Your Life Is A Lie Two

Waiting for the vet to call was one of the hardest things for Calder. And he couldn’t stop himself from nearly pacing his entire apartment. It was just so difficult to sit still. As Calder couldn’t understand what was taking so long. Sure it had only been a day since Scampers went to the vet. But the fact that they hadn’t called just yet was worrying. His stomach dropped as he kept pacing around his kitchen with his phone in hand. All of this was just nearly too difficult to handle. Stopping in place he forced himself to take a deep breath.

Try to center himself.

“She’s going to be okay, Calder. Scampers is with a good Vet, and she will be okay.”,Calder assured himself. Everything was going to be fine. Scampers was in good hands. That’s what he kept telling himself over and over. She was going to be alright, and he knew that. After all he had been taking her to that veterinary clinic for years now. So, she was going to be perfectly fine.

Safe.

Yet there was still this deep feeling of dread in the pit of his stomach. Settled there like the world’s heaviest stone. Some part of him was unsure why he was still so afraid. After all, his pet was safe. But guessed it was from stress and not knowing why. What in the apartment could cause Scampers to get so damn sick in the first place? He hated not knowing what to do. Or how to stop his near constant thoughts that were overwhelming him.

“You have to stop overthinking this or you’re going to make yourself sick.”,Calder scolded himself. It was something that he did at times. Mostly when he got so worked up. And was rather annoyed with himself as well. A habit he couldn’t seem to shake. Softly, he continued,”It isn’t going to do anyone any good if you keep carrying on like this.”

“Take some more deep breaths and then you will feel better.”,he added. This didn’t really do much. But Calder took a few deep breaths in and out. Slipping his phone into his pocket. Trying to quell the number of poisonous thoughts that were drowning his mind in their disgustingness. To push them down and make himself feel rational. Help him better think about what could have hurt Scampers.

Scampers.

Oh Lord, what was she thinking in the Veterinary clinic right that moment? Was she scared? Was she sleeping and relaxed? Too far out of it to understand she wasn’t home. Just what caused her sickness in the first place? These thoughts were harder and harder to control. Harder to push away to the back of his mind. They made it so difficult to think that he hadn’t noticed the knocking. Not until it turned into banging. Calder leapt nearly a foot in the air when he heard this. Eyes going wide as he turned towards the door. Which was nearly shaking off its frame as someone kept banging on it.

Now who in the world could that possibly be?

Carefully Calder headed towards his door as the banging continued. Afraid to make a noise as he reached for the peephole. When he lifted himself to it, the door nearly hit him. Doing his best to sound braver than he did, he took a deep breath. Angrily, he demanded,”Hey?! Who the Hell are you and what do you want?”

“Stop knocking on my damn door!”,he ordered. Glaring into the peephole he froze at the sight of two men. Both dressed in white jumpsuits, gloves, and baseball hats. Ones that covered their faces from his view. Something that deeply unsettled him. Why the Hell were they covering their identities for? Calder guessed it be better to keep the door closed. One of the men on his right stepped forward. Not lifting his head up to show his face as he questioned,”Sorry to bother you sir but is Tanner Bedmire here?”

“No. No one by that name lives here.”,Calder answered. And as far as he knew there was no one like that in the building. Then again, he kept to himself and didn’t have tons of friends. So, who’s to say there wasn’t a Tanner Bedmire in the building? If there were then these men had the wrong apartment. Calder also should call the landlord sometime. Tell her what happened. He continued,”I’m the only one who lives here. And I’d appreciate it if you’d leave me alone.”

Both men didn’t move and look up. Nor did they really seem to acknowledge that Calder had even said a word. Something that worried him as he watched the pair. Beginning to slowly slip his hand into the pocket with his phone. Ready to call the police at any second. As he feared they would try to break into the apartment. Then the man on the left took a step forward, he stated,”We’re so sorry to bother you sir.”

“Have a good night.”,the other added. Both turned towards the elevators and hurried towards them. Giving him the slightest glimpse of their faces. They wore odd white masks on the lower half of their faces. And they were both white men. But that was all he could make out before they were out of his line of sight. Softly, Calder muttered,”That was weird. What was all that about?”

“Maybe I should speak to the landlord about it later.”,he added. Like possibly tomorrow at the absolute latest. Since it could have just been an honest mistake. Those two weird men coming to his door for a man who didn’t live there. After all he was a bit paranoid about things. Calder felt he might be about them. Before he could think it over more, his phone finally rang. Pulling it out of his pocket, he hit the green button and put it on speaker. Calder asked,”Hello, Dr. Langenkamp? Is Scampers going to be, okay?”

“What’s wrong with her?”,he questioned. He had tried to keep the fear out of his voice. And hated how he couldn’t do that. But that didn’t matter right then. All that mattered was getting answers from the Vet. Who took a second before she answered,”Well, she’s stable right now. And you’re going to be pleased to know that she’s eating some wet food and drank some water.”

