The Cat
He found her, mewing pathetically, on the dusty side of the road. Chewing his cheek, he stared at her. She was so small and furry and weak that she could hardly lift herself up. He had never seen a more pitiful sight. Yet she was somehow familiar, as though he had seen her elsewhere.
Balaji bent his slim brown legs and lifted the cat. She trembled in his arms and mewed quietly. He took her home and put her in a small basket hidden in the corner of the old store-room, for if Amma or Kodhai Mami found her, they would be furious. They hated animals stepping on their clean floors.
He found some milk that Patti had bought from the old milk-seller who, according to her, was the best milkman in the whole of Tamil Nadu while everyone else knew that he had faithfully watered down the milk for the past 32 years, and fed it to the cat. She drank gratefully. A small smile crept across his face. ‘I’ll call you Radhu,’ he said, stroking her. Then, picking her up, he went to show her to his kind grandparents. Unlike his mother, they adored cats.
Thatha and Patti were sitting on the big swing in the courtyard. Thatha chewed some betel leaf while Patti sang a Carnatic song under her breath. ‘Thatha, Patti!’ he yelled joyfully and ran to show them his find. ‘Isn’t she beautiful?’ Patti smiled, not quite hearing him. ‘Come here, kanna,’ she said, patting the swing’s seat. He clambered on, holding the cat carefully. Now it was purring faintly. ‘See my Radhu? She is my baby now, like how Rajan has a new baby brother.’ The two elders stared at his arms, puzzled. They could see nothing. Patti blinked her eyes several times, hoping that an image of whatever her dear grandson was showing would materialize, but nothing came. She made a mental note to tell her daughter to ask her son-in-law to take her to Ammu Eye Clinic.
Thatha was somehow wiser than his (seemingly) short-sighted wife. He ruffled Balaji’s hair and pretended to admire Radhu. ‘The boy and his imagination,’ he muttered to his wife, who nodded, glad to know that she didn’t need glasses.
Balaji heard. ‘I am not imagining her!!!! If you can’t see her, then you are blind. I hate you!’ he burst out savagely and ran toward the doorway, where he met Amma. His anger gave way to fear. He stood, head hanging, tears running down his cheeks. Amma would surely kick poor Radhu out of the house, and might even lock him up without giving him poli, his favorite sweet.
Amma stared at her son. ‘Kanna, what happened, are you hurt? Do you need something?’ Balaji was perplexed. He ran to the store-room and put the cat in her basket. ‘I’ll take care of you,’ he whispered. ‘Don’t worry, I’m surprised Amma didn’t do anything, but it’s all for the better. She’ll likely tell Kodhai Mami to leave you.’ And with this promise, he set Radhu down, lay down on the rug and fell asleep. The cat looked at him for a moment and then curled up contently by his side.
This went on for a week. Balaji grew much attached to Radhu. He would play with her, fetch milk for her and even tell her stories he’d heard from Patti. The rest of the household felt sorry for him and humored him, for the boy had no other friends at all, and plainly, his ‘imaginary’ friend was a good companion.
Then one day, Balaji heard something that shattered his world. His Amma, grinding rice, told him that his father was coming back from Madras, from visiting his brother. Balaji trembled. His Appa could be kind when he wanted to be, but he hated animals as much as his wife and would not hesitate to lay his belt on Balaji’s back if he saw or heard of the cat.
So, that night, he decided to run away with Radhu. He loved her too much to let her go. When he felt Patti fall asleep and breathe regularly, he wrapped Radhu up in a thin blanket and crept stealthily away from the house.
It was dark and terribly cold. The stars twinkled away in the sky, spreading their light over a lithe little boy who ran swiftly, a tiny feline friend clutched in his arms. Balaji ran and ran. He turned into this quiet lane and that pitch-black alley. He constantly looked over his shoulder, as if expecting to see his father racing after him, belt in his hand. The boy’s breath came out in gasps and he held Radhu tightly to his thin chest.
Suddenly, he trod on something long and soft and fell down. His heart stopped when he heard the angry growl. The dog’s eyes gleamed in the darkness, white teeth glinting evilly. It took in its prey and gave a loud bark before leaping into the air. Balaji gave a blood- curdling scream and tried to run. His legs didn’t move. Heart in his throat, he waited for the end.
It didn’t come. All he felt was sudden warmth leaving his arms, and a loud, long yowl. Balaji opened his eyes and saw Radhu snarling, her back arched. She was suddenly the size of a giant and filled the sky, beautiful yet terrifying. Balaji couldn’t move. The dog whimpered and ran for its life, receiving three enormous scratch marks on its back as keepsake.
Balaji turned to the giant cat. She slowly began to shrink, holding his gaze with glittering green eyes. She mewed, rubbed against his legs and purred, looking into his eyes all the time. Then gradually, she began fading, evaporating into the air. Balaji sobbed. He did not understand what was going on, but he did know that his beloved friend was leaving him. ‘Goodbye Radhu,’ he whispered, patting her warm head. She purred for the last time and then disappeared. As he continued to watch the spot where she had vanished, he suddenly remembered why Radhu was so familiar. ‘Of course,’ he whispered. ‘I saw you die last month…’
Flashback
Balaji skipped along the road. It was pouring with rain, but he didn’t care. He adored the rain. Then, he heard a pathetic mewling, and saw a small cat rubbing against him. ‘Oh!’ he cried, delighted. He loved little creatures. ‘I’ll bring some food, wait here.’ He ran and crossed the road. Suddenly, there was a sharp screech of tires. He froze with horror. Turning around slowly, he saw that the cat had attempted to follow him and had gotten hit by the car. A small crowd of people stood, with the driver in the middle, cursing the poor thing fluently. He pushed past them and ran to the motionless cat, taking it tenderly in his arms.’Please don’t go,’ he sobbed. The cat opened its vivid green eyes and looked at him. Then the pupils froze in their position for eternity. The boy who was reflected in those emerald eyes stroked the dead cat sorrowfully.
Hey, y'all, Kai here. I just wrote this like an experiment, based on a seriously weird dream I once had. Any suggestions are welcome
- Kai Goldstein
