I- One More…

Do you like animals? Domestic animals for example, like cats. You do? It doesn’t really matter if you do or don’t. She did. She loved them. She always made time to cuddle with them on the street when they meet. She always took care of them. She would bring them food, take them to a vet… She genuinely cared about them. I talk about alley cats, of course. She couldn’t keep a cat in her tiny apartment. Cats can be unpredictable. She didn’t like unpredictable. She did things as previously planned. She always had a well-organized day, she made weekly and monthly schedules. She used the same route from home to work and back, she always did shopping on weekends… You must be thinking- “What a boring life she had!”. Don’t worry, she thought that to. We are all slaves of our own habits, she knew she was stuck in a routine, but she couldn’t change it. She didn’t know how. Cats were the only unpredictable thing in her life. That’s probably why she loved them so much.

***

I would like to say that the cat remembers that day, but I’m afraid he doesn’t. It was a day like any other for him- running around, looking for food and female cats, sleeping, cleaning, sleeping again and so on. He ran through many streets, he couldn’t tell where he was, nor did he care, but it was getting dark. He decided to go back to his territory when suddenly- that smell. It smelled like freshly cooked food damped into trash can behind a fancy restaurant. He followed the smell and BINGO! There was a man who kept calling him, too: “Hey kitty, kitty, kitty! Come kitty, kitty!”. Was there any reason for him not to go? No, there wasn’t. It was a very dark and lonely alley. He followed the smell of food and the voice calling him. When he came in front of the man his expectations were justified- grilled steak, potatoes, sauces and something what he couldn’t identify. He started eating and the man sat on the chair next to the door and started talking to him. He didn’t even pretend he’s listening.
While he was eating the man got up from his seat and went inside. He didn’t notice that, he was enjoying his meal. If he was listening, he could have heard a woman walking very fast on the main street. It was almost 9 p.m. All the sudden he heard a dog barking. The dog was very close, somewhere in the main street, so he looked up at the street to see if it’s coming in his direction. The dog kept barking but it didn’t move. He looked at his meal and then again at the street. He couldn’t decide what to do. Then he heard two cats. They were also at the main street. The dog was barking at them. He was relieved. He started eating again, but that fight in the main street continued. It made him nervous. He looked at his meal, which was almost done and decided to go out in the street. As soon as he stepped with his two front paws out of the alley and onto the street he saw them. A man had the dog on a leash and two cats were hiding behind a woman who angrily talked to the dogs’ owner. They were across the street, a little bit on the right side. He sat and watched. He wasn’t hungry anymore. He was looking at that lady who’s fighting across the street. There was something about her. She had some very special glow and quite a lot of energy for such a small woman. Since she wasn’t very tall, she wore high heels. She was very skinny, but well-dressed. She was angry, but still pretty in some strange way. Her voice was high and irritating, but that didn’t seem to bother him at that moment. He wasn’t sure why, but he kept looking at her.
After a few minutes the man with the dog got tired and left, cursing the woman while walking away. The woman turned to those two cats and started cuddling with them. He felt jealousy. He wanted to be cuddled. He wanted her to cuddle with him. She wasn’t looking in his direction, so he looked at the street and ran on the other side. Car drivers started honking and cursing him, but he didn’t care. He made it. He was there, in front of her. She was looking at him. “Oh, poor baby! Did they scare you? Don’t be afraid, I’m here.” She took him in her arms and cuddled with him. He felt happy. He purred in her arms and almost fell asleep when he saw them. Those two cats were going straight into the alley where his food was. He jumped out of her arms and ran across the street again. “They wouldn’t dare!”, he thought. They were just about to start eating the food he had left when he appeared in front of them. They started fighting, but he knew he is going to win. Lady from across the street appeared in a moment or two. He could hear she was scared by the tone of her voice while she was trying to calm them down. The fight was quickly over and he started licking his wounds. He was the victor. The other cats left. Lady came close to him, but she was turning around and looking at the street constantly. He didn’t understand why was she so scared.
She was telling him something, it looked like she begged him to leave the alley with her. Suddenly, the door behind him opened. Man who fed him went out and looked at the small lady. He was twice her size. The lady froze. He could see fear in her eyes and smell it in the air around her. He wanted to tell her the man was a good person. “Meow!” She didn’t understand him. The man started talking and asking questions to the lady. She kept staring at him, without saying a word. The man started to laugh. He was laughing really loud. He invited the lady inside, but she just looked at the cat. He understood and took the cat in one hand, opened the door and entered. He left the door open.

