The morning after Zoe's blue dreams amidst the puffy garbage bags, the frigid air stunk like diesel fuel and dead fish, the skies were beige and broken by naked limbs and the new lights being strewn up around knuckley brown trunks of large and tiny Maples blinked in festive twirls.
Shaking off the sleep she made her way down to a doughnut shop near Quincy and 33rd, just off the Central Parkway. She brought cravings for chocolate doughnut, jelly filled, strong black coffee. The man she left had spoiled her for sure.
She thought to herself, Of Course it's ridiculous my needing my menu of choices. But I'm not going to blame myself. He was a generous soul, indeed. I remember times when he would really shoot the works. We'd have prime rib, he'd fill my little dish with Cabernet Sauvignon, let me sit by the table. He would not only ask, but learned what I liked on pizza and afterword always went half-zees on toppings.
She went on ruminating as she kept tucked away under park benches or keeping close to the alleyways.
Yes, I am a cat who knows what she wants for breakfast from Kelly's Doughnuts. And the same idiot who lavished me, unconsciously perhaps setting up a sense of expectation of the same, day after day, after month after year… Oh, the cookies we would make!… Yes all of that… For which I was so appreciative for so long, to have all of that suddenly taken away… Only to watch him curl up into a selfish, apathetic ball of insensitivity and neglect… I did what I had to do!
And now it's starting to rain, I am freezing my mitts off and I want some damned doughnuts!
It was just then that Zoe's journey would take its first major shift.
At last the gleaming lights at Kelly's were in view. Without seeming too desperate Zoe made her way for the front door. It was unfortunately very close to rush-hour for lunch but she decided to dart for the door anyway amidst many wet galoshes and pointy umbrellas.
Immediately she felt a kick to her midsection and the odd sense of weightless flight. Oh my God what's happening!… The world around her spun in slow motion.… And then… Biff! Splash!
She almost landed in the street and toppled over into a puddle which soaked her from nose to tail tip. She shook off the water completely startled and had half a mind to find the person who had just kicked her and fly straight at him with the claws out and sink her teeth into his jugular's until the SOB fell to the floor, all blue in the face and utterly lifeless – paid in full for his sickening offense!
As I live and breathe I will have this man's blood for my breakfast!
Nevertheless, the owner shouted: Get the Hell Out Of Here… you damn cat!…
Zoe scampered away to the nearest alley and sat attending to her bloodied lip. She would sit here and try to recover before simply moving out again into the gale.
But again, as though gravity itself was beginning to lose its hold – her entire weight vaulted straight up into the air. First she tangled and tried to twist against the upward movement. Unexpectedly, she felt a hand just below her chin that was soft, the energy was gentle. Soft hands were stroking her chin and her head at the back of her ears. She was held in someone's arms and instinctively closed her eyes and began to purr and to soak in the warmth of the person's body.
It made it clear to her how frozen she was straight through her entire system. As the petting continued, the person walked over and took shelter in their Honda CRV which smelled like cotton candy and coconut butter.
What on earth was about to happen next? Zoe had to work to care at all about that question.
We're gonna take you home sweetie! Everything is going to be okay.
Warmth radiated through the woman's hands. Her nails were well trimmed leaving each of the tips perfectly rounded as though cultivated for massage. Zoe's sense of surprise, of wonder and gratitude was now paired with the heat enveloping every inch of her chocolatey fur covered being. This was nice. It was happening, it was better than doughnuts.
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