Caramel
By Lakshna, age 16, Oman
I was out for a walk. I went to this hilltop I haven't been to for a while. I was happily walking atop the hill enjoying the wind when a sudden 'meow' stopped me. Why should this 'meow' stop me?
1. It's the first living sound I've EVER heard on this hilltop.
2. It's a cat.
No, I'm not scared of cats. On the contrary, I like them fourth best. Cats are preceded by horses, which are preceded by monkeys, which are preceded by dogs. And I'm not kidding about it being the first living sound I've ever heard on that hill. I used to camp out there and the only sounds I ever heard there were my own voice (when I was on the phone - I even talk to myself sometimes), the sound of the winds, and the occasional car.
So anyway, I turned around and saw this beautiful cat. If I were to name the cat, I'd name it Orange. Or maybe Simba. Or maybe Orimba. It had the greenest eyes I've ever seen on a cat. And I had a feeling of deja vu.
The cat approached me. Every other cat I've had contact with always went for rubbing itself against my legs. This cat went for my shoes. I was very happily stunned. Happy because the cat was at once under my care. No, not as a pet. My mom would never allow that. It was a stray that camped at my place for a week and then disappeared. The cat, which at the time I called Caramel, loved my shoes. I spent a lot of time with Caramel, and she with my shoes. (I'm merely assuming it's a she.) She particularly loved the laces. So this cat which I met on the hilltop started playing with the laces of my shoes. Then she proceeded to rub herself against me. Her second favourite game was to circle me and jump over my feet. After every few turns she'd rub her face against my leg, purr, and proceed with her circling and jumping.
Sweet cat. When it was time to go home, I said bye and walked off. She followed me. If I stopped, she stopped. If I ran, she ran behind me. I felt badly because I knew she was going to follow me home, and then I'd have to turn her out because of a 'no pets' rule at home. :(
I went down the hill and turned around to shoo Caramel away. She just stood there and listened to me turn her away. It broke my heart to see her. Her head drooped slightly and she turned around, walked a little away, turned back to face me, and sat down. Just like that. I began walking back home. After some steps, I stopped to look at her again. She was where she was, looking at me. I couldn't take it anymore so I walked back to her. I stopped a little away and she came to me. I walked with her a little and talked to her and then, when it was time to go, I let her rub herself against me some more. Then, when she was occupied with something on the ground, I silently left.
I heard her meowing. I said a soft goodbye to the wind and hoped it reached her.
