Last First Kiss

Routine

Alex's POV

There was a soft knock on the door. I opened it and Elijah stood in the hall. He smiled at me and I invited him in.

He and I have been talking a lot. He's a pretty interesting person yet boring. He does the same routine for every day of the week.

I've memorized it by now and I've only known him for a few days. He even has alarms set for the same times every day.

-wake up, alarm

-eat breakfast

-take medicine, alarm

-by 10:30 go into town

-run errands

-go home

-take more medicine, alarm

-eat dinner, another alarm

-clean

-do laundry

-go to bed at 8:00, alarm

My goal is to help spice up his life a little. I've made the first step already by having him come over to my apartment. I always try to change the time of it too.

Elijah's a relatively simple guy and doesn't leave time for his interests. He's either cleaning or running errands most of the time. And it's obvious he has an obsession with keeping things neat.

The first thing he does when he comes over is clean up. As soon as Elijah stepped through the door he walked over to the counter where a few dirty dishes were stacked.

He grabbed the one on the top and turned on the faucet. He rolled up the sleeves of his cardigan and began cleaning the plate.

I rolled my eyes and shut the door. I walked over and turned off the faucet. He looked at me annoyed and turned it back on. I turned it off again. This time he looked a bit angry. I took the plate from him and placed it in the sink.

"What are you doing?" He snapped, his voice sounded hoarse and more sore than normal. I stepped back a little. He normally doesn't yell.

"I want you to stop cleaning," I pulled his sleeves back down. "Clean your apartment all you want, but you're not here to be a maid."

He turned away from me and dried off his hands.

"Fine then. What are we doing?" He asked. I couldn't get over his voice. He didn't sound like himself.

"First you're going to take a cough drop. Then, we're going out."

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Elijah and I walked down the street. It was a little dark out.

"Where are we going?" Elijah asked. "I have to get home for dinner and-"

"Don't worry about dinner, we'll be back before then." I grabbed Elijah's hand and turned the corner.

I stopped in front of a pet store. Elijah looked at the sign then back at me, confused. I smiled at him.

"I was going to take you to the zoo, but then I won't have the money for rent. This is the closest thing to a petting zoo." I walked into the store, Elijah stayed outside for a moment. He looked around, sighed, and went into the store.

I went to the back. Elijah was slowly walking down the aisle, looking at the dog toys on the shelves.

"What's your favorite animal?" I asked him. He looked at me annoyed.

"A unicorn." He muttered.

"I'm serious," I laughed. He looked around the store.

"A cat I guess," He looked back at me. 

"Excuse me!" I raised my hand up and got the attention of one of the employees. "Can we see your cats please?" I mumbled. 

She nodded and motioned for us to follow her. She brought us to the back where a few kittens were kept in a play pen. I bent down and scratched behind one of their ears. They began purring.

"Aw! Elijah look at-" I turned around. Elijah was at the other pen. He sat criss-cross on the floor facing away from me. I got up and went over to him.

There was an older cat laying in his lap. Elijah lightly stroked the cat's head. I sat down next to him.

"This cat reminds me of you," I said. Elijah gave me a face.

"Are you saying I'm old?" I jumped a little after realizing what I said.

"No no no!" I stammered. "I mean- you're very mellow and laid back." Elijah looked back down at the cat. They nudged their head into Elijah's knee. They had a mix of brown, blonde, and white fur. They were fluffy and their eyes had a glassy look to them.

"That's Cereal," The employee stood behind us. "He's our oldest cat. No one wants to take him because he might pass soon." Elijah looked back down at the cat.

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"That'll be $350," The employee said. Elijah handed her the money. He held a cat carrier, food, and toys in his other hand. I held a small bed and treats.

We left the store, Elijah's face didn't change at all. He just stared blankly. I stopped and grabbed his arm. He stopped and turned to me.

"Oh my god," I mumbled. "Why'd I let you do that? That's so much money to take care of a cat!" I rubbed my eyes.

"Cereal needs a home," Elijah said. "I'm not letting him die without someone to love him." I sighed.

"I shouldn't have brought you here," I kept walking. "Come on, let's go." We walked back to the apartment building. We went to Elijah's room. He put the cat carrier on the ground and opened the small door.

Cereal stepped out and smelled the room. Elijah stayed sitting on the floor, watching the cat get used to his new surroundings.

I sighed and sat next to Elijah.

"You're crazy," I propped my head on my hand. "21, wearing funky pajama pants and the same cardigan everyday, barely enough money to get food this week, and you adopt a cat."

"19," Elijah mumbled.

"What?" I turned to him.

"I'm 19," He stood up, bringing the bag of food with him.

"You're 19?!" I called. Elijah stayed silent and grabbed a bowl from the cabinet. He filled it with cat food and placed it on the floor. He turned back to me and took the supplies from my hands.

"Goodnight Alex," He said and nudged me towards the door. I sighed and walked out.

"'Night, I guess." Elijah closed the door behind me. I groaned and stared up at the ceiling, clenching my fists.

"Who the hell lets a 19-year-old live on their own in the city and adopt a cat with all the money they have left!?" I whisper-yelled. I took a deep breath and glanced back at the door.

"Me, apparently..."