Goodbye, young friend.

I didn't know this kitty for too long, which was unfortunate. However, I first saw him just weeks after he was born, and I remember picking him up and cuddling him. It was funny, because until recently, he was always really distant to me. Every time I approached him, he would hiss at me and warn me to keep my distance. A little baby kitty thinking I'm going to be scared!

But within the past two weeks or so, this one finally started opening up to me. He came inside of my house, it spent the night inside, despite it's moan-like meowing. Not long after, he would start rubbing up against my legs every time I saw him. Just earlier today, he kept following me and demanded me to pet him. :)

But then I woke up from a short lived nap to the racket that was actually my mother bawling. My dad had accidentally hit the poor kitty. Naturally, I went out and called for him, only to be returned by the most pained sounds an animal can make. Not a meow, not a cry; this was something far more tear-jerking.

For the squeamish, I will warn you, it gets a little graphic and a little emotional at this point.

My neighbor, Mr. Henderson, handles kitties and dogs very well, so he came over with his flashlight so we could see exactly where the kitty was hiding. He was under our Explorer, and stared at us. Mouth agape, drenched in blood, having spasms due to the pain, and trying his absolute best to limp towards us. He crawled over just under the front tire, and we could see the damage done in it's entirety. At that point, we all knew that nothing could be done. He was crying for help, crying for the pain to be as quick as possible, and there was nothing I could do to help. He made one last tortured screech and coughed up a pool of blood. His eyes froze. One last spasm. I had never watched an animal die before.

With Kaitlin, I was depressed, but I didn't watch her die. I also realized that I had never truly named the kitty, besides the ridiculous nickname my mother gave him - "Titi." I'm not entirely sure why, but I decided on Jacob as soon as his life ended. Jacob was too young.

Keep Kaitlin company, Jacob. I already miss you.