Chapter V
"May I help you, kittycat?" asked the teenage girl.
Garfield hesitated for a time, thinking: It's Tuesday, not Monday, and yet my worst nightmare is coming true! After said pregnant pause, he began: "I normally wouldn't be here."
"How so?" replied the girl.
"The thing is" —here Garfield paused again before lowering his voice to a whisper— "I don't know which areas you serve, but I'm not from town. In fact, I'm not from this area, period!"
"You needn't feel alone in that regard," answered the girl, "as I used to live elsewhere myself. Where are you from, and what is your name?"
"I hate to say this, but I'm from Muncie, Indiana. My name is Garfield, and I live with my owner Jon Arbuckle and his beagle Odie."
"That is far! How did you end up here?"
"It's quite a story, young lady. Before I proceed with it, may I know your name?"
"I'm so sorry that I forgot, Garfield! My name is Blythe Baxter, and I live in an apartment up one floor with my dad, Roger. Okay, you may now tell your story."
Therewith, Blythe crossed her long legs and sat down to listen to Garfield. As I have already related Garfield's journey in preceding chapters in my own words, I have condensed his account to primarily consider details that fell through the cracks of mine.
"The other night, I had a dream in which I desired to send a kitten I particularly hate with a passion to a city far away from Jon, Odie and me. I had oft tried to send him by airmail to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, and later to the North Pole after Jon had banned me from sending him to Abu Dhabi. The kitten's name is Nermal, and he often proclaims himself the world's cutest kitten.
"Anyway, in this dream, Odie and I had built a programmable teleporter in Jon's garage, and both of us were playing in the yard; but when we heard Nermal approaching, we hid in the bush, but to no avail. He saw us, and after a brief argument, we prevailed upon him to take him to the teleporter. I decided to use Odie as a test case, but an accident sent both of us far away before Nermal's eyes.
"Yesterday, Nermal came unannounced, as in my dream. Before I could teleport him, though, the morning had passed, and lunchtime was upon us. He got the better of our meals, as he had been served rotisserie chicken and rice. I wanted to teach him a lesson, so I ate his leftovers. When Nermal awoke from his 'cutie nap,' he discovered that I'd left the house so that I wouldn't be caught. But he saw me resting on a bench at a city park, so he chased me into an industrial zone of town. I ultimately eluded him, but at great cost, as I had entered the trailer of an eighteen-wheeler that was bound for this city.
"Why did you do that to Nermal?" asked Blythe. "What's he done to harm you?"
"As I mentioned," Garfield continued, "he is self-centred and vain about his looks. Even so, I felt much remorse as the truck headed onto I-70, and I still fear that Jon will put me on a diet or even send me to a strict obedience school near where we live. Only the discovery of a box of cans of ravioli saved me from unbearable travail, as it was the only food on board. Of course, when I finally disembarked earlier today at the Downtown City Port Authority truck depot over the harbour, the driver discovered what I had done out of sheer necessity.
"A nearby Italian restaurant had a supply of used bread in an alley trash can, so I sustained myself accordingly. The final lift came from a policeman, who kindly took me to this establishment. Now, I stand alone, away from Jon and Odie. Have you a phone I could use to call him and calm his nerves?"
"I'll have to ask Mrs. Twombly, who owns this place and is my boss," replied Blythe. "She should acquiesce, as we would like you to return home as soon as possible as much as anyone with a heart would. There is, however, one favour I ask of you: Would you like to hear my story? I'm sure that you'll find much relatable about it."
"I have time, Blythe." Thus, Garfield perked up to listen to Blythe.