My Cat Girl Neighbor Is Impossible to Understand

The day started like usual.

Sui was waiting by the gate with a light in his eyes and a small smile on his lips. The sun was shining, birds were chirping, and everything felt perfect.

Until she approached.

Yuiko’s tail was wiggling happily and her ears were up high. She was wearing a light dress for summer days and seemed to walk straight out of some dreamy story.

"Morning, princess," he greeted.

"Morning, senpai," she returned with a giggle. "Ready for more boring lessons?"

"I’m always ready for a day with you."

She laughed again and this time even her cheeks turned pink. "You are so cheesy."

"And you love it."

"Unfortunately."

They were heading to school hand in hand, just the way they did each day.

Until they reached their classroom.

A new girl was standing in front of the class, her smile wide.

"Classmates," their teacher addressed. "This is Haruka. She transferred from a school in the city. Please welcome her warmly."

Haruka bowed and greeted all of them. "My name is Haruka. I’m glad to meet all of you."

Her gaze scanned the classroom until it finally settled on Sui. She seemed pleased to see him.

Sui blinked, not understanding anything.

Yuiko’s tail was still.

Haruka ended up sitting next to him in the very first lesson. By accident or deliberately?

During all the class, she was looking at him and smiling at him.

Once she leaned on the table and whispered to Sui. "Your name is Sui, right?"

He nodded, not understanding. "Yes."

"My name is Haruka. Nice to meet you." She put her hand forward.

He shook her hand, but it was still lying in his palm.

Yuiko was watching all of them from across the classroom. Her ears were flat and her tail curled around her legs.

At lunch, Sui and Yuiko were sitting under their favorite cherry tree.

Yuiko was unusually silent.

"Yuiko, are you alright?" Sui was worried about her.

"I’m fine," she answered monotonously.

"But your tail says—"

She looked down and her tail tightened around her leg.

"I said I’m fine."

"Yuiko—"

"Hey, Sui-kun!"

They both turned to find Haruka who was walking towards them with her lunch tray in her hands.

"Can I join you?" She smiled brightly.

Yuiko’s ears lay flat.

Sui was hesitant. "We were just—"

"Great!" Haruka sat down by him, so close that their shoulders touched. "I don’t know anyone in this school yet. It’s so nice to see a familiar face."

Sui glanced at Yuiko whose tail was still motionless.

"Haruka," he said carefully. "This is Yuiko. My girlfriend."

Haruka turned to Yuiko and her smile didn’t fade.

"Oh, I know. You’re the cat girl, right?"

Yuiko twitched her ears. "Cat girl?"

"Sorry, I meant beastfolk. I have never met beastfolk before. Your ears are so cute. Can I touch them?"

"No," Yuiko refused firmly.

Haruka laughed. "You are feisty. I like that."

Then she turned to Sui with a total attention.

"So, Sui-kun, what are you usually doing for fun? I want to find something interesting for me to do."

Sui blinked, being caught off guard. "I like reading and taking walks."

"Taking walks? That sounds so romantic. Maybe you can show me your favorite walking places?"

"Haruka, I—"

"It’s a date, then!" She winked at Sui.

Yuiko’s tail puffed.

It was a nightmare for her during all the rest of the day.

Haruka kept finding reasons to be near Sui. She talked to him, touched him, laughed at his jokes and called him "Sui-kun" like they were old friends.

And Yuiko watched all of this.

Her tail was still. Her ears were flat. Her jaw was tight.

She was feeling something unusual and awful for her. That burning churning feeling in her heart and an urge to pull Sui away from that Haruka. Screaming at her "He is mine!".

What is wrong with me? she kept asking herself desperately. Why am I feeling this way?

She had never been jealous before. Not once. She had always believed Sui completely.

Now, seeing how Haruka laughed at something that he said, touched him...

Something in her broke.

After the school, Sui found her at the gate.

"Yuiko! I’ve been looking for you."

She didn’t look at him. "Let’s go."

"Hey." He tried to take her hand. "What’s wrong?"

"Nothing."

"Your tail says—"

"I know what my tail says!" Her voice sounded sharp. "But I’m fine."

"Yuiko..."

She stopped, turning to him with her golden eyes full of tears that haven’t come yet.

"Who is she?"

"Haruka? She is a new student."

"She touches you."

"I didn’t even notice it—"

"She calls you Sui-kun."

"It’s just a name—"

"She wanted to hold your hand."

Sui blinked. "She wanted to?"

"At lunch! She wanted to hold your hand and you even didn’t notice!"

Sui stared at her in shock.

"Yuiko," he said quietly. "Are you jealous?"

She looked devastated.

"I don’t know," she whispered. "I have never felt anything like this. My chest is hurting. My tail isn’t moving. And all the time I think – what if she is better than me? What if you suddenly understand that you want to be with someone like her?"

"Yuiko." He stepped to her and cupped her face. "That will never happen."

"You don’t know that."

"Yes, I do." He lifted her chin so that she would look at him. "There is no one else for you, Yuiko. Never has been, never will be."

Her eyes glittered. "Promise?"

"I promise." He leaned his forehead to hers. "You are the only one for me. The only one I want."

A tear fell down her cheek.

