A grumpy black cat receives a morale boost when he meets two energetic tomcats on a rainy day. What will become of their interaction?

Kitty Litter

Rain pelts the glass window on a stormy morning that leaves the landscape in a somber mood. Janus is one of those people who does not like rainy days or stormy weather. Clutching a mug in his hand, Janus stares out of the rain-soaked window with a bored look on his face, watching the rainfall in contemplation.

The moody black cat isn't that bright today. The rain only makes his mood decline even more. But when he steps away from the window, he pauses from reflecting on something recently. Earlier in the week, Janus happened to stumble upon a photoshoot involving two young tomcats at a local studio when the black cat himself was heading there for a workout. Little did he know until now that those two left quite an impression on him.

Acting on realization, Janus retrieves his smartphone and checks out his messages. A few of them are on his phone but there is only one in particular that stands out to him. Janus had reached out to them earlier about meeting them more in person, which they agreed to.

The text message that Janus is checking reads:

"We had an amazing time yesterday! Feel free to reach out to us tomorrow if you want to hang with us again! (From: Vivek DeMarco)

"So that's it; that's who they are. They do not look like supermodels once you take a good look at them, but they are!" Janus reflected on meeting the two young tomcats earlier in the week, amazed with what he found. He has never seen Russian Blue cats before, which is his very first time. And it won't be his last.

Janus reaches out to them, sending his response via text:

"If it's alright with you guys, we can hit up a local restaurant or bar and go from there."

Unfortunately on a day like this, rain is usually what stops people from hanging out together. And it also clouds Janus' mood even more. The black cat mockingly jokes, "Rain, go away. You're a mood killer."

Agreeing to meet later on in the day, Janus actually braves the rain to stop at his favorite bar, waiting for the two Russian Blue tomcats to arrive. To his surprise, the weather lightens up, leading Janus to groan in complaint, "Why couldn't it just clear up earlier??"

After some time spent waiting for arrival, Janus begins to grow impatient. But when he is about to leave, he sees his quarry approaching. Through the window, the black cat observes the Russian Blue brothers making their way into the establishment. And once they enter, one of them waves at Janus in a friendly howdy.

Janus returns the gesture with a friendly howdy of his own and marches up to meet them, finally ready to settle down. That is when he finally gets an up closer and more personal look at the two. He points to the brown-eyed Russian Blue, recognizing him instantly, "You must be Vivek DeMarco. I remember that picture you showed me of you and your brother in one of your gigs."

In his Russian accent, Vivek remarks, "That is us! And it seems that our charm did the trick! You no longer grumpy cat; you are happy cat now! Care to share a drink with us?"

His brother grunts in indifference, "I would rather be out racing than talking with grumpy cat here."

"Who are you calling grumpy, mister? I am not grumpy." Janus hisses in return.

Vivek nudges his brother in the side with his elbow, giving him a headshake in disapproval. He reminds him, "We're not here to fight, Vimal. We're here to have a good day. Cheer up!"

Rolling his eyes, Vimal grunts, "I'm just pissed because of those crowds asking about our personal life. It's none of their business!"

"Not like they have a choice to back down." Vivek shrugs in recollection, seemingly okay with it. "But it is such a pain when cameras are all around you with paparazzi swarming you."

"Got that right, brother. We were trying to look over the cameras to see if you came to watch us. We couldn't see you through the flashing lights!" Vimal turns to face Janus directly, voicing his supporting complaint in agreement with his brother.

Janus nods in acknowledgement to Vimal's complaint when he does a little pointing out of his own; he points to the green-eyed tomcat first, "You must be Vimal," and he points to the brown-eyed feline next, "and you must be Vivek. Your names sound almost similar."

Vivek chuckles and folds his arms. He responds, "Well our names have the same starting letter, but they're different. But we are both Russian by descent."

"I can tell by your accent, though you don't look Russian." This comment from Janus suddenly irks Vimal where he hisses, "Sir, what do you think a Russian Blue is? A Russian breed of cat! How is it not obvious??"

"Vimal, relax. It's not a big deal to get so cranky over. Many people don't know what a Russian Blue is until they actually hear it for themselves or look them up." Vivek urges his brother to relax through his calmer explanation, "It's nothing to get angry over."

Vimal exhales sharply through his nose in an annoyed huff, then he sighs, "Sorry, I'm just pissed at our lack of free time and personal space. Everywhere you turn, there's cameras or fans ready to jump on you."

"You're good, Vimal. Although I will have to advise you to seek anger management." Seeing the darkened expression on Vimal's face, Janus raises his hands in defense, "Calm down, Vimal! I'm just joking!"

"Hmph!" This time, a smirk on Vimal's face is now evident where the green-eyed cat remarks, "Just trying to relax. Who knows, maybe we can go for a round at the gym or go exploring."

"Or racing, rather." Vivek mentioned in a side note. Vimal only meows in annoyance. "My car is in shop, remember? It is getting, how do you say it, 'aftermarket' parts?"

Janus questions Vimal straight on the matter, "So you're upgrading your car? What do you drive anyway?"

"I drive a Vūhl 05RR, it's Mexican." Vimal grumbles out, still annoyed. "I hardly take it out because it has no windshield - it is open-top car. My brother has better vehicle."

"So I've seen…" Janus trails off in recognition. Parked outside near the bar is a cream colored 3rd generation Bentley Continental GT Convertible with a soft top almost matching the paint job. The brown soft top also folds away electronically, allowing for a topless drive along the countryside. The black cat finally drops the question, "So who drives the other car, the Bentley I mean?"

Vivek's hand shoots up, "Bentley is my car. But I find brother's car to be a rush of excitement too - just need racing helmet is all."

"So both of you normally ride around in the Bentley instead of taking both cars?" Janus assumed, cupping his chin in thought.

"Yes we do," Vivek takes a seat at one of the tables to continue the conversation. He beckons for Janus and Vimal to join him once he picks back up on his speech. He continues, "we normally take my car because Vimal says it is more comfortable than his open two-seater. He only uses it for racing purposes and exploration, rather than daily driving."

"I see." Janus nods in understanding. Then he suggests, "Hey, is it okay if we all took a trip around town and later crashed at your place? I wouldn't mind a visit with you guys."

While Vimal smirks and holds up a peace sign in acknowledgement, Vivek replies, "Vimal and I will appreciate it very much! At least someone takes personal interest in us instead of swarming around us and trying to jump on us."

Vimal agrees, "Oh yes, nothing is more fun than being swarmed and surrounded by our fans. Fans who only know us by name and reputation, rather than personal level." Of course, the green-eyed cat is being sarcastic. Vivek, however, obliges, "We can catch break here and then head out on town ride. Just hope no crooked police show up to try and take ride…"

"Why? Did something happen to you guys?" Now Janus is concerned, if not, angry upon mention of crooked cops. But Vimal easily regains control of the mood, mentioning, "If anything, we punch cop's lights out when they attempt to steal car. We file lawsuit on the department and their cameras capture everything - they harassed us for no reason under guise of suspicious car. We buy car with our own money, no illegal stuff."

Janus makes an annoyed noise in agreement and complaint. "With the way cops are nowadays, I wouldn't blame you guys. I wouldn't trust them either, given all the shady stuff that's been going on over the years."

"Yes…" Vivek closes his eyes in thought and hums in thought. Changing the subject and getting back on topic, the brown-eyed cat suggests, "How about we focus more on our day and less on what is bugging us, eh?"

~~~~~

Janus belongs to  alexyorim, Vimal and Vivek DeMarco belong to me!