Leaf: A Cat's Tale

• Cassandra Sfetsos, Grade 6
• Short Story
• 2012

Watching silly humans is so boring, because they never give me food. Expect for Sally, she’s my best friend.

A kid walked up to me and shouted, “KIIIIITTTTTYYYYYY!!!!!!”, as he tried to pull my tail. I got up and jogged away from the kid, leaving the grassy sidewalk.

Prowling through the park is a much better activity. I spotted a small brown bird on the grass. I hunched over and stalked it, until the tiny thing jumped out of my reach. I crawled a little further until the bird was so close… I pounced, not noticing the puddle. The bird flew away and my paws landed in the murky water. They got muddy and wet. I looked at the dirty puddle and saw the reflection of a cat—a small black cat with large jade eyes, big ears, a pink nose and long white whiskers.

“Hissssssssssss.” I thought that would frighten it, before I realised the cat was actually me.

I was now hungry and tried, so I decided to go back home.

When I reached my house, I scratched and cried at the door but Sally wasn’t home yet. Lying on the cold concrete porch in the middle of winter was horrible. I’d rather watch humans than this.

Sally finally arrived in her grey car. She opened the car door and walked toward me.

“Berrrrrrooowwwwww.”

“Are you hungry, little boy?” Sally kneeled down to pat my back but I rubbed the top of my head against hers. “I missed you too, Leafy.” She opened the front door, dropped her bag and headed for the kitchen. I followed close behind and watched her grab a big tin of Crunchies.

Sally picked up my food bowl, placed it on the wooden bench and filled the bowl with crunchies. I rubbed her legs and started purring.

She put the bowl down for me and I ate the food so quickly, I almost choked.

After eating, I went to my litterbox and dug around for a while. It’s important to find the perfect spot to go. Sally walked in while I was finishing up.

“What’s that smell?” she teased.

While Sally cleaned the mess in my litterbox, I went exploring around the kitchen and a cardboard box caught my eye. It was sitting on top of the fridge, so I jumped up. I whacked it a few times and it fell on the floor. I heard footsteps, from behind me and froze.

“Leaf, get down from there!”

I leaped down and landed inside the box. It was very comfortable, so I decided to stay in it for a while.

When I opened my eyes, it was evening. I yawned, stretched, and went looking for my best friend. Sally was reading on my favourite side of the couch. I meowed and she smiled at me, while she placed a cushion on her lap.

“C’mon Leaf.”

I jumped onto her lap, and snuggled close.

Some humans might be boring and silly, but not my Sally.