vncnus Chapter 156 I adopted this cat.
Chapter 156 I adopted this cat.
"Take him to the hospital to get checked out first."
Wang Yueling held the cat securely, tilted her chin slightly towards the parking lot, and said, "We'll talk about the rest later."
Yukimura nodded and followed beside him.
The two got into the car, and Wang Yueling asked the driver to find a pet hospital first. They drove for a short while and then spotted a small pet hospital by the sea; its sign was light blue and the lights were on.
After getting off the bus, the two quickened their pace and walked towards that spot.
Mochizuki Ryo walked ahead, slightly turned to the side, shielding his eyes from the wind with his hand. Yukimura followed beside him, glancing down every now and then at the little black ball in his arms.
By the time we arrived at the vet hospital, it was completely dark. A golden osmanthus tree stood at the entrance; its flowers hadn't bloomed yet, but its leaves were a vibrant green.
Wang Yueling, carrying the kitten, pushed open the door and went inside. The wind chimes on the door tinkled a few times.
The nurse at the front desk looked up, saw the two soaking wet boys, and paused for a second. Then, noticing the black ball of fur in Wang Yueling's arms, she quickly stood up. "Are you hurt?"
"Hmm, it has a wound on its front paw." Wang Yueling carefully placed the kitten on the table, her movements very gentle.
The receptionist nurse lifted her coat to take a look, frowned after seeing the wound, led them into the examination room, and went inside to call the doctor.
The examination room was small, with white walls, a stainless steel workbench, and a strong smell of disinfectant in the air. A blue non-woven fabric was laid on the workbench, and a stethoscope and thermometer were placed next to it.
Wang Yueling placed the kitten and her coat on the worktable.
The kitten curled up on the table, trembling even more violently, burying its little head in its coat, looking just like a little mouse.
Yukimura reached out and gently stroked its back. The kitten's body was as cold as a stone soaked in rainwater.
"Don't be afraid." His voice was soft as he gently stroked its back with his fingertips. "It will be alright soon."
The kitten's ears twitched, and it slowly raised its head to glance at Yukimura. Its heterochromatic eyes shone brightly under the white light.
A few seconds later, it buried its head back in, but it wasn't shaking as badly as before.
A short while later.
An elderly gentleman wearing reading glasses walked in. He was dressed in a white coat, with gray hair and a gentle gaze.
He put on his gloves, examined the kitten's wound, then looked at its eyes, and looked up at Wang Yueling. "How did you get hurt?"
"I don't know. We found it in the bushes by the roadside; it was huddled on a styrofoam lunchbox."
The old doctor nodded and reached out to take the kitten for an examination.
The kitten immediately bristled when it saw him reach out, arching its little body and meowing at the old doctor. The sound wasn't loud, because it was too soft, but the message was clear—don't touch me.
The old doctor's hand froze in mid-air, and he smiled helplessly. "She's quite shy around strangers."
Yukimura reached out and gently touched the kitten's ear with his fingertips, his voice soft and gentle, "It's alright, let the vet take a look. It can only get better if he sees him."
The kitten flinched slightly in shock, then slowly relaxed, tilting its head and rubbing against Yukimura's fingers.
But he still huddled inside his coat and refused to come out.
"I'll do it."
Yukimura slowly reached into his coat, cradling the kitten's body in his palm and gently supporting its head with his other hand.
The kitten struggled a little when he took it out of his coat, but quickly calmed down, nestled in his palm, and rested its two front paws on his fingers.
The old doctor tried reaching out again, and the kitten started hiding towards Yukimura again.
"Looks like it only lets the two of you touch it."
But if you touch its paw, it will still tremble and meow softly, a sound so pitiful it's heartbreaking.
The old doctor examined her very carefully, turning her over and over several times, until he confirmed that there were no other external injuries.
Only then did I carefully examine its front paws.
He used a cotton swab dipped in saline solution to gently wipe away the scabs around the wound. The kitten cried out in pain, but didn't bite; it just buried its head in Yukimura's hand.
"The injury to the front paw wasn't done today. It's been about four or five days."
The old doctor spoke calmly, pointing to the kitten's paw, "It's hot here in Qingmuting, so it's normal for it to get inflamed and suppurating. But if it's not treated, it will get worse."
"Fortunately, no bones were broken. Clean it up, apply some medicine, and it will be fine in a few days."
He paused, then looked at the kitten's teeth, eyes, and belly. "This kitten is about three weeks old. It looks like a Munchkin mix; its legs are a bit longer than a purebred Munchkin. It's male."
"Three weeks?" Yukimura and Mochizuki Ryo exchanged a glance, then looked down at the little fur ball in their palms. "So small."
"Hmm. Normally, they should still be drinking milk."
The old veterinarian placed the stethoscope on the kitten's chest and listened. "The heart rate is okay, but it's too thin. It hasn't eaten for at least two days and is a bit dehydrated."
He straightened up, took off his stethoscope, took the cotton swab dipped in water from the nurse, and carefully fed the kitten water.
"The kitten's injuries are so severe that the mother cat probably thought it wouldn't survive. Plus, she sensed the storm was coming, and with other healthy kittens to care for, she had even less energy to look after this one."
