by Viktória Laki

This story started on a summer afternoon. I was on the way home after a trip. It was raining. I said good-bye to my friends and turned away.

I had to walk a lot to get home, so I was in a hurry. When I reached the blocks I heard a strange voice, something like crying. I looked in the direction of the sound. Guess what I saw? A tiny little black kitten shivering in a corner. He was alone; he was weak and wet. When I stepped toward him, he started to run to me. His eyes were blue and that means he was very young. He stopped crying.

He was staring at me while I hesitated. Should I bring this kitty home? Maybe his mum is looking for him? Maybe he belongs to someone?

Finally I made a decision. I picked his body up, which was light as a feather. As he felt my nearness he crept up under my neck. Maybe heard my heartbeat, like he did when he was next to his mother. He stopped shivering. I continued my way home. After a couple of minutes I heard him purring softly. In that moment I knew I was sent to save him.

When I arrived to the block, one of our neighbors asked me what I was carrying. She was surprised because she knew that we have a dog at home (who is not bigger than a cat actually).

I reached our front door. I rang the bell and my Mum opened it. She noticed us, but she saw only the little thing in my hands. She took him and went into the house like this: “Oh, what a tiny little kitty you are!” As I looked at my mother’s face, I knew that everything would be fine from now.

(2003)