Little Black Cat

~Prologue~

"I'm sorry this relationship just isn't gonna work. I mean, you're a cat, I'm black.."

I sighed as the small, drenched kitty meowed and lovingly rubbed against my leg.

"Come on don't make this harder than it has to be. I can't take you home with me. I live in an apartment in the arts district and they have a strict policy about animals.No pets allowed.", I whined as I adjusted the umbrella above me, making sure to keep the art bag that hung on my shoulder from getting wet.

It was raining harder than ever before. The sound of the water drops hitting the pavement were loud and made it hard to hear the things around me such as the green eyed black cat that was now crawling up my leg.

"No no no!"
I balanced the handle of the umbrella between my head and my shoulder and then bent down to brush him off me.

"I really can't do this,baby. You'll get me kicked out and then I'll have no where to go."

I pet his head a couple of times before making my way to my feet and walking away. It pained me to leave him behind but I've already lost my home once, I cant afford to do it again.

My strides were long and quick, but a slight hesitation resided within them. My heart sank as my mind wondered back to the cat I had just left behind.Would he really be okay? I mean, if he's survived this long on the streets than he can survive one cold rainy night right. Besides, he's looks like a fully grown cat. He should know by now not to do anything stupid like run out into oncoming traffic right?

I froze in my steps and glanced up at the upcoming  intersection and then back at the cat who was surprisingly in the same position as when I left him. My heart pinged with worry. What if he was stupid enough to go running through traffic? Or what if a random car decides to be careless and ends up jumping the curb and killing him?  Out of all the intersections in Downtown, Dallas this one was by far the most dangerous, and I wouldnt be able to live with myself knowing that I just left him there to potentially get hit and die.

Damn..

With a heavy sigh I quickly spun on my heel and made my way back to the soaked feline. He sat just as I had left him. His emerald green eyes almost seemed to glow as they stared into mines.

"Fine",I grumbled, "I'll help you out but I swear if you get me kicked out of my home i will personally skin you and make you into a new rug. Deal?"

"Meow." the cat answered, as if it could understand me.

"Good."

I reached in my art bag and pulled out a small, tan, fuzzy blanket and wrapped it around him. I always pack it just in case I'm out somewhere and it suddenly gets cold. If I'm honest I'd hate to get it wet, especially since it was a present from my deceased grandma, but I don't think i can bare another second of this poor kitty shivering and sneezing.

Trying to scoop him up in my arm whilst keeping the umbrella above my head was indeed a struggle, but once I knew I had him tight in my grasp, I began to run home. We passed by my favorite art stores as we we made our way down the strip . All of them were sadly closed. It was too bad..I was hoping I could make it today before closing time  but ofcourse I had to get distracted  and save a silly cat.

I sighed and kept running. The loudness of the bottom of my shoes hitting the wet pavement matched that of the falling rain. I ran faster and faster, my home now visible in the distance. I once again picked up the pace, eager to get inside where it was nice and warm and dry.

I could see it now. The intersection was a mere yard away. I looked up to make sure that the light was red. I just wanted to zoom through in one go. Having to stand in the rain with a half dead animal would be a pain. Thankfully, the light was red and the roads were empty. This was my chance! 

I was about halfway across when my ankle decided that it was done being an ankle. Silent curses left my mouth as I felt my body violently launch forward. I tried everything in my power to keep from falling but it was no use; the fresh rainfall had mixed with the oil on the streets and made it damn near impossible. So instead of trying to save myself, I let go of the umbrella and wrapped both of my arms around the poor kitty. I winced as my hip collided with the hard, rocky pavement.

"FUCK!" I yelled. Pain shot up through my right hip when I tried to stand.

"Well you've done it now, Sasha.." I said to myself. I looked down the street to the left and down the street to the right. There wasnt a soul in sight that could help me.  A stressed sigh left my lungs when realization hit.  I'd have to help myself out of this.

Story of my life.

I gently placed the kitty in front of me on the pavement, making sure to keep the blanket tightly wrapped around his body.
I heard him give out a soft 'meow' then saw him peek his little black head out from the crevasses of the fluff.

"Sorry kitty give me a second. I'm trying my best to get out the middle of the street."

In one swift movement I was off the ground and back on my feet. I turned around and saw that the contents in my art bag had been scattered everywhere. My tablet, pens, pencils, sketchbooks all out on the ground soaked by the rain.

"Damn can this day get any worse."

And as if on que, that's when I saw it. Head lights. They shone brightly in the dark evening sky, illuminating the raindrops that fell in front of them.

"Oh shit."

I scrambled to the ground, trying my best to ignore the pain the shot through my hip.

"Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit." I chanted.

I could see the headlights getting brighter and heard the engine grow closer. I knew that the smartest thing to do would be to grab my cat, get out of the way and let my things get run over. But I couldn't. There was no way I could replace all those things. I had no job and no money.. My art was the only thing that paid rent and it barely did that. I'd rather risk dying here than die out on the street because I couldnt pay rent or for food.

So I sucked up my fear and packed the leather bag as fast as I could. 

I could now hear the car horn through they heavy patterned rain.

'I'll make it', I thought to myself.

I packed faster and faster. Soaked books, pens, pads all stuffed vigorously back into my art bag.

I could feel the car grow closer and closer until it was a mere 15 feet away.

Luckily, at that moment, I had cleared the crosswalk of all my thing. Now I could concentrate on surviving. An adrenaline rush surged throughout me, my heart began to beat faster and faster by the second.

My initial thought was to be able to dodge the car. But as I said before, my body hated me. Excruciating pain shot through my right hip causing me to fall back to the ground. A pound curse left my lips. There was no way I was gonna make it. The headlights were like eyes as they stared into my soul. They became brighter and brighter and seemed to hypnotize me as they got closer.

I glanced over at the kitty I left a few yards away. The blanket was there but he was gone. Well at least someone will survive the night.
The glowing lights brought my attention back to them. My heartbeat finally calmed as I accepted my fate.

I knew this was the end.

I closed my eyes and waited for impact.