"don't tell me you got yourself locked out again?" dee asks.

"no," kim says with chuckle. "i came here because i wanted to talk to you about something. i also realised i don't have your number yet, so i wanted to get that one too."

"wow. is the kim buranaphan asking for my number?"

"yes, i am. but aside from that, i have an important thing to tell you. i have a proposal to make."

dee got more shocked. "gosh! you're already proposing? that's so fast, kim!"

kim rolls her eyes. "c'mon. i have little time today because pie and katie will arrive in a few minutes."

"fine. such a killjoy," dee snorts, opening her door wider. "come on in."

kim steps in. she immediately finds the kitten eating from its bowl. "hey there, mango!" she stoops down to observe. "having a meal, huh?"

"wow. i can't believe you find my pussy more interesting than me," says dee, her voice in the kitchen area.

kim grimaces. "why do you keep calling it pussy instead of a cat or a kitten?"

"because i love how people get awkward whenever i say it." dee chuckles. "it's a hard habit to break now. been doing that for a very long time. deal with it." she reappears in the living room with refreshments in hands. "drinks?"

kim stands up and receives the glass. "wow. i'm surprised you have an orange juice aside from beer and water."

"i had to include that in my grocery list now for a very special guest that might visit me." dee sighs and plops down her couch.

"i'm honoured."

"don't be. i just don't want your nurse killing me if ever i give you beer again."

"c'mon. she won't do that." kim sits beside dee. "and she's not just a nurse. she's pie."

"pie. your ex. your nurse. the one you can't get over with. it's just one person. what's the difference?"

"whatever." kim sighs and rolls her eyes. she turns to face dee. "anyway, as i've said, i came here to tell you something."

"yeah. about the proposal, right?"

"yes. the proposal." kim puts down the glass on the coffee table. "the thing is, the discussion we had last time lingered in my mind and i know i had to do something about it."

dee tries to recall their discussion. "which topic in particular?"

"remember you mentioned how you've been seeing those homeless animals scavenging for food in the streets?" kim asks. "well, pie and katie drove me around town the other day and i kind of have seen what you're talking about."

"what? the three of you went out?"

"yes. we had dinner together."

"wow. sweet, huh? how did you feel about it?"

kim waves a hand. "can we not talk about that yet? i'm trying to make a point here."

"okay. okay." dee drinks from her glass, gesturing kim to continue.

"so, the thing is, i had a long talk with my manager yesterday and i asked for some advice about starting a foundation... and she says she's willing to help us out."

dee's brows furrow but she said nothing. kim takes it as a chance to continue.

"right after that, i reached out to the ex-sau chapter in this town to ask for some help. they had all the connections needed. they immediately found a temporary shelter for those animals. they also started with the operation and rescued a handful of pets yesterday."

dee look confused. "wait. are you saying you're actually starting a foundation here?"

kim nods enthusiastically. "my manager said she has connections who are willing to donate for this cause. i will also have a meeting with my accountants to arrange how a certain percentage of my revenue will go automatically as a donation to this foundation."

"that's... that's great." dee leans back. "but how does this concern me?"

kim smirks. "that's what the proposal is all about." she slides down the couch and bends on one knee.

"kim, careful! you're injured!" dee was about to help her up but kim stops her.

"let me do my proposal right, okay?"

dee chuckles. "gosh. aren't you cheesy?"

"i don't care." kim clears her throat and reaches out to hold dee's hands. "miss dee, the one who gave me this whole idea, the one who lit up a purpose in my life, will you do the honour of leading this foundation with me?"

"me? y-you're not serious, are you?"

"two-hundred per cent serious, my lady."

"gosh. kim. it's really an honour. but i don't think i'm fitted for this. don't get me wrong, i would love to do this but i--"

"we'll work on this together," says kim assuringly. "i'll be the face of this foundation so we can gather more donors. but i need help to run this here. and there's no other person i think will be more fitted to do it but you."

dee stares at her, speechless.

