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?”
“Agree with what?” Stick Cat asked. He had honestly forgotten what she might be referring to.
“That my belly is one of my most attractive and elegant feline features.”
“Oh, yes,” Stick Cat said as fast as he could. He had quickly realized the proper course of action. “Without question.”
“I knew you’d agree,” Edith went on. “Why I got stuck there I have no idea. Remember how it took you almost twenty pulls to get me out?”
“I remember,” answered Stick Cat. He rotated his shoulders a little bit to loosen them up. They were still sore.
“Well, now look!” Edith said. You could tell that she wanted to share her good news with Stick Cat. “Now my tummy is through, but my hips are stuck. That’s a lot better, don’t you think?”
“I guess so.” Stick Cat was clearly not very convinced.
“I just think that’s so much better, don’t you?”
This time, Stick Cat did not hesitate at all. “So much better. Totally. Yes.”
There was a moment of silence between them again.
Ultimately, Edith said, “Well, are you going to pull me out or what?”
Stick Cat reached for her paws, clasped them with his own, and began the task.
“I’ll keep count,” Edith commented.
After five pulls, she hadn’t budged at all.
“Stick Cat?”
“Yes?” he answered. He was happy to have a reason to take a break.
“You’re yanking a little too hard,” said Edith. “You’re, like, jerking or something. Try to just pull with a more consistent effort instead of stopping and starting so much.”
Stick Cat squeezed his lips together. He made no response to this suggestion at all and began to pull with a more consistent effort.
Edith didn’t budge.
“Stick Cat?”
“Yes?” He had pulled on her eleven times now. He was pleased to get another break.
“I’m getting tired.”
“You’re getting tired?”
“That’s right,” Edith answered. “It’s not easy being stuck in a wall, let me tell you.”
“I, umm, wouldn’t know.”
“Well, holding still like this in one position can be frustrating. And I get a little sore too. Yesterday, I was sore around my belly. Today, my hips are getting sore.”
“I see,” Stick Cat said—mainly because he couldn’t think of anything else to say.
“So, I was just wondering.”
“Yes?”
“Could you speed this along a bit?”
Stick Cat did not answer, but he did pull at Edith six more times.
“Stop,” Edith sighed. “That’s seventeen pulls and you’re not making any progress.”
“Yeah, I know.”
“No offense, Stick Cat,” Edith said, and looked at him directly. “But maybe you should start exercising or something.”
“Excuse me?”
“You know, working out,” Edith explained further. “I mean, it seems to take you longer and longer to get me out of the wall nowadays.”
“And you think that’s because I’m losing strength? Becoming weaker?” asked Stick Cat. You might think he would be offended by such a suggestion, but he wasn’t. He appeared more amused than anything. There was just the hint of a grin on his face. “The fact that it’s becoming harder and harder to pull you from the wall couldn’t be for any other reason?”
“Not that comes to my mind, no,” Edith replied. She lifted her paws in the air again and thrust them in Stick Cat’s direction.
As he grasped her, Stick Cat added, “Maybe I’ll start doing some push-ups or jumping jacks in the morning.”
“Couldn’t hurt,” Edith said, and smiled. She seemed pleased that Stick Cat might heed her advice.
Stick Cat pulled some more, but he changed his methodology a bit this time. Instead of pulling straight, he pulled Edith a little bit left a couple of times and then pulled her a little bit right a couple of times. This rocking motion made a genuine difference, and in several seconds Edith’s hips cleared the wall—and she popped free.
She paced across the bathroom floor, checked her fur in the mirror on the back of the door, and then turned her head over her shoulder. “Do you want to sit on the windowsill for a while?” she asked. “That wore me out. I need a rest.”
Stick Cat smiled at her. “Great idea,” he said.
It was a normal start to their day together.
But it was definitely not going to be a normal day.