Bath
Bath
Peaceful days, no different from before.
If there was a change, maybe it was that I'd started turning the heater on little by little.
The weather was getting colder, so my clothes were getting thicker, and the blankets in the bedroom were getting thicker as well.
It was only natural that the dogs and cats would look cold, too.
People bundle up in layers, so it must be hard for the dogs and cats to get by with just their fluffy fur in this cold weather.
So I made up my mind to put some clothes on them.
"They'll find it stuffy and hate it, you know?"
"What about when we go outside, then?"
"It'd be good to put some on them when we go out."
From what A-ra could see, clothes didn't seem particularly necessary inside the house.
Because cats and dogs groom themselves, they can't properly care for their fur if they're wearing clothes.
Grooming.....
Bath.....
Now that I thought about it, it seemed like it was about time to give Tiny a bath.
"Noona, when are we going to bathe Tiny?"
"A bath? It's about time, isn't it."
A month had already passed since we brought Tiny home.
The baby kitten that used to be smaller than my fist had now explosively grown to about the size of my fist.
Maybe because it's a baby, it grows so fast.
"A few days ago, I buried my nose in Tiny's fur and gave a keung-keung sniff, but I didn't really smell anything other than a nutty scent."
"That goes for Lil' One and Pipsqueak too, right?"
A-ra knew well that I liked sniffing our babies.
It was probably because she often saw me hugging them and trying to sniff them whenever I had a spare moment.
"Then I guess there's no need to buy Tiny clothes."
Still, Lil' One and Pipsqueak would need clothes since they go out on walks.
The doggies would have a hard time with winter weather too.
"Can't you buy Tiny shoes instead of clothes?"
"Wouldn't shoes be even more uncomfortable for him?"
"Mmm... I guess so."
A-ra tilted her head, wanting to do this and that for them but not knowing what was best.
What do cats even like?
*
Setting aside the clothes issue, since the topic of baths came up anyway, I figured I might as well wash the little ones.
I'd been giving them a bath once every two weeks, but they often kept trying to get out, probably because they didn't really like water.
And that would probably be even worse with a cat.
I'd heard that cats flail around even if a single drop of water touches them.
"First, put them in lukewarm water and..."
I roughly adjusted the temperature with my hand and prepared water I thought was suitable.
Then I took Tiny, who was quietly nestled in my arms, and... plung~
"Myaang."
"Huh?"
I'd clearly dunked Tiny in the water, but Tiny didn't try to get out.
Was it because the water was only deep enough to cover his legs?
Just in case, I scooped up some water with my hand and slowly poured it over Tiny.
"Myaang."
"Is he... not minding it...?"
No way, was this kitty one of those water-element cats that supposedly appear with a ridiculously low probability?
How cute it was when I saw a water-element cat calmly taking a bath on Qtube before!
Even when I poured water over him with my hands, Tiny showed no sign of disliking it and instead started playing by splashing around.
No matter how little time I'd spent raising animals, I was unreasonably flustered.
"I have to film this and upload it."
Could I really keep a precious scene like this to myself?
I quickly went into the auxiliary kitchen, grabbed the extremely expensive camera I use for filming videos, and returned to the bathroom.
This time, Tiny was sitting and playing by splashing in the water.
"Little one, do you like water that much?"
"Myaang."
"Aww, you should have told Daddy."
Even though he can't talk.
Anyway, I decided to be a bit bolder this time.
I lifted Tiny up, emptied the water from the basket tub, and refilled it with warm water deep enough to reach his belly.
"Myaaang~"
"There, there, such a good kitty. Once the bath is all done, Daddy will brush you."
As the water rose to his belly, Tiny grew anxious and threw nyang-nyang punches at the water.
But seeing that he didn't try to get out, he seemed to trust me, at least.
After that, I lathered up every nook and cranny of Tiny's body with shampoo.
Maybe because he's still a baby cat, or because his body wasn't very dirty, only pure white foam came out in abundance.
Did I do his first ever bath too soon?
Still, it was probably the right time to start doing it, so I decided not to overthink it.
"Myaaa."
It seemed I'd used a little too much force while meticulously cleaning his paws, and it must have hurt.
The dogs never seemed to get this upset.
After cleaning even his paws thoroughly, I came out to the living room and put him in the dry room.
I preferred using it because he seemed more comfortable than when I dried him myself.
It didn't even cost much and was convenient, making me realize once again how advanced science was.
"Warm, isn't it?"
"Myaang"
Perhaps because he was damp, Tiny started grooming himself.
Maybe because he was clean, he stopped after just a moment and began licking me.
The way he was staring at me with eyes that said, 'I'm all clean, so why don't you wash, you dirty thing!'
