The rain didn’t stop, in fact it got harder as time passed by. It poured for about two hours; I sat at the edge of my mother’s bed as I stared out the hospital window. A knock came from the door, my mother and I turned to it to see the doctor walk in with a nurse right behind him. The look on her face worried me when we made eye contact-something was wrong. The doctor told my mom that she wasn’t doing so well, that the cancer had spread to her stomach; I saw the despair in my mother’s eyes as she smiled warmly. She said that she was grateful that the doctors were working so hard to try and keep her alive, but now things couldn’t go back…her time was near. The doctor left the room after solemnly apologizing to both of us, the moment he stepped out my mother sighed softly. There was nothing left to say, I glanced at the clock and it was 8:39pm. I packed up my things and kissed my mother goodbye; I drove back to our house, it was dark and cold when I stepped out of the car. I unlocked the front door to my house and entered it. After I turned on the living room light I saw Alain sleeping on the center of the couch. I smiled and walked over to him where I pet his head. He awoke slowly and purred to my gentle touch. I sat down next to him and that’s when I covered my mouth with a hurt look across my face. Alain laid his head on my lap as he purred softly; Alain would be the only one I had left…

I was raised by a loving mother and father. I was an only child and barely had any friends because I had no siblings to interact with or show me how to make friends, so I just stayed reserved to myself. My father was diagnosed with leukemia when I was seven; I was so young that I barely understood what was going on. I assumed things were okay because my father always seemed happy, but I didn’t know that he was dying inside both physically and mentally. My father was in a battle for about five years before he passed away after I turned 12. At that age, I understood everything. I was hurt, but my mother’s pain couldn’t compare to mine. My father was my only guidance in life, he was more than a father-he was my best friend, and we did everything together. I had no one else, but he was always there for me. After my father’s death I fell into a small depression; I didn’t go to school for weeks and I fell behind in all my classes. My mother on the other hand forced me to go back and learn how to cope with things without my father. As much as it pained me, I had to move on. I couldn’t let my father’s death bring me down and ruin my chances at a bright future, so within a few days, I was back in school and soon became the top of my class.

Before he passed away, for my twelfth birthday he surprised me with a black cat; I named him Alain. He was beautiful, he had a shiny black coat and green emerald eyes. I thought it was a simple birthday gift, but my father got me Alain so he could leave a piece of himself before he passed away. My mother and I cherished Alain with all our hearts, he was the perfect cat. I grew up with him, and even though he was a cat, our bond was inseparable; I loved him and I would do everything with him. He would take rides with me in my car, he would wait for me at my bus stop whenever I got off and he would sit with me on the couch while we watched television. Alain soon filled the void of my father, but five years later-right when I entered my senior year, my mother was diagnosed with colon cancer. It literally struck my heart with horrific pain when I heard the awful news, but my mother just smiled, as if she expected this to happen. I couldn’t accept it, when I found out about it I went to my room and let out my voice for about an hour; Alain just sat next to me without making a sound. He saw the pain in my eyes and he didn’t want to leave me.

Weeks passed and I still kept up my grades in school, but my mother wasn’t doing so well. One day when I came home from school, I opened my front door to see my mother collapsed in the living room. My eyes widened in horror as I saw Alain next to her meowing loudly. I hurried over to her and screamed for her to wake up, but she didn’t move. I started crying and called an ambulance to take her to the hospital, she woke up three days later. My mother’s face was pale, she began losing her hair and her voice became hoarse whenever she called out my name in a soft whisper. Things became different, every day after school I would go to the hospital to visit my mom and that’s where I left Alain at home most of the time. I grew exhausted, from school to the hospital and then to take care of Alain and the house all became a splitting headache for me, not to mention all the senior activities going on and college applications. My mother remained in the hospital for a month before the doctor came in that day to say that the cancer had spread to her stomach.

