The clock struck 2:00pm and I hastily clocked out, snatching my green coat and car keys to finally leave work. I had been at work since 8:00am and have patiently (okay, not so patiently) been counting down the minutes. Today was the day. I shuffled through my keys to find the right one and shoved it into the ignition to start my car. I hurried home as safely and legally as a I possibly could.
Once I got home, I immediately changed from my blue Petco work shirt to a random black t-shirt that conveniently was on top of the pile in my laundry basket of clean clothes. My boyfriend, Andrew's mom knocked on the door and I opened it.
"Did you want to get this set up now? I know you want to get there as soon as possible, but whoever you bring home should come home to a set-up place", she said as she handed me a gray litter box with clean litter and a blue litter scooper.
She was right and I told her that along with, "I'm just so excited. I'm a bit of a mess because of it!"
Andrew's mom laughed, "It's okay, I totally get it! You're getting a new fur-baby".
As I put down the litter box in the corner of the room, I said, "I just hope that I find one that I can make a connection with. I don't just want to bring home some random kitten, you know?".
She nodded her head and said, "Well, let's go and look! Andrew is in the car ready to go. The sooner the better, too because who knows how many people are there to adopt".
She definitely had a point, especially because there was an event for Superbowl weekend that waived all the adoption fees of cats and kittens.
We got in the car and made small talk as we drove the excruciating 30 minutes from King of Prussia to the Brandywine SPCA in West Chester. When we finally got there, I ripped off my seatbelt and got out of the car. We walked inside the shelter and were greeted by the echoes of dogs barking from inside their kennels. We went down the hallway to the right to go inside the cat section of the shelter. It was quite busy and there was a number of people strolling through interacting with the cats. I put hand sanitizer on my hands and proceeded to join them. I walked through each walkway looking and interacting with cats and kittens of all ages, sizes, and colors.
I did not seem to be making any connections with any of the cats. Some of the adult cats glared at me as if my presence disturbed them and some kittens were too busy playing with each other to notice my existence. I wasn't upset because cats will do whatever they want, but I felt like none of them were meant for me. Andrew joined me after walking around by himself for a bit.
He grabbed my hand and asked, "Did you find any you like?"
I sighed and told him, "I like them all of course, but I just feel like none of them are good fits for us. I am sure other people will give them fantastic homes, but I don't know if any of the ones here are meant for us".
Andrew squeezed my hand and said, "I admire that, though. It wouldn't be that ideal for us or the cat if you chose a random one and brought it home. Especially because it might not get along with my mom's cat".
I nodded and we walked over to a section that had many black and tabby kittens. We watched them all interact with each other until one black kitten woke up from a nap. He stretched and yawned, making a tiny meow. He flicked his ear when he noticed us watching him and walked over to the front of the cage. He started to purr and rub against the bars of the cage. "Well, what about that one?", Andrew said as he gestured to the purring black kitten.
I put my fingers through the bars and started to pet the kitten and his purring got louder. I started to grin and glanced at Andrew as he asked a volunteer if we could see him. The volunteer got his keys out and opened the cage door.
He picked the kitten up and handed him over to Andrew, saying, "His name is Randy". He held the kitten on it's back, the head in one hand and the body in the other. The kitten still continued to purr like a motorboat. I took the kitten from Andrew and held him against my chest. The kitten reached its paw up and touched my cheek.
Andrew's mom walked over and said, "It looks like you found one".
My smile beamed at her as I held onto the purring kitten. The volunteer then said, "I'll go get the adoption form for you".
He came back with the necessary paperwork and a cardboard cat carrier. I handed the kitten over to the volunteer who put him in the cat carrier and gave me the adoption paperwork. The volunteer said, "Just fill that out and Randy will be waiting at the front desk for you". I filled the paperwork out as quickly as I could with standard information such as my place of residence and promising I would care for my new pet. I then walked to the front desk with Andrew and his mom to turn the paperwork in.
The woman at the front desk scanned the paperwork and my driver's license then explained to me the agreements I am making by adopting from the SPCA. She also gave me a document that showed which vaccines he currently had and which/ when his future vaccines were.
As I was getting ready to leave, a volunteer walked up to me with a brown paper bag, "Here are some of Randy's things to help him feel comfortable in his new home".
Andrew grabbed the bag for me so I could carry the cat carrier and the documents. I told the lady at the front desk thank you and walked out of the shelter to the car. Andrew opened my door for me, and I sat in the backseat with the cat carrier on my lap. The kitten started to meow and poke his paws through the holes of the carrier. As we drove down the highway 202, I let the meowing kitten out of the box and he immediately leaned against me. I moved the cat carrier to the side, and he curled up on my lap to fall asleep.
"So, are you going to keep the name Randy?", Andrew's mom asked me.
I laughed and shook my head, "Definitely not. He is not a Randy".
Andrew and his mom laughed as well. Andrew then asked, "What are you going to name him then?".
I shrugged, "I'm not really sure, I want to get to know him a little bit better before I decide".
We finally got home around 6:00pm due to rush hour traffic. I put the black kitten back into the cat carrier and got out of the car. I carried him up to my room as Andrew followed and let him back out of the carrier after I shut the door. The shelter told us that he should be quarantined as he gets used to the germs of our home and stay separated from the other cat. I filled his food bowl with the food sample that came in his care package of the brown paper bag. The kitten was purring nonstop and Andrew remarked, "I think he likes it here!" We spent the next few hours playing with the kitten and getting to know him.
By 10:00pm I was ready for bed and so was the kitten. I laid in bed and turned on Netflix on the television screen. While I was scrolling through different movies to watch, the kitten climbed up onto my chest and curled himself up. I started to scratch his head gently as he purred loudly. Andrew laid down next to me and kissed the kitten on his head.
"So, did you figure out a name for him yet?", Andrew asked me.
I shrugged and said, "I have a few ideas. Originally, I wanted to name him something Halloween-themed because he's a black cat, but I find myself thinking that they are not good names for him for the most part".
Andrew asked me for the ideas I had such as, "Fish", "Haku", "Petri", "Howl" and others but we both agreed none of them really fit.
"What about Bates?", I asked, "I don't know I thought it could be cute because it fits the whole black cat theme but isn't too obvious. Also, it alludes to how you used to work for Bates Motel".
Andrew smiled at me and said, "That's actually good. Especially because his shelter name was Randy and the founder of the Bates Motel is named Randy Bates".
I laughed, "I guess it's official now".
It was a long day for all of us, but it was the beginning of a very long life with Bates.