I couldn't help but hang my head at the thought that a pet is a mirror of its owner.
***
After being all washed, Tiny clung to his real owner, A-ra, and started acting spoiled.
A-ra smiled brightly, brought the cat brush, and started brushing him.
Tiny must have felt so good, he even showed his belly while diligently licking his front paws.
"Did you feel good taking a bath with Daddy?"
"Myaang"
"Aww, my precious baby."
I was the one who bathed him, but he goes and clings to A-ra.
It stung a bit, but since he's still young, I figured I should forgive him.
That aside, A-ra had been meticulously taking care of the animals as if they were real children for a while now.
Actually, I wanted to do the brushing too, but A-ra had snatched it away.
She said that from now on, she wanted to wash Lil' One, Pipsqueak, and everyone else all by herself.
That seemed a bit too greedy, though.
I really love washing our little ones too.
"Noona, did you know? There's a separate service for washing large-breed dogs."
"Really? But would they stay still when it's not their owner doing it?"
"Right? Don't you think the pros might be different?"
Our Lil' One and Pipsqueak do sit still and behave when other people touch them,
but when it comes to something like a bath, it's a different story.
First of all, they try to run away and refuse to stay still.
And they make crying sounds like 'hweu, kkeong' to arouse sympathy.
It honestly seemed like they were intentionally putting on a pitiful act.
"Are you going to bathe the dogs too?"
"Mm... I did recently, but..."
Seeing Tiny go up to Lil' One and start grooming her, it really seemed like he was saying, 'Wash this one too.'
It looked like he didn't want to be the only one getting washed.
*
"Hello!"
Minji bowed her head deeply and gave a greeting even though there was no one in front of her.
It was good that she was polite, but I hoped she wouldn't do that in other places.
"Minji, wash your hands and come in."
"Okay."
A-ra had called Minji over for dinner, and Minji came running in an instant.
She was catching her breath, saying, how could she not at least sprint when her idol called her?
I pointed at the sink in the entranceway and told her to wash her hands and come in, then returned to the kitchen.
Since we'd eaten too much meat-heavy food recently, I grilled up some mackerel to show them what a proper home-cooked meal was.
And I'd simmered a doenjang jjigae full of shrimp, too.
And since it would feel a bit off to have absolutely no meat, I also prepared a bit of pressed pork slices.
"Minji-ya. It's still going to be a while before everything's ready, so go play with the kids."
"Little one~"
Minji immediately dashed over to Tiny and buried her nose in him.
Since it smelled like shampoo instead of the usual nutty scent, she seemed a bit flustered.
"Oppa! Why does Tiny smell like shampoo?!"
"Because I washed him earlier."
"Uwek!"
Minji was disappointed, saying she'd run over so fast to sniff that nutty scent.
I told her to complain to A-ra, since she'd told me to wash Tiny, instead of to me, and she shut her mouth tight.
As expected, she couldn't say anything to her idol.
Yet she talks back to her oppa.
"Sigh... I raised my little sister wrong."
"Hehe, I'm just kidding, Oppa."
"Don't cling to me. It's gross."
"Tch."
Since she wasn't a guy, there wasn't anything really gross about it, but I felt a bit peevish and tossed out the remark offhand.
With an indifferent look, Minji picked up Lil' One and Pipsqueak and hugged them.
"Were my pink piggies doing well?"
"They're not pigs, I told you. They're still babies, so they just look like that."
"They look like it, so I'm calling them pigs~"
Minji called our babies pigs because of the pink skin visible through their posong-posong fur.
Minji had said before that she wanted to raise a pet pig once.
"Oppa! What's for dinner tonight?"
"Mackerel and doenjang jjigae."
"That's it?"
"No? I also bought a few king crabs that you and Noona like."
Since king crab season starts in December, I'd bought a few from Jeong Hwan-yi's seafood center.
As expected, since it's in season, the price was high, but the yield was definitely good, they said.
"King crab is going to be so good."
"Ugh... I'm cringing."
I showed my goosebumps to Minji, who'd suddenly started making unfunny lame puns.
Seeing that, she smirked and headed toward the terrace where A-ra was.
King crab is going to be so good...
I guess it gets funnier the more I hear it...
"Pfft...."
I ended up letting out a laugh.
Anyway, she really has a talent for making people laugh.
Ah, my pride is hurt.
I'd already been caught, but I pretended not to have laughed until the very end, and diligently enjoyed my meal.
"Oppa, you laughed, didn't you?"
"I didn't laugh."
I coughed dryly and denied it.
Naturally, the two of them didn't believe me and gave me a smug stare for a long time.