Adventures in Cat-Napping

Chapter 1.

"Ali Anwar's cat is missing,"
Nora paused her search from beneath the shelf, resting her arm that had been failing to locate the can of dog food she'd dropped almost four minutes ago.

"Huh?" She remained on the ground, once more swiping her arm and undoubtedly collecting the dust that coated the floor as she grunted her frustration. "Sorry, give me a second, Jerry; I just need to get this...."

She pushed herself off the floor, ignoring his sigh as she scooted closer to the shelf, using her leg, which was much longer than her arms, to kick the can. "It's...right...there," She spoke tensely, before finally feeling the metal against her bare ankle, "got it!" Using force, she swooped her leg, and the dog food skittered through to the other side, permitting Nora to exhale in relief. It was only when she heard her employer's throat-clearing did she remember he was waiting for her and pivoted to find the elder man frowning and his arms crossed.

"So," Nora asked, "What did you say... a cat is missing?" She asked, waiting for further explanation as the beefy, sweaty man tucked his hands into his pockets and raised a crooked brow.

"I was hoping you'd be able to explain...." He expressed as she pursed her lips and picked up the can, placing it on the table as she leaned against the stool. "Ali Anwar's cat is missing," Jerry repeated.

"I erm, I don't...." Nora's mind was utterly blank, and it was doing nothing to appease the terrifying expression donning Jerry's face. "Who is Ali Anwar?" She added, and the redness in his cheeks bloomed.

Nora could imagine the smoke wanting to force itself from his ears. With his hanging double chins, thinning grey hair, and the too-tight shirt he wore, Nora forced herself to bite her lips, praying her giggle wouldn't escape. She was supposed to be serious.

"Ali Anwar is a loyal customer who has dropped his cat off every Friday, at 4 pm for the last eight months. According to the log, that is your late evening shift, and you were the one to have admitted the feline to our hotel,"

"Was it a ginger tabby?" She guessed, and the booming voice announcing that she was wrong only fuelled her humour.
Once more, Nora had to remind herself to maintain her poker face as Jerry crossed and then uncrossed his arms, shuffling his posture to maintain dominance.

"It was a Ragdoll!" He fumed. Nora's memory remained blank, and her emotionless expression told the manager all he needed to know. "You're fired," he decided, "effective immediately, I want your apron and lanyard...."

"I'm what?" Nora questioned, her jaw lowering in shock. She'd only had the job for six months; firing her for what could have only been a mistake was indeed against company policy.

"Fired," Jerry repeated, "now don't force me to ask you to leave again; get out of my shop!"

Nora scoffed as she unravelled the apron around her hips and threw it against the table in the act of defiance. Her lanyard made a clattering sound as it landed beside the cloth, and for a moment, she glared before forcing herself out of the small room.

Fired! How could he fire her?

Her question was quickly answered. Nora wasn't exactly enthusiastic about her job as a salesperson for the local pet shop. For one, the animal food had an awful smell that often lingered despite her nightly bathing ritual, and secondly, she wasn't particularly fond of animals. The only reason she'd taken the job in the first place was that she had been looking, and well, it was easy to lie and state that pets were the reason she lived and the sole source of her joy.

The reality was far from the truth, and Nora had killed almost every goldfish she'd ever had. It wasn't intentional, of course, but the low survival rate was indeed an indication that she and pets didn't go well together. As she'd mentally appeased, the only reason she'd stuck around so long was that she needed the money. It wasn't easy up-keeping her lifestyle, and someone needed to pay for her daily hot chocolates, ready-salted packets of crisps, and love of the weird and wonderful.