I Unintentionally Became Her Kitten

Chapter 27: Wine and Dine

Sophia entered the house much like I had the first time. There was a great deal of caution and wonder in her eyes as she stepped over the threshold.

Tye followed behind her, waiting, as patiently as he could, for her to focus and get inside.

She finally spotted me and snapped out of it and hurried over.

“Kit,” she said happily and threw her arms around me in a very enthusiastic hug. “This place looks incredible.”

“Uh… thanks?” I guessed. I couldn't really take credit though. I warily returned her hug, actually appreciating it when I wasn't quite so surprised.

“You’re way out in the sticks here though, doesn't that make you nervous?”

I shook my head as she finally let me go.

Alisha came down the stairs then, she had swapped out heels for flats which weren't quite so  conspicuous.

Sophia fell quiet as she did so.

“Are you Alisha?” she asked.

“Yes,” Alisha said calmly. “Alisha Takeno.” I saw her eyes meet Tye’s and he slipped down the other hallway, apparently dismissed from keeping an eye on us. 

She walked up and offered a hand to Sophia. “Sophia?” Alisha inferred.

“Yes,” Sophia confirmed as their hands clasped together. “Sophia Bauer. I’m B– Kit’s, sister.”

I winced a little at this butchering of the name Alisha had given me but let it go.

“It's a great pleasure to meet you,” Alisha released her hand. “We can have a seat in the dining room. Dinner will be ready shortly.”

“Oh,” Sophia said with a start and rummaged in a tote that was serving as her purse, producing a bottle of red wine. She offered it to Alisha with both hands. “I brought you some wine,” she explained.

“Thank you,” Alisha accepted this gift and turned to go in the kitchen.

I led Sophia to the table. There were three place settings in the minimalist style of white plates and plain silverware. Each place also had a wine glass and a water glass.

Sophia and I sat next to each other with me acting as a buffer between her and Alisha. This also meant she could lean over and quietly mumble. “Oh my God she's hot and rich?”

I hurriedly shushed her. “She’s not that rich,” I defended.

Sophia made a face and picked up her wine glass and water glass at the same time with a pointed expression.

“She’s … on the wealthier side,” I admitted sheepishly.

Alisha walked into the room then and set a pitcher of water and a bottle of white wine on the table before disappearing again.

“So how about that Tye dude?” Sophia asked. “Is he like a chauffeur or a butler or…?”

“Uh, more like security,” I explained.

“Mm, but she's not famous, right?” She kept her voice low but it still made me nervous to talk so openly about this.

“I don't think so,” I said. “At least, not outside of her business.”

She nodded.

Alisha returned again, this time with a platter arranged with a strongly smelling dish I didn't recognize.

“Mapo tofu,” she explained. “Made mild.”

In addition to the stew-like dish, there was also a large portion of white rice and stir fried bok choy that smelled garlicky.

Sophia stared at it for a long moment as Alisha sat at the head of the table and arranged herself comfortably.

“Would you like some wine?” Alisha offered.

“Oh, sure, thank you,” Sophia handed her glass over as Alisha got the cork out and poured her a glass of the pale liquid before reaching over and plucking my glass up to pour some for me as well.

Then finally, she poured herself a glass.

I took a small sip, finding it to be a sweet wine, but still rather balanced. If I was a bit more snooty I might've been able to identify some subtler notes but I rarely drank, much less drank wine.

“This is a good one,” Sophia complimented, giving the glass a swirl before sniffing the fragrance that floated off.

“I'm glad it's to your taste,” Alisha agreed and took a small sip of her own. “So tell me about yourself,” she continued.

“Hm? Oh I’m Kit’s older sister,” she started. “We grew up together and everything.”

I looked at the empty plate in front of me for a long moment.

“I'm very glad she found someone to stay with,” Sophia continued. “I was getting worried, you know.”

“Mm,” Alisha agreed. “Although it might be better to say that I found her and she's been very sweet to me.”

I felt embarrassed and looked up, wondering if I could perhaps steer this conversation away from me.

Alisha gave me a quick glance before pressing on, “how are things for you at home? Kit said things were strained between her and your parents.”

“Yes, well. They're very conservative people so… but I'm okay with them. And I'll be moving out sooner or later. I'm just trying to finish up my college degree.”

It was then that Alisha finally started to portion out food onto my plate before offering the serving spoons to Sophia. “What kind of degree?”

“Professional writing.” Sophia dished some food out onto her plate as well. “Almost did technical writing but the math and science requirements were a bit much.”

There was more nodding on Alisha’s part.

