Page 111 of New Beginnings at the Cosy Cat Cafe
Tori took a deep breath, stood up and smiled warmly at the children sat in front of her.
‘Hello, Butterfly Class, it’s lovely to see you all today. Rose, oh, I mean Miss Hargreaves…’ The children burst into hysterical laughter. Tori cringed, she was only one sentence in and already she’d put her foot in it.
‘Alright, alright,’ said Rose, trying to calm the children’s laughter as Tori attempted to compose herself, ‘my name’s not that funny.’
When the kids had finally stopped giggling, Tori went on to explain about the idea for the partnership between the Cosy Cat and New Beginnings – to help find homes for cats in need. The children listened patiently until Daisy and Angel started to meow more loudly, and Tori could sense they were becoming fidgety.
‘How about we get Daisy out now? Remember, we needto be very calm and quiet around her, as we don’t want to frighten her, okay?’ said Tori.
‘Yes, Miss,’ said Billy, ‘we’ll be really quiet, honest.’
‘Thanks, Billy. How about you come up here first and help me with Daisy? You can show everyone how it’s done,’ said Tori.
Billy stood up, puffed his chest out with pride and made his way over to sit on the floor next to Tori. Tori unzipped the top of the pen, reached in and scooped Daisy up. A chorus of ‘Awwww’ rippled through the classroom.
‘Daisy, I’d like you to meet the children of Butterfly Class.’ Tori tickled Daisy under the chin and the cat instantly began to purr. ‘Now, Billy, I’m going to pop her on your lap, so can you keep very calm and still so she can get used to you a little bit first?’ Tori placed Daisy gently on Billy’s lap and the little cat instantly nuzzled into his arm for a cuddle. ‘I think she likes you, Billy,’ said Tori, smiling.
‘I can hear her purring,’ whispered Tiffany.
‘That means she’s feeling happy,’ said Tori, and Billy beamed at her. ‘How about if we split the class into two, Miss Hargreaves? I’ll stay with Daisy, and perhaps you can get Angel out, please?’
‘What a good idea,’ said Rose, reaching down to take Angel out of the pen. ‘This half of the class, you’re with me,’ she said, waving an arm. ‘Everyone else stay with Tori.’
Tori enjoyed introducing the children to Daisy and answering all their questions.
‘Miss?’ asked one of the boys just as Tori was getting ready to put Daisy back in the carrier.
‘Oh, you can call me Tori as I’m not a teacher,’ Tori laughed.
‘Tori?’ asked the boy. ‘Do you think I could take Daisy home? We were going to get a kitten from the pet shop in Hastings, but I’d rather get a rescue and I really like Daisy…’
‘That’s so sweet, but you can’t just take her home with you now, I’m afraid,’ said Tori, smiling broadly. ‘What’s your name?’
‘Mason Jenkins,’ replied the boy.
‘Well, Mason, why don’t you and your mum come and visit the café and we can talk about how you can go about adopting Daisy? What do you think?’
‘Yes, please. I’ll ask Mum tonight,’ said Mason, nodding his head, before going to join his friends at the back of the class.
‘Right, it’s time to say goodbye to Tori and the cats, I’m afraid,’ said Rose, putting Angel back into her carrier. ‘But we’re very lucky as Joyce has kindly baked some cupcakes for us all,’ she said.
‘Cakes!’ the children chorused.
‘Just one each,’ said Rose, ‘and don’t worry, Hayden, they’re all nut-free so you’re fine to have one.’
‘Thank you, Miss!’ a cute little boy, who Tori assumed must be Hayden, called.
‘Well, I think that was brilliant, Tori, thanks so much for coming, the kids had a great time,’ said Rose.
‘It definitely went better than I was expecting; I don’t know why I got myself in such a tizzy about it,’ said Tori.
‘Well, you didn’t show it, you did great. What was Mason talking to you about, by the way?’
‘Oh, he’s hoping his mum might let him adopt Daisy. They were going to buy a kitten from that big pet shop in Hastings, but he’d like to get a rescue, so I’ve told him to come to the café for a chat.’
‘Wow! I love that. How great would it be if Daisy finds a home because of today?’
‘It’d be fantastic. Let’s wait and see, though – his mum might say no.’
