I hesitated and dialed the number. One ring. Marrisa and Collin sat across from me, sitting on unpacked moving boxes, waiting for a response from the phone call I was making. Two rings. In that familiar raspy voice came a response. "Hello?" I sighed, and rolled my eyes. Marrisa and Collin, nodding in empathy. "Hi, mom. You called?" There was an awkward pause on the other end of the phone. I breathed evenly, impatiently waiting for a response. Still, silence filled the air. My mother began to talk. Well, if you could count it as talking. It was more like mumbling and blank stutters. Every word that came from her mouth, just came out in an unexplainable jumble. Everything except, "Misty's dying." It took a few seconds for me to process in my mind what those words truly meant. Marissa and Collin looked at me, worry crossing their faces. My mother's voice was cracking from broken sobs on the other end of the phone. Something inside me, clenched tightly and my eyes started to burn. Seconds ticked by, and slowly by each tick, my vision became blurred with hot tears. Marrisa mouthed, "What's wrong?" And Collin crossed the room to stare out the window. I looked back at Marrisa, trying see her clearly. My mind, racing for the right words. When I opened my mouth, I couldn't speak. I could feel her arms wrap around me in a tight embrace. My mom started to speak, hearing my voice struggle for the air to talk. "She doesn't have long, Kaymie. I took her to the animal hospital yesterday and she won't make it much longer." She paused briefly to let out another broken sob before continuing. "Do you want to see her before she goes, or do you just want to stay there and let it happen before you come home to visit?" I blinked, my tears falling and clinging to my shirt. I breathed in, feeling pain swell in my throat from the tears. "I'll be there as soon as I can." Before waiting for the response, I clicked the red end button and hung up. Clenching the cell phone in my hand, my sister patted my back and held me in a long hug. I sighed and closed my eyes for a minute. After Marrisa let go of me, I told her. "Misty's dying...she doesn't have long and she could go at any minute." She nodded empathetically, and tightened her hand around mine. I knew she understood how I felt about Misty. She stood up and slipped on her sandals. "We'll leave now." Collin walked back over from across the room, grabbing my two suitcases. I handed Marissa her cell phone, and picked up my laptop bag. Marissa placed her cell phone in her purse and grabbed my duffel bag from the floor, all of us leaving the apartment and walking to their old black, worn out car. After Collin placed the suitcases in the back seat of the car, he shut the door, patted my shoulder and walked back into the apartment. Marissa was already in the driver's seat after placing my duffel bag in the back seat, also. I climbed into the passenger's seat next to her, with the laptop case on my lap, and shut the car door. Time seemed to blur, as I sat there crying, and before I knew it, the half hour drive was over, and we were in the drive way of my mother's gray condo, back in my hometown. Marissa got out of the car and took my bags out from the back seat. I stared at the pavement, still crying, and picked up my duffel bag and a suitcase. Walking up the few stairs to the front door, we walked in the house and put my stuff down. My mom glanced over at me from the couch about three feet away from the doorway I was standing in. She was crying and cradling Misty in her arms. I walked over to her, as she carefully placed Misty in arms. I sat down on the couch, Marrisa sitting next to me, and I cried at the sight of my poor cat. She was barely breathing, her eyes were squinted, and seeped a little far back than usual in her eye sockets. Her fur was clinging around her bones. She wheezed and tried to get up and look at me. I cried, kissing the top of her head. Tears, pouring down like the rain storm that now began outside. I had her for almost my entire life. She was twelve years old now, and I, fourteen. I love her so much and it killed me to see her, feeling her dying in my arms. I looked at my sister, who was now crying. My mom stuttered and started to speak. "I called Cara, she'll be here soon." I nodded, and looked back down at Misty. I lightly stroked her ears, crying, wishing I could have saved her. Cara arrived four, long minutes later. When she walked in, she looked at me and down at Misty and covered her mouth and shook her head. "Are you going to be okay, sis?" Was all Cara could manage to say. I shook my head no, stroking Misty's back lightly. I thought of all the times I was upset at Misty and ignored her when she wanted my attention. She let out a soft meow and then groaned in pain. I blinked free of my tears for a few minutes and looked at everyone's eyes staring back at me. My voice cracked, "Call the animal hospital, she needs to be euthanized." The eye's of my sisters and mother, exchanged glances at each other before meeting back with my pleading eyes. "Are you sure?" Cara asked, blinking away the tears collecting in her eyes. Misty groaned, and I nodded. My mom left the room and called the animal hospital. In a few minutes, she returned to the living room where we were all seated, Misty still being cradled in my arms. My mom looked at me, "Let's go, we're leaving." I wrapped Misty in a towel and carried her outside with me as I got into the back seat of my mother's car. Marrisa got in the back seat with me, and Cara got in the passenger seat next to my mom. We left. I preserved every moment I had with Misty in that car, knowing I would never see her again after this. In less than ten minutes, the car was parked in the animal hospital's parking lot, and everyone was out of the car approaching the building, with sorrow following close behind, too close. Once we got through the doors, a nurse greeted us and shook her head sadly, at the sight of Misty in my arms. She escorted us all in a room and asked if we were all going to present while the euthanization begins. Marrisa looked at me, her voice trembling, "Kaymie, you don't have to go through this alone. You can cry, you don't need to be strong right now." In the car, I stopped crying and just accepted everything, but the crying couldn't be prevented for very long. Cara kissed the top of my head, "Do you want us to be here with you?" I shook my head, "She was there for me since the beginning and I'll be here for her until the end." The nurse asked if I needed more time. I shook my head once more. There's no way I'm putting Misty through more pain. She carefully took Misty from my arms and told us she'd be back soon. Cara, Marissa, and my mother hugged me, told me they loved me and left the room. About two minutes later, the nurse returned with Misty, an IV sticking from the right paw of Misty. I clenched my teeth as the burning from tears began in my throat again. She rested Misty, gently on a metal table in front of me. I bursted out in sobs, "Is there any way you can save her." The nurse looked down at the white tiled floor and shook her head. "I'm afraid it's too late for her now." I nodded painfully and asked, "How much longer?" The nurse pointed on the IV in Misty's paw. "Once I begin the injection, it will be over after the syringe is empty. I shook my head, crying and stood there for a minute before I nodded for the nurse to begin. I told Misty how much I loved her, and how much I'll miss her, as I stroked her fur, counting down her heartbeats. Her left paw without the syringe, gently brushed over the top of my palm back and forth. I counted the seconds left before the liquid in the syringe would be emptied into Misty. I kissed the top of her head one last time as few tears escaped and rolled down my cheeks. When I felt her heartbeat stop altogether, I fell to my knees and screamed, with the tears never stopping. One moment in my imaginary perfect, changed my life forever. "Goodbye, Misty...."
July 19th, 1998 - June 12th, 2010
R.I.P. Misty..my best friend..and beloved cat..you're gone, but not forgotten, and always in my heart..I miss you and love you dearly..thank you for all those nights when you were all I had..farewell, Misty..
