(Illustrated & original text by Diving Cat/Translated by Linda Chen) 

Ivan was ill. He started to fear the crowd.

In the day when its was loud and crowded on the street, Ivan quietly closed the curtain and hit himself deeply into the bed.

In the night, he got up sometimes and walked up to the roof following the stair at the window. The starry night covered up the world. He did not know where he was. He felt empty at his feet.

One night, a beautiful cat bumped into his world. Ivan looked at her. She was wounded. Some unknown liquid was flowing out from the corner of her left eye.

Ivan decided to give her treatment. On the next day, he took the cat outside. However, the eye-scorching sun stopped him. He fled home, hid into his bed and started to weep.

On the third morning, Ivan took the cat outside again. On the center of the street, he once again cried out loud helplessly.

Days had passed. Ivan walked to the street again and asked directions with shy face. He finally came to a vet. The vet gave the cat a thorough check. He told Ivan that the cat was not ill at all. The liquid around her eye were in fact tears. He gave Ivan a bottle of eye drop, asking him to bring the cat home and take good care of her.

The cat was gradually healed. Some day when she was almost completely healed, she suddenly talked to Ivan, "Ivan, you know why my left eye is always shedding tears? I was deserted soon after I was born. I feel alone. I prayed to God every day for having a friend. God promised me one day and said, 'I will give you a friend, but you have to share half of his pain.' I said yes to God, and since that day one of my eyes has been shedding tears for you. Now, you are to heal me, and at the same time, you heal yourself. So, please stop crying and be happy."

That night Ivan had a sweet dream. The next morning he opened the curtain and let the sun in. Since then the cat never talked to him and never had a drop of tear.

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