A Friend Called Alfie

Polly had a few days off work, so we didn’t get to see Pickles as much as before, although he did pop in quite a lot so Polly could drink coffee and chat with Claire. But with the humans around, he wasn’t able to get into too much trouble, because they stopped him the minute he started. George and I could only sit and watch Pickles well and truly under control. Or as under control as he could be.

‘I’m thinking of sending Pickles to puppy training,’ Polly said as she had coffee with Claire.

‘But he’s not that bad,’ Claire said. ‘And he’s still so little.’

‘He doesn’t do what he’s told,’ Polly pointed out. Ever, I added.

‘No, but he’s housetrained which is the main thing, and he’s still a baby. Besides, you’re so busy that I might end up having to take him and I’m not sure I fancy it!’ Claire pointed out. ‘I can barely train my own family.’ They both laughed. I narrowed my eyes, I was very well trained thank you very much, although Claire couldn’t take the credit for that. In fact, it was me who trained my humans rather than vice versa.

‘No, I’ve found a weekend class, and I think Matt can take him. After all, Matt was the one who pushed for him to come and live with us.’

‘I’m not sure Matt is the best person to train him, Pol,’ Claire said. I agreed. Matt was lovely but so soft, no one did what they were told when he was in charge.

‘It might be good for both of them then. I thought I might get him to take Henry and Martha, they can have bonding time as well.’

‘Actually, that’s not a bad idea, it could be their thing. Jonathan is so busy at the moment, I’m worried the kids aren’t getting enough time with him. So this Saturday we’re going to have a fun day out in London together. I know Jonathan’s not keen, he’s so tired, but I’ve told him if he does Saturday with us then we’ll have a pyjama and film day on Sunday.’

‘So, he’s still working ridiculously hard?’

‘I really have to bite my tongue and not nag him. I mean we both discussed the fact that the job was going to change things before he took the promotion, but I guess the theory and the practice are two different things. I miss him, that’s it really, I miss spending time with him.’

‘But in the long run, it’ll be worth it?’ Polly asked.

‘It’s not just the money, I mean that’s really good, and it means I can be there for the kids, but we also need to try to figure out how we can do this without ruining our family.’

‘And you will figure it out. Now Matt and I are both working we have to make time for us, so that’s the first thing. You two need time as a couple, and you are always looking after my children, so perhaps we can reciprocate? You just need to be organised and, Claire, that is your strong point after all.’ Polly leant over and grabbed Claire’s hand and gave it a squeeze.

‘You know you’re right. I think instead of worrying I should see what we can do. If Jonathan and I have a night out that would be a start.’

I felt my heart sink a little, I thought everything was alright in our world, and to be honest, Claire was handling it well, but it did set off a little warning bell in my mind. I would have to keep an eye on this.

‘Right, well Matt and I can have the kids, perhaps they can have a sleepover, so you guys can have the night to yourself.’

‘Now you’re talking.’ Claire smiled as did I. With friends like ours, nothing seemed to be insurmountable. ‘Right, I’m going to see Harold, fancy a walk down with me?’

‘Sure, but I won’t stop after saying hello, as I have to walk Pickles.’

They set off with Pickles on the lead and George decided that he wanted to go after them.

‘That’s fine, are you worried about Pickles?’ I asked.

‘Someone needs to keep an eye on him, and Harold prefers cats to dogs so I should be there to make it easier for him,’ he said, sounding very responsible.

‘Good thinking.’ I could tell that George was still a little jealous of Pickles and Harold was his friend, he didn’t want to risk losing him to Pickles. I knew that wouldn’t happen, Harold doted on George, but I didn’t say anything. George had to figure that one out for himself.

I was left alone in the house, and again, that was a nice moment for me. I thought that I’d go and hang out with neighbourhood cats later, but for now, I could take some time for myself. As I went to find Jonathan’s cashmere blanket, I was pretty pleased with myself.

It was a little chilly as I made my way to the recreation ground later, to see if any of the cats were around. Rocky was there, sitting in his usual spot, along with Nellie. There was no sign of Elvis.

‘Hey guys,’ I said as I joined them.

‘Alfie, lovely to see you,’ Rocky said.

