I Let Love In

Chapter XXXVIII: Hell Ain't a Bad Place to Be

Ivy wouldn't stop sneezing. 

We didn't show too much concern until her nose started running.

Then her energy depleted.

Then her appetite disappeared.

Mum was frantic. 

She phoned the vet's office but they were full. The closest appointment she could book was in a couple of days. And we were worried Ivy wouldn't last that long. 

"I'll call the emergency vet," Mum said dialing the number. "If they can't see her I don't know what I'll do..."

I waited patiently, stroking Ivy's fur. Her eyes were crusty and she sneezed rapidly. Her mouth hung open from congestion, just lying there in her basket. Magnolia ran around the living room rug batting at the toys and chasing her own tail. Both of them had been sneezing recently but Ivy was really sick. 

Mum came back to the living room. "I'm taking her to the vet," she said. "This is a last resort place but no one else will see us. Watch Magnolia while we're gone. I'm not sure how long this will take. I don't even know where I'm going!"

After locking a distressed Ivy in the crate, who meowed and pawed at the bars, Mum hurried out the door leaving Magnolia and me behind. "They'll come back," I told the black kitten. She sneezed in reply and jumped after the stuffed mouse. 

**********

It had been an hour since Mum left. Poor Ivy must have been terrified. Magnolia took to Mum's blanket on the couch and had a nap. When the front door finally opened I expected to see Mum holding Ivy's crate. But she had nothing. "I had to leave her there," she said, tears in her eyes. "They're packed full of patients. It'll be at least two hours before they'll look at her."

Two hours was wrong. 

It had been eight hours.

"This is so frustrating!" Mum cried over dinner. I sat quietly with Magnolia on the couch. Dad paced the floor. "She must be so scared in there! Thinking we gave her up! I didn't know it would be this way!" I could see she was fighting back tears. Magnolia purred quietly while I brushed her static fur back. My other hand was clenched into a fist. "I can never do the right thing!"

"Should we call them back?" Dad suggested.

"I did. Four hours ago. They said they hadn't even seen her yet." Mum brushed away a few stray tears. "I want to pick her up but not without medicine, or something!"

"I say we just pick her up," Dad said sighing. "Leaving her in there is only going to make her worse--"

The phone rang and Mum sprang up to answer it. "Hello? Yes?" We waited with baited breath. Magnolia sneezed and Mum slowly turned to look at her. "I see...." My heart pounded. I couldn't believe the kittens were already sick. Thoughts raced back and forth on what it could be. Life threatening? Chronic? Fatal? Benign? "Okay, I'll be there soon to pick her up....thank you." She hung up and let out her world famous sigh. "They have herpes."

"They?" my dad asked. 

"Both Ivy and Magnolia have a herpes virus. I can't believe it..." Mum shook her head and grabbed her car keys. Dad offered to go but Mum declined. 

I pet Magnolia. She sneezed again.

**********

"So we just squirt a little bit of this into their food," Mum said holding a dropper filled with pink medicine. "And we sprinkle this in it as well." She showed me a packet of powder. "And....nose drops."

Ivy sneered at the wet cat food Mum placed on the floor and sneezed again. Magnolia couldn't be pulled away if you bulldozed her. Pink medicine stained the white plate and Ivy paced her cage meowing. 

"Come on, you have to eat to get better," Mum wailed. I felt awful, she was beside herself. "The whole shelter must have the virus. The vet said all it takes is one cat...."

Ivy left the room and Mum sighed, practically throwing the dropper onto the counter. I kept quiet and watched Magnolia eat away, happy as could be. As soon as Mum brought her home from the vet and set down her crate, Ivy meowed like crazy, cussing out every human within a hundred metre radius. Magnolia's ears perked up at the sound and finally jumped from the couch, eagerly sniffing her sister's rear end. 

It was still a sweet moment. 

**********

The next day Ivy pounced on Magnolia and they wrestled. Mum watched them affectionately. "She's doing much better," she said. "I let her eat dry food then just squirted the medicine directly into her mouth. I'll let Magnolia take some too. They both have it."

"Poor little things," I said making a cup of coffee. They deserved extra snuggles today. Mum noticed the jumper I was wearing. 

"Pick yourself something up from London?" she asked. "Looks cosy." I looked down at myself, sporting Ang's jumper. A dark blue thing, simple really. And it was cosy.

"Yeah, thought I'd pack something to bring home for the winter." 

Total fucking lie. I have a half naked boyfriend running around instead.

"Hm. Koa will be here any minute....we'll see how he does with the kittens." I groaned. 

Three babies and two sick kittens.

Perfect.