(A few years ago…)

“I’m sorry, Luke. I don’t think this can go on like this anymore.”

I was looking at my hands, already expecting that this would happen soon. I already felt how cold my ex-fiance was in our relationship.

“I really tried… Believe me. I just…” she sighed.

“Is this just cold feet?” I asked, thinking that we could still work this out.

“I fell out of love, Luke…”

I slowly leaned on my chair. Our table was in the middle of the restaurant. I don’t think I’ll embarrass myself more by crying in the middle of all these people.

I looked at my ex, “is there someone else that you love now?”

She didn’t answer. So, yes, there is someone else. I always knew there was, I was just thinking maybe there wasn’t, and I was just paranoid.

She sighed and slowly stood up. I watched her remove the diamond ring I gave her that she once happily-in-tears accepted the day I asked her to marry me. She stood next to my side and put the ring down on the table.

“I hope you’ll find someone that can give you the love you deserve without holding back on themselves.”

I didn’t say anything more. Some people around me seemed to already have an idea what was going on. It bothered me that people were staring and whispering. But it didn’t bother her.

She doesn’t care about what everyone else thinks from the start. She doesn’t care about what I think and what I feel.

“I’m sorry, Luke,” she whispered before leaving me feeling sorry for myself.

“I am too.”

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I found myself walking to the other side of the town. I was just looking at some windows as I passed them by. I came across a shop's window that said “ADOPT ME”.

For some reason, this made me stop and lean closer to the glass window. There wasn’t anything displayed, but I don’t know why I suddenly got curious about what was going on.

I walked into the door of this old shop that seemed pretty warm inside. There were a couple of people looking around the small boxes placed on top of old tables.

“Animal shop?” I asked myself.

“Yes, thank you for coming in.”

I turned behind me to an old man with a gentle smile on his face.

“Hello, can we interest you in adopting a pet?”

I looked behind me and back at him, “Oh, I… Uhm… I don’t think-”

“Have you tried to look around and see if you can find yourself a companion?”

“Companion?” I chuckled.

I thought about how I just lost a companion a few hours ago.

“I don’t think I need some-”

“Try to look around first. I’m sure you’ll find it for yourself that everybody needs someone.”

The old man gently tapped my shoulder and for some reason it felt like he just awakened something inside me. I just nodded and quietly turned to look around.

I was looking down at some of the animals in the boxes and everyone seemed to be excited that I was looking at them. All of these small animals were meeting my gaze one after the other. As if asking me to pick them.

I suddenly looked up and saw a reflection in the mirror that I passed by. It made me turn my head towards its direction.

I watched a calico cat jump on the shelf and walked gracefully, avoiding the animal figurines around. This cat caught my eyes and I found its way to move so serene.

I didn’t realize I was walking in the direction of the cat. I stopped when it turned its head to meet my gaze. She sat down and stared at me. As if it would talk back, I suddenly said something to it as if I was confessing.

“Your eyes, they're beautiful.”

“Meow…”

As if it understood what I said. It made me walk closer and reach out my hand to pet it.

“Hi.”

I said with a smile, and it responded again with a soft sound.

“Meow…”

It made me smile more.

“What’s your name?” I asked again, hoping to hear its soft voice.

“Her name is Aya.”

I turned my head to a guy with black hair and blue eyes.

“I’m sorry?”

He walked closer to us, and he looked down on the cat. He smiled at it and petted its head.

“I said her name was Aya.”

I looked at the cat and smiled.

“Aya. That’s a pretty name.”

“Meow…” she moved her head towards my hand and rubbed her face.

My heart fluttered for some reason.

“So, Aya, you’re a girl…”

“She’s a woman…”

I looked at the guy, and he knew what I was going to ask, so he answered before I could even speak.

“I mean, she is not a young cat. She’s quite old. She’s not a baby.”

“Oh, okay…”

I didn’t know how to respond to that because I have no idea what age cats or any animals have in the animal kingdom.

The blond guy seemed confused, “you should know this. You should have an idea.”

“Oh, I don’t really-”

“What he meant is that Aya is actually an adult cat.”

Says the old man with a smile. He patted the blond guy’s shoulder.

“Aki, why don’t you tend to the other customers, and I’ll take care of this.”

The blond guy named Aki looked at me as if he wanted to say something more. But he left, and I wasn’t bothered by anything anymore.

The old man petted Aya’s head.

“Hi, Aya.”

I saw she rubbed her face on the old man’s hand as well, and I felt something different. I then suddenly blurted out something I wasn’t expecting myself to say either.

“How much is she?”

The old man furrowed his eyebrows at me, “You want to buy her?”

I looked at Aya again, and she moved closer to where I stood. I smiled again, looking at her cute face.

“Yes. You said everybody needed a companion. So, I want to buy her for adoption.”

The old man chuckled and looked at Aya before he answered me.

“She’s not for sale.”

I felt a jab in my chest when he declined.

“What?”

I looked down at Aya, and she was staring at me. Then the old man spoke again.

“Aya is not for sale.”

I felt my heart sink from what he said again. I picked her up for some reason and cupped her small face.

“Why? You said I could look around for a companion.”

I looked at Aya again and smiled, “and for some reason, I think I would not leave this store without her.”

“Meow…”

The old man just smiled at me.

“Are you sure you can handle everything that she needs?”

I smiled, “I’ll give her everything that she needs. I’ll take care of her. I promise.”

The old man sighed, “Aya?”

She looked at the old man, and he asked her directly.

“Are you sure you want to go with him?”

“Meow… meow…”

She answered him with the sweetest and softest sound I'd heard from a cat. The old man stood closer to us and he petted her head. I looked at how the old man talked to her. It’s as if he was talking to his own daughter.

“Aya, fate brought him here to meet you. And I know, you know what that means… If you go with him, everything will be in your fate.”

“Meow… meow…”

There was something in those words that made me want to talk to the old man more. There seemed to be some warning that he was telling her. But I brushed it off. How weird would it be if I asked him what he meant.

“So, how much for her?”

The old man looked at me and said, “You can take her home with you. She’s not for sale.”

And I finally understood what he meant, “Oh, I see.”

I looked at her and smiled, “You’re coming home with me. Are you happy with that, Aya?”

“Meow… meow…” she purred and rubbed her face on my chin.

I chuckled and hugged her gently. I turned to the old man and smiled.

“Thank you. I promise I will take care of her.”

“Please do.”

The old man extended his hand for a handshake.

“I’m Khaeus Asteri, I own this shop. If you need anything for Aya, let me know.”

“I will. Thank you, Mr. Asteri.”

I felt as if my heart was back in one piece again the moment I left that shop. I’ve always been empty, even when I was still engaged. Even back in every relationship I’ve had there is always this feeling of something that’s missing in my life.

Now that I found Aya, I don’t think I would want any other companion than her.

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Aki saw Aya leaving with the man he had spoken with earlier. He gasped and looked for his master right away. He saw him at the back of the shop sitting at his coffee table smoking his pipe.

“Master, that man? Isn’t that him?”

Khaeus blew the smoke out of his pipe.

“Luke was brought by fate to our store, Aki. It was destiny that made him walk this side of the town. It was written in his stars that he would find Aya again. I just wasn’t expecting it to be this early.”

Aki sat down next to him, “If it was destined, and it was fate, then Aya would-”

“Yes. She will. We’ll just have to wait and see how their fate is going to play this time.”

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To be continued…