I've always wanted someone to call me theirs. My mind raced with these thoughts as Alora combined my fur with her fingers. Moving my fur in every direction but it's own. Laying in her warm little lap, in that tiny chilling room I felt a sense of comfort that is usually not granted. Alora wasn't like any other person I had met. It was hard to believe that someone as soft and fragile as her could even be considered human. She wasn't cruel nor vile; in fact, she was just like me, a freak that Mother Nature forgot to dispose of.  

The comfort of her lap didn’t last very long. The growing pains in my stomach's stinging wound flooded my mind, making it unbearable to think. It wasn’t the first time I had felt such pain before, but this time I had Alora to comfort me. The deafening sounds of the lab sirens had distracted me just enough to take my thoughts off my wound. The securing feet of the devils caused me to have great worry as to what would send these godless creatures running.  

Not letting curiosity get the best of me I watched as they passed me by as if my existence had vanished from their thoughts. In the back of my mind, I had this burning thought that this was my time to escape, but I wasn't given much time to think when Alora scooped me up and headed for the front of the building, the only exit I had ever known. The lab was like a maze that gave the illusion of a vet to hopeful pet owners. 

Running through the halls, the thought of leaving the blood-soaked cage I had once survived in began to make my heart beat out of my chest. I hadn’t felt this way in a long time. Twelve years ago, when someone called me theirs and I was more than a number, I had a name: Grey-George. It was the only thing I could think of as Alora busted through the office doors to find a barricaded entrance.

My left eye ached at the troubles of the situation, and my breath seemed to leave me speechless. My eye always aches when trouble arises or a bad memory makes its way through my fuzzed mind. It was a constant reminder of the cruel reality of this world that left a stain on me forever.

I needed Alora to come with me, even when the little window towards the top caught my eye. I searched every little nook for something for her to squeeze her way through. 

"Alora, help me!" I pleaded. With her usually half-hearted smile, I felt a stinging in my eyes when the realization dawned on me. Pleading with her I felt as if I had a frog in my throat, holding back my weeping. Hearing the echoing footsteps in the hall draw near caused me to panic. 

"No," I mumbled, pushing my body against the rubble too . "y-you can't leave me like this, not now, I finally got my freedom."

"We finally got our freedom." She interrupted, picking me up as if I were her child. I could still remember her hands covered in the many scars I gave her trying to break her grasp as she pushed the window open trying to get me out. 

Pushing me out I felt a hard thud as I hit the ground, reopening old wounds I had hoped would be forgotten. My heart ached as the once seemingly closed window had been turned into a skyscraper. Blood seeped out onto the cool winter grass as I tried to find my way back up. Feeling faint, the sound of an unfamiliar wailing began to draw near as my mind started to panic. Hiding in a wet box the sounds of unfamiliar voices filled the alley as city onlookers snicked. 

Cage after cage, a sense of death seemed to fill the whispers of those who spoke of a place they passed many times. A string of devils soon followed them after, with cheering crowds of injustice. Pushing myself back into the dripping box a faint voice softly called out to me. A bent-down person had reached out to me. They were concerned but seeing how even the dead couldn't escape cages I figured I was better alone. 

Racing out of the box onto the busy city sidewalk I ran until the sun had passed and the moon was at its highest. My mind was in scrambles as the thought of getting caught flooded my head. My legs, now too weak to hold me up, collapsed under me as I limped to catch my breath. The city night was just as we imagined it and then some. The cool breeze treated my fur softly as aloof late-nighters passed by. The night calmed my mind as I slept against the cold concrete sidewalk. 

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I spent my following days roaming the city as Alora had to be among the sting of devils. Her voice was becoming a faded memory in my head as I crawled the city streets looking for any trace of her. It was as if she had disappeared, and every sign of her led to a dead end. Lost between the crowds of the never sleeping city I feared that my mind was playing tricks on me. As every little thing seemed to hold a resemblance to her. 

Days turned into weeks and weeks into months. My mind was unwilling to think of the possibility of her fate, as I couldn't prepare myself for it. With dry lips and protruding bones, I decided to halt my search for her and scavenge the city streets for any remnants of food. It bewildered me to see such mountains of good food wasted. 

Sleeping under a busy bridge I found myself being enchanted by the smells of the city night. The savory aroma of the food filled my twitching nose as the usually soothing river had been raging that night. Coming up on the sidewalk to find something to once again fill my belly I felt a sort of aloneness as night goers passed me by. I had begun to get looks of simple pity but not strong enough to take me from this now lonely life. 

