Cleo : Short for Cleopatra

The sweetest little angel to enter into my life.

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I don't remember when it happened but as I was browsing the internet one day, which I happen to do so very often, I came across a majestic breed of cat known as the Russian Blue. I was completely enamoured and in love. They looked so heavenly. Sleek and shiny with striking green eyes. I was like, is this real?

So I kept the picture of this beautiful cat in my mind as I hopped around the world wandering when would I ever get the chance to own such a sweet kitty and after moving to Dubai and finding a job, I decided it was the right time to start my search for the majestic Russian Blue.

I am embarrassed to admit this but I got screwed over on my search for Cleo. I had already decided which name I will give her before I met her and I also knew I wanted a female kitty. I saw an ad online for Russian Blue cats so I responded and due to my over excitement that I finally found a breeder who had them, I ended up doing the stupidest thing I ever did in my life which was to send a money transfer to this person before I ever met them. And of course, I never received the cat. Whomp Whomp Whomp. I felt sad for a few days and then took a break for a week or two but I refused to give up. I was back at it. Searching for my Cleo.

Eventually I found a really nice breeder, a real human this time, and he informed me that he had one female Russian Blue left from his litter so I took her. He brought her over to my apartment with some sample food and her vaccination passport. From then on, I took my mission as cat mom seriously.

Meow meow meow.

At first it was strange to own this little creature but being her mommy came naturally to me. She was so damn sweet. You couldn't help but love her. Most notably, she was very naughty. Always hiding in kitchen cupboards, eating food left unattended on the kitchen counter, and stretching herself all over my laptop while I was trying to work.

I had a wonderful relationship with Cleo. I always took good care of her and made her feel safe. Every 5-6 weeks, I would bring this truck to my building to come and give her a bath and do all her maintenance and they would always give me compliments that she was a well behaved kitty. I always fed her on time and would change up her food so it wouldn't get boring. The only time I heard Cleo meow was in the mornings when she was hungry, otherwise, she was a very reserved cat. Mostly just keeping to herself.

I also loved photographing Cleo. She was so photogenic.

When she was still a baby she used to sleep next to my pillow in bed but as she got older and more independent, she would sleep on a chair nearby the bed or sometimes she would stay by herself in the living room but at night, I could tell she liked being close to me. Cleo had elements of dog in her, she loved running at full speed around the apartment and even enjoyed chasing things. She was refined, agile, and super soft. And, extremely intelligent.

I could tell that Cleo loved me and why wouldn't she? I treated her like a princess. Cleo always listened to me even when I got stern with her over her naughty antics because mostly, I let Cleo be herself. She was an angel. There was no need for me to do anything extra, she was smart enough to figure things out for herself. She was so lovely, she used to let me hold her like a baby in my arms while I sat on the armchair in my bedroom and stared out the window for what seemed like countless hours. A girl living life completely on her own in full faith that somehow it was all going to work out.

The maintenance can be quite annoying and of course each time you travel, you have to find a solution for her but if you can be patient with that part, having Cleo around was such a delight. She never caused any trouble.

Then came the hard part of having to give up Cleo.

After my encounter with The Man With the Huge Chest and Brown Hair, I lost complete control over my life and mind. I descended into complete chaos that I simply couldn't recover from. I seemed to be digging myself deeper and deeper into the hole with what seemed like no way out. I had to leave Dubai and had to leave this dream behind and had to leave this man behind and had to leave my cat behind. It's the only choice that made sense.

It was painful, scary, and beyond traumatizing. The most horrific moment of my life. Having to leave it all behind.

So in a panic, I gathered her things and took her to a cat boarding place where I informed them that I was leaving the country and left her in their care and gave them the responsibility to find her a new owner. They updated me that they gave her away to a nice British couple who were looking for a cat.

No one will ever be able to take care of my kitty the same way I took care of her and no one will ever love her the way I loved her but none of that matters, I hope Cleo is safe, happy, and being her usual naughty self. I never reached out to anyone to check on Cleo because I felt that would be inappropriate. She was no longer my cat and intruding on her new life with her new owners would not be very polite so I let her go in peace.

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