The Goodbye
‘I’ll give you a minute,’ said the woman in white. She left the room.
Claire put her head down on the steel bench. It smelt like hospital grade disinfectant and was cold enough to hurt her ear, but it was worth it to be close to him. Her cat. Her best friend.
His grey fur was a matted mess along his back, where he could no longer groom himself, and his eyes were sinking back in his head.
‘Smokey?’ she whispered. He was unresponsive. He had already given up.
She reached out and placed her hand on his tiny paw.