“What about you?” Sophia pitched suddenly, aiming the question at me. “What have you been up to since we last had a real talk?”

I shrugged. “I’ve been trying out baking,” I said. “I made bread and some cookies.”

Sophia leaned a little closer eagerly. “I’m glad. Have you been enjoying it?”

“It’s very satisfying to pull something fresh out of the oven and know you made it yourself.” It felt strange to be so open with Sophia after I had spent so many years doing everything I could to not lure attention toward me, from anybody. “Have you been doing anything outside of college?” I asked.

Sophia thought for a long moment, continuing to swirl her wine now and then. “Not a lot. I have a part-time job as a cashier but only work weekends. It’s still a drag though. I do miss having days to myself.”

Alisha was quietly listening to us. I felt there was less attention than I would expect from her if she was plotting an outcome from this dinner. It felt far more like she was simply trying to have what someone might call a ‘normal get together,’ and despite her background and very much abnormal work-life, she was doing a good job.

Then Sophia asked her the question, “what kind of work do you do?”

I felt a little flutter of anxiety at the question,

Alisha didn’t flinch before answering, “I own what is technically a conglomerate. But it's all very local so it isn't like a megacorporation.”

“Oh, okay. So you're really like a business woman type,” Sophia followed.

“Yes, in many ways.” 

Sophia seemed content with this answer and I let myself relax a little. There was more discussion about jobs and work but it quickly became very apparent Alisha was well-versed playing the ‘normal rich business person’ role. She did have the same edge of power to her mannerisms but she was good at applying it so it didn’t feel as threatening.

I kept sipping at the wine glass, finding it a nice balance to the intensely deep flavor of the tofu, which was not particularly spicy but still had some heat to it. It was very satisfying as well. Sophia ate hers readily, and complimented that it was delicious and asked if Alisha had made it. When hearing that Alisha had a private chef, Sophia got a little blindsided, and choked for a moment before cleaning her throat and laughing it off nervously.

A second round of wine was poured. I felt flushed by then, from the spice and the alcohol. Sophia was very similarly looking a hair tipsy but she wasn’t by any means drunk.

Alisha was the only one of us who seemed unaffected so far, though she did snicker when Sophia told her that when I was a little kid and was asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I had said ‘cat’ and stuck to that story quite stubbornly despite my parents’ displeasure. Back then I was too young to know how to walk on eggshells, or that there were eggshells that had to be walked on in the first place.

After we had eaten our fill, Alisha cleared the dishes away. I got up to help but almost immediately regretted doing so as the floor felt very different and my sense of dimension kept shifting.

“I’ll be fine, Kitten, you can stay there.”

I was grateful to sit back down and let myself be still for a long moment.

I heard Sophia giggling next to me and snapped my gaze over to her, another regrettable motion that made my head spin. 

“What?” I asked.

“She calls you Kitten,” she snickered. “That’s so adorable.”

My already warm face went hot and I could feel the embarrassed redness without having to see it.

If Alisha heard her say this, she didn’t let on as she came back and sat down without comment or complaint, but offered to open a second bottle of wine.

“No, no, no,” Sophia turned her down. “I’d love to but I do have classes tomorrow.”

Alisha gave her a nod. “Understandable,” she agreed. “Feel free to let me know whenever you have to leave, but there’s no hurry. I’ll have Tye drive you back.”

Sophia nodded. “Thank you very much. You have a very nice car, and a very nice house.”

“Thank you,” Alisha said politely. “You have a very sweet younger sister. She has been a welcome change to this place.”

“I’m glad,” Sophia said. She paused for a second and said, “you haven’t told me anything about your family.”

Alisha went quiet. “I’m an only child,” she said finally, as if that was all there was to it.

“Did you grow up here? I mean, right next to the city?” Sophia leaned her arm on the table to support her head. There was a flush to her cheeks and I wondered if I should pour her some water. I could probably use a glass myself.

“No, my parents owned a house in the city proper,” Alisha explained. “I moved out here to have more security. It felt suffocating to be surrounded on all sides and I got fed up with feeling like I was always being sized up by men.”

Sophia blinked as the words processed. “I see,” she said finally and sat back quietly, subdued by some thought in her brain. “I know this might be an improper question but are you a lesbian?”

“Bisexual,” Alisha answered easily. 

Sophia looked at me but I was still dealing with the fuzzy tipsy feeling and trying not to get sleepy. “Are you doing okay, Kit?” she asked, suddenly concerned.

I nodded. “Just a little warm,” I said. “I’ll be fine.”

