Kath entered the Other World with a smile plastered on her face. She entered the kitchen, and to her surprise, there was no one there. There was a little note pinned to a box on the table.
She noticed that there was a lot of the food on the table to, some of which would have taken hours to prepare to make sure it was just right.
'Wow ... if only my real mother would go to so much trouble for me ...' Kath thought, smiling.
Kath opened the box and gasped. Inside was the coolest outfit she had ever seen. There was a navy blue jumper with oddly colored stars on it, black skinny jeans and blue high heeled boots. She smiled and read the note. It said:
Dearest Kathleen,
Dan and Angelo have invited you downstairs after lunch. They said they have a surprise for you. I hope you like the new outfit I made you.
Love, Mother.
-
Kath left the house, very full from eating and wearing the outfit the Other Mother had made. No one had ever spoiled her like this before ... maybe this world really was better.
She made her way off the porch and she heard a familiar meowing. She looked up and saw the Cat on the roof.
"Huh ... Lukas has got a cat like you at home ... so you must be the Other Cat" You said
The Cat jumped down onto the railing and glared at her.
"No. I am not the Other Anything. I am me." He said with a thick German accent.
She had to admit, it caught you off guard. Then she noticed he didn't have button eyes.
"But ... if you're the same cat, how can you talk?" She asked, baffled.
He glared at Kathleen.
"I just can." He said.
"But ... cats don't talk from my world." Kath said, confused.
"No? Well ... clearly, you're the expert. After all, I am just fickle!" He said, walking away.
"Wait! Come back! I'm sorry I said that!" Kath said, feeling guilty.
The Cat stopped and she ran up to it.
"How did you get here?" She asked.
"I've been checking out this world for a while. But it's difficult, because you see ... She hates cats." He said.
"The Other Mother hates cats?!" Kath said, surprised.
"Not like any mother I've ever known." He chuckled.
Once she thought about it, she didn't know a mother who hated cats either. But then again, the Other Mother could have a phobia of them ... or she might be allergic.
"What do you mean?" Kath asked, quite interested.
"You probably think this is all a dream come true, but you're wrong. The Other Earl told me." He said.
"What? But, he can't talk." You said, confused.
"Actually ... yes, he can." He said, glaring at Kathleen.
She gasped. She wished she had brought something sharp to cut the stitches that held his lips together ...
"Oh ... I never realized ..." Kathleen muttered to herself.
"No ... you just don't think." He said, walking away.
Kathleen stood there, stunned. The Other Earl could speak after all! ... The guilt rose up from the pit of her stomach ... She was snapped out of her thoughts by someone tapping her shoulder.
She looked around and saw the Other Earl standing there with a smile on his face. Now she really regretted not taking something sharp.
"H-hello." She breathed, blushing.
He looked very happy to see her ... but she could see a kind of ... sadness. He led Kathleen to the apartment downstairs and opened the door for her and let her go in first.
'Such a gentleman ...' She thought, smiling.
He followed Kath in ... and to her surprise, it was like a theater! There were only two empty seats ... the rest were filled with people with no faces, which was a little scary.
Kath and the Other Earl took a seat ... and as if on cue, the show began. The Other Dan came out first, singing Living la Vida Loca by Ricky Martin, which made Kath laugh.
What made it funnier was that he was wearing his country's football kit. When he finished, he rushed off the stage and the Other Angelo came on wearing a really skimpy outfit and started singing Bad Romance by Lady Gaga, which made Kath sink into her seat, as well as laugh a little.
Once he finished singing, he rushed off the stage. Suddenly, a voice blared from a speaker began to speak.
"Ladies and Gentleman, for one night ... and one night only ... James Tuvera!" It said.
Suddenly, there was a lot of cheering and clapping as an English man took to the stage, dressed up like a rock star, which looked a little weird. Of course, he wasn't the real one, because he had black button eyes. He smiled.
"Greetings from the Awesome Me! Have you enjoyed the The Drunkards Trio's show tonight, folks?" He asked.
There was more cheering and clapping and he grinned.
"Well, it's about to get better!" He said.
He sang Walk This Way by Aerosmith ... and Kath looked at the Other Earl. He seemed troubled by something ...
-
After the show was finished, the Other Earl led Kath out of the apartment and she hugged him.
"Oh, that was wonderful!" Kath exclaimed, smiling.
Kathleen saw the Other Mother standing on the porch, smiling. The Other Father, however, looked uneasy.
"Did you enjoy yourself, dear?" She asked.
Kath nodded.
"In the words of James, it was Awesome!" Kathleen said, laughing.
Kath really was genuinely happy ... Kath walked over to the Other Parents and the Other Earl joined her.
"Well ... time to say goodnight to your lover, dear." The Other Mother said.
She nodded and looked at the Other Earl and smiled.
"I had fun, Other Earl ... I ... I will never forget this." Kath said, blushing
He looked up at her with a pleading look on his face. He was clearly trying to tell Kathleen something.
"Goodnight." Kath said, as the Other Mother led her inside.
She closed the door behind Kathleen.
"You know, you can stay here forever ... if you want.." She said, leading Kathleen into the dining room.
Kathleen had never really thought about staying but it didn't sound like a bad idea.
"We'll sing, play games and Mother will cook you your favorite meals!" The Other Father said, taking a seat.
"There's just one thing you have to do, sweetie." the Other Mother said, doing the same.
"What's that?" Kathleen asked, curious.
Kathleen sat down and the Other Mother gave her a small box.
"For you ... our little doll." She said, smiling.
Excited, Kathleen opened the box. Inside were two buttons, the same color as her eyes, thread and a sewing needle. Her smile fell and she looked at them.
The Other Mother was smiling at her and the Other Father looked like he was being tortured ... it was obvious he didn't agree with this.
She knew what the Other Mother wanted now ... she wanted Kathleen to exchange her eyes for the buttons!