‘And you too. So what’s new?’ I asked, but before they could reply, I spotted Salmon looming towards us. Salmon lived opposite us with the Goodwins, leaders of the Edgar Road neighbourhood watch. They were busybodies, as was their cat. We’ll never be best friends but we’re civil.

‘Hi, Salmon,’ I said. Salmon liked to lord it over us when there was news or gossip on the street.

‘Hello. What’s going on?’ he asked.

‘Nothing much,’ I replied. ‘Is there anything you know that we don’t?’ I preempted him.

‘No, it’s been really quiet at the moment. Which is good because I can report there are no criminals on the street.’

‘That is good,’ Nellie said, she sounded a little sarcastic.

‘But don’t worry, we are keeping our eyes open just in case,’ Salmon said, self-importantly. I didn’t want to upset him, although he was a little silly.

‘We’re lucky to have you, Salmon,’ I said, kindly, as Nellie and Rocky shot me a look. Before we could continue, George ran up to us with Elvis at his heels.

‘Goodness me you can run,’ Elvis said, he sounded a little out of breath.

‘What’s the emergency?’ Nellie asked. George ground to a halt but couldn’t speak. I looked upon him with concern while he calmed down.

‘It’s bad, Dad,’ he said, his eyes full of concern, when he recovered.

‘Oh no, what’s happened?’ I felt panic in my fur.

‘Harold. When we got there, he said he wasn’t feeling too good. So Claire phoned the doctors, but he started breathing funny, and they said he might need an ambulance, so Polly called for one. When it came, they examined him and said they thought it might be his heart, so they took him to hospital. Claire went in the ambulance with him, as they wouldn’t let me go with them, but Polly was still there.’ He lay down, exhausted. I nuzzled him.

‘Oh George, I’m so sorry, but Harold is going to the best place. Remember before when he went to the hospital, he came back right as rain,’ I pointed out, going to comfort George.

‘But he looked so scared, and I wanted to go with him because I know that would make him feel better, but they wouldn’t let me. They said cats weren’t allowed to go in ambulances,’ he huffed.

My poor boy was so distressed. ‘But I know he wanted me with him, Dad, because he told me how I was his best friend in the world,’ George cried.

‘Right, George, let’s find Polly and stick with her, because it’s the best way for us to hear any news as soon as she gets it.’

‘I think she’s at her house, she said she’d go there to make phone calls,’ George said, still clearly in a state.

‘Come on, son, we’ll go there. Guys, we’ll come back and let you know as soon as there’s any news,’ I offered.

‘Let us know if we can do anything,’ Rocky shouted after us as we left them to go to Polly’s.

Inside the house, Polly was on the phone. She hung up and saw us.

‘Ah, boys, are you alright?’ she said.

‘Yowl,’ George cried, no he wasn’t.

‘I know it was frightening. Claire is at the hospital with Harold now, and there’s no news yet, but she’ll let us know. I phoned Marcus, who is going straight there, and I’ve also let Matt know. Unfortunately, all we can do now is wait.’ I loved how Polly also spoke to us as if we were humans, it meant we always knew what was going on. Pickles was asleep in his bed, snoring gently, which was probably for the best for now, because I wasn’t sure how patient George would be with him.

George placed himself at Polly’s feet, there was no way he was going to leave her side for now. I gave him a little space. I knew George. If I fussed too much, it would annoy him. I said a prayer in my head that Harold would be alright. George had suffered enough loss in his short life so far, and I didn’t want this for him. If I could have done anything to protect him, I would have done so, but for now, I was utterly helpless.

It was a very long, difficult afternoon. Every time the phone rang, George jumped up, and when there was no news, he put his head in his paws and fretted.

‘What is an ambulance?’ Pickles asked me when he woke up, and I herded him away from George.

‘When you were little, you went to the vet to have injections,’ I started to explain. ‘And the hospital is where humans go for things like that.’ I knew it was better to keep it simple.

‘So, the old man …’

‘Harold is his name, Pickles. He’s George’s best friend, and he isn’t well, so it’s best to give George some space.’

‘I can try,’ Pickles said. ‘But I don’t really understand.’

