Stick Cat’s roommate, Goose, had already left for work. And Stick Cat rested on the windowsill of their apartment on the twenty-third floor.
The big city was wide-awake now. Stick Cat had already watched the sun’s reflection brighten thousands of windows among the dozens of buildings he could see.
It was the time of day that Stick Cat enjoyed most. And it was not just because he loved how the city slowly illuminated as the morning progressed.
It was also because he knew it was simply a matter of time before his best friend, Edith, would call for him.
He closed his eyes and waited.
For six seconds.
“Stick Cat!”
It was Edith.
Stick Cat opened his eyes, hopped down to the living room floor, and began to pad his way across the soft, plush carpet toward the bathroom.
“Stick Cat!”
“Coming,” he called back.
He was nearly to the bathroom now. It was where he met Edith almost every day. They had scratched a hole in the wall that separated their two apartments from each other.
The hole was concealed in their respective bathroom cabinets. It had never been discovered by Goose or by Edith’s roommate, Tiffany.
“Stick Cat!”
“Almost there,” he said. He was in the bathroom now.
“I’ve got great news!” called Edith. Stick Cat could hear true excitement in her voice.
Stick Cat opened the cabinet door and saw exactly what he expected.
Edith was stuck in the wall.
He didn’t comment about her predicament at all. He knew better than to do that. Instead, he asked, “What’s your good news?”
“I’m less stuck than usual!” exclaimed Edith. “Isn’t that terrific?”
“I suppose,” answered Stick Cat. Something seemed to bother him though—like something didn’t make sense to him. Stick Cat hesitated a moment before asking, “But aren’t you either stuck or not stuck? I’m not sure there can be degrees of stuck-ness.”
“Of course there can,” Edith said. She seemed almost offended at Stick Cat’s suggestion. “Yesterday, I was totally jammed in here. Remember? I seemed to get caught right at my tummy for some reason. I’m not sure why. My midsection is one of my most attractive and elegant feline features.”
Edith stopped speaking then and just stared at Stick Cat. She appeared to be waiting for something. After several seconds, she added, “Wouldn’t you agree?”
Will Edith get out of the wall? What crazy thing will happen next?