Papa shook him awake from his small nap. Matthew yawned and rubbed his eyes, glancing at the wide smile on Papa's face. The Frenchman gave his son a wink.
"I got a surprise for you. Let's take a car trip."
Matthew blinked at the suddenness of this situation. He turned to note that Alfred was still fast asleep. His brother had fought Daddy tooth and nail about the nap but in the end, Daddy had won. Now all that energy Alfred used with fighting him made his brother extra tired.
"Don't worry about Alfred. We'll be right back."
"Where are we going?" Matthew asked.
"It's a surprise."
A little while later, they were driving in the car. Matthew couldn't see out the window since he was so tiny but he could feel that they stopped somewhere. Francis helped him out of the car and carried him toward a large brick building.
Matthew was startled to hear a chorus of barking coming from somewhere in the building. Hope rose in his chest. Was this what he thought it was?
The woman on the counter glanced at them behind purple rimmed glasses.
"How can I help you?"
"We want to see the cats," Francis stated.
Matthew nearly burst in glee, which wasn't like him. He was finally going to get to see his friend again!
But what if he wasn't here? Matthew's heart sank at the thought. What if the white kitten wasn't here? The woman led them to a place filled with cages. Cats were everywhere, some sleeping, some playing with toys provided for them, and some just glancing at them curiously.
Matthew saw some big cats and small cats, black cats and brown, talkative cats and quiet ones too. But he couldn't spot that one special cat. The woman was still there. Matthew dared to do something he rather not do. Ask for help. He never liked inconveniencing someone by seeking aid, and yet Matthew was too afraid he wouldn't be able to find his cat to care.
"Um…ma'am?"
The woman looked at him curiously.
"Are there any white kittens?"
Francis looked worried. Now he knew that Mattew wasn't just looking for any cat. He wanted that one special cat.
"There is one we found a few weeks ago. He's over there."
She pointed to a cage all the way to the wall. Francis took Matthew over and the boy closed his eyes to brace himself. He didn't think he could handle this kind of disappointment if it was a different cat.
He steadily opened his eyes. And he was greeted with the sight of his old friend. The cat even seemed to recognize him, since it got out of its small cat bed and meowed hello. Matthew jumped for joy.
"Can we get him Papa? Can we can we can we?"
Francis had to hold on tight to keep his son from falling.
"Calm down, Matthew. I have never seen you act so much like Alfred. Of course we'll take him, if that's what you want."
"Yeah!" Matthew didn't care how much he sounded like Alfred just then.
