One sunny summer morning, a young girl awakened from a deep slumber. She looked out of her window, upon a bed of the greenest grass she had ever seen and a blue, cloudless sky. She remembered the tiny black kitten asleep at the end of her bed, and rushed to play with it. She found the kitten’s bed lying empty. She called for the kitten, but no response came. She searched under her bed, and in her closet. Her columbia blue walls, and short white furniture, didn’t hide her kitten. She looked around her home, in every nook and cranny, and she couldn’t find even a single hair from her kitten. The girl looked everywhere, but still could not locate the missing cat.

She returned to her bedroom, where she sat at the foot of her bed, as tears began to roll down the girl’s face. She ran her fingers through her hair, and pulled it in fear. She loved the missing kitten, and she felt that she had failed it. She felt as though she had blown out the candle providing the only light in her life. She felt like nails had pierced her heart, and a hammer had driven the nails right into her soul. She felt helpless. She felt alone. Rivers flowed from the child’s sapphire eyes, as she feared the worst for the kitten she called hers. She was afraid the kitten had died, and it was all her fault. She was ashamed of herself for losing the kitten, and wasn’t sure if she could ever forgive herself.

The girl’s mother soon returned home. When she couldn’t find her daughter, she went up to the child’s room, and found her crying. She asked her what the cause of her sorrow was. The girl's mother was distrested for her daughter, but the girl wasn't aware. The girl did not want to tell her mother that she had lost her kitten, because she was worried that her mother would never trust her again. The child was scared that her mother would be disappointed, and she was terrified that this mistake would make her mother feel the same shame that the girl did. She was worried her mother would no longer love her if she learned what had happened. She thought that her mother’s love was based on merit, and she felt very alone.

The girl pushed her mother away. She felt she had no love. She felt worthless. The young girl had no responsibility to care for her kitten, and she had pushed her mother away. She didn’t know what to do. Eventually, her mother would find out, and then, truly no one would love her. She was trapped in a lie. She had to deal with it herself.

All she had to do was find her kitten. She had to search for the thing she loved, and deal with it alone. She couldn't ask for help. She had to keep up appearances with her mother and had to act the part. She had to pretend she was okay, and so she did. She felt the only way out was to search for her kitten and pretend she wasn’t. So, she did. She would look for her kitten, but the girl wasn’t able to find it.

The girl was walking around the neighborhood, searching for the black kitten, when she found a friend of hers. Her friend was crying, and the girl didn’t want to to dump her problems on her friend. So, she didn’t. Instead she asked why her friend was troubled, and she told her that she had lost her key and couldn’t get into her home. The girl decided to push her problem aside to help her friend. She looked with her friend for a spare key, and they eventually found one and her friend’s tears ceased. Her friend thanked her, and then disappeared into her home. The distraction of her friend had only lasted so long, and the girl had to get back to searching far and wide for her missing kitten.

She walked on, alone and in despair, along a sidewalk in her neighborhood. She called for her kitten as she walked and tears began to well in her eyes. She was beginning to realize that she would never find her kitten. She would never have a little ball of fur to wake up to in the morning, and she would have to keep pushing her mother away. Soon, her father would be back from his business trip, and she would have to hide it from him to. She had no one to turn to. If she told her friends, they would laugh and make fun of her, and if she told her parents, they would be disappointed and ashamed. She felt truly alone.

The girl looked on. She knocked on doors, but with no success. The kitten was lost, and so was the girl. Was she naive for trying to find her kitten? Was she responsible for the kitten escaping? What was she to do now?  Was she broken for needing help? The girl wasn’t use to needing help. She was independent and liked it that way. She hated being vulnerable. She didn’t want to tell anyone, but if she kept it hidden much longer, her kitten might have died.

She went home. She walked up to her room and sat at the foot of her bed, as she had two days before. She sat, and she cried. She was scared. She sat for a long time. Day turned to night and night to morning, and still the girl wept.

When her mother woke up, the girl confided in her. The child was surprised and confused when her mother put her arm around her and tried to comfort her. The girl was expecting her mother to scold and punish her for being so irresponsible. She was expecting her to lose trust in her and leave her to find the kitten on her own. The child had been scared and stressed for nothing.  Her mother told her that she would help her find the kitten. They went out and knocked on doors.

When they came to her friends house, her mother told her friend the situation, and her friend asked why the girl hadn’t told her before. The girl told her friend why she hadn’t told her. Her friend felt bad, and told the girl to tell her when she needed help. Walking away from her friends house, she realized that she had people who loved her and would do anything for her. She and her mother walked around for hours. Her mother then suggested that they return home for lunch, and they did. They came into the house at the same time as her father did.

She decided that her father may be able to help her, so she told him. They ate a lunch of sandwiches and apples, and then departed again, the girls father went left, and she and her mother walked to the right. They hiked through the neighborhood, under the blazing sun. They came to the girls favorite park and looked around. Under a bright yellow slide, the girl saw a black blob. She cautiously walked closer, and plucked the blob for under the slide. The ball began to move, and it unrolled into a tiny kitten. The girl was overjoyed. She had never been so relieved in her life. She checked behind the kitten’s left ear and saw the bald spot the told her the kitten she held was hers.

She walked along the path with her  kitten in her arms and her mother alongside her, when a large man with a black mustache came up to her. He saw the kitten and told her he was happy she found the kitten. He told her that her had found the kitten two days before and set out food and water for it since then. The girl hugged the man. She was more thankful than she could possibly express. She and her mother thanked the man and continued walking.

When the two returned home, they found the girl’s father waiting for them. They told him the good news, and he was happy for his daughter. The girl went upstairs and cuddled with her newly found kitten. she had her family, her friends and her kitten. For the first time in a while, she didn’t feel alone.