I went to bed that night and woke up the next morning to head to school. The day went by quickly and once that bell rang for the day to end, I hurried to my car and drove to the hospital. I arrived there ten minutes later, only to walk into my mother’s room to see that she was asleep. I walked up to her bed and that’s when I grabbed her left hand, I gripped it tightly when I looked at her face. She was still pale and now all her hair was gone, I couldn’t understand how she could remain calm and blissful at a time like this. A couple of minutes later, I heard the door open to see the doctor come in alone. I released my mother’s hand and walked over to him, where his face petrified me-his look was worse than the one the nurse gave me yesterday. I asked him what was wrong, that’s when he gave me a heavy exhale before saying that my mother was in a coma. I gasped in horror and asked why, but all he said was that her time was near and there was nothing else he can do to save her. Right there at that moment, I faced my mother once more. She can’t die right? I slowly turned back to the doctor, but I pushed him out the way and hurried out the hospital. I held back my tears until I got back in my car; I drove out the parking lot and headed back home. I got out the car and went inside my house, where my tears finally fell as I screamed for Alain. He hurried down the stairs and abruptly stopped in front of me. He meowed in confusion as I fell onto my knees in front of him. I clenched my thighs-this was it, the only person I had left I was going to lose.

“I don’t know what to do Alain! I can’t lose her too; I can’t just be left with you! Alain, I don’t want to lose her, what should I do? Tell me why the hell this is happening!” I screamed in a hurt voice; Alain just stared at me blankly. “Please God,” I said as I covered my face, “don’t take her away from me too. Please let me keep my mother-you took away my father, what more do you want?!” Then, Alain started meowing; I removed my hands from my face and stared at him. It was as if he was telling me to calm down. He walked passed me and sat by the front door. I just stared at him and that’s when he stood on his hind legs and tried to reach for the doorknob-he wanted to go outside! I stood up and opened the door, he immediately ran for my car and sat beside the passenger door. I finally caught onto what he wanted and went to my car, I opened the passenger door and he hopped right on the seat. I went on my side of the car and entered it. I turned my car on and we were off on the road. I glanced at Alain, he just sat there and stared out the window-what does he want? “Alain,” I said in a frazzled voice, “where do you want to go?” He faced me and then back out the window, I wiped away my tears and grew pensive. Alain wanted to go somewhere, but I didn’t know where though, unless he wanted to-that’s it! I hit my steering wheel with an idea as I slightly glance at Alain. “You want to see mother, I know you do. Alain, do you want to see Hazel?” Hazel was my mother’s name, that’s the only way Alain knew her. Once I said that he meowed in agreement and that’s when I exhaled in relief. I finally caught on, but I grew frustrated when I realized that animals weren’t allowed in the hospital. “Alain, I don’t know how I’ll bring you in. I know for a fact that animals aren’t allowed because of other people’s allergies and all. What should I do now?” I was down the road from the hospital and that’s when an idea hit me. I quickly looked over my shoulder to see my backpack in the back seat-that’s perfect! I forgot that I left my backpack from school here, all I had to do was take out my books and slip Alain inside. I entered the parking lot once more and parked right outside the front door. I quickly grabbed my backpack and threw my books onto the back seat; I faced Alain and he tilted his head slightly. I grabbed onto him and put him inside my backpack, he meowed quietly and I shushed him. I zipped him up, but made sure to leave a small opening on the zipper so he could breathe. “It’ll be quick Alain, please don’t make a sound.” I got out the car and entered the hospital; I was questioned about my backpack by a lady at the front desk and I told her that I had homework to do since it was a school night. She let me go in and I exhaled shakily-that was close man. I went back to my mother’s room, where I found her still asleep; I didn’t realize that my face was stained with tears and that I completely forgot about my mother’s coma because I was so concerned about Alain. I took him out my backpack, where he stretched and shook his head. I picked him up and put him on my mother’s bed. He stared at her for a moment before he laid beside her stomach. I sat there and stared at both of them, it was only a matter of time before I lost my mother and I tried so hard to fight back my tears because it wasn’t good for my health at all. An hour passed before I heard the doorknob turn, I gasped softly and Alain jumped off the bed and went under it. The doctor walked in and looked surprised to see me after I ran out earlier.

