I Won’t Stop My Best Friend Keeping A Manul

The bloodied manul lay sprawled in the flowerbed.My best friend, Raines Grant, gently stroked its head.“Molly, it’s hurt! Look how adorable it is! I’m taking it home to care for it.”A crowd had gathered nearby, but no one dared approach.Raines stared at me with a malicious look in her eyes.She knew I was allergic to cat dander.Seeing my lack of reaction, she pressed on. “It’s so pitiful! Molly, you wouldn’t just stand by and let it die, would you?”I gave a cursory nod. “If you want to keep it, go ahead.”Raines’ smile froze on her face.Our neighbor, Jake, leaned in to advise me against keeping the manul. “This cat looks different from ordinary cats. It might not turn out well.”I knew Jake meant well. He hoped I would refuse.In my past life, I had done exactly that, only to end up with my family destroyed.Thinking of all that happened before, my heart ached.This time around, I absolutely would not meddle in someone else’s affairs.If Raines wanted to keep it, t

Raines had often pinned the blame on me. Every time she caused trouble, she would use that innocent face to shift all blame away from herself.Over time, I developed a habit of recording conversations on the fly.That day, I dug out the recording of Raines adopting the manul. I pressed play in front of everyone.I also dug up the recording of Jake pleading for me to convince Raines not to adopt the manul.This proved that Jake was a witness.Their faces turned pale, and the neighborhood committee members looked grim.Raines’ face instantly drained of color. Her fingers anxiously twisted the hem of her shirt as her eyes darted around frantically, yet she stubbornly persisted.“Even though you didn’t bring it home, you fed it every day and bought it a cage! You’ve acted more like its owner than me.”I let out a cold laugh and met her gaze. “I feed it because you don’t care for it. I believe all creatures have a spirit of their own, and I couldn’t bear to watch it die before my ey

Someone in the group quickly replied to the message.[That isn’t a cat. It’s a ferocious beast that looks like a cat! It’s untamable and highly dangerous.]Someone asked how such a beast ended up in the neighborhood.Another user, posting under a fake account, revealed it was adopted by a tenant who planned to use it to make money by making vlogs. But during the first video shoot, it bit a child and escalated the situation in the neighborhood committee. Luckily, the roommate she tried to pin it on had evidence to clear her name. Otherwise, she would be in big trouble.Though no names were explicitly mentioned, everyone guessed who the people were talking about.Only then did I realize that Raines had offended quite a few people in the neighborhood.It was not surprising, really. She loved taking advantage and never backed down from a fight.If anyone ever crossed her, she always resorted to every dirty trick in the book to harass them.People claimed Raines had an ulterior motiv

Soon, Raines was fired and blacklisted from the industry.Finding a new job here was impossible.With no other choice, she slunk back to her hometown.Before leaving, she glared at me with bloodshot eyes. “Molly, I’ll make you regret this.”She always got her revenge, and I knew she was not bluffing.From that day on, I carried a fruit knife with me and made time to learn kickboxing.I lived in constant fear for nearly a year, but I never saw the manul or Raines again.I threw myself into my work and landed several big projects. My salary doubled.I moved to a nicer neighborhood.At the company party, I got a little carried away and had a few too many drinks. I felt dizzy and disoriented.On my way home, I kept feeling like someone was following me. I tried to run but was cut off by several burly men. Their menacing expressions made me freeze. I stepped back instinctively.My voice trembled as I said, “W-what do you want?”“Don’t be scared. Someone asked me for a favor.

Seeing that no one pursued the matter and with no way to investigate, it eventually faded into oblivion.Though Raines was dead, I was not as relieved as I imagined I would be. Unease still gnawed at my heart.Back home, I was often restless. I constantly felt that something terrible was about to happen.For days on end, I woke up with a start long before dawn.This morning, I woke up early again. As soon as I opened my eyes, I met the manul’s round, bright eyes. It was sitting at the edge of the bed, watching over me.It seemed to have grown in size. It was probably nearing adulthood.I clenched the tranquilizer in my hand and asked tentatively, “Do you want to keep living with me?”The manul was silent for a moment, then shook its head regretfully.It drew closer and closer that it almost touched me. My palms grew sweaty with nervousness.Unexpectedly, it only rubbed against me frantically. It was either begging for affection or saying goodbye.I quietly hid the tranquilize