AC

The cats were furious. When Albert rolled over and felt the raw heat of the sunlight in the airless room, he was very angry. But it was not just his anger. There was Carey next door in the place they shared a balcony with; he did not like the weather, either. He did not like the way things were going. The heat, the sun, the lack of a cool space during the day that was near their food and water bowls, and then all of that fur to live with made their lives very difficult. They had every right to feel angry.

This was the fifth day. The humidity dropped itself on top of the city that week and would not shift. The humans seemed miserable; most of the animals were able to cope with it. Dogs panted, crickets buzzed, cicadas hummed, fish had all of that water to themselves, and birds flew away to somewhere much more pleasant and cooler. That is what most of the cats thought. Albert had attended a meeting on the third day with some of the local strays and tamed neighbours. That had not been a good idea. They had all talked over each other and hissed and howled when they heard bad suggestions and worse advice (two hairless Sphinxes were never seen again after commenting on how they did not mind the heat). They had achieved nothing in that session. It was still too hot to think and they soon decided to leave. But something important did happen: Albert met Carey.

Carey, a slight tabby with bright orange fur, was new to the neighbourhood. His human arrived when the heat was not so terrible and the other cats could still go out in the middle of the day for a chat and a long walk. That was at least two weeks ago, but it was only after the meeting that they spoke. Albert learned that Carey had grown up in the country; an actual farm with plenty of land and space for a wandering cat. He had seen tall grass, hunted certain birds, hid in tree trunks and walked past streams, cows, horses, and other things Albert could only imagine. After describing his life, Carey wanted to know all about Albert and the other neighbourhood cats. Albert wanted to lie about his life – duplex near apartment complexes and strip malls; very few trees nearby – but he took Carey along for his daily excursions and showed him the small town they were in. Soon, they became close friends and spent all of their time together. It did help that they lived next door to each other (an important thing for cat relationships).

The heat continued. The cats complained. The humans struggled. Albert and Carey were still friends, exploring parts of the neighbourhood where there were shadows and certain other cats Albert wanted Carey to know. But still, the heat was intense. They were so desperate that one day they ended up in a private parking garage where the sunlight could not reach the line of cars untouched by the heat. And they both made an interesting discovery.

The weather in this space was cool.

Albert, a brown tabby that knew nothing about cars and little about humans who loved such things so much that they would hide them inside a building, was amazed at the change in temperature. When the main garage door closed, both he and Carey found that the space was comfortable, even a bit too chilly for them. How was this possible? In the dark, they tried to move about and discover the source of this beautiful change. Eventually, they got closer and closer to where all of that delicious air started: a magic box. Both cats looked up and saw that ribbons on a box with little spaces in it was providing cool air. The ribbons flapped in the breeze and the box did not move. It stayed quite high up on a wall over a large station wagon that Albert and Carey jumped on top of just to see if this was a mean trick. They could not stop staring at it. And that was when Carey looked at Albert and decided on a plan.

It was difficult plan to think clearly about once they left the garage, but their humans could also find a way to get the magic box. Albert was certain that his human could get one if they made it clear that they needed it. Carey was not sure why this was so until it was explained to him that being the older human who had lived their longer, Albert’s would have more motive to stay comfortable in that home. He spent most weekends at home and did not spend the rest of the time with other people. He would be there, as always, during the worst of it. He would not deny them this.

The next week was filled with failures. Like most cats, Albert and Carey did not understand all the important aspects of human nature. They knew that humans would leave, come back with food and the occasional toy for them, but they could not figure out how to make the magic box appear. Albert, living longer with his human than Carey, tried sleeping in the same bed on the hottest days (he got chased out of the room every time), tipped over his water bowl (all evaporated by the time his human noticed), and even tried to get himself to cough up fur balls (the noise of his attempted regurgitations was too repulsive to try it too often). Carey only tried the sleep approach, but it also failed. He did manage to get his human upset about the water, but there was no way to communicate their real desire. They both felt dejected. And the heat wave continued.

But, as often happens when you are not looking for one, a miracle happened. After a long day out with his buddy, Carey entered his home and noted the change in temperature. 

It was comfortable. It was cool.

Almost too excited to contain himself, Carey ran around the house until he found it. Through one of the windows in the front room was the magic box. No ribbons on this one, but he could not be fooled. It was one of them.

As soon as he was sure, he invited Albert over to see it. Albert, not really believing this to be possible, was shocked by the temperature and the presence of the box in the front room. Carey’s human had found it first. 

They both stared at it, closing their eyes as they felt the breeze hit them and listened to the low murmur of the machine as it made their lives more comfortable. It was almost impossible to believe in.

It was Albert who noticed the size of it. Compared to the one in the garage, this was a much larger magic box. Much, much larger.

Now, this was cat logic, you have to understand: if it was comfortable to be in a room with the magic box, how much more comfortable would it be to sit on the magic box (they had tried to do so in the garage and it had only lead to embarrassment and dirty paws). 

Albert was older, but he gave it all his strength as he leapt up and landed on the box. It really was cool. And the hum of the machine would be perfect for his naps. He looked down at Carey and waited for his best friend to jump up and enjoy it.

‘It's fantastic!’

Carey, who came from the country side and did not always trust machines, hesitated for a moment. His human would be gone for a while that particular day (always groceries on a Sunday). They may as well see if this is their new spot (and maybe let some other cats know about it when they were ready to share).

He leapt.

******

Mr. Carson heard it before he saw it. The machine his neighbour installed just missed him as he picked up his bike and entered the duplex. Great, new guy must be as stupid as he looks. He had never spoken to him, but he remembered when he moved in and wondered if he was going to be a problem (well, clearly...). So, Mr. Aronson, you got yourself an expensive AC that almost killed me. Wonderful. He thought about lawyers and lawsuits as he walked up to the apartment, but decided to let himself calm down first. As long as my cat’s okay, I won’t push it. And doesn’t he have a cat, too? He paused at his front door. Yeah, better check on him. He might be a little scared by all that noise. 

‘Carey?’