Qing: (whispering to my ear while hugging me) You are a miracle worker, my Love.
Me: (embracing him back) You owe me big time for this. Think about taking me to Rio de Janeiro or Oslo for this alone. Or maybe Iceland to see the Northern Lights.
Qing: Don't worry, we will travel once its safe to board on a plane and leave the country. (kissing my cheek) Thank you for getting ZhiMing out of his room and convincing him to eat.
Yao: (standing closer to us) (curiously) What did you say to him to convince him to eat? I mean, getting him out of the room and putting Miss Daisy down is like a miracle to me already.
Me: (smiling) A master doesn't reveal his secrets to others that easily.
Yao: (to Qing) Your fiancé is a smug son of a...
Qing: (cutting in) Okay...that is enough. We owe Dayu for ZhiMing eating right now. Lets, be grateful to him for that.
We stayed in the living room while Antoine accompanied ZhiMing to eat in the kitchen. I know for a fact that ZhiMing is eating because he wants to drive us to the animal shelter. Ah, my gullible victim.
Once he was done preparing, ZhiMing came down from the second floor looking all determined to show us that we are beneath the sole of his feet. Looking all haughty. Ready for a fight.
ZhiMing: Lets go.
Me: (since I am a dickhead) You might want to apologize to us first. You haven't even welcomed us properly to your place or offer drinks.
ZhiMing: I didn't invite any of you here.
Me: (grinning) Alright, you didn't fall for that one. You are ready to drive.
Qing: Wait? He will drive?
ZhiMing: (nose in the air) Yes. And Dayu will ride with me.
Yao: Oh god...
Antoine: The three of us will be in your car?
Me: Ah no...(pointing at Antoine) You, go with Qing and Yao on Qing's car. Just follow us.
Qing: Where are we going anyways?
Me: You'll see. Come on! Lets go!
Everyone else grumbled as they followed me outside. It's a lovely late afternoon. The sun is setting steadily and the air feels good on my skin. I don't know about the others but I feel good about this.
ZhiMing and I got into his car while Qing and the others piled on my fiancé's SUV. Yao's car will remain there. We drove to the animal shelter and Qing gave me a questioning look when he finally realized where we are.
Qing: You think this is a good idea?
Antoine: I am not sure about this.
Me: It'll be alright. As long as we leave this place without him adopting any animal, we will be alright.
I smiled when a familiar face came to greet us. It's our favorite shelter coordinator. She was the one who introduced those kittens to me. And since then, I have been donating steadily on this shelter. If I can get ZhiMing to donate, his donation will be the biggest amount I may contribute to this shelter.
Which makes me feel good to be honest. I am helping without spending my money, how great is that?
Yes, I'm a penny pinching cheapskate but the most important thing is that the animals in the shelter will have supplies and food because of ZhiMing's donation.
We entered the premise and showed to a familiar room where we await for the kittens to arrive. When the shelter coordinator came, she has a box in her hands with kittens in them and another staff holding a box as well behind her.
SC: (as they are setting the boxes down) They came almost a week ago.
I watched closely as ZhiMing looked down at the box and reeled in surprise when he saw five kittens there. White furred kittens. All look alike. Distinguished only by the colorful ribbons on their necks to differentiate them.
But they are all white. Just like ZhiMing's Miss Daisy. But the kittens are barely a month old.
On the other box, more kittens. This time, they are black and white. Tuxedo cats. These kittens are a bit older than the pure white ones but not by much.
SC: They just had their naps and are good to watch over by at least an hour before they go hungry again.
ZhiMing: (looking transfixed at the kittens) Where are their mothers?
Me: The kittens were left behind without their mothers. It means...
Qing: The previous owner took them from their mothers to throw them away? That's disgusting.
Yao: (looking troubled) Why are humans so terrible? Why?
Antoine: Animals deserve better than humans, really...
Me: (smiling at our SC) Humans threw them away, for sure, but lets not forget that it is also humans who rescued and taking care of them now. Right?
SC: True. Us here in the shelter and also volunteers like you guys. Dayu here is a frequent volunteer and donor. We are grateful to our wonderful volunteers.
ZhiMing: What do you need from us? From me?
SC: (smiling kindly at ZhiMing) Just look after them for a few hours. Make them feel love. Maybe help feeding them later. And then look after them again. Play Mama to them for some hours.
Me: Aye aye, Captain.
The SC and staff chuckled at me before leaving the kittens and the room to us. I quickly crouched down to gaze closely at the tuxedo kittens.
Me: Hey y'all. Remember me? Daddy Dayu is back for more torture. Want to play with me?
Yao: (crouching next to me) They look adorable.
Me: Of course they do. They are precious.
Yao and I gently pulled the black and white kittens out of their box one by one to place them on the floor covered with soft blanket. I looked at the others. I saw Qing and Antoine watching ZhiMing as the latter hesitated on his feet while looking at the box of white kittens that resembled his beloved Miss Daisy in looks.
Then ZhiMing's eyes moved from the kittens to me. He glared at me.
ZhiMing: I hate you for this.
Me: (cuddling one tuxedo kitten) (shrugging) Remember, you cannot adopt them. And even if you want to and I allow it, you still can't take them home because...