"So it was left behind."
He paused, looking at Mochizuki Ryo and Yukimura, "If it weren't for you two, this kitten probably wouldn't have survived tonight. The storm at the beach was fierce; it's so small, it couldn't have withstood it."
Ryo Mochizuki tapped her fingers lightly on the edge of the table. Yukimura gently rubbed the cat's ears with his fingertips, remaining silent.
The kitten seemed to understand, opened one eye to look at them, made sure they were still there, then closed it again, its purring never stopping.
"Little guy, you're lucky."
The old doctor smiled and remarked, then turned and took out iodine solution, ointment, and a roll of gauze from the cabinet. "I'll clean the wound first. It might hurt a little, so please hold it down and don't let it move."
Yukimura gently held the kitten's body down, while Mochizuki Ryo held down its hind legs. The kitten, now restrained, panicked a little, turning its head back and forth and meowing pitifully.
Yukimura looked down at it, his voice very soft, "Just bear with it a little longer, it'll be over soon."
The kitten looked into his eyes and slowly calmed down.
The experienced doctor worked quickly, shaving the hair around the wound, disinfecting it with iodine, and applying a layer of ointment. Finally, he gently wrapped it with gauze and secured it with two layers of tape.
"alright."
The old doctor straightened up and threw the cotton swabs and used gauze into the trash can.
The nurse took a small Elizabethan collar from the drawer and put it around the kitten's neck.
After the cat was put in the collar, it froze, tilting its head to try to lick its paws. When it realized it couldn't reach them, it paused for a moment, then tilted its head again and tried once more, but still couldn't reach them.
It wanted to knock the ring off, but its paws were too short to reach it, and it cried out in frustration.
The little guy looked so pitiful.
Wang Yueling watched from the side, a slight smile curving her lips.
Yukimura couldn't help but laugh, reaching out to straighten the collar for it. "You look great in this."
The kitten meowed softly, as if in protest.
"You can't pick them."
The old doctor beside me added, "Don't lick the wound on your paw, it will get infected. Just wear it for three days."
The kitten tilted its head and glanced at the old doctor, then turned back and buried its face in Yukimura's palm.
"It really only listens to you."
As the old doctor tidied the table, he remarked, "It barked when I touched it earlier. But it behaved itself when you touched it."
"Perhaps it's fate." Wang Yueling reached out and stroked the kitten's back. The kitten rolled over in his hand, exposing its belly, its four paws tucked together, and its tail slowly curled up.
"Oh, right."
The elderly doctor took off his gloves and wrote a few lines in the patient's medical record: "If you can't keep them, our hospital can help contact adoption agencies. There are several stray cat rescue centers nearby; you should be able to find someone to adopt them."
Wang Yueling looked down at the little black cat on the control panel. It wore a white Elizabethan collar, which made its black fur appear even blacker against the white collar.
It raised its head and looked at him with its heterochromatic cat eyes.
Mochizuki Ryo glanced at Yukimura again.
Yukimura was looking down at the cat, a slight smile playing on his lips. His profile was soft in the light, his eyelashes casting a small shadow under his eyes, and his fingers gently scratched the cat's chin, the movements slow and patient.
Wang Yueling reached out and gently poked the kitten's forehead. "I'll keep this cat."
The old doctor glanced at him, smiled, and turned to the kitten, saying, "Little guy, did you hear that? You're going to have a home now."
The kitten meowed softly, as if in response.
"Then you'll need to get vaccinated and dewormed." The old doctor opened a drawer and took out a vaccination record book. "Get the vaccine today, and the second shot in two weeks. Take the deworming medicine today, and then again in two weeks."
"Let's do a full physical exam later to see if there are any other problems. Shall we do all of that?"
"Yes, do them all."
The old doctor nodded and turned to prepare.
Taking advantage of the break, Wang Yueling asked the nurse where there were any clothing stores nearby. The nurse pointed across the street and said there was one that was still open.
"I'm going to buy two sets of clothes." He patted Yukimura on the shoulder. "You'll catch a cold if you wear these wet clothes."
"My clothes weren't even very wet..."
"You were just discharged from the hospital." Wang Yueling had already reached the door, but she turned back to look at him, her azure eyes filled with a hint of worry. "Wait for me."
Yukimura watched him push open the door and go out. It was still raining. The boy shielded his head with his hand as he ran across the street, but he was quickly soaked again. He pushed open the door of the shop across the street, his blond hair flashing in the streetlight, and then disappeared behind the door.
Yukimura looked away and down at the cat on the stage. The kitten was no longer so nervous, nestled in his palm, squinting its eyes and purring softly.
"Little one, you have a home now." Yukimura gently scratched the cat's chin with his fingertips and said softly.
The kitten tilted its head back, looked at him with its heterochromatic eyes, and meowed.
Under the light, the azure eye looked like amber, and the bluish-purple eye looked like a glass bead.
Looking into those eyes, Yukimura suddenly recalled the French proverb that Mochizuki Ryo had once said—"Rain is the sky's love letter." He also remembered what Mochizuki Ryo had said at the art exhibition earlier: "You'll understand once you see it."
He looked down at the wet kitten in his palm, and a smile curved his lips.
……