Ajax Meets a Child

Our cat lives a very sheltered life these days.  He was born on the gritty streets of Baltimore, probably addicted to crack.  But ever since then, he's been pampered, loved, and overfed.  Save for the occasional molestation that Andy perpetrates against him, he has no cause for complaints.  He spends his days eating, staring out the window, sleeping in the closet, hiding in the bathtub, eating some more, and going Hiroshima on his litter box, as he is wont to do after his marathon eating sessions. 

He has never been outside.  Andy and I are his entire world.  Save for the handful of times we've left him in the care of friends, he's never known anything else.  Because of this, he's very shy.  No, he's worse than just shy.  He's a complete coward.  If the front door opens and an unfamiliar voice rings out, Ajax hides under the covers until the coast is clear.  I like to think of him as our own little unicorn, because few others have ever seen him.

Until today, I assumed Ajax was afraid of fully grown humans because of the sheer size difference.  I really overestimated him.  Here's what happened when Ajax met a child.  An innocent, sick, child who was peacefully, quietly sitting on our couch watching Wall-E, incapable of harming anything.

Unsuspecting Ajax bumbled down the stairs.

He headed for the kitchen to eat, poop, or both.  Probably both.

He heard a whimper behind him.  He turned around and was immediately horror-stricken.

This was the source of his horror.  Me and a defenseless baby.

He tore up the stairs and cowered under the covers, refusing to emerge until Andy came home.

I am so ashamed of my cat.