ZhiMing: They are too young to be adopted.
Me: Bingo. Just write us that cheque. (showing him the face of the kitten I am holding) Please...
ZhiMing: You...
I turned away from him but I did listen to the rustle ZhiMing made when he finally started touching the white kittens.
Antoine: Are you alright?
ZhiMing: Yes. Look at them. They are even smaller than Miss Daisy when I got her.
Qing: (sitting beside me) This is not that smart of a move, Love.
Me: I know. Its a risky move. It could go either way. But I believe in ZhiMing. And his heart that loves cats and creatures weaker than him.
I turned my head to watch ZhiMing pick one white kitten to start petting it.
Me: He is sweet, right?
ZhiMing: He? How did you know...?
Me: They are all boys. All those white kittens are male.
ZhiMing stared dumbfounded at the kitten in his hands.
Yao: Well, you cannot name that one Miss Daisy for sure.
ZhiMing: (snarly) I am not adopting them.
Antoine: Right. You are not adopting them. Its not allowed.
ZhiMing: (glaring at us) Can you leave me and the kittens alone? Stay away from us.
He gathered the box of the white kittens close to himself before turning away from us. Antoine sighed before joining us to look after the tuxedo kittens.
Me: (to the kitten on my hands) He is such a snob. He doesn't like you bunch because he only likes cats with white fur.
ZhiMing: (his back on us) That is not true. But there are already four of you there. Leave me alone with my little Misters.
Me: Mr. What?
Qing: Don't name them.
ZhiMing: Too late. I already named them. The red ribboned one is Mr.Darcy. The green one is Mr.Rogers. The blue one is Mr.Johnson. The violet one is Mr.Carter. And the one with the yellow ribbon is Mr.Davenport.
Yao: That's fucked up. You will not adopt them. Why name them?
ZhiMing: Because they are mine now. Until they are old enough to be adopted.
Antoine: Are you thinking of adopting all five of them?
ZhiMing: (facing us) Why not?
Me: You will be dubbed as the Cat Mister.
ZhiMing: I don't care.
Qing: That's ridiculous, are you replacing Miss Daisy already?
ZhiMing: (eyes angry again) No one can replace her. She is still the love of my life. But I have a big heart. And I have time and money, so why not love more.
Me: Relax everyone. He won't adopt them today. And this shelter has a strict policy when it comes to adoption. ZhiMing will need to pass several tests and inspection before they will allow him to get a cat. Let him have his fantasies of having all of them.
The others backed off. Qing gave me a concerned look. I patted his hand to reassure him.
We spent several hours looking after the kittens and playing with them. They are an energetic bunch but they are kittens so they like exploring as well as napping. After some hours, bottles were taken to the room and we feed them milk.
After eating, the SC showed us how to clean the kittens close to how their mothers would have cleaned them. With warm wipes, we wiped them gently after they ate. Soon, they are napping again.
And that's how our volunteer work in the shelter ended. ZhiMing wrote that generous cheque and talked to the SC. I didn't worry because I know I will soon learn what they talked about.
ZhiMing looked more relaxed and satisfied when we left the shelter. Qing and the others breathed in relief upon seeing the changes on ZhiMing's demeanor. It's not perfect, but its a start.
Several days later, I called ZhiMing.
Me: Are you sure this is not a way to replace Miss Daisy?
ZhiMing: No one can replace her, I already told you that. But I have more love in my heart for a pet. She will understand if I will adopt some now that she is gone.
Me: And by some, you mean two.
ZhiMing: (sighing) Its a shame that the other three are already claimed. But no worries, I already secured Mr.Darcy and Mr.Davenport to be given to me once they turn two and a half month old. I am also sponsoring the tuxedo kittens until they are all adopted.
Me: Your conscience finally kicked in. You ignored them on our visit there.
ZhiMing: I made it all up when I get back there the day after our first visit.
Me: I know. The Shelter Coordinator told me. How are you feeling?
ZhiMing: Still sad. I still couldn't seem to clean up all of Miss Daisy's belongings. Her water bowl and bed...
Me: Leave it. Just let it there for awhile. You will clean it all up when you are ready. And you are getting there. Just have more patience.
ZhiMing: Thank you, Dayu ah. For pulling me out of my misery.
Me: I didn't do anything. You decided to pull yourself out of it. I could jump and shout all around you but if you decided you were not ready to move, you won't. But you decided you are ready. You pulled yourself out.
ZhiMing: You helped. Just take the credit and stop being annoying. And tell Qing to stop bothering me and Antoine. We are fine.
I chuckled.
Me: Qing loves you. We love you. You know that.
ZhiMing: I know. Thanks again.
Me: Anytime.
Losing a beloved pet is never easy. And it will never be easy. Pets, they have a piece of our heart. They have a special spot in our lives. If you have a pet, love them well. Hug them for ZhiMing, because ZhiMing cannot hug Miss Daisy anymore.
We have Kuai and Kuangnu with us in the condo for a week. Qing is holding his dogs close. Playing with them until they all turned exhausted.
Don't take anything for granted. Even pets. Love them well.