Chris stumbles toward the sofa, flops onto it, and yawns loudly.
MATT
(sighing, grabbing a water bottle and taking a sip)
"So, what's your plan today?"
CHRIS
(glancing over lazily)
"Me? No other plans... just meeting Mom sometime."
MATT
(raising an eyebrow)
"When are you meeting her? We need to take the cat to the clinic too."
CHRIS
(shrugging)
"Eh... I don't know. I have to ask."
MATT
(voice sharpening)
"Ask then!"
CHRIS
(smiling slightly, teasing)
"Why are you so groggy first thing in the morning?
Matt freezes. There's a pause. His fingers tighten around the bottle.
MATT
(low, angry)
"Groggy? Seriously?"
Chris tilts his head, confused. Matt slams the water bottle onto the table — not hard, but enough to make a clunk.
MATT
(bursting out)
"You think I just had just missed good night's sleep? Chris — you were puking your soul out of a cat two hours ago!"
Chris blinks. Matt takes a deep breath, but it doesn't help. He throws a nearby cushion across the room.
MATT
"I stayed up panicking because you — the you that was stuck inside a freaking cat — started vomiting from noodles. Do you have any idea what I thought might happen? What if you didn't swap back? What if you just—"
He trails off, voice cracking. Then, suddenly, Matt kicks Chris's leg. Not hard, but enough to make him jolt.
CHRIS
(winces, surprised)
"Ow! Dude—"
MATT
(voice raw now)
"You come back like it's nothing. Like you just woke up from a nap. Meanwhile, I've been over here feeding water with a spoon, googling sodium poisoning, and trying to figure out if a cat soul can die with yours in it!"
Chris sits upright, no longer smiling. There's a long, heavy silence between them.
CHRIS
(quietly)
"...You're right."
Matt sits down slowly, burying his face in his hands.
CHRIS
(quietly, sincere)
"...You're right."
There's a pause. Matt looks like he expects more, but Chris just blinks at him.
CHRIS
(raising an eyebrow)
"What, you want me to say thanks or something?"
Matt sighs, leaning back into the couch.
MATT
(flatly)
"I don't want you to say anything."
CHRIS
(grinning now)
"Aww. You care. You really, really care."
MATT
(deadpan)
"Shut up."
CHRIS
(stretching his arms dramatically)
"Seriously, though — I vomit once in your kitchen and suddenly you turn into a full-time cat nurse with emotional damage."
Matt narrows his eyes.
MATT
"Keep talking, and I will damage something."
Chris gasps and bolts off the couch just as Matt lifts a throw pillow threateningly.
CHRIS
(teasing as he dodges)
"Violence! This is what I get for being honest?!"
MATT
(getting up, ready to throw it)
"You're lucky I didn't feed you more noodles just to shut you up."
CHRIS
(still giggling, backing away)
"Too late — you already tried to murder me with sodium!"
MATT
"You were the one who ate your own leftovers like a sewer goblin!"
Chris tries to inch around the chair stealthily. Chris yelps, stumbles over the chair leg, and—
THUD!
—falls spectacularly backward, arms flailing. One slipper flies off and hits the wall with a sad little thunk.
MATT
(Matt bursts out laughing — loud, genuine, unfiltered.)
"Honestly, I should've just posted a reel of this—might finally get you trending for something other than being dumped."
Chris slowly sits up, still dazed from the fall, rubbing the back of his head. The grin fades. His voice softens.
CHRIS
"Sometimes I still think all of this is just some weird dream… like I'll blink and be back to normal. But that's not gonna happen anytime soon, is it?"
Matt finally stops laughing, his expression shifting into something more serious.
MATT
"Even in dreams, this would be too much. Who wants a furball crashing their house every night?"
Chris slumps onto the sofa, shoulders heavy.
MATT
"Okay, look. We don't know anything for sure. That's clear. But whatever this is, it started somewhere. And the only real link we've got is that you and the cat were at the same place before this all began."
CHRIS
(slowly nodding)
"The temple..."
MATT
"Yeah. If we're gonna start somewhere, it's there."