"once the initial budget has been finalised, we'll start the construction of the main office here. we'll look for staffs who can work as our back-office personnel--of course, you and them will get paid for it. then we'll look for a bigger property that we can either rent or buy that will serve as the new home for those rescued animals," explains kim. "it's a win-win situation; we provide employment and we save the animals. and once we're smoothly running in this area, we'll also start chapters in other towns. everything has already been planned. the only thing that's missing is you saying yes to this."

dee tilts her head and smiles at kim. "you're an amazing person, has anyone told you that?"

kim felt something inside her twists after hearing those words.

it's the same line pie told her before.

'you're an amazing person, has anyone told you that?'

kim rubs her eyes to shake the feeling off.

"so, are you going to say yes or not?" she asks dee. "my legs are about to give out now."

dee chuckles and helps kim get up. "of course, it's a yes! it'll be my pleasure!"

kim raises a hand in victory. "she said yes!"

---

she stares at dee's phone number on her screen before turning to the door and stepping out to the hallway.

"so, i'll call you, okay? if you're free later today we can visit the temporary shelter so you can see the animals there."

dee scrunches her face. "mmm. maybe it's better if we do it tomorrow? i have a patient that i need to home-service before dinner."

kim raises an eyebrow. "are you sure it's a patient and not just some guy you're flirting with?"

"she's a fifty-five-year old woman who survived a mild stroke. okay?"

kim laughs. "fine. besides, i need to tell pie about this first so she'd know what i'm up to and just so i can leave the house without her panicking about where i am at and who i am with."

"i see. still possessive, eh?"

"shut up."

dee chuckles. "anyway, i need to get ready now."

"yup. thank you."

"no. i should be the one thanking you." dee reaches out to kiss kim's cheek. "thank you." she kissed the other cheek. "thank you."

"kim!" katrien's voice echoed through the hallway. she's striding towards them, still in her school uniform, her mom tailing her.

"wow. is the nurse your ex or her daughter?" dee whispers. kim grunts.

katrien finally arrives and pulls kim by her hand. "kim, let's go play inside!"

"katie, careful of kim's injury," pie reminds. "and where are your manners? shouldn't you be saying hi to our neighbour first?"

katrien stops yanking and stares at dee first with a straight face before bowing. "hello. i am katrien."

"awe. isn't she cute?" dee's hands were on her chest. she bows in return. "hello. i'm dee. it's nice to meet you."

"has kim told you she's gonna marry me someday?" katrien asks dee. kim coughs.

"katie..." pie warns.

"oh. is she?" dee looks at kim, amused. "then i wish the best to the two of you."

"you know what, let's go inside now and play." kim holds katrien's shoulders and turns the kid around. "thank you, dee. i'll see you soon."

dee winks and closes the door to her apartment.

---

"mommy told me before that we kiss the people who are important to us," says katrien. she and kim are at the dining table waiting for pie to serve dinner.

"okay. and what's your point?" kim asks.

"why are you letting the lady neighbour kiss you?"

kim lets out an unamused laugh and glances at pie in the kitchen who has been silent this whole time.

"look, sweetie, it was a thank-you kiss," explains kim, turning to the kid. "i did something yesterday, and she's so happy when i told her the news. so, she thanked me."

katrien continues to glare at her. "do you think our neighbour is pretty?"

"yes. i do."

"do you want to marry her someday?"

kim laughs. "pie, a little help here?"

pie shakes her head as she puts down a plate in front of katrien. "not my fault. not my problem."

"aish." kim waves a hand in defeat. "look, katie. i like her but not in a way that i would want to marry her, okay? those two are different things. i like her as a friend. friend."

"are you sure?" katrien asks. this time, pie is putting the plate down in front of kim.

"yes, i am. now stop acting like a jealous girlfriend." kim looks at pie and whispers the next words, "you remind me a lot of my ex-girlfriend."

pie lightly smacks her after that.

---

"what the hell..." conan looks around the shelter, her ears feasting with the continuous bark of the dogs in the background. she turns to kim. "and you have done all of this in just two days?"

"it's not just me." kim steps forward. "i got help from ex-sau chapter here and other volunteers." she taps jane whose mouth is still hanging open. "you okay there?"

jane turns to kim, eyes still in shock. "i know i told you it would be an excellent idea to adopt a pet. but i never imagined it would be this..." she trails off, her eyes roaming around the area.

