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I had been hitchhiking all day since this morning when the fight with my parents happened again, but this time, I just couldn’t take any more. It had been awhile since I last saw my bed, or any bed for that matter, and now, as I wandered down the dark wet streets of some random city, it’s all I could think about. I had no clue where I was, aside from the crooked green street sign that read ‘Easy St’ and a forlorn taxi on the corner of the street, long since abandoned. I looked back to the road ahead and all I could see were the sickeningly orange streetlights reflected in the water on the avenue, casting an eerie glow up on me, and everything else. It was particularly silent, for a city, except for the occasional rumbling of an engine in the distance. Funny how I could hear so many cars, yet none of them seemed to come near me, and in the rare occurrence that I might see headlights, they would soon disappear around a corner to be lost in the world once more, leaving me alone once more with the orange street light. Now as yet another car rumbled off into nothingness, all I could hear was the flickering and buzzing of the neon lights displayed in the store windows. ‘SALE’, ‘JONNI’S BBQ’, ‘QWIK-MART’; all of them glowing dimly under the wake of the streetlamps, crying out to be acknowledged but to no avail, no one would hear their plea. 1

That was how it was at home. As much as I tried, my parents couldn’t possibly understand what it was like, to have to take their criticism day after day. It wasn’t just that either. Graduation was coming up soon, and my grades were already in the toilet. Some say I was too distracted at school, or that I just didn’t care, and some would even go as far as to say I was stupid. Everyday when I got home from school, it would be nothing but questions, accusations, patronizing comments, yelling, yelling, yelling. You’ll never amount to anything. You’ll be flipping burgers for the rest of your life. Don’t end up like him. Why can’t you be more like your brothers? They can do everything right. Why can’t you? You’ll never amount to anything. Never amount to anything, never. After a while, a girl starts to believe what she hears.2

The more I contemplated home, the less my bed appealed to me. I could sleep in a box, a nice cardboard box, I thought. I laughed in spite of all this, and kept walking. As I yawned I suddenly felt a wave of dizziness wash over me. I realized at this that I hadn’t eaten all day. Another wave hit me and I tripped on a crack in the sidewalk and watched in slow motion as I hit the ground, then faded out.3

My eyes fluttered open and I blinked back the sunlight. Ughh… what happened? I rubbed my eyes and stifled a yawn as I looked around. I was sitting on a small dingy couch cushion at the opening of an alleyway leaned up against a rusty old dumpster. As I rubbed my eyes sleepily, I felt something warm and soft hitting my leg. I looked down to see a filthy skin-and-bones cat curled up next to me and having a crazy dream, or so it seemed to me, because her tail twitched wildly, occasionally batting up against my leg. Her matted fur, grayish-brown from all the dirt, covered her ribs which seemed to jut out in comparison to her stomach that looked to be the size of my ankle. I wondered how such a tiny cat could survive in the city as a stray and I lightly laid a hand on her back and gently petted her. She opened her eyes lazily and I suddenly caught glimpse into this poor creature’s soul. Her eyes shined with such clarity, so healthy for a stray, and I could almost read her life struggles within those two sky blue eyes. It seemed that this little cat knew what it was like to truly be alone. 4

I took a deep breath, holding this frail animal in my arms and I caressed her tentatively, making sure to not break her fragile little frame.5