile. And she looked just like her. Perhaps he had chose this place because she was here. He felt it was right.

“Ahem.” She coughed. She was looking at him now instead of the goggle box.

“Where are you going?” She repeated the question. His looks glazed over immediately.

“For a walk.”

“Where?”

“Somewhere, around here maybe.”

“In this godforsaken weather?”

“That’s why I’m going out now.”

“Shouldn’t you at least bring an umbrella?”

“No.”

That sure shut her up. Having this almost monosyllabic conversation was tough. She liked to talk. Apparently he wasn’t sharing the same feelings.

“Oh, ok then. Have a good time.”