Alisha stood and grabbed my glass before skirting out to the kitchen.

I closed my eyes a moment just to have Sophia poke me.

“What?” I mumbled.

“Has she talked about her parents with you at all?” she asked hushedly.

“Only that she doesn’t talk to her Mom and I know her father’s passed away.” I was quickly realizing I did feel a bit nauseous and more drunk than I thought.

Sophia got a little bit closer. “And… do you guys have sex?”

“Huh?” I asked a bit loudly.

Sophia shushed me gently. “What I mean is… I guess it feels like she might have some trauma around men,” she explained.

I stared at her. “We all have trauma around men,” I managed.

“Yes– but she says– I just feel like maybe you guys should talk about it if–”

Alisha came back at that precise moment with a glass of ice and poured some water from the pitcher for me. I took it from her, grateful for the cold that helped even out my sense of space.

“Would you like some ice?” she asked Sophia.

“No, I-I’m good,” Sophia said. She had more nervousness about her now. 

My thoughts were trying to swim through molasses. Sophia was trying to tell me Alisha had trauma… because she didn’t trust men. But not trusting men was fairly normal. And Alisha employed a lot of men and Tye was certainly a man and seemed to be the person she trusted the most. So I didn’t understand the implications.

I took a few sips of the frigid water. It was so cold my teeth hurt but it rapidly cooled me down.

I didn’t trust men either. But that was because… oh. I felt the click in my brain. That was why Sophia had asked if we were sleeping together. She was concerned Alisha might have trauma from a sexual assault.

But I couldn’t imagine someone putting Alisha in a position where that was even possible. She had security and her position had formerly been her fathers so I could only assume her father employed security measures as well.

Sophia didn’t know but there were many reasons Alisha wouldn’t trust anybody so her anxieties weren’t necessarily sexual in nature.

I retched suddenly, but swallowed the bile that came up by instinct. I did turn my chair so if I did end up throwing up, it would be on the floor rather than the table.

Alisha stood abruptly and put a hand to my forehead as my world felt very unstable.

“Kitten?” she asked.

I shook my head, trying to calm the pounding in my chest I’d been ignoring.

I retched a second time, but it was less powerful.

Sophia’s gentle hand ran down my back, sending confused signals in my brain as I still didn’t feel like I wanted to be touched by her but I also knew it was a gesture full of love and wanting to ease my pain.

I managed to take a few deep breaths. “I’m okay,” I managed. “Sorry, I drank a bit too much.” A few more breaths later I stood shakily. “I’m gonna go to the bathroom.”

Alisha frowned worriedly, and I was sure she would normally follow me but with Sophia there, she had an obligation as a host to take care of her.

I got to the downstairs bathroom and stumbled in the general direction of the toilet before slumping to the marble floor.

My head still spun but it wasn’t as bad now and the impending throw-up feeling had settled. 

I just needed a minute to clear my head.

There wasn’t much to keep track of time in the bathroom. I left my phone in the dining room so my best gauge was how familiar the subtle sounds of the ventilation plumbing became.

Some knocks came from the door and I picked myself up a little.

“Kitten?” Alisha asked.

“I’m okay,” I said. “You can come in.”

I didn’t trust my legs to stand yet. It would hurt to smack my head on the floor here.

Alisha opened the door and quietly shut it behind her. She kneeled next to myplace by the toilet and brushed some of the hair from my face.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I know you said you didn’t really drink but I thought you’d tell me if you’d had too much.”

I shook my head. “It’s not your fault,” I said. “I hadn’t drank anything in a long time and I don’t really have much experience drinking wine… so I didn’t realize how strong it was.”

“That was… a stronger wine, yes,” Alisha admitted. “Are you still feeling sick?”

I shook my head. “My legs fell asleep,” I said, which was true. My legs did feel like cement blocks from sitting on the hard ground.

“I’ll help you,” she said and stood before offering me both her hands.

I took them and did my best to pull my weight up but I thought it was mostly her effort.

“Sophia went home, but she was worried about you,” she continued.

I leaned against her for a bit, wanting desperately to simply pass out.

“Do you want to go to bed?” Alisha asked.

I nodded silently.

“Okay.”

She shifted and went to support my own weight just to feel the floor drop away from me and flailed a second before latching onto Alisha.

“It’s okay, I got you.”

She carried me out of the bathroom and even up the stairs before setting me on her bed.

“I’ll get you some water and a trash can just in case, okay?” she asked.

I nodded and very slowly laid myself down. The bed was so soft, so inviting.

And I was so tired.