Juliet stomped across the room and threw herself on the bed. She screamed into a pillow. Creme Puff was startled awake and yawned, then waddled over to the side of the cage to observe his human girl. Her shoulders shook, and her face was now red and puffy. Her eyes were watery, and her face streaked with tears.
"I wish I never had brothers! Why couldn't I just have sisters? They break everything, they steal everything! Why?!" she moaned.
Ah, brothers. Creme Puff knew about brothers. They were always eating the last, best seeds. Always fighting over the best snuggle spot with mom. Always shoving, biting, scratching. Why did they have to share a cage together? And the sisters...don't get me started.
Juliet stared out of the window. It was raining, again. The weather matched her mood. Some summer this was cracking up to be. She sighed and hugged her pillow tighter to her chest.
Creme Puff put his hands around the bars of the cage. Maybe if he ran in his wheel he could cheer her up?
SQUEAK SQUEAK SQUEAK....SQUEAK. The wheel spun. Juliet looked over at Creme Puff. His little hands grabbed each spoke so quick it was hard to see it. Suddenly, he tumbled out of the wheel. Dazed and dizzy, he half sat up. Juliet giggled.
It worked! Juliet came over to the cage and opened it. She lifted Creme Puff out and snuggled him against her wet cheek. His whiskers tickled.
"I don't suppose you had brothers that ruined everything." Juliet looked into his beady black eyes. Creme Puff folded his hands together over his tummy and looked away. "Wait! You did have brothers! Litter mates?" With a slight nod, while imperceptible to most humans, Juliet noticed and squirmed a bit. Creme Puff had a story to tell. Let's start from the beginning.
May 15th
7 days old. Brrr! Why is it so cold? I see the white fluff of our nest. There are others here just like me, pink and half naked, and paws everywhere. I can feel soft baby fur starting to grow on us, but it's still cold. And it's so bright! Mom? Mom!
I hear the click, click of her getting a drink of water from the water tube. This is why we're cold. She left us to eat her lunch and get a drink. As I start to wake up, so do my brothers and sisters. We start to move around and find Mom. My poor mother. She never gets to eat in peace and quiet anymore.
May 21st
At first, I really liked my brothers and sisters. We would snuggle together and it was so warm. This is probably the only time we get along, when we're sleeping. We eat together, play together, try new things together. The human put in some tubes for us to play in. I got lost and scared. Mom had to tell me to just follow the light at the end of the tunnel.
Now it's a fight about who gets to play in the tube first. Or third. Or tenth.
May 23rd
Mom gave us a bath. Cold, cold, cold! I can't wait to get back in bed where its warm. At least we smell better now.
May 26th
New scary experience: the human picked us up! I think I might have a problem with heights. I panicked a little. I liked it when the human put me in the shirt pocket. That was nice. It reminded me of the nest, but with more room to stretch out. I was almost asleep and then I was dropped back in with everyone. Everyone wanted to hear the story.
May 28th
Cramp! There is not enough room in here! Bubbles poked me in the eye, Gina pulled my whiskers. Bobby was sucking on my foot in his sleep. Gross! Titus, the biggest one of us, fell on top of me while trying to get out of the nest. Is that a leg cramp? Wait...no, its just Tyron chewing on my tail again. Ugh.
May 29th
Ahhh! I found a spot just for me. Its up in the green tube. I dragged a cucumber up there and had a little snack, just for myself. It was quiet and peaceful for a whole 58 seconds. Tyron took the rest of my cucumber slice, and Bobby once again used me for a pacifier. That guy has a serious problem. Its a good thing I have these handy cheeks to cram my cucumber into. I found a red tube to finish my snack in peace. Then mom called us for bath time and bedtime.
May 31st
Ok, we are too big to fit in this nest or cage. I can't talk to mom anymore. Every time I try to talk to her, someone else is in a squabble, needs helps, needs food, is complaining, or fighting. Ugh, the fighting! There are one hundred seeds over there and they are fighting over two. The wheel looks interesting. It would be great if I could try it without three other siblings trying to get on too. All they do is shove. They other day I was trying to figure out how the water bottle worked and Reese came up and shoved me off. Show off! Sorry if I can't get coordinated enough to figure it out, but maybe if I had a few more minutes I could! Titus is just too big for the tubes. He got stuck again. The human had to intervene. Turns out, Titus is actually a guinea pig and not a hamster. That explains a lot.
June 5th
Today we were put in a new area. It had a big window, lots of bedding, lots of ROOM, and it was so fun. We had extra tubes and wheels to play in. I found an awesome green tube that no one was interested in. I watched everyone paw to get at the window while I just relaxed up in my green tube with my spinach snack. Suckers!
P.S. It seems some of us are missing tonight. The nest seems bigger.
June 6th
I woke up with Bobby sucking on my foot again. That guy is so weird! Mom is suddenly missing. I couldn't find her anywhere. Seems that my sisters are gone as well. Well, good riddance! They were so pushy and greedy. They were always taking the best seeds, the warmest spot in the nest, and they really hurt when they decided to pick a fight. My brothers are ok. We have our moments, but generally, I like hanging out with them. They aren't nearly as rough as the girls. Even though Bobby sucks on my feet, he's still a pretty fun guy. We played Chase the other day in the blue tubes. That was fun. Bubbles just likes to sleep. Reese has learned some manners finally.