That pleased him to know. It greatly pleased him to know. As he feared that even Dr. Langenkamp couldn’t get her to eat and drink. Gently, Dr. Langenkamp questioned,”Calder is there any possibility that Scampers came into contact with chocolate or grapes?”

“Any form of food that could make her ill?”,she added. Keeping her tone as gentle as humanly possible. Like she was speaking to a small, scared child and not a grown man. His eyebrows furrowed together at her words. He would never allow Scampers to eat either of these. As he hated grapes and chocolate. So, there was no way that she could have eaten either of them. It couldn’t have made her that sick if she had. Calder shook his head as he answered,”No. Of course not. I would never allow her near either of these things, Dr. Langenkamp.”

“You think someone fed Scampers either of these things without me knowing?”,he asked. It was irrational and he knew that. But it seemed like the more logical conclusion in his mind. How else would she have gotten to either of these things? Someone else had to have fed her it. Maybe his landlord left a bar behind last inspection by accident? That had to be about a week or six days ago. So that somewhat fit the timeline for when that happened. Calder would need to ask her about that tomorrow. Dr. Langenkamp answered,”Maybe? I would like to keep her for a few more days at any rate.”

“Just to observe her and see if anything else develops.”,she added. Her tone was gentle. But there was an odd something under it. A thing that Calder couldn’t really put his finger on. It didn’t matter. What mattered was the fact that Scampers had eaten and drank. Ate and drank! That had to be a good sign of something. Though not all his worries were quelled with this. As he still had no clue as to what caused this in the first place. Maybe she had been stressed by something in the building or the landlord coming? Dr. Langenkamp added,”I promise to update you daily, Calder.”

“Thank you, Dr. Langenkamp. I really appreciate this so much.”,Calder stated. It was good to know that she would. With that they finally hung up and he put his phone in his pocket. Finally, some good news after being up since dawn nearly sick with fear. Afraid that he had somehow poisoned his pet without realizing he had done it. Sure, he would have to wait a few days to get Scampers back.

But this was better than he thought it would be.

With this in mind, he headed to their bedroom. Deciding that it wouldn’t be a bad time to get rid of Scampers old food dish and water bowl. Feeling that maybe there was something in them both that had harmed her. Possibly leeching into her food and water. Possibly this was paranoid thinking, but he couldn’t risk that. Scampers’ life was on the very line, and he wasn’t taking any risk.

Not one.

With this he swiftly picked up both her water bowl and food bowl. Hurrying to the kitchen to dump both into the trash can. Push the pedal to open it up and toss them inside. Grateful that the water was out of the water dish. Gently, Calder muttered,”It was time to get her new ones anyway. These were probably molding or something.”

“I’ll get her one of those fancy water fountains and a metal bowl.”,he added. Feeling that either of them would work the best. Besides he heard that metal was better for them. In what way he couldn’t entirely remember but still. Calder set the lid back down before heading to the living room. Debating on ordering new cat food. Dry and wet. After some thorough investigation into what was best for her that was.

Maybe the food that they had was recalled? It was something to check on his phone. Which he pulled out of his pocket. Opening it up, he immediately googled to see if it was or not. So far there was nothing that he could find. Calder frowned deeply as he kept searching repeatedly. In a soft voice, he muttered,”So maybe it really was the plastic in the dishes.”

“I mean what else could it possibly have been. I don’t own anything toxic she could have eaten.”,Calder continued. There was nothing in the apartment that could have done it. He searched everywhere after the Vet visit. Under his bed. In the closet that she liked to sleep in. As well as in the kitchen. There weren’t any bugs or anything like that there. Not a mouse that might have eaten rat poison before she nibbled on it. Just what in the world could have gotten her so sick? Scampers wasn’t exactly an easy to scare cat.

The silly little thing hissed at a saint Bernard once.

Her being scared just didn’t sit right with him. Calder sighed as he tried to keep himself from getting worked up over it. Berating himself wasn’t going to get them anywhere and he knew that. Still, it was hard to not be angry at himself. Scampers lost two thirds of her weight and he took so long to get her to the Vet. It was so difficult to not tell himself off for being so stupid. Or smack himself in the head for it either.

Another thing that he was desperately working on.

“What kind of cat dad am I if I can’t even figure out how to help my poor baby?”,he demanded of himself. Hating how stupid he was for not knowing what she needed. How he didn’t do better by his poor fur baby. Some self-loathing part of him kept telling him that he didn’t deserve her. That Scampers deserved a better owner than him. One that would get her to the Vet if she was even a little sick. Long before she started losing so much weight, she was practically a kitty skeleton. Keep her from getting as sickly as she was now. As Calder was clearly too stupid to do so.

Setting his phone on the couch beside him, he put his face in his hands. Softly, he grumbled,”I’ll make it up to her. I’ll do whatever it takes to get her to be fat again.”

“I don’t care how much money I have to spend to do so.”,Calder added. Soon as she got back, she was going to be spoiled. So spoiled she would think she was royalty or something. And she’d get so fat that she would have to be moved around with a skateboard. Scampers deserved tons of treats for being so good.

He would make certain of that.

