Missy, the missing cat

This is Missy. We have had her for just over a year now, and I can honestly say she is the sweetest cat you will ever know. She's currently cuddled up beside me, purring into my arm. When she was found she was a week away from dying due to dehydration and starvation - until my partner and I adopted her and saved her life. This is that story.

It was the beginning of March 2020, and my partner had been hearing noises in the attic where she works for a couple of weeks. She'd gone up multiple times to investigate but had found nothing. She was slightly worried it may have been a squatter, and always took precaution when entering. This day, however, she decided to film with her phone and use a torch. She put her phone into the attic and scanned it around. After reviewing the footage she noticed two dark eyes staring at her from a corner. Her co-worker decided to take a look, and found nothing. Days went by and they hadn't heard a noise, they assumed whatever it was (A rat/mouse/bird) had died, and they'd have to call someone to clear up the body. However, the next morning my partner happened to go to work slightly earlier than normal, she had just unlocked the office door when she saw a bag rustling. She panicked and called her boss, who immediately told her to find the source of the rustle and get rid of it. Carefully she walked over to the bag, and as she moved it, a cat ran out. The car ran straight past her and into an already smashed glass window (she has a slight scar on her ear from the ordeal). My partner immediately cornered the cat and picked it up, putting it safely in a nearby box she had noticed only minutes before. She called a cat rescue company, who soon came to collect her. The next few days my partner would call the company, asking how the cat was doing. They would tell her that she (the cat) was very unwell, and had to slowly get her weight back up, as she was extremely underweight. They said that if she had been up in the attic even a week longer, she would have died. They believed that she was been up there for at least four months. They also believed that she was online six months old. Two weeks went by when my partner received a call - the cat rescue company were looking to rehome this poor cat. She was not social at all, and would be a big challenge. So, like rational people, we decided to take on the challenge. And boy was it a challenge. For the first three months she would hide in every crevice she could find. I didn't know it was possible for a cat to hide in a piano. Or under the oven. But she did. Considering I was working from home at this point (thanks Covid), I was with her every day. She slowly began to come out of her shell, and eat in front of us. Now, she is the world's best cat. She is always cuddled up beside us and asking for attention. To think she would have been dead if my partner hadn't found her. I'm so lucky to have her in my life, and I wouldn't change her for the world.