As I Lay Here

As I lay here, wide awake, the sounds are overwhelming. I hear the leaves rustle behind the broken boards that are left of the broken wall. I hear the howl of the wolves in the woods. I hear the buzzing of the flies by the hole filled ceiling. As I lay here, wide awake, I wonder if I’ll ever be warm again. If I’ll ever see my mother, who kept me inside for so long. I am scared. I am alone. I hide, behind the old stacks of hay inside the worn down barn. I traveled far from my warm, safe home to be in this dump. Now I wonder, will I starve to death here? I hear my stomach growling and I can’t help but wonder why I left to begin with.

It was long ago, the refrigerator made a strange humming sound, so my mother called for a man to fix it. He came inside the house, but left the door ajar. I saw my chance. I snuck to the door, slowly at first, then quickly a I sprinted outside, running as far as I could before I lost my nerve. I heard mother gasp as she saw me escape. She cried out, “Olliver! No, come back here, baby!” But I’d already gone too far. I knew I had to find shelter, some place to call my own. I found this barn on the far side of the valley of yellow grass.

It is cold here, unlike my mother’s house. I no longer wonder why she kept me indoors. It must have been for my own safety, to shelter me from this place called outside. At least my fur is long, it keeps me slightly warmer. I miss my mother and her overbearing need to make me happy. Each time she would go to the store, she would bring back a toy or a tasty snack for me. Each time she would come home from work, she’d insist on picking me up and squishing my face to hers in a death-like hug. I miss those hugs now. It feels as though I have been here for ages. I fear I may never find my way back home. If only mother were here. The leaves rustle behind the barn wall again, and now I hear a startled squeak behind me. I jumó up and turn in time to see a small mouse cowering behind a broken pale.

“Eek! Wh… what are y… y… you doing h… here, m… m… m… mister c… ca… cat?” Squeaked the mouse, as he shakes in fear behind the pale.

“I am here seeking shelter, mouse. I am trying to sit in my self pity at the moment. Allow me to tell you my tragic tale.”

“I… if I l… let you te… tell me, c… can I g… g… go free?” Pleads the mouse.

“Yes, mouse, I suppose. But you must bring me something to eat, for I fear I may perish here if I do not get nourishment soon.” I say to the mouse. Perhaps he knows where to find a bowl of delicious, warm milk.

“A… al… alright, m… mister… cat… but… I only know where to f… find l… left… leftovers…” the mouse’s voice trembles and gets quiet on the last words, like I’m going to eat him if I don’t get warm milk. Maybe I will…

“Alright, mouse. Here is my tragic tale. It all started a great deal of time ago… I ran away from my loving, warm, safe home to experience the world. My mother has probably long since perished without my constant presence. I am alone in the cruel world, starving, cold, pitiful. I will probably meet my death here this night. I have been here for decades. No one has come to find me. I am alone.” I sniffle as best I can, being a cat, on the last line for dramatic effect. And then, I hear a faint bell like noise. “Do you hear that, mouse?” I listen, ears perked.

“N… no, c… cat… I don’t h… hear anything…” says the mouse.

“Silent!” I shout at hims

*jingle jingle jingle*

“That sounds almost like… mister scratchy pants… but no, it couldn’t be…” I say aloud to myself. The mouse stares wide eyed at me, waiting for what I might do next.

“Ooollyyy… oh Olly baby? I got your favorite toy baby! Ollyyyyy?”

“Mother?!” Alas, it cannot be! After all this time, lost in the cold, dark, broken barn across the vast valley of yellow grass, my mother had found me! I sprint from the barn doors…

“Meeeoooowwwwww” I scream at mother in the only language she acknowledges.

“Olly, baby! There you are! You had me worried sick!” She says as she scoops me into her arms. I so missed her… *oof* too… tight… Oh, better, mother. She must have missed me after all this time.

“Oh Olly, you’ve been gone for about twenty minutes, I was worried! I’m glad you only went to the backyard into the old barn, I don’t know what I would’ve done if you’d gone farther on the farm. Okay, baby, let’s get you inside, that wind is howling something awful.” She babbles on. She took a mere 20 steps and then we were back by the door to our lovely home. Humans can travel quite quickly you see. I’ll never leave here again. This is where I belong. I’ve been gone for decades it seems, I can’t wait for the comfort of my cat lounge and my big, warm bowl of milk. I’ll certainly not miss that beat up, cold, old barn. Tonight, I shall not lay awake, and my belly shall be full.