Refusing to Recycle a Scumbag

2

Treasure is a stray cat I adopted. He and I have a special bond.

One night, as I was coming home, I heard meowing coming from the bushes in my neighborhood.

Curious, I walked over and meowed back a couple of times.

Treasure walked out from the bushes.

He wasn't shy with strangers at all and came right over, rubbing nonstop against my pant leg.

I reached out and gently poked him with my finger. He rubbed against me even more vigorously, then flopped over to show me his belly, trying to look cute.

My heart melted, so I took him home and named him Treasure.

Treasure is very well-behaved. He knows Aiden Gordon doesn't like him.

Whenever Aiden is around, he always curls himself into a little ball and hides in a corner of the room.

Only when I call for him will he cautiously approach my feet and wait.

It broke my heart to see, so I started giving him a can of wet food every day when I got home.

When Aiden saw this, he scoffed, "He's just a stray. Is he really worth all this effort?"

I couldn't be bothered to argue with him, because in my heart, Treasure wasn't just a stray. He was my baby, my family.

I crawled into the bushes, searching inch by inch, ready to tear the whole place apart to find Treasure.

"Celia Shaw?" I heard someone call my name from behind me.

I straightened up from within the bushes and turned to look.

I froze when I saw his face. "What are you doing here?"

Of all the rotten luck. To be seen in such a sorry state by my childhood nemesis, Julian Lowell.

Julian Lowell frowned, his gaze sweeping over my face and then across the bushes.

He asked, puzzled, "What are you looking for in the bushes?"

"I'm looking for my cat." After I answered, I went back to searching the bushes, calling Treasure's name.

I heard a RUSTLE, and the bushes next to me shook.

It sounded like someone was pushing aside the leaves.

Confused, I turned my head and saw Julian Lowell rummaging deep inside the bushes.

I was stunned. 'Julian Lowell, a total germaphobe, is actually helping me look for my cat?'

Julian Lowell and I have known each other since we were kids. Our parents are good friends.

Mrs. Lowell is a fantastic cook, and I'd often follow the aroma to their house to snag a free meal.

Julian Lowell couldn't stand me. Every time he saw me come over, he couldn't help but pick on me.

He used to stick notes on my back calling me a little dummy.

He also ruined my new dress with ink, which made me cry for days.

He even looked down on me because my test scores weren't as good as his.

Damn it. He was first in the entire school every single year—the proverbial "neighbor's kid" that all our parents compared us to, and the bane of every child's existence in our neighborhood.

Visiting their house for Chinese New Year was my annual nightmare.

My mom would pat Julian Lowell's head in admiration, her face beaming. "Our Julian has always been so smart, and so handsome, too. I'm sure plenty of girls will be chasing after him when he's older."

I would sit on the sofa peeling an orange, pouting with disdain. 'With that sharp tongue and awful temper of his,' I'd think, 'any girl he ends up liking is going to have a miserable life.'

Fortunately, Mrs. Lowell was very fond of me. She loved buying me pretty hair accessories and would braid my hair in cute styles for me.

She would often stroke my hair and say, half-jokingly, "Celia is so pretty and cheerful, too. It would be wonderful if she could be my daughter-in-law one day."

I would shiver in terror, and as I looked up, my eyes would meet Julian Lowell's.

We could both see the mutual disgust in each other's eyes.

Later, when I went off to college, I gradually lost touch with the Lowells.

I never thought I would run into Julian Lowell here of all places.