Two Drunkards
“Mmm…. So good♪”
“You’re in a good mood, Cecilia.”
“Ehehe…♪”
Cradling the cup in both hands and taking little sips, Cecilia looked up at me with a smile that left nothing to be desired. It was a complete turnaround from the limp, terrified mess she’d been only a short while ago.
From timid to bold, from gloomy to delighted. Alcohol hit everyone differently, but of all the people I knew, it seemed to suit Cecilia especially well.
“One more!”
In a bright, lively voice she thrust the empty cup toward me. I took it and filled it with practiced ease.
“All right, all right.”
One shot of soju, a generous pour of orange juice. The finished tangerine-colored liquid was the same homemade cocktail she’d enjoyed so much before.
“Here.”
“Thankies~!”
She received the cup I held out with both hands, as carefully as if it were something precious, then began tasting its contents in tiny sips.
“…♪”
Every time her little tongue moved, a visible ripple of joy spread across her face. Her tail swayed gently back and forth, and her ears flicked and twitched as if determined not to be outdone.
“Mmm~♪”
“Is it good?”
“Yeah!”
A happy smile in half-lidded eyes. That easy expression, paired with her bright answer, filled the room with a warm, pleasant atmosphere.
Watching her with quiet satisfaction, I took a sip of the orange-juice cocktail myself. Fragrance and tartness bloomed slowly across my tongue. It tasted like happiness.
“Heyyy, Eunhyuuuk~.”
Already looking thoroughly tipsy, Cecilia shuffled closer and plopped her head against my shoulder. A soft purring sound rose from her throat.
“Am I cute~?”
“Yeah. You’re cute.”
“~~~♪”
Eyes squeezed shut, a full smile blooming across her face, she looked so helplessly delighted it was almost too much. She seemed utterly, completely happy.
Suddenly, from somewhere deep inside, the urge to see that expression a little longer welled up. I must have been pretty far gone myself.
“You’re cute, Cecilia. So cute!”
“Mmhmm♪ That much~?”
“Yeah, ridiculously cute!”
“Ehehe…♥”
Just a few words of praise, and she was this overjoyed. Watching her made me feel good too.
I kept calling her cute a few more times, and before long Cecilia’s face took on a restless, fidgety look. Before I could say a word, she shoved me flat onto the floor.
“Hup~!”
“Whoa. …?”
“Heh-heh~♪”
Then, much as she had earlier, she draped her body over mine where I lay sprawled. Soft warmth settled across me. This time, though, she climbed higher—up onto my chest—and stared straight into my eyes with a mischievous look.
“…Pet me!”
She really was a cat, no two ways about it.
I set my hand lightly on top of her silver-white hair. That alone was enough to melt her into a blissful, goofy smile.
“Slowly…. Mmm, like that.”
“Can I touch your ears too?”
“Mmm…, just the left one. And not hard—gently…. …Hya?!”
The moment my slowly moving hand brushed her ear, she let out a strange little cry and gave a full-body jolt. I’d barely touched her, and lightly at that. She was incredibly sensitive.
“Hya—w-wait a second. This is more than I—”
Cecilia’s body trembled in fine little shivers on top of mine. That flustered yet clearly pleased expression flipped a switch somewhere inside me, and my mischievous streak snapped on.
“More than you what? Come on, how does it feel~? Just a little~….”
“Hah—! Nnh, wha…! Wait, hick?!♥ Hyaang. Nngh, hwaaah….”
“….”
That was a lot more suggestive than I’d expected. I’d only meant to tease her a little.
When I stopped the soft kneading of my fingers, Cecilia went limp on top of me, breathing hard. Her face was even redder than before. It didn’t seem to be just the alcohol.
“Cecil—”
“…Nngh……!”
“Ow—hey, wait, Cecilia, sorry, ouch!”
Coming back to her senses, Cecilia started thumping my chest with her tiny fists. How much could those soft little arms even hurt, I’d thought—but she packed a surprising amount of force.
“Nngh…!!”
“Ow! Sorry, Cecilia, I’m sorry…!”
“Ears are banned!”
In the end, Cecilia’s ban declaration was probably the natural outcome. Honestly, the texture had felt so good that I was more than a little disappointed.
“…Okay!”
“Huh?”
“Pet my head. Just not the ears!”
Even so, she still wanted her head stroked. That willful streak of hers was pure cat, too.
If only she were this assertive when she wasn’t drunk.
“…Ehehe.”
I carefully stroked her hair, and Cecilia’s face melted right back into that soft, goofy smile, as if she’d never been angry at all. The tension drained from her expression and her body went loose. She looked content.
“Feel good?”
“Yeah~.”
