Friendship
5 min
Ginger and Pumpkin
Vivian Lai
Ginger hopped onto the warm, leather couch, stretching out her paws. It was late afternoon, right on time for her daily nap. Cats always need their daily naps.
She shimmied into her usual corner, somewhat sunken in comparison to the rest of the couch from all the collective hours Ginger had spent napping. It was permanently speckled with strands of her short orange fur by now.
Ginger let out a yawn. Her ears perked as she heard the thunderous footsteps of her human, Sofia, descending the staircase. Ginger was just getting comfortable in her corner when Sofia burst into the living room, car keys in hand, an excited look in her brown eyes.
"Ging, I'm going out," she told Ginger, who just stared at her human with a mildly curious tilt of her head. Sofia cast Ginger a knowing grin. "When I get back, you will have a new friend!"
Ginger stared with wavering confusion as Sofia left the house, closing the door hard on her way out. Ginger's human had a habit of somewhat slamming doors as she passed through them.
Ginger mulled over Sofia's words as she shifted her position, stretching out with her legs in the air. A new friend? Does that mean another cat? Her fur bristled slightly at the thought. No, this house was her territory, not any other cat's.
Ginger had noticed Sofia setting up a strange object on the coffee table against the wall earlier that day. It was a glass box as tall as Ginger herself, with enough space inside to fill it with three months worth of cat food. Instead of filling it with food, Sofia had covered the bottom with a layer of tiny pebbles and decorated it with neon plants. Then, to Ginger's bewilderment, her human then filled the glass box to the brim with water.
Could that peculiar arrangement have something to do with this "new friend"?
Ginger drifted off to sleep, and before she knew it, she was woken up by the door lightly slamming. Her sharp ears picked up Sofia's soft humming right as her human strut into the living room, a puffy bag in her hands.
"Ginger!" Sofia exclaimed, then gestured to the bag. "Come meet your new friend!"
Ginger narrowed her eyes at the suspicious bag. It was filled with water, and a small orange dot flitted back and forth. Before Ginger could take a closer look, Sofia had lowered the bag into the box of water.
"I'm gonna leave her here to adjust to the water temperature for about an hour," Sofia explained. "Then she's free to explore her new home. In the meantime, get to know her, Ging."
Sofia trotted off into her room, no doubt to type away at her computer. Ginger had since learned not to touch that computer, after that one unfortunate moment three years ago in which she'd accidentally leaped onto the keyboard and deleted some of Sofia's important college essays.
Now, Ginger sauntered over to the mysterious glass box, leaping onto the coffee table and taking a close look. She gasped in surprise as a small orange creature peered back at her with wide, bulgy eyes.
"Hello!" The creature said, her small fins churning at light speed. "What kind of animal are you? You're not a fish."
Ginger tilted her head to the side, letting one of her ears droop. "I'm a cat. Have you never seen a cat before?"
The little fish shook her head. "No, but you look so cool. You're furry and I'm all scaly!"
Ginger's whiskers twitched in curiosity. "What's your name? I'm Ginger, Sofia says you're supposed to be my ‘new friend.'"
"Oh, I'm Pumpkin!" The fish said eagerly. "I've never had a friend before... how does that work?"
"Well... we're nice to each other." Ginger explained haltingly. She had no idea how to put friendship into words. "We chat and hang out, I guess."
"Oh, I can do that." Pumpkin said, nodding. "Ginger, I'm about to be the best friend you've ever had!"
Ginger purred in amusement. She liked Pumpkin, but she also liked Sofia's attention. Would Pumpkin pose a challenge to that? She wondered if this friendship with Pumpkin was worth sharing Sofia over.
An hour later, Sofia returned to release Pumpkin fully into her glass box, which Ginger had learned was called a "fish tank." Pumpkin darted around her new home in wonder, exploring every nook and cranny before twirling around in joy. Ginger had to admit she felt a jolt of happiness at her new friend's delight.
It quickly turned to jealousy, however. The sun was just peeking over the backyard fence, which meant it was time for Sofia to give Ginger her daily treat. As Ginger scampered excitedly into the kitchen, she realized that Sofia wasn't there. Disappointment knotting in her stomach, Ginger trotted through the house searching for her human.
She found Sofia sitting in front of Pumpkin's tank, laughing as the fish danced in circles. Ginger's brows furrowed. Sofia forgot about her treat... because of Pumpkin? The fish spotted Ginger as she was about to yowl dramatically.
"Oh, hey Ging!" Pumpkin said, chipper as always. "Look, I can actually do somersaults in this tank!" She promptly demonstrated; five smooth loops in a row. Sofia clapped and laughed.
Ginger helped herself to her own treat that night. After a painfully long time, she figured out how to unscrew the jar and fished one out. Maybe two. She strutted from the pantry with a satisfied look, running straight into Sofia.
"Oh, Ging!" Sofia looked apologetic. "I'm so sorry, I forgot your daily treat! Pumpkin was putting on such a show and it just slipped my mind. How did you figure out how to get one yourself?"
Ginger just meowed and sauntered off, her tail lifted high in the air, feigning nonchalance. But inside, her chest constricted with sadness.
That night, Ginger was awoken to a faint noise coming from the living room. She jolted upright from Sofia's bed, accidentally knocking against her human's legs.
Then Ginger heard screaming.
"Help! Help!"
It was Pumpkin.
Ginger sprang from the bed, then bunched her hind legs beneath her and leaped for the door handle. After a couple failed bats, she finally managed to open the bedroom door, then raced for the living room.
It was dark, but luckily Ginger could see perfectly fine.
Pumpkin was laying in a wet heap on the carpet a few feet from the coffee table and her tank, gasping for breath. When she caught sight of Ginger, her giant eyes lit with relief.
"Ging..." she wheezed. "H-Help..."
Ginger didn't waste a second. She scooped Pumpkin up with her mouth, making sure not to bite down. She hopped onto the coffee table and dropped the fish back through the small hole atop her tank.
"Ging, I can't thank you enough," Pumpkin said after taking many deep breaths. "You literally saved my life!"
"Pumpkin, what happened??" Ginger asked.
Pumpkin suddenly looked sheepish. "I wanted to see how high I could jump from the water, so I aimed for that feeding hole. I expected to come right back down, but instead, I flew sideways and onto the carpet."
Ginger facepalmed with her tail. "Pumpkin, that's dangerous!"
"I know, I'm sorry," Pumpkin said, her voice soft and sincere. "But Ginger, seriously, how do I thank you? I know I've been hogging Sofia's attention from you, and I'm so sorry. I just want to be your friend so badly, how do I ever make it up to you?"
Ginger's heart softened. She curled up next to Pumpkin's tank, resting her head against the glass. "Pumpkin, I'm the one who's sorry. I shouldn't have thought even for a second that your friendship wasn't worth it, and all because I was being selfish. Of course we can both have Sofia's attention. I'd be stupid to throw away an amazing friend like you for something like that."
Pumpkin beamed. "So... does that make us best friends now?"
Ginger purred. "Yes, yes it does."
And Ginger realized that she really meant it. She had learned now that the fish was too good of a friend to pass up. After all, they were going to be living together. Spending the rest of their lives together.
And Ginger could not wait to see what new adventures were in store for her and her new best friend.
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