Most days when Melissa McCall got home all she wanted to do was sleep. Being a nurse, especially a nurse in an ER, meant long hours where she was almost constantly on her feet and moving and it was frankly exhausting all on its own. Too bad Melissa also had the job of being a single parent on top of everything else.
Melissa sighed as she heard the front door open and Scott called out "Mom?" It wasn't Scott himself but his tone, a cautious but hopeful pleading tone that meant he was going to ask her for something. And she knew that she was probably going to have to be the bad guy and tell him no.
"I'm in the living room, baby," she replied. When Scott entered the room, she sighed again.
Scott, her adorable little 8-year-old, was holding onto a very unhappy looking cat. Even now the cat was squirming in his grasp in an attempt to break free and Melissa could see a scratch running down one of Scott's arms and another on his leg.
"Scott—," she began, but before she could get further Scott cut her off.
"She was all alone and I think she's homeless and can we keep her please please please?" He looked up at her, pleading with his big brown eyes and it was almost all Melissa could do to not give in.
"Scott, honey, we've talked about this. Pets are expensive; they're a lot of work. We don't have the money right now for a pet and I don't have enough time to take care of one," Melissa said, repeating the same lines she had to say every time Scott brought home a stray animal.
"I can take care of her," Scott muttered. It wasn't that Scott didn't know the arguments, but he was just so helplessly optimistic and wanted a pet so much that he always thought he could convince her to keep what he brought home.
"I know, honey. I know you would take care of her, but pets need food and shots and vet visits. And we just can't afford it."
"But…" Scott hugged the cat closer. It was now making a low, steady groaning sound and looked like it was getting ready start scratching and biting again and Melissa knew she had to at least get Scott to put the thing down before that happened.
Melissa ran a hand through her hair and sighed again. "Okay Scott, I'll make you a deal. We can't keep the cat, but you can take care of it until the weekend and then we're taking it to the animal shelter, alright?"
Any disappointment Scott might have had at not being able to keep the cat permanently was hidden under his excitement at getting to keep the cat for a few days. He set the cat on the ground (where it immediately darted off beneath the coffee table to glare at them) and launched himself at his mother, squeezing her in a tight hug while telling her, "thank you thank you thank you".
"I'm going to go find her something to eat!" Scott said with a huge smile. He ran off into the kitchen and Melissa could hear him opening and closing cabinets trying to find something the cat would eat.
She continued to rest on the couch. In a minute she'd need to get up and put some disinfectant on the cuts Scott got from the cat and make dinner and make sure Scott did his homework. She was still exhausted, but at least Scott would be happy taking care of the cat, even if it was only for a few days.