***

She wondered why did she follow that cat. It was an alley cat like many others. What made her leave the main street and enter this small, dark, smelly alley? If she hadn’t done that she could have been home by now. And then that sweaty man took the cat inside. Why did she care about the cat so much? She should have walked away. But no, she didn’t. She took a deep breath and entered through the open door.
The light was very bright when she entered. She needed few moments for her eyes to adjust. Then , she saw she was in a kitchen, a very modern fast food restaurant kitchen. There was no one there besides the man and the cat. The smell of the freshly cooked food was all over it, so he must be the cook. “Would you like some tea?” the man asked. “Yes, thank you.” She was surprised by her own words. He poured tea into a cup and added some milk. He gave her the cup. “You don’t drink tea?” she asked. “I drank enough for today, trust me. I’m here since 6 a.m.” he replied, “I always stay longer so that I can feed the cat. Cats are nice animals. They make you feel warm and loved.” She was surprised. That’s exactly what she thought about them. “I like cats, too”, she said. “Really? I didn’t notice!” said the man and started laughing. She felt a bit ashamed. It was a stupid thing to say. “So, how old is she?” she asked. “Who? The cat? How should I know? I’m a cook, not a vet. I give her food. That’s all.” Now she was really ashamed. She felt like she couldn’t make a conversation. She took a sip of her tea. It was nicely warm. She didn’t know what to say, so she took few more sips and all three of them were sitting there in silence.
The cat got up and moved to her lap. He was purring while she cuddled him. He felt sleepy. He turned around on his back. She smiled. He was so cuddly. His fur was almost entirely black, only his paws and fur around his left eye were white. He was so beautiful. She wasn’t afraid anymore. She felt quite relaxed in here, as the matter of fact. She was a bit sleepy, though. No wonder, it was almost 9:30 p.m. She reached her hand toward his belly to rub it, but saw something that surprised her. “Have you ever checked if the cat is male or female?” she asked. The cook looked at her and seemed surprised. “Why would I? Does it really matter? We are all hungry, no matter what gender we are.” he replied. She knew he is right. It didn’t matter. But she couldn’t restrain herself. “It’s a male cat.” She said. The cook only took a deep breath and shook his head to show that he didn’t care. She started rubbing the cats’ belly when he jumped and bit her. She got scared and left him to fall on the floor. He fell and ran toward the kitchen door. Since it was closed he started scratching them. The cook went there and opened it. The cat ran out into the night, furious.
She was in shock for couple of minutes. She couldn’t understand what happened. “Mama didn’t tell you not to touch cats’ belly, did she now?” asked the cook. Still in shock, she couldn’t reply. “There, take a glass of water.” She drank it and started to feel a little bit better. “Why did he do that? Why did he run?” she asked the cook. “Because he is a cat, not a dog. Cats hate belly rubbing. It disturbs them.” He replied. “I didn’t know. I thought that’s why he turned on his back.” The cook smiled “He just wanted you to rub his head. Misunderstanding I would say. Too bad he couldn’t understand that.” He started laughing again. “I don’t think it’s funny.” She said a little bit angry. “How’s that scratch he made you? Do you want some alcohol?” “Yes, I need to disinfect it. And, it’s a bite.” she said angrily. The cook opened a cupboard over his head and took an unmarked bottle out. “This will do. It’s pure vodka. No better alcohol than that!” “Don’t you have some alcohol for medical purposes? I’m not sure vodka is a good choice.” The cook laughed again. “I didn’t mean for you to drink it, I meant you can pour it on that scratch. But, if you insist… Here are the glasses…” “No, no, I don’t drink. I just thought that you maybe have some medical alcohol, but never mind. Vodka will do.” The cook poured vodka into their glasses and gave her the rest in the bottle. She looked for handcuffs in her bag. She was feeling a little bit dizzy. She managed to find handcuffs and pour some vodka over the bite. She felt something strange in her stomach, like she is going to throw up. Everything around her was blurry. She couldn’t focus, it was a chaos in her head. She was taking deep breaths, so that she doesn’t start to panic. Finally, she couldn’t stand it anymore. ” Where is the bathroom?” she asked. “Right there, down the hall. First door on the right.” the cook answered. But it was too late. She couldn’t get up on her own. She fell on the cold marble floor and her eyes gently closed. She couldn’t feel anything anymore, nor the stomach problems, nor the dizzy head. Not even the pain from the fall. She fell deep into the dream world.

TO BE CONTINUED…