Nothing Out of the Ordinary

Pet Problems

Sebastian used to be as insane as you would think a black cat would be. As a kitten, he loved climbing drapes more than anything. My mom hated that, so we compromised. I got to keep him exclusively in my room, and I wasn’t allowed drapes. I was upset at first because my grandma made those drapes for me. They were mine to do as I wanted.

Without the drapes to climb, he found other ways to keep himself busy, from tearing up my shoes to chewing through all my plugs. He was a menace. My mom threatened to take him to the pound multiple times a week. He had a habit of escaping the room and wreaking the same havoc around the house. I haven’t broken him of any of his habits, but I have learned how to work with him. Teaching him how to fetch was the best thing I ever did. I would launch my hairband as far as I could, he would catch it and bring it back for hours.

I’m sure that’s the reason he’s dealing with his issues now. He’s eaten more than his fair share of headbands, but when choosing between those or cords, the choice was obvious.

A year ago, he would have fought literally tooth and nail to avoid the kennel, but this time, he let me put him in without so much as a soft hiss.

The vet’s lobby had two dogs, a mastiff and a Boston terrier. The moment the Boston terrier noticed my cat, she started yipping and pulling at her leash. Normally, I loved Boston terriers, but at that moment, Sebastian was starting to get agitated and he was going through enough.

“Sorry,” a man in his late forties said as he tugged at the leash to pull his dog back. “He’s not normally like this.”

“No, it’s not a problem. Dogs will be dogs.”

“Brittany?” a voice from the heavens saved me from the ear-piercing noise. I smiled politely at the man as I made my way to the examination room.

I placed Sebastian’s kennel on the metal table and stood by it while I waited, trying to reassure him. He was still growling by the time the vet came in with her white coat that was two sizes too small. She placed her Starbucks on the counter and flipped through some papers. Then came the questions. I can’t remember half of them, but I didn’t like her face after any of my answers. Like I was her disappointing daughter.

“I would like to run some tests today,” she said. “Once we can confirm what’s going on, we can get a treatment plan.”

“How much are the tests?”

“The receptionist will help you work out all that and schedule your next appointment. I’m glad you brought him here when you did.” She scratched his chin and Sebastian let her. I wasn’t sure if that was a sign he liked her or if he was in that much pain.

After I coaxed Sebastian back into his kennel, I took him with me to the receptionist’s desk. Thankfully, the Boston terrier was gone. The mastiff was there, sitting and watching silently.

“The doctor said we needed to run some tests?”

The receptionist typed away at her computer for a long time without acknowledging me. After a while, the printer went off behind her. She stood to get it and notched it onto a clipboard. “Here you go. Sign at the bottom.”

The vet had ordered ten different tests, including an MRI. “Does she think it’s cancer?”

“I’m not a veterinarian, ma’am.”

“Why else would she need all these tests?”

“I don’t know, you’ll have to ask her at your next appointment.”

“No, I want to ask her now.”

“I’m afraid she is seeing other patients right now.”

I looked back to the list of tests and the impossible total at the bottom of the page. It would cost me more than double my rent just to test him, let alone treat him for whatever is wrong. And if it’s cancer, what would even come of the treatment? An extra six months of discomfort?

“I need to think about this.”

“Okay.”

“When can I talk to the doctor?”

“Doctor Johnson responds to all her voicemails as quickly as she can.”

“So you’re saying, I can only get answers if I leave a voicemail and wait til she gets around to it? Why can’t I talk to her now?”

The mastiff behind barked and I nearly jumped as high as Sebastian used to.

“Ma’am, Doctor Johnson is seeing another patient right now.”

“Can I take this?”

The receptionist shrugged and I folded the paper up into half twice, put it in my purse, and grabbed Sebastian.

In the car, I put my phone on the vent clip and saw I had ten missed calls. All from Jeanine.

I jammed the key into the ignition and turned. Nothing happened. Sebastian meowed loudly from the back seat. I turned it again, and the radio turned on, but the engine would not turn over. Sebastian sounded like he wanted to kill me and the car wouldn’t start. Could nothing go right for me?

I rested my head on my steering wheel and counted breaths. In four, hold four, out four. In four, hold four, out four.

Finally, I sat up straight, turned the key slowly, and my car finally sputtered to life. As I backed out of the parking lot, I listened to my voicemails.

“Hello Brittany, this is Jeanine. I’m calling because you were expected to be here at eight o’clock, and it’s now eight-oh-five. You are not typically late, so I wanted to see if everything was alright. Please call back at your earliest convenience.”

“Hello Brittany. This is Jeanine again. I’m calling because it’s now eight forty-seven and your presentation is about to start. If you are not here on time, Josh has already agreed to present on your behalf.”

Nine?! We were supposed to present at one. What was he thinking? I looked at the time. It was nine twenty-three. I drove home as fast as I could, got Sebastian situated and sped to work. It was a miracle I didn’t get pulled over, but I knew I would have at least one traffic ticket from the camera sensors.

I ran through the building as fast as I could. By the time I reached the doors to the conference room, I was panting and it was nine fifty-seven. Peering through the window, I could see Josh was already on the last slide, so instead of interrupting, I went back to my desk to check my emails. I knew I had asked permission for the time off and the presentation was scheduled for the afternoon.

But that didn’t matter. Because I didn’t tell Josh. He had sent me multiple emails late last night, saying he wanted to push up the meeting, something about how they would align to the objectives more seamlessly. He said my calendar was free, so he went ahead and scheduled it, assuming I would see it when I got in and knew we were both ready to present.

I couldn’t believe it. One thing I forgot to do: block my calendar off. And now my chances…

I could feel the dampness on my cheeks, so I made my way quickly to the bathroom, keeping my head down. Once inside a stall, I couldn’t stop the tears. I didn’t sob, thankfully, but by the time I finished, my eyes were definitely bloodshot and puffy. I tried to rinse them off with some cold water, but besides feeling a little better for a short moment, made no difference.

With a deep breath, I accepted my fate and went back to my desk.