CHRIS
(suddenly brightening, grasping for a theory)
"Or hear me out… what if it's not supernatural? What if it's a government experiment? Or an alien base under the temple?! I mean, did you see that one wall—"
Without a word, Matt picks up a stress ball from the table and stuffs it into Chris's mouth mid-sentence.
MATT
"If you're gonna go home and meet your mom or whatever, do it fast. Be back soon. We've got places to be—temple, clinic... and a ticking clock till tonight's swap."
Chris spits the ball out, frowns.
CHRIS
"So we either stop it… or figure out how to survive it."
Matt nods grimly. Outside, the sky is already starting to shift into afternoon light.
MATT
(leaning back, arms crossed)
"While you're out, get some money too. We need cash for your night life."
CHRIS
(sighs, grabbing his hoodie)
"No high schooler should even have this kind of night life…"
He slings on his backpack, glancing toward the door.
MATT
(calling after him)
"And don't forget—book the appointment at the clinic! Or I swear, I'll do it myself."
CHRIS
(half out the door, muttering)
"Yeah, yeah… cat first, alien base second."
Door shuts behind him with a soft click.
Narration:
After Chris leaves, Matt walks back to his room, glancing at the cat lying flat on the bed. Its gold eyes are half-lidded, staring blankly at the ceiling with zero intention of moving.
MATT
(frowning, muttering to himself)
"I wonder what's up with you? Usually, you'd be tearing through the room if a curtain twitched."
Narration:
Matt sighs, heading to the kitchen. He opens the fridge, grabs the milk, and sets it to warm. The cat, still completely unbothered, remains where it is—staring at him like it has somewhere more important to be.
MATT
(stirring the milk)
"Let me guess—you want it warm and hand-delivered now, huh?"
Narration:
As the milk heats, Matt scrolls through his phone. His thumb pauses on a reel about flying fish—something he'd noticed yesterday but hadn't had time to think about.
MATT
(chuckling under his breath)
"Yeah, flying fish. Whole world going crazy and I'm babysitting a body-swapped cat."
Narration:
He pours the warm milk into a bowl and carries it back into the room. The cat doesn't move.
MATT
(teasing)
"Buddy, drink up. Not hand-feeding you today."
Narration:
After a moment, the cat lazily shifts, hops off the bed with the grace of a retired gymnast, and pads over to the bowl. It begins to drink—slowly, as if it's doing Matt a favor.
MATT
(patting its head)
"Good. Just drink it. No dramatics today."
Narration:
Once finished, the cat saunters back to the bed, curls up again, and resumes its state of spiritual apathy.
MATT
(raising an eyebrow)
"You sure you don't need an exorcist instead of a vet?"
Narration:
The cat lifts its head just long enough to lick its paw and swipe it dramatically across its face—like it's done with all this nonsense.
Narration:
Matt watches the cat curl up again, clearly not planning to move. He exhales loudly and drops onto the edge of the bed.
MATT
(grumbling to himself)
"I told that idiot to book an appointment… didn't even ask which clinic. Unreal."
Narration:
Sighed out by the weight of Chris's half-effort responsibility, Matt picks up his phone and dials.
CHRIS
(answering, lazily)
"What?"
MATT
(irritated)
"Did you book the appointment?"
CHRIS
(thinking, stalling)
"Hmm... yeah. I booked."
MATT
(sarcastically)
"Really? Wow. Where and when, Mr. Responsible?"
CHRIS
(vague, unsure)
"Umm... you know... that clinic around the corner… probably noon-ish?"
Narration:
Matt lets out a long, tired sigh. He doesn't even bother responding.
Narration:
He simply cuts the call.
MATT
"Why do I even ask?"
MATT
(shaking his head)
"Alright, fine. I'll book the damn appointment."
Narration:
Matt picks up his phone and dials the vet clinic.
MATT
(to the phone)
"Yeah, hi—can I book an appointment for my cat today? He's acting weird. Like… really weird. Noon? Perfect."
Narration:
He ends the call and immediately types out a message to Chris.
MATT
(typing)
"Appointment for the cat at 12. Don't forget. Or I'm taking this furball alone. Your call."
Narration:
A second later, his phone buzzes.
Text from Chris:
🥰
Narration:
Matt stares at the emoji, deadpan.
MATT
(flatly)
"...Unbelievable."