Fat Choy

Fat Choy hid during nearly every visit. The story of her name reached us before a clear photograph did.

Her English name is Petunia, chosen because it is easier for customers to pronounce. Alice told us her family calls her Fat Choy.

"Fat Choy means to get rich," Alice explained. For a store cat, it is a wish that she will bring money and good fortune through the door.

The name is also used for an edible black moss. The family's previous shop cat was Sang Choy, or "lettuce," so both cats have food names. The moss is dark and hair-like, which fits Fat Choy's black coat. Alice counted all three meanings when she explained the name.

Fat Choy was cautious with people and usually stayed among boxes at the back of the store. Alice said feeding time, around seven, was our best chance to see her. She liked treats but did not trust strangers quickly.

Wu, one of the workers, called into the store and listened for movement. Fat Choy answered from wherever she had hidden herself.

"Let me out, let me out," he said, translating the complaint.

We returned around feeding time and waited while the staff moved boxes and tried to coax her forward. Sometimes we saw a paw or an eye in the gap under a shelf. Then she disappeared again.

Gulce eventually caught a clear frame. The failed visits belong in the record too: Fat Choy came out for the people she knew and disappeared when strangers arrived.

From the StoriesFat Choy's story appears in the Bodega Cats of New York stories.