It all started with a suitcase. Carmen went away for the weekend and left Nilo in Arnaud's care. The instructions were clear: meals on time, fresh water, clean litter box. And no parties.
Nilo had other plans.
The moment the door closed, the flat changed owners. Nilo found Arnaud's beer on the balcony. Then he found the phone. By mid afternoon he had reached a conclusion: a flat with no humans is far too big for one cat.
So he posted. A crown, a can, three words and a hashtag. The news travelled across the neighbourhood balconies faster than any group chat.
A flat with no humans is far too big for one cat.
When Arnaud came home, the scene spoke for itself: open cans, a balcony taken over and a brand new Instagram account full of photos. Nilo, stretched out like the boss of the place, didn't even blink.
Among the guests was an orange tabby nobody had seen before. His name was Gato, which is simply Spanish for cat. He ended the night belly up, sunglasses on, hugging a bottle as if it were his.
That was the night Nilo and Gato met. The boss and the one who sleeps wherever he wants. They have been a gang ever since.
And that is how Cat Life was born
From a weekend with no humans, a beer that wasn't his and one rule Nilo wrote down for good: no humans, no snitches. What happens on the balcony stays on the balcony.
You are looking at what came next: streets, parks, bar terraces, motorbikes and a first run of T-shirts with the gang's seal. Carmen came back on Sunday. Nobody has told her a thing.
Editor's note: no cat drank or smoked anything during this story. The props and the editing were done by humans.