Someone Left a Cat Out in the Rain

That's the lyric, isn't it? Because, otherwise, it wouldn't make any sense.

But, in fact, that's exactly what happened today. I was doing laundry (one might think that's all I ever do) and it was raining. As I was coming out of the laundry room in the next building over, a striped cat decided it was coming in. It headed straight for a second floor apartment and mewed to be let it.

Except no one was home. What was I to do? Leave it in the hallway of the apartment building? I encouraged it to leave only it darted for the basement. I wasn't about to chase it. It was already wet and angry at not being let into its apartment. Instead, I opened the exterior door and called to it sweetly.

It peered at me from around the corner of the down staircase with a look of "Are you kidding?" My return stare said, "Come play with me. I have string."

The unnamed cat's eyes queried, "Really? Don't mess with me." In reply, I tapped my fingernails on the tile floor with "Yes, and so much more."

The cat believed me and, after a time, left the building of its own accord but of course that's where it ended. It looked at me with expectation in the rain and all I could say was, "I'm sorry."

In and out of the laundry room I went but I was wise to the cat now and didn't let it in. And it rained all day. Each time I came and went - whether it was to the laundry or elsewhere - the cat gave me a look of "You betrayed me."

And it's true. I left the cat out in the rain.