Page 53 of So I Married an Alien
Sylvia nods in agreement.
“What does your wife like?”Izzy asks.“You should get her something you know she really, really wants.Something that would make her happy again.”
I don’t think anything I gave her would clear away the stain of what I’ve done.
“Maybe something that she reallyneeds,” Sylvia attempts.“You know her well now, don’t you?What is missing in her life?Show her you understand her.”
Show her I understand her.I do understand Amara, I believe.Perhaps too well, and that’s how I know that no matter what, it won’t work.
But there might be something I can do to make her life better even after I’m gone, and that is the best I can do.
I explain my idea to Sylvia and she agrees to it.That afternoon, she drives me to the animal shelter, Izzy bouncing in the back seat.
Amara has told me many times about her cat, Elvis, who she had for most of her adult life.He meant the world to her, and when he passed away, she couldn’t contain her loneliness any longer.It was the trigger, more or less, for her applying to the Matching Program.
I know she will be lonely after I leave, so I’ll do this to ensure that someone can be there for her when she’s by herself again.
Even as we approach the shelter, I can’t mistake the sound of barking dogs.I shudder, but Sylvia encourages me on as we walk inside the building.
There are cats everywhere.In cages, walking around on the countertop, sleeping in beds on the floor and climbing carpeted structures.Cats, cats, and more cats.I have my pick, it would seem.
We approach the front desk, where a receptionist has a very tiny dog on her lap.I jump back, but it barely lifts its head as she pets it.
“An alien!”She grins in that wide, brilliant way humans do.“Wow.Cool.”
“Hello.”I offer my hand to her to shake, and a little perplexed, she accepts.“I am here to take a cat home to my wife.”
Her brows rise.“Oh!You’re looking for a new furry friend, huh?Well, you came to the right place.”She stands up, still holding the tiny dog.“Sarah!This guy wants a cat.Can you help him out?”
Another woman appears, older but somehow more spritely, and she hurries over.
“We have many to choose from,” she says in a smooth voice.“What are you looking for in a new forever friend?”
“He will be my wife’s, erm, forever friend.”
She cocks a brow.“Oh, okay.Well, what is she looking for?”
I have to think hard about this.She needs someone sturdy and reliable.Someone who will curl up next to her at night, and who will have plenty of love to dole out.
“An affectionate cat,” I say at last.
“We’ve got plenty of snugglers.”She points out a few cats in the main room before leading us back to the “cat room.”It’s swarming with the small animals.One of them immediately walks up to me and sniffs my leg.I reach down to pet it cautiously, and it lifts its head into my hand.It is brown all over with black striping and is very handsome.
“That’s Bernard.He’s a good guy.Older than some of the others and definitely cuddly.He loves attention.”
Yes.That’s what Amara will need.A good, older male that will cuddle.And hopefully keep the spiders away.
“I choose him, then.”I pick up the little animal carefully, and he has no complaints as I cradle him in my arms.After a while of petting his head, his body starts making a low rumbling noise.“That’s odd.He is vibrating.”
“Purring!He likes you.”Sarah looks pleased.“I guess he picked you back.Want me to start the paperwork?”
I nod, holding Bernard close to my chest.I think he will be just what Amara needs.
It is a sharp, smooth piece of scrap metal, driven right into my heart.
Sylvia drops me off at home after I have secured the things the cat will need.It took all my remainingbucksto buy the litter box, bed, and food, but Bernard should have everything a cat would want, including a toy at the end of a string.
Bernard is happy to be carried, and when released inside Amara’s house, he starts sniffing everything.Before long, he is settled on the couch—not where I had intended, given I purchased him his own bed—but I get the sense I cannot tell Bernard what to do.
