A Clever Escape?
I stare out the window, watching the rain drizzle upon my yard. Tears well up within my green eyes. I hardly notice that my vision of the world off limits to me is beginning to fog.
I looked down at my paws, sliding my claws in and out. For some reason I am feeling overly pessimistic today. Being a cat I should be outside playing in the rain, the grass soft against my paws. This will never happen, though. I will never breathe in the fresh air, never feel the warmth of the sun’s rays, and never feel the rain upon my fur. I have to stay inside for the rest of my life, all because of one slip, one fall, one little bit of harm. Now my owner, Shelby, refuses to let me outside. I lose myself, reliving the terrible day that ruined my life...
I am so proud of myself as I stalk along the fence top. I am king of the world. I, Snap, am unchallenged by any other cat, for I am the best. In my moment of pride I misjudge my next step, and my feet fly from beneath me. I am falling! How could the king fall? I twist in midair, trying to get my feet beneath myself, but that is no simple task. I cringe, knowing that pain is just moments away.
With a ‘smack’ I land on the ground, knocking the air from my tiny lungs. I try to get up, startled that I feel no harm, but this movement sends pain rocketing up my left front leg. I flop to the ground mewling in horror. Looking at my leg I see an enormous gash; the blood trickling from the wound makes me nauseous. I shift my gaze away, retching at my injury. Minutes pass, but they seem like hours to me. At last Shelby stumbles upon me and scoops me into her arms. Though she is trying to be as gentle as possible, the slight roughness of the gesture jolts me. I am sent spiraling into the black world of unconsciousness...
I tear myself from the memory, shaking with anger and fear. My life has been broken apart due to that simple injury. After that fall, I contracted some
rare infection. According to the men in the white coats, I got very sick, almost died, and suffered nerve damage. Well, I don’t know if that’s true or not; I was unconscious during my stay in the veterinary hospital. Now, I have no clue what
‘nerve damage’ is, but one of the eccentric humans said that it’d make me have seizures. Seizures. My seizures control my entire life, and I have grown to be all too familiar with the unconscious world to which they take me.
At that moment Shelby struts into my house and unpacks her things. She doesn’t realize that she has left the front door slightly open. I take my chance and slip outside without Shelby even noticing. I am free!
“What
is this stuff? Wasn’t it raining earlier?” I meow inquisitively. Little white flakes from some unknown source are swirling toward the ground in a wildly captivating descent. I smile for what seems to be the first time in a very long time.
With glee and joyfulness I dart into the forest, which I see is blanketed in a thin layer of the white dust. Finally, something has gone my way! I inhale the forest’s scent, admiring its sweet smell. The grass softly kisses my feet as I bounce along the ground.
The angelic flakes continually fall to the earth, adding to the accumulating layer of the white substance. Curious, I jog over to a pile of the stunning fluff and, I bury my muzzle in it. I whip my head out from the heap, the freezing cold material clinging to my nose.
“Such a beautiful thing can be so harsh,“ I whisper, shaking my head. Then something catches my attention, the flakes seem to be falling in a more chaotic manner. They are spinning wilder and crazier by the second, and I begin to panic. Fear and realization strike me at the same time. I am stuck outside with a storm coming closer every second. I look down at my paws in shame of what I have done, and in doing so I see that my legs are shaking violently. My muscles seize up, and I know exactly what is taking place.
In a second I fall to the ground overtaken by a seizure worse than any I have ever experienced. My attempts to arise are in vain, for I can’t seem to move my legs. The area around me begins to morph; colors that shouldn’t be there are whirling amid reality. Purple, greens, and yellows swim in my vision. It doesn’t surprise me when the colors are taken place by grayscale colors, and, at last, the world turns black.
* * * * *
I awaken to find myself next to the crackling fire. Shelby strokes my fur with an ever-so-light touch. I bury my head in her clothes aching for more warmth.
“You thought you were pretty clever there, Snap, didn’t you? Don’t worry little guy, you’ll be fine now,” Shelby coos to me. I look up to her, attempting to make my gaze as apologetic as possible.
“I’m sorry...” I meow, hoping she’ll understand, but I know she can’t.
“You see why I never let you outside after your accident? Just for that reason. I don’t want you to get hurt,” she says, almost as if speaking to herself. Finally, I understand what she has been doing to me. She wasn’t trying to torture me as I had thought. She was just trying to keep me safe. Now looking back I see how self-obsessed and self-pitiful I was. ‘I should feel ashamed of myself!’ I reflect.
“You look deep in thought, Snap. Have you learned something today?” Shelby asks, already knowing the answer.
I nod my little kitten head in response and curl up in a ball. Apparently the storm had cleared up while I was unconscious, for now the sky was free of most clouds. As the sun set outside, I lay (gratefully
inside), watching the colors splash the horizon.
There are thousands of planets, circling around thousands of suns, circling around in thousands of galaxies that circle around one point in the universe. And that point in the universe isn't you.
This was a short story that I had to write for my Language Arts class. What do you people think? (To let you know I got an A
)