‘Of course not, it’s a lot for a puppy like you to take in, don’t worry.’ I didn’t know if I had the energy to reassure everyone right now, but clearly I would have to because there was no one else to do so.

‘OK, Alfie, if you say don’t worry then I won’t worry. Can I go and play with my ball now?’

‘Good idea.’

Thankfully the children had been teaching Pickles the joy of playing with a tennis ball, which is something that cats see as being beneath them. Pickles would wait for them to throw it and chase it, bringing it back to them over and over again. Which kind of highlighted the difference between dogs and cats, but if it made him happy … I went with him, in order to give George the space he needed, and I batted the ball with my paw, so he could chase it. It was a little tiresome but I was trying hard not to complain as I batted it yet again.

There was still no news of Harold when Polly had to go to pick up the children. She took Pickles, on his lead, but poor George still didn’t know what to do with himself. He was so distressed.

‘Do you want to go and see Hana?’ I suggested.

‘That’s a good idea. Hana might know something, or Sylvie might be there …’

‘And if I get any news I will come right round straight away, I absolutely promise,’ I said.

‘You’re right, Dad, at least it’ll be better than sitting here just worrying.’

‘And you know Hana might be worried too, I mean she’s almost related to Harold now as well,’ I pointed out.

‘Oh, poor Hana, I was too busy worrying about myself, but she might need me. Oh, how could I not have realised that.’ He sped off out of the house and yet again I was alone.

I paced up and down until Polly came home, the children all bounded in, and when she had settled them with snacks and drinks, she picked me up.

‘No news, sorry, mate,’ she said, stroking my fur. I didn’t know whether to go to George or wait with Polly, but in the end, I decided to wait. Because if George had any news he’d come and find me, and if I got news first I could go and find him, which meant we had all bases covered. All we could do was wait.

Polly had bathed and put the children in pyjamas, settling them on the sofa when Matt got home from work, and shortly after Claire arrived with Jonathan.

‘What a day,’ Claire said as she kissed the children.

‘How’s Harold?’ Matt asked.

‘He’s going to be alright, but he’s got a bit of recovery time ahead of him. It’s his heart, not a heart attack, thank goodness, but it’s got some blockage or something, so they’re keeping him in to do tests and take it from there. Marcus was really upset when he arrived, luckily Sylvie came straight afterwards, which reminds me I need to go to hers and wait for Connie to come home, she called her and she’s upset too. Jon, will you be OK putting the kids to bed?’

‘Of course, darling.’ He gave her a hug. ‘Don’t worry. See what Connie wants, she might want to stay at hers rather than come to us.’

‘Which makes sense, look, we’re all here to help out, let’s just keep in touch,’ Polly said.

Everyone scattered and I went with Claire to find George.

Claire let herself in with the spare key, and found Connie at the kitchen table, in tears. Hana was on her lap, George at her feet. I rushed to George and nuzzled him as we listened to Claire explain to Connie what she knew.

‘But can I see him?’ Connie asked. After all, Harold was like a surrogate granddad to her. He was a gruff old man but very loving to Sylvie and Connie.

‘Sorry, love,’ Claire said. ‘They’re doing tests right now, but your mum will be back soon, and I think even Marcus will be kicked out, so your mum said to tell you that you can visit him tomorrow.’

‘Meow?’ George asked hopefully, but I didn’t think he could. Cats didn’t go to hospitals, I was pretty sure.

‘I guess I’ll wait then. I’ve got homework to do, Claire, I better go and do it in my room.’

‘I’ll wait here, until your mum gets home then. Can I get you something to eat, love?’

‘No, thanks, I had a sandwich earlier, but really I don’t have an appetite.’

Hana followed Connie upstairs, George hot on her paws. I climbed into Claire’s lap.

‘He’ll be alright, Alfie,’ Claire said, as she stroked me, but her voice was not full of conviction. ‘I’m sure he’ll be back to his cantankerous ways before we know it.’ Harold could be quite grumpy, but George seemed to love that about him. And since we’d all become friends, we were used to him.

He had to get better. George couldn’t lose someone else he loved, not so close to losing Tiger. And for that matter, neither could I.