I never thought I’d be a cat person. Growing up, my family always had dogs. Cats were completely incomprehensible to me. One minute, a cat would be sitting in your lap, purring away. The next minute, for seemingly no reason, it would be swatting at you, hissing, and trying to bite. On top of that, cats get the “zoomies,” an internet word that I’m convinced was made up to make running up and down the hall at 3AM, yowling like they’re about to be murdered, sound cute.
That being said, a few weeks ago, I decided to get a cat. The past few months I’d been in a bit of a slump. I saw some article online about how pets can make you feel happier and give you a sense of purpose. My apartment doesn’t allow dogs, so I guessed a cat would have to do. I went out and adopted a two year old tabby named Smoky.
The first week after I brought him home, things were rough. I was convinced he would just live under the couch. He’d come out every once in awhile for a bite of food or to use the litter box, then it was back to the safety of the sofa.
We warmed up to each other though. I learned to give Smoky his space and, when the time was right, he’d venture out and rub on my legs. If I was lucky, maybe I’d even get to pat him on the head.
Soon enough, we’d become friends. We developed a nightly routine. I would drink beer and watch Netflix and he would fall asleep on my lap. I’d scratch him behind the ears and he would purr and purr. The article I read was right, I really did feel better with the little guy around.
One night, I fell asleep watching some dumb comedy show. When I woke up, the room was completely silent. My upstairs neighbors were never quiet before 2AM, so I knew it was late. “Are you still watching?” The Netflix notification displayed on my TV screen was the only light in the room. Smoky was still fast asleep on my lap.
As I looked down at the little gray ball of fluff, I was proud of how far we’d come. I never expected I’d love the little guy so much. He looked so cute. Feeling basic as hell but unable to resist the urge, I decided to take a picture and put it on my Snapchat story.
Damn it, I forgot the flash was on!
Smoky’s bright green eyes were wide open now. He rolled over on my lap and began to stretch.
“Sorry buddy, didn’t mean to wake you up.”
As I went to scratch Smoky under the chin, his demeanor changed. His body went rigid, his ears folded down, and his back arched. A loud, long hiss came from the cat that had been fast asleep just moments ago. I looked up to see what he was hissing at. My bedroom door was slightly open across the room.
“Hey, it’s okay buddy.”
I tried to pet him to calm him down, but he was growling now, his teeth bared. His hair was bristled and his tail was tucked between his legs. I squinted into the darkness, even though I couldn’t make out much, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Smoky jumped off my lap and scampered under the couch, his eyes never leaving the door.
Fear gripped me for a moment. Cold, irrational fear. Did he see something I didn’t?
Turning on my phone light, I approached the door. Slowly, I nudged it with my foot so that it swung wide open. The room was empty. Nothing seemed wrong.
I stepped inside my room and shined the light around. The light from my phone cast an eerie glow and long shadows all around. I flipped on the light. Everything seemed in it’s place, from the clutter on my desk to the dirty laundry pile on my floor.
Then I smelled it. It smelled like something rotting. I took a deep breath, thinking I must’ve been mistaken, but the odor was pungent. The smell of rotting meat had filled the room. As I exhaled, I noticed that my breath hung in the air. The room was getting cold, fast. Goosebumps spread down my arms and I started to shake. Then I felt something hit me, hard.
I stumbled back out of the bedroom and fell onto the floor. The breath was knocked out of me as I hit the ground.
“What the-”
Smoky was there now, between me and the door, his tail swishing back and forth. My lizard brain took over. Fight or Flight? I chose flight. I grabbed the cat, my wallet, keys, and ran out of the apartment. I didn’t even get my shoes. A buddy let me crash at his place, though he wasn’t too happy about being woken up in the middle of the night.
The next morning I woke up to several Snapchat notifications. I hadn’t actually looked at the picture I’d taken the night before. The replies were all about the same.
“Dude, what’s that thing in the background?”
“Are those eyes in the background?”
“Do you have two cats?”
I pulled up the picture on my story. Squinting, I saw it there in the darkness. Behind Smoky sitting in my lap, was the bedroom door. Peeking out from the open door, were two bright yellow eyes.
The apartment search started that day. No way in hell was I staying the night in that place again. The market is insane these days, but I was finally able to find a place that was pet friendly.
I only went back to the apartment twice. Once to move my stuff out. I hired some movers to help me with the bedroom furniture so I didn’t have to go back in there. The next time was to do a walk-through with my building manager. We checked each room, and begrudgingly, I did go into the bedroom with him. Everything seemed to be in order and he let me know I’d be getting most of my deposit back. Before I left, he stopped me.
“Didn’t you get a cat a few weeks ago?” He asked, looking over some of the paperwork.
“Yeah, that was me.”
“I’m more of a dog guy myself.”
“I used to be. But, I don’t know. I really like my new cat. He feels lucky.”
“You know, it’s funny you say that.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. The old lady who lived here before you, she hated cats.”
“Oh. Really?”
“Yeah, with a passion. Something about their eyes? I can’t remember. Man, she was really batty, that old lady. Thought she’d never go. Her kids always wanted to put her in a home, but she was determined to die in this goddamn apartment.”
“You don’t say.”
I guess you could say I’m a cat person now.