The White Cat
Ferard

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He was a gift, given to me anonymously on Valentine’s Day. The little white kitten was left on my doorstep like some orphaned child. Every day since then I look at his deep blue eyes and wonder, whose hand did he see tie the red ribbon around his neck? Did he see the person that wrote the loving letter pinned to that ribbon?

But of course, cats can’t talk.

My mom thought he was adorable, and Dad said that white cat’s brought good luck, but after a few accidents and broken furniture, they started thinking otherwise.

I named him Nico, short for Nicolas, the name I always wanted to give a cat since I was little. I wonder sometimes if the person who gave him to me knew I loved cats. If they did, then maybe they’re someone I already know. I always wonder things like that while I’m lying in bed, with Nico lying contently on my chest, purring away.

I see him as my only connection to this person who loves me. Him and the note they left with him. I re-read it every night like a prayer, as if by doing so I’ll learn who they are. I so desperately want to meet this person. I want to thank them for giving me Nico, and for telling me about their feelings.

I fall asleep every night wishing that I could fall in love with this caring person, whoever they are.

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“NICO!!!!! Look at what that demon cat did this time! Look at my beautiful door! It wasn’t like this yesterday, he must have spend all night clawing at it to make it look this awful!!!” Dad went on like that until mom came in and compounded in the castigating of my cat.

“Frank, I just don’t think we can stand that cat much longer! I think we should—“

“I’m not giving him away Mom.” I sighed. Yeah, yeah, we’ve already had this conversation before. About five accidents ago they ‘had it up to here with that damn cat!’ but he’s still here. I also wonder about my parents’ sanity sometimes… Or lack thereof.

After a minute or two of this, I took him back up to my room and continued tabbing out this random love song I heard and don’t know the name of. Nico meowed loudly suddenly, and I looked to see what was up. No one was outside the window he was staring out of so intently, so I left him alone on the windowsill.

Big mistake.

CRASH!!!!!

I jumped and threw my guitar down as I watched Nico’s tail disappear from the broken window’s frame. A moment of pure shock and horror filled me before I ran and looked down from the ledge. Nico was perfectly fine, walking down the front path to the sidewalk.

“Nico! Get back here!!!” He turned to look, and in his mouth was an envelope. The envelope to be exact. “Oh no…”

Before I knew it I was sprinting to get out of the house. I dodged both parents about the window and made it to the front lawn. There he was, sitting quietly at the corner, as if this was some kind of game. And I wasn’t having it. I chased Nico down the sidewalk, and as soon as I got near, he shot of down the street another block, stopped, and waited again.

Nico had so far only done things that bothered my parents, but he’d never done anything that made me mad. Was he running because he knew I was mad this time? Or was he smarter than that? Stupider maybe? As I chased him further, it became clear that he was trained to do this.

Damn the person who trained him to be this good.

I finally decided that if he was leading me somewhere, I didn’t have to run there. I instead walked slowly behind Nico, not getting any closer lest he run another block. Finally, we reached the park, where Nico quickly ran off again. And I of course, went running after him

“Nico! For the last time, COME HERE!!!”

He stopped. He sat perfectly still and let me take the letter out from his mouth and pick him up. I’ve never seen a cat act this way and I have no idea why he did it, but I guess I was glad… well, I wasn’t really glad for anything at that moment. He broke my window, stole my love letter, made me run a mile, and…

I looked up to see that someone was watching me.

I’m almost sure this is what it feels like when your heart stops. Camouflaged against a large gnarled tree, dressed in solid black, was a boy with long, raven black hair. He was watching me with gentle eyes, hazel in color, and was smiling at me very softly.

I felt weak suddenly, and my arms became tired of carrying Nico’s weight. He jumped down and trotted up to the boy. Meowing a greeting, he stood up on the boy’s leg for him to pick him up. He simply laughed at my insane cat and I ran over to get him off.

“I’m sorry, my cat is just being weird today, so just… yeah.” Okay, I couldn’t think of anything smarter to say, but this guy was just so… I need to stop saying ‘just’. While I wallowed in my own stupidity, he laughed again, and god does his voice sound so… angelic.

“It’s alright, he just misses me a little, that’s all.” Of course he does… Wait, what?

“How… do you know my…?” Before I even posed the question I had the answer. He plucked the letter out of my hand and said something under his breath, I think. I wasn’t really paying attention, my mind was working a mile a minute.

He owned the cat, he tied the ribbon, he wrote the letter…

“You’re the one that loves me.” I nearly choked. I didn’t even know this guy and I felt like I was going to cry. I wanted desperately to know who he was all this time, but now that he’s right in front of me I couldn’t think of anything to say.

“’So long as men can breath or eyes can see, so long lives this, and this gives life to thee.’ Right?” I barely registered what he said, it sounded like it was said a universe away, and yet right in my ear.

“What do you mean?” I let Nico go and stepped closer to this boy, focusing all my attention to him.

“You kept my letter.” His hand came up to brush away a few strands of hair from my face. “Love is the thing that gives us all life, and you knew that. We didn’t know each other, but love won us both out in the end.” Everything he said made sense, even the things that didn’t. I knew that I loved him, even though I didn’t have a face or name. I loved him for all the things he’s already done, for giving me something that I love, Nico.

And for giving me himself in a soft, gentle kiss.

Love is blind, and nameless as is our case. And even though he was unknowingly innocent, Nico led us to each other in more ways than one.

I guess white cats are lucky… at least in the end they are.