June 9th
We were put in the area with the large window again. I saw lots of humans again today. Bobby went home with one of them. I saw him leave the store. I'm going to miss that little guy. I also saw Mom briefly. She is in another cage. She looks bigger for some reason.
June 15th
Today I am the only one left in the cage. I hate to admit it, but I'm kinda lonely. Last night was cold with no one to sleep with. On the bright side, I don't have to fight with anyone to get the seeds or apple slices. And I have the wheel to myself. And, uh, I have the whole water tube to myself. *sniff* I miss my mom. And even my pushy sisters. And..even Bobby. *sob* I think I'll just go to bed now.
June 16th
I slept in today. Why bother getting up? There's no one to do anything with. I was eating my banana slice this morning and I heard the bell jingle. More humans. Apparently they come in and "adopt" hamsters, birds, fish, even the puppies and cats. I finished my banana and decided to take a nap. You know, the 'after breakfast before lunch' nap. The next thing I know, I was being poked, and then dropped into a box. It is a good thing there are holes in that box. I scurried around trying to find the best view. The smells changed, the sounds changed. I was suddenly moving really fast. I caught a glimpse of the human that held my box. She was wearing pink. There were sparkles on her shirt. Are those edible? She wore shiny things on her teeth. Wonder what those do? I liked when she petted my head. That felt nice.
I fell asleep from all the excitement. When I woke up again, I was in an entirely different place. The human in the pink shirt was putting me in a new cage. This one was the best cage I'd ever seen! Tubes to play in, a little hut for sleeping in, bowls of food, and my very own water tube! There was a blue car in there. I could have so much fun here! The best thing: a wheel, just for me to play in, and it didn't look like there were any other hamsters I had to share this with. It's all mine!
June 20th
I've been settling in. The human, Juliet, takes very good care of me. My cage is clean, my food bowl is always full, and she takes me places in a hamster ball. I've become quite the explorer! Everything looks so new and interesting. Last night Juliet sneaked me into her bed in the hamster ball after her mom turned out the light. It was just like sleeping in the nest with Mom! I don't feel so lonely, but I do wonder how Bobby is doing.
June 21st
Trenton appeared today. He is a very old hamster that Juliet is babysitting for a friend. He sleeps mostly. I'm hoping we can talk some more. I have questions.
June 22nd
Juliet's friend, Hazel, came over today. Guess what? Hazel has Bobby! Well, his name isn't Bobby anymore. It is now Caramel. She brought him over in a blue hamster ball. He looks great! We had a good chat. He has a cage just like mine and he's pretty happy. Hazel is also a 13 year old girl. I showed him around Juliet's room in my ball. I hope we get to visit again. I know we all grew up and moved on with out lives, but I'm so glad I have Caramel still. It makes me miss my family. I wonder how Mom is doing? And, yeah, I wonder about my sisters.
June 23rd
Trenton's wheel was going today. It sits right beside mine. It wasn't going very fast, so I joined him in my wheel. We just waddled along. I guess some exercise is better than nothing? He asked how I was settling in. I told him about all the differences in my cage from where I was with my family. I even mentioned I was a bit homesick. I did like my human though, Juliet. And I told him about Bobby, I mean, Caramel, and Hazel. He nodded quietly as I shared all this. He took a nap right after our exercise. Later in the day he motioned for me to join him at the side of the cage.
"Listen, squirt. I've been thinking about our conversation this morning. You miss your brothers and sisters?" I nodded.
"Well, in your lifetime, you'll meet lots of new hamsters, I'm sure. It's good you have Caramel, but you might get to know other hamsters. Be patient with them. They are usually younger and may not have learned all their manners yet. You might meet older hamsters. Be a good listener. They like to share stories. Sometimes the humans change too, but they can still be good friends. Friends can become like siblings, and siblings can become like friends. Just remember that." I nodded again. Trenton was moving slower. He lumbered off to bed again. I noticed now for the first time how grey the fur around his nose had become, and his whiskers were very long and droopy.
I wish I had tried harder to get to know my sisters. My brothers were still learning, and I guess I was too. I wonder if I'll see them again?
Juliet nodded, just as I had nodded. "So you're saying I need to be patient with my brothers?" I nodded. She sighed heavily. "They are just so frustrating! And all they do is make messes! Well, I guess that's better than having someone suck on your foot. That's so gross!" She smiled at me. I stuck out my foot. She rubbed it for me. We blinked at each other. Mom called her.
"Okay, Creme Puff. I need to go. Thank you! I get it, I think. You're a good little hamster."
She placed me gently in the cage, and I ran for the red tube. It had the highest spot in the cage, and it actually sat up above the cage. It was my favorite spot. I could see everything from up here. I pulled out my snack and thought of Caramel. It will be great to see him again when Hazel comes over. Life is pretty sweet.
