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My back stiffens. “But Coach?—”
Coach Torres cuts me off, holding up his right hand. “First of all, the house is owned by the college, and they let us use it for student athletes. They have their own rules and regulations, and no pets is one of them. Two, and this is the only point I really give a shit about, I will not have one of my first line players unable to practice because of allergies.”
My cat picked a hell of a day to decide to venture out of my room for the first time since she’s been there. Sometime this afternoon, she found her way to Tuck’s room and crawled all over his stuff.
Tuck was cool about it, but after spending an hour in his room before we all went over to practice, he started sneezing a little. By the time we got suited up, his nose was running, his throat was scratchy, and his eyes were so itchy and watery that he couldn’t participate in practice.
“The cat’s been with us for a week and a half, and we didn’t have any problems until today,” I argue, feeling panic creeping inside me at the idea of having to get rid of her. “I’ll be extra careful and make sure she doesn’t get out of my room again.”
“Until she somehow does, and my right forward is incapacitated, not just before practice, but before a game. Or before a playoff game.” His eyes flash at the thought, and he decisively shakes his head. “No way. The cat goes.”
“Where?” I ask.
He holds his palms open as if to say, not my problem. “There are shelters in the area.”
My stomach churns at the thought of handing over that poor girl who’s already been through so much to a cramped and chaotic shelter. She’d hate it. She’d rather be back on the streets than that, I know she would.
And putting her back on the streets is not an option.
“One week,” Coach Torres says. His voice makes it clear he’s not prepared to hear any argument. “You have one week to make whatever arrangements you want, but the house will be cat free one week from now. Clear?”
I grit my teeth, my chest sinking. “Clear,” I say, the word feeling sour in my mouth.
“Plenty of people looking for a pet. Put up some flyers. Make some posts on Facebook or something. You can probably find her a good home.”
“Yes, sir,” I say, deflated. “Anything else?”
“Nothing else. Except good practice, again.”
I nod, feeling too drained to even summon up the energy to say a mechanical thank you, much less to actually feel good about Coach’s compliment.
“Sorry, bro,” Tuck says through sniffles when I make it back to the locker room. Coach’s decision must be written on my face. “I didn’t mean to get you in trouble.”
I sigh, shaking my head. “It’s not your fault. It’s my fault that I didn’t take precautions and let her wander out even though I knew you were allergic. I’m sorry.”
“What are you going to do with her?” Sebastian asks.
I lift my brow and puff out my cheeks. “No fucking clue.”
“Poor girl,” Rhys sighs. “We never even gave her a name.”
Maybe that’s for the best, I think. Hopefully I can find her a new home, and she gets a name there, from people who can actually take care of her.
I can’t believe how attached I’ve grown to the furball who used to hiss and swipe her claws at me just a couple weeks ago.
Last night she hopped up on my bed while I was reading that silly Hannah Harting book on my phone, and she fell asleep nuzzled against my side. She looked so comfy I didn’t even move, falling asleep myself in my jeans and t-shirt.
“Come out to Loser’s with us this time,” Lane says.
“No,” I sigh, “I should get home and figure out what I’m going to do with the cat.”
Once again, I’m probably coming across as a jerk by declining an invitation from the guys to hang out. But this time, I really do need to figure out what I’m going to do.
The guys head to the bar and I go home. Sadness detonates in my chest when I get to my room and see the cat on my bed, clawing at the pig my mom knit for me all those years ago.
I head to my desk and open my laptop. If I post in local Cedar Shade Facebook groups about having a cat available to give to a good home, hopefully a week will be enough to time to make sure she goes somewhere nice.
12