“Maya, you’re back. Hey, I’m sorry about earlier-”

“It’s fine doctor,” I said in a nervous voice. “Don’t worry about it, you’re doing everything you can and I appreciate it.” Alain remained under the bed until the doctor left a couple of minutes later. He told me that visiting hours would be over soon and I had to go back home. Time passed when I realized it was time to leave, I exhaled softly as I kissed my mother’s forehead. I called Alain, but he continued to lay beside my mother’s stomach. I called him again, but he didn’t move at all. I grew concerned, but then I realized that he wanted to stay with my mother; I didn’t want to leave him because I was worried that he would get caught by the doctor, or possibly one of the nurses. “Alain, I can’t leave you here-what if you get caught?” He meowed softly and nuzzled against my mother’s stomach. After a defeated sigh, I picked up my backpack and kissed Alain on his cheek, where in return he liked my nose and I left the room without another word…

The next day I went to school with impatience; I couldn’t go in the morning to pick up Alain, so my best chance was to hurry to the hospital right after school. While I was walking to my math class, I suddenly felt my phone vibrate in my back pocket. I grabbed it and read the number. I didn’t recognize it, but I answered anyways. After a quiet hello, I heard someone scream in excitement on the other end.

“Who is this?” I said now in a puzzled voice.

“Maya, it’s me,” I realized it was my mother’s doctor from the hospital, but why was he calling me? He usually called me when he had to update me about my mother, but she’s in a coma right now. “I have great news!” I grew excited-my mother woke up! “Hazel is up and I just-I just need you to come down here right now! There’s something else that we found out but we want to wait for you to arrive.”

“I’m on my way.” I said as I hung up immediately; I pushed through the crowds in the hallway and left the school. After I hopped into my car and pulled out the parking lot, I hit the gas and drove out the school quickly. I was so scared, but so excited. After nine minutes of rushing through traffic, I finally arrived at the hospital, where I rushed through the front door. After I checked in, I finally made it to my mother’s room, where I found her sitting on her bed with her hands interlocked with one another. I smiled and walked over to her. Is this a dream? I hugged her hard and thanked every God in the world for having my mother wake up safe and sound. I released her and faced her doctor. “You were right, she woke up.” I smiled at him.

“Of course she woke up, but that’s not all.” He walked over to my mother and faced her. “I think I should tell you both this.” My mother kept quiet as the doctor put his hand on her shoulder. “When your mother woke up, the nurses and I performed another test to check how her cancer was doing. Now, what I found was beyond believable. Hazel…you beat your cancer.” My mother gasped and grabbed her mouth; I stared at the doctor in disbelief. Involuntarily, she felt tears roll down her face as she started whispering to herself. “I’m not lying Maya,” he said now turning to me, “your mother is clean. I don’t know how but, it’s a miracle.” I was in shock, how could she beat it? It seemed all too good to be true, but suddenly I remembered Alain. I gasped softly to myself as I turned to my mother’s bed. “Maya, what’s wrong?”

“By any chance, did you see a black cat in here?”

“A black cat? I don’t believe so, there are no animals allowed in the hospital.” If he didn’t see Alain, then where was he? I walked around the room and started to look for Alain. “Is there supposed to be a black cat in here?”

“Yes, I left one with my mother last night.” My mother removed her hands from her face and faced me.

“You left Alain here? Maya, you know better than to break the rules.”

“Alain wanted to stay here.” I sighed as I went down on my knees. “It may seem crazy, but Alain lead me here. So, once I brought him here he didn’t want to leave you.” I slowly brought my head towards the floor and looked under my mother’s bed. I saw a black puff ball and sighed of relief. “Alain, come here.” The puff ball didn’t move and that concerned me a little. “Alain?” I reached my hand under the bed and gently touched him, but I snatched my hand back when I felt how cold he was. “Alain?!” Suddenly, I grabbed onto his cold body and pulled him towards me. Once he was out from under the bed, I grabbed onto him and started shaking him. “Alain, wake up!” He didn’t move, my mother looked at us and grew worried. The doctor walked over to me and went down on one knee; I saw how uneasy he looked. He gently took Alain from me and put his hand on his chest. His eyes widened as he grabbed the stethoscope around his neck and put them on. He placed it on Alain’s chest. After a couple of seconds, he slowly closed his eyes and exhaled heavily.

“He’s dead…” He said opening his eyes. He stared at me as he handed Alain to me, where I solemnly grabbed his body.