"extreme?" conan continues, chuckling. she places an elbow over kim's uninjured shoulder. "you know our kim here has always been extreme."

"but this is fast," says jane. "how can you come up with something this big given your situation? where did you get the idea?"

"i have connections, doc." kim motions to dee. "and the idea came from this pretty lady here, dee. she's my next-door neighbour."

"it's nice to meet you two." dee shakes their hands.

"thank you for taking care of our kim here. glad you gave her this idea."

"it's my pleasure. kim and i haven't known each other for a long time but i can say she's a wonderful person."

"that's good to know. are you by any chance, single?" conan asks.

"conan!" kim protests. "what the hell!"

dee laughs. "yes, i am single. but it seems kim here still can't get over a certain ex."

"oh. don't worry about that." conan waves a hand. "if she can be exposed to someone like you all the time i'm sure she'll eventually forget her ex."

"conan!"

"what? i'm just saying the truth. and dee here agrees with me, right?"

dee gives kim a knowing look before she turns to conan. "totally agree."

---

"so, what's pie's reaction after you told her all about this advocate of yours?" conan asks, grabbing a slice of pizza from the table. she, kim, and jane are now back in kim's apartment while dee stayed in the shelter to look over other things.

"not much." kim shrugs. "she nods and says it's okay as long as i take care of myself."

"is she okay with that?" conan throws a look at jane who's grabbing another slice from the pizza box.

"why are you looking at me like i got the answer?" jane leans back and takes a bite. "i am not pie."

"we know. but we also know pie tells you all her thoughts, more than what she's even telling her husband," says conan. "so, spill now, doc."

jane heaves a sigh and threw her hands into the air in defeat. "okay. she doesn't agree to any piece of this whole foundation thing. you happy now?"

kim leans over. "what? why?"

"look, before the two of you jump into conclusions, may i just remind you that pie is a nurse, and her main concern is always kim's recovery," explains jane. "she's not against kim's advocate but she's worried it may stress kim out. plus i don't think she trusts your pretty neighbour that much yet to let you hang around her that long."

conan whistles. "ooh. jealous."

kim eyes conan before going back to jane. "they why didn't she say anything when i told her last night?"

"she doesn't want to step outside her boundaries, if you know what i mean." jane takes another bite of her pizza. "as much as she wants to stop you from doing that, she knows she can't. she doesn't have the right to. so she lets you. but she asked me to come with you to make sure you're okay and just so i can report to her what happened. if she doesn't have work and mommy duties, she would have come with you instead."

"and i assume you've given her a good report today?"

"of course i did," jane answers immediately. "including how you and dee seem to have good chemistry to work on this project together. don't get me wrong. i want her to trust dee."

"speaking of that, what's up with you and your neighbour, huh?" conan asks kim. "you two seems to be very close for someone who just met a few days ago. did you guys already fuck?"

kim hides her face in her hand. "c'mon, conan. you know me better than that!"

"what? i'm just asking. i mean, you and suzy started that way, right?"

"and how can she even do it with that injury hers?" jane asks, cackling.

"duh. there are lots of position they can try. dee looks flexible to me," says conan. "if kim had done it with suzy there's no doubt she can do it again."

"stop that." kim grunts. "it's different with suzy, okay? and dee's not like that. she's a good friend of mine."

"a good and a hot friend," jane adds. "pie says she and katrien saw you two kissing in front of dee's door yesterday."

"we're not kissing!" kim almost stands up from the couch. "well, she kissed my cheek to thank me because i offered her a position in the foundation. but it's just a friendly kiss!"

"friendly kiss my ass." conan snorts. "don't deny it. you find her hot too."

kim throws a crumpled table napkin at conan, hurting herself in the process for straining her injured shoulder. "damn you, conan."

"oh. c'mon. you love me." conan laughs. "tsk. tsk. tsk. what are we gonna do with you, kim? it seems that even you're injured, women are still flocking over you."

"i can't wait to see what will happen." jane shakes her head as she picks and eats the pizza crumbs in the box. "i can already feel the tension. this will be interesting."

"same." conan picks another slice of pizza and looks at kim before taking a bite. "would love to see how this story will unfold."

kim can only slump on the couch and pout.