Manhattan Newsies

Cat Fight

Well, within a short while, they'd get a cat, no matter what the others said about it. They'd just have to suck it up and live with it.

____________________________________________________________

Elmer followed JoJo with his eyes through the living room window. He was thankful they didn't live on the first or second floor. Then JoJo would have seen him through the window for sure. The third floor was perfect height for JoJo to not notice Elmer, but for Elmer to be able to watch JoJo as they stormed down the street. They went past the lamp post with the flowers, past the rickety bench, past the crosswalk... and around the corner.

Elmer turned his head towards his friends behind him.

"They're gone," he said.

Grins immediately appeared on Buttons and Henry's faces. What they were about to do had been in the planning for several weeks, and all without JoJo knowing anything. Consistently lying to them had probably been the hardest part of the process. Whether that was listing the reasons they could not get a cat, or saying that they were going to the store when they actually were going to the animal shelter. Not to mention breaking the paper towel holder so they'd have a reason to get JoJo out of the house for long enough. Now it was finally time.

"Henry, you get da stuff out," Buttons instructed. "Elmer, you an' I go down ta the shelta'."

"Got it," Henry gave him a couple of thumbs up, before heading straight for the storage closet next to the front door.

As Buttons and Elmer got their coats on, Henry swung the door open. Keeping JoJo out of the closet had been surprisingly easy. All it had taken was saying "I'll get the cleaning supplies for you" a few times, and reminding them of the spider. JoJo had been slightly afraid of the storage closet since they found a huge spider in there. If there was one thing JoJo did not like, it was spiders. What they did like however, was cats.

Henry removed a blanket and a few coats that were covering what he was in there to get. That was of course cat supplies. Food and water bowls, a litter box, food, a scratching post, all the necessities. This was going to be the biggest surprise of JoJo's life. The front door closed outside the closet, and Henry grabbed the litter box and the food bowl. Not only were they necessary things for owning a cat, but they also filled up empty spaces in the apartment. It was a perfect arrangement.

Meanwhile Buttons and Elmer hurried down the stairs and onto the street. In Button's hand, the pet carrier swung around violently. It was lucky the cat wasn't in it yet, or it would have gotten hurt for sure. On the way back to the apartment, they'd have to walk a lot more slow and careful. That was just all the more reason to walk fast now. They guessed they had about half an hour to finish the adoption, get the cat home, and prepare the surprise.

The shelter was a few blocks away, so they needed to hurry. JoJo had been pretty fast when Elmer looked out the window, so Buttons and Elmer needed to be faster. It was practically a race, unbeknownst to JoJo, who thought they were just getting something from the store. None of the boys in the apartment could wait to see the look on their face when they came in throug the door and found a kitten.

After a short walk through busy streets, Buttons and Elmer reached the shelter. The bell above the door clinged pleasantly when they walked in. Currently there was no one in the lobby but them and the girl behind the counter. Therefore, it was very easy for her to spot them.

"Hello there!" she cheerfully said. "Can I help you in any way?"

"Ya most certainly can," Buttons said. He walked up to the counter with Elmer close behind him. "We're Benjamin Davenport and Elmer Kasprzak. We're here to..." he automatically started smiling. "We're here to pick up our cat. We're adopting Beany."