The answer came with a low, rumbling purr.
Come to think of it, at some point both of us had completely stopped paying attention to the drinks. Well, the alcohol had only ever been a means to an end, so it didn’t really matter. We were both just tipsy enough to feel good—exactly the right amount.
“Eunhyuuuk~.”
“Yeah?”
“Will you stay with me from now on…?”
Out of nowhere, Cecilia asked in a tender, almost wistful voice. Looking down, I found the same wistful expression on her face.
Her eyes were round, her nose a neat little curve. Her lips were slightly parted, waiting for my answer. Flushed cheeks, damp corners of her eyes, slightly quickened breathing, and the faint scent of alcohol all made plain just how drunk she was.
“Of course.”
“…Okay♪”
At my easy reply she smiled again. Then, as if something had just occurred to her, she suddenly sat up and reached for the cup on the table.
“Gotta drink~♪”
Holding the cup in both hands, she gulped the contents down with pure, happy abandon.
Except that was… my cup. She didn’t seem to care in the slightest.
“So good!”
“One of these days I’ll look up some other cocktail recipes. Nothing fancy, of course—it’ll all be homemade stuff.”
I sat up too and reached for a cup. Mine having already been claimed, I went for Cecilia’s on the far side of the table.
“Aum.”
“Mmm….”
Side by side, we took mouthfuls of orange-juice cocktail. The glasses had been swapped, but neither of our thoroughly tipsy heads seemed inclined to notice.
““Pwah….””
We exhaled at almost the exact same moment. Somehow that was funny, and we both broke into soft little laughs looking at each other.
“Ahh~! This feels so good~…♪”
After a long, luxurious stretch, Cecilia flopped back down onto the floor. She wriggled around for a bit, then fetched a pillow from the bed and settled onto the floor again.
“Mmh…♪”
“I want a pillow too—let’s see….”
Watching her, I grabbed a pillow of my own, tucked it under my head, and lay down on the floor.
The mild coolness of the floor seeped into my alcohol-warmed body at just the right temperature. I could see why Cecilia had chosen the floor over the bed.
“This is nice.”
“Right?”
Lying on the floor, we faced each other and smiled. The buzz, the feel of the floor, the soft pillow, the mood of the moment—everything about it felt good.
“Come to think of it, Cecilia, one question.”
“Hm?”
“That noise from the bathroom earlier. What was that?”
“Ah~….”
When I voiced the curiosity that had just occurred to me, Cecilia scratched near her ear with an embarrassed look.
“I, um, was afraid I’d get caught. I tried to hide farther in and accidentally bumped the showerhead….”
“Ahh….”
So it had fallen and made the noise. A mistake, technically, but closer to plain bad luck.
“Unlucky.”
“Mmm, you think so?”
I’d said it offhand, but Cecilia looked at me and grinned.
“Thanks to that, you said I could live here with you. So in the end, wasn’t it a good thing?”
“Is that how it works?”
Well, if I hadn’t found Cecilia, Officer Unho probably would have just gone home. Then maybe later, for some other reason, a different officer might have come looking for her at our place. And if that person had been less reasonable than Officer Unho….
“…Getting caught turned out for the best, then.”
“Right. …Even if it was scary. …I still don’t like cops.”
Muttering with a sulky look, Cecilia curled herself into a tight little ball. Then she opened her mouth wide and let out a yawn.
“Haaahm….”
“Sleepy?”
“Mmm, a little?”
It was a strange reaction, from my point of view. Tipsy or not, it was one in the afternoon with bright sunlight pouring in. I myself didn’t feel the slightest bit drowsy.
“You sure sleep a lot.”
“It’s just how I’m built. Haaahm~…. …Can I sleep a little?”
I nodded. At my answer, Cecilia smiled bashfully and slowly transferred herself onto the bed.
“Hup….”
The cute little grunt of effort was a free bonus.
Once on the bed, she sank deep into the soft mattress. Straightening her pillow properly and dragging the blanket over herself, she looked for all the world like she owned the place.
“Sleep well, Cecilia.”
“Mm….”
At my light farewell she smiled peacefully and closed her eyes.
Watching her, I got up and started a quick tidy. I washed the glasses, put the bottles away. Even after finishing, not much time had passed. There was still a long while before my part-time shift.
Figuring this level of buzz would clear well before work, I dropped into a chair. After watching the sleeping Cecilia for a moment, I pulled out the novel I’d been reading and settled in to turn the pages at an easy pace.
And then.
“Uugh….”
Time passed. It was now about four o’clock—one hour before my shift started.
“Uwaaaaah……!!”
What met my eyes as I looked up from my book was Cecilia, sober now, writhing in pure mortified embarrassment.