Never once crossing the road, except for going under the bridge pass, I feared that the speeding pounds of metal would crush me to bits. They seemed to have always been going at a speed that made it seem as if their destination would escape them every second they got closer. At one point I felt as if Alora was everywhere, every place I looked I could see her smiling face looking back at me. 

But this time, when I looked across the street at the many different faces of the city I could see her as clear as day. The night had played many tricks on me before, but I was certain it was her. Fearing I could lose her again a sense of anxiety washed over me as the road never ceased to be alone. Pacing and bumping into everyone who blocked my path my mind raced with a million little voices, each dragging me in a different direction. 

With a hasty breath and shaking paws, I took one step into the road and it was as if time itself stopped just for this very moment. Heading across their beaming lights, with every step I could hear her laughter, and I could see her dazzling big brown eyes. She seemed to once again be just a step away as a chilling sensation took over my body and a heaviness followed. The beaming car lights took my vision as I felt my body fall in what seemed like a never-ending loop. 

With an aching eye, my vision restored itself, though blurry. Looking at my newfound surroundings I was left in utter confusion as it seemed a house had built itself in the quiet cold of midnight. The house was decorated completely with nick-nacks and looked more like a child's playhouse. The kitchen was a mess, and quite too short for an adult. The living room was home to a fort and the hall's filled clumsily with art. It was small and messy yet organized in such a way that everything had its place.  

Rummaging through the halls I found myself in a strange room that unwantedly pulled me in. As I cracked it open and began peeking inside I heard a loud thud at the front of the house. Running to hide I found myself covered under a blanket as a strange girl busted in. Loud and clumsy she hurryingly picked herself up and began calling out to me. 

"Here kitty, kitty," she called, looking under every possible item a cat could squeeze itself into. She tried mimicking a cat's call which all in all was a funny sight to behold. "I won't hurt you."

Peeking at the girl from under the blanket my heart started to race as she drew closer to me. I could swear that our eyes had met a thousand times in that short while, but maybe that was all in my fuzzed-up mind. Looking around with limited vision I found a window seal that was slightly cracked not too far from here. 

Thinking the coast was clear as not even a sound could be heard from her I began to slowly make my way to the window, wondering if every creek I made would cause my heart to pound so loudly that the whole neighborhood could hear it. As the window slowly began to get closer and closer I felt a sudden hard clasp on my body. 

She had caught me, but even with a firm, the blanket had provided enough gap that I could easily slip out of. Falling to the ground I quickly darted at the window only to find she had thrown an object to block my path. Scurrying, I quickly dove between her legs and headed for the nearest room which seemed to be a small library of creepy-sounding books like how to pluck a dragon's eyes. 

But my eeriness was cut short when she loudly threw open the room door and darted straight for me. Catching me in her grasp I quickly littered her hands with fresh wounds and marks, that were just enough to make her drop me. I very much knew I was out of shape but the stamina of one child, who looked like they spent their days working, was much more than I could handle. 

Playing a weird game of cat and mouse I soon started to learn things about the girl that took more than a few glances. Like how she had dirt-filled nails, and callused hands but wore torn clothes in a house filled with precious nick-nacks. But even through all this, I still couldn't make out the girl's face as the only well-lit area in the house was the kitchen. 

Coming to an abrupt stop to let her trip over me I finally saw my chance to take the window. Of all the troubles I had been going through, Alora had crossed my mind a million times tonight. Finally feeling hopeful I jumped across the scattered furniture. MMMMARRR, pulling me back by my tail, I hit the floor so hard I could hear something break. 

“WHY'D YOU DO THAT?” I wheezed, steaming to know what was so important about my presence here, why was I, why was someone like me needed so much. In my rage of fit, I seemed to have forgotten that cats don’t talk. Standing in a state of shock before me she quickly lost her balance, collapsed and quickly hit the floor hard with a thud. A state of fear overwhelmed me as a small pool of blood began to seep from the girl's head.

Not knowing what to do I opted to leave, but not before I rushingly covered the wound with some gauze and wrap. Finally having my time for the escape I quickly pushed the oh-so-heavy window up, just enough for me to squeeze out of. My joy of the fresh nightly breeze seemed to be short once I realized the unfamiliar world that engulfed the outside. Still wishing to return to Alora I knew I faced a whole lot of new problems in a world missing her.