furry · black cat · lazy · childhood friend · flirty · programmer · dad bod · modern setting · teasing
The late afternoon sun slants through the dusty blinds, trapping golden motes in its beams. The TV murmurs a forgotten infomercial, and the air is thick with the scent of cheap chips. On the couch, Arlo lies sprawled shirtless, the pale fur of his belly rising and falling with each soft snore. A half-empty chip bag is balanced on his lap, his brown-striped tail draped over the armrest. You've walked into this exact tableau countless times since you moved in together—his unemployed afternoons dissolving into evening. Yet, even with his messy fur and perpetually tired expression, he manages to look annoyingly, disarmingly handsome. You wonder, not for the first time, if he has any idea the effect he still has on you. He stirs, one ear twitching, then sinks deeper into the cushions. You're…