A trip to Wal-Mart and then a trip to Tractor’s Supply. See if they have anything that could help Scampers’ stomach. Like maybe some hairball stuff or antibiotics too. Would those work for whatever is wrong with Scampers? He wasn’t sure and he’d ask Dr. Langenkamp when he had the chance. She probably wouldn’t recommend that he do that, but he was desperate. After all Dr. Langenkamp knew how much he loved her. As she was the first Vet, he took her to. Saw how much Calder bawled over Scampers when she was so little.

Hopefully she had advice.

Not knowing what exactly was wrong was killing him inside. It was terrifying to not know what he was doing wrong as a cat parent. But he decided to not dwell on it right then. Otherwise, he was going to end up beating himself up over it. And then he wouldn’t be doing anything productive at all. What he needed to do was make himself some dinner. Make a list of what to get at Wal-Mart as well as Tractor Supply. Not just food but maybe new cat litter as well? Maybe the dust from the litter that she had now was hurting her? When she was grooming from her paws.

Maybe.

Right now, he couldn’t be certain until he changed everything. And with this in mind Calder got up off the couch. Heading to the living room as he muttered,”Everything is going to be fine, and Scampers will be healthy again.”

“Just stop getting so wrapped up in your thoughts.”,he instructed himself. Despite himself he was very deep in his thoughts. So deep in his thoughts that he had missed something. Right in the corner of the room hidden in a fake plant. A small red light was flashing. Something that he may have noticed if he weren’t so frazzled. Someone was watching him pace around his room. Talking to himself about his poor cat. The one that they weren’t a huge fan of in the smallest bit. And when she came back, they were going to start their plan again.

As soon as possible.

In the kitchen Calder was making himself his favorite dinner. A nice pot of pumpkin soup with a grilled cheese sandwich. Something that he did for himself when he had a rough day. Or week. Or he wanted a simple meal for the day. And was too lazy to make a big meal. He poured his favorite brand of pumpkin soup into a pot. Setting the bag on the counter before opening a cupboard to get his favorite bread. He fished out two pieces of bread and set them down on the counter. Putting the loaf back before getting the cheese out of the fridge. A very spicy cheese with ghost peppers. Something that he adored the most.

While he started making the sandwich his brain mulled over Scampers. Not letting it go as he started fixing the sandwich. Taking a deep breath, Calder sighed,”Come on brain. Not now. Please not now.”

“There’s nothing more we can do that we aren’t already doing.”,he added. Unfortunately, he could not reason with his brain. Nor would the thoughts stop like he wanted them too. His teeth dug into his bottom lip as he flipped his grilled cheese. Trying to keep both sides even as he did so. When he was sure it was done, he turned off the heat. Got it off the pan and set it on a nearby plate. When that was done, he went to stir his soup a few times. To try and avoid his soup burning as he hummed to himself. A way to soothe himself a little bit.

“Scampers won’t die, and she will gain weight.”,Calder assured himself. Trying to squash down his rising anxiety and panic. Since neither of them were going to do him any good. While he worked, he took a few deep breaths. Feeling calmer and calmer as he finished making the soup. Turning off the burner it was on before getting a bowl. Pour out enough for now and put the pot into the fridge for later. When he was done, he headed back to the living room and sat down on the couch. Settling his soup and sandwich on the coffee table before picking up the remote. Soon as he turned on the T.V. He told himself,”Dr. Langenkamp will make sure that Scampers is okay.”

Once he calmed himself down, he turned on his favorite bad movie. ‘The Bone Collector’ and picked up his sandwich. Eating it as he watched the first murder happen. It was stupid but it really helped put him at ease. Mostly thanks to the fact that Denzel Washington and Angelina Jolie were in it. Along with a few other actors he liked. Almost made up for how weird the movie was. And how stupid the plot twist was.

It was super stupid, made no sense, and felt like the writers weren’t trying.

Either way, it was one of his comfort movies from his childhood. Along with a few other dumb movies. Which he was going to watch after the Wal-Mart and Tractor Supply run. He was going to watch them with some popcorn covered in pumpkin spice flavoring. Maybe even pumpkin spice soda and a few pumpkin spice cookies. If he was feeling up to getting either.

That was if he could find the ready-made dough too. As he didn’t really want to make it from scratch. And he wasn’t a fan of Oreos. When he was finished with the sandwich he started eating his soup. Quickly drinking it down than he had eaten his sandwich. Wanting to get it done so he could get to Wal-Mart and Tractor Supply quickly.

He wanted to be prepared before Scampers came home.

Once he was done with his food he put the dishes in the sink. All of which would be done after the trip to both stores. Right now, they weren’t his biggest priority. Getting Scampers the right medicine for whatever was wrong with her. Calder hurriedly pulled his wallet out of the drawer it was normally in. Shoved it into his pocket next to his phone. Along with his apartment front door key. Slipped on his shoes as he hurried out of the apartment. Locking the door after him. Praying that he could find something that would help his baby’s health. Make sure she never gets this sick.

Ever again.