"Okay," she whispered. "Okay."

He kissed her forehead, hugging her after that.

"I love you," he said. "Only you."

She hugged him back and her tail began to wiggle again.

"I love you too," she whispered. "Just... don’t forget that."

"I won’t." He hugged her even tighter. "Never."

The week that followed was a sort of torture.

Haruka was always everywhere.

Everywhere Sui turned, there she was. In the hallway. At lunch. Even in the convenience store close to their school. Her smile was always radiant, her gaze always locked onto him.

"Good morning, Sui-kun!"

She was waiting for him right behind the gate. She pressed her shoulder to his.

"M-morning, Haruka."

"I saved you a place in class. Right next to me. That’s okay, isn’t it?"

"Actually, I usually sit with Yuiko—"

"She won’t mind. We’re friends, aren’t we?"

Sui looked around for Yuiko. She was coming towards them. Her tail was stiff, her ears laid back.

"Actually," Yuiko stated coldly, "he sits with me."

Haruka laughed brightly. "Of course! I didn’t mean to intrude. I just thought that we can all sit together." She put her arm around his shoulders. "Come on, Sui-kun! Let’s not be late!"

Yuiko’s tail rose.

In class, Haruka wasn’t relenting.

She kept whispering something into his ear. She kept touching his arm when she giggled. She kept borrowing his pencils and notes.

"Sui-kun, you are so clever! Can you explain that task to me?"

"Sure—"

He bent over the task, and Haruka did it too. Their hair touched.

Yuiko was looking at them from the other side of the classroom. She was holding her pencil in a tight grip.

At lunch, Haruka showed up under their cherry tree.

"Sui-kun! I brought an extra portion. Would you like something?"

"I already have my lunch—"

"Even just a bite?" She was waving a piece of tamagoyaki. "Open wide!"

Sui blinked confused. "Haruka, I—"

Yuiko abruptly stood up. Her chair screeched on the floor.

"I need some fresh air," she stated dryly.

She moved away, her tail tied tightly around her legs.

"Yuiko!" Sui called out to her. But she ignored him.

Haruka smiled and ate the tamagoyaki herself.

"She is in a rather moody state today," she commented lightly. "Does she always act like that?"

Sui frowned. "She isn’t moody. She’s..."

Jealous, he understood. She’s jealous.

And suddenly, everything became clear to him.

After school, Sui went to find Yuiko by the river.

She was sitting on the bench with her knees pulled to her chest. Her tail was loose.

"Yuiko."

She didn’t lift her head.

He sat down next to her. "I am sorry."

"For what?"

"For not noticing. For not stopping her." He tried to hold her hand. She didn’t resist. "I was so busy to be polite that I failed to notice that it was hurting you."

She was silent for a while.

"She is always touching you," she murmured in a whisper. "Always laughing at your jokes. Always calling you Sui-kun like you are the most natural thing on Earth for her."

"Yuiko—"

"It makes me want to scream." She almost sobbed. "Every time she touches your arm, I want to grab her hand and throw it away. Every time she laughs, I want to tell her to stop. Every time she calls you your name, I want to—"

She was cut off by her tears.

"Yuiko." He lifted her face with his hands to look her into her eyes. "There is no one else. There was never any."

"But she is so—"

"She is nobody." His voice was determined. "She is just a girl. A girl I don’t even know well. You are the only one I love. You are the only one I want."

Her eyes shone with tears.

"Then why don’t you stop her?" she asked. "Why do you let her touch you? Why do you let her call you that?"

He blinked confused. "Well... I just didn’t realize I was. I didn’t want to be impolite."

"Then be impolite." Her voice was harsh. "I don’t care if you are being impolite. I just care about her touching you."

He stared at her.

"You are right," he said gently. "I am sorry. I’ll be better."

She was staring at the ground. "I know I am being unreasonable. She hasn’t done anything wrong, really. She just wanted to be friendly."

"She isn’t just trying to be friendly." He tilted her chin up. "I understand it now. I understand what she is doing."

"Then what are you going to do about it?"

He smiled.

"I will make sure she knows," he said, "who I belong to."

The next morning, Haruka was waiting for him right behind the gate.

"Sui-kun! I was waiting for—"

Sui walked past her and went to Yuiko. He grabbed her hand and pulled her to himself.

"Morning, Yuiko," he greeted her and kissed her forehead.

Yuiko lifted her ears in surprise.

"Morning."

Haruka’s smile faded.

"Sui-kun, I—"

"Haruka," he turned to her politely but distantly. "I appreciate your kindness. But I will appreciate it more if you give us some space."

Haruka blinked in confusion. "But what—"

"I have a girlfriend. And I am perfectly happy with her. I don’t need anybody else."

Haruka’s smile came back, but it was a bit sharper than before.

"Of course, Sui-kun. I understand."

She walked away. Her hips were swinging provocatively.

Yuiko was watching her. Her tail was wagging slowly.

"That was surprisingly firm."

"I told you I’d be better." He squeezed her hand tenderly. "I love you. Just you."

Her cheeks flushed red, but she was smiling.

"I love you too."

They walked to school holding each other.

And Yuiko’s tail wagged all the way to school.