The Cat at Number Twelve (A2 Reading Story)

A2 · ELEMENTARY Reading practice · ~1,900 words · 13-min read

This is a short mystery story for elementary learners. The story uses the past simple tense and short sentences. First, read the eight key words. Then read the story. At the end, there is a small quiz to check what you understand.

The story

1 · The visitor

Maya moved into her new flat on a Monday in April. It was a small flat on a quiet street. It had one bedroom, one small kitchen, and a red door with the number nineteen on it. Maya was a new tenant. A tenant is a person who pays money to live in a flat or house that is not theirs. She paid four hundred pounds a month for the flat, and she was very happy with it.

Maya was twenty-eight years old. She worked in a small library in the town. She did not know anyone in her new street yet. But she liked the flat. It was quiet, the neighbours seemed kind, and the sun came in through the kitchen window every morning.

On Tuesday morning, Maya woke up at eight o’clock. She made a cup of tea. She opened her front door to take in the milk. And she saw something strange.

There was a small cat on her doorstep. A doorstep is the small step in front of a door. The cat had orange fur and bright green eyes. It sat very still and looked at Maya’s door. It did not look at Maya. It looked only at the door.

“Hello,” Maya said softly. “Who are you?”

The cat did not move. It did not run away. It just sat there.

Maya looked at the cat’s neck. There was no collar. A collar is a small band that goes around a cat’s or a dog’s neck. Usually, a collar has the cat’s name and a phone number on it. But this cat had nothing. No name. No number.

“Are you hungry?” Maya asked. She went into the kitchen and opened a small tin of tuna. She put some tuna on a plate and put the plate outside on the doorstep. The cat ate the tuna quickly. Then it sat back down and looked at the door again.

Maya watched the cat from her window. At exactly quarter past eight, the cat stood up. It walked down the street and turned the corner. It was gone.

“Strange,” Maya said. “Very strange.”

She thought about the little orange cat all day at the library.

2 · The neighbours

The next morning was the same. At eight o’clock, the cat was there. It sat on the doorstep and looked at the door. It did not move.

Maya gave it a small bowl of milk. The cat drank the milk. At quarter past eight, the cat left.

On Thursday and Friday, it happened again. Same time. Same place. Same quiet cat.

Maya wanted to know where the cat came from. She wanted to know why it came to her door every day.

On Saturday morning, Maya smiled at the cat.

“I have a name for you now,” she said. “I will call you Ginger.”

Ginger did not answer, of course. But she stayed a little longer that day. And when Maya bent down slowly, Ginger let her touch her head. Ginger made a soft, happy sound in her throat — a purr. A purr is the soft, happy sound a cat makes when she is happy.

Later that morning, Maya walked to the shop on the corner. She saw an old man with a small dog. He lived at number sixteen.

“Excuse me,” Maya said. “I am new here. There is a small ginger cat. It comes to my door every morning. Do you know where it lives?”

The old man looked at her. “A ginger cat? On this street? No, I don’t know. I never see it.”

Maya asked the woman at number twenty-two. She asked the young man at number fifteen. She asked the family at number seventeen. She asked five different neighbours. A neighbour is a person who lives near you. But nobody knew the cat. Nobody had ever seen it.

Maya was surprised. How could a cat come to her door every day and nobody know it?

“It is a mystery,” she said to herself. A mystery is something you do not understand but want to find out. And Maya really wanted to find out.

3 · Following Ginger

On Sunday morning, Maya made a plan. She would follow Ginger. She would find out where the cat went every day at quarter past eight.

At eight o’clock, Ginger arrived. Maya gave her some food. Ginger ate quietly. Maya put on her coat and her shoes. She waited by the door.

At quarter past eight, Ginger stood up. She walked down the street. Maya followed her, but not too close. She did not want to scare the little cat.

Ginger turned the first corner. She walked down a small road with tall trees. She turned another corner. Maya followed. She saw Ginger cross the street and walk into a small front garden.

The garden was in front of a small blue house. The house had the number twelve on the door. But the house was empty. The curtains were closed. The grass was long and wild. Nobody had opened that door for a long time.

Ginger sat down on the doorstep of number twelve. She looked at the door. She waited. She did not move.

Maya’s heart felt strange. She understood something now. This was Ginger’s home. This was where Ginger waited. Every day. But nobody was there.

Maya walked slowly to the house next door. An old woman was in her front garden with a cup of tea. She had grey hair and a warm smile.

“Excuse me,” Maya said. “Do you know the people who lived at number twelve?”

The old woman looked at the empty house. Her face became sad.

“Yes,” she said quietly. “Mrs Green lived there. For thirty years. She was a lovely lady. She had a small ginger cat. She fed it every morning at eight o’clock, on the doorstep.”

“Where is Mrs Green now?” Maya asked. But she thought maybe she already knew the answer.

“She fell down in her kitchen last month,” the old woman said. “She hurt her leg. Her son came from London. He took her to a care home. A care home is a place where old people live and get help. Poor Mrs Green — she was very worried about her cat. But her son could not find her. He looked in the garden for two days. Then he had to go back to work in London.”

Maya looked at Ginger on the empty doorstep.

“The cat is still here,” Maya said quietly. “Every morning, she comes back. She waits for Mrs Green.”

The old woman put her hand to her mouth. There were tears in her eyes.

“Oh, the poor thing,” she said. “She does not understand. She is waiting for her human to come home.”

4 · A visit

That afternoon, Maya could not stop thinking about Ginger and Mrs Green. She felt very worried. Worried means feeling bad because you think something is wrong. And something was wrong. A cat was waiting for a woman who could not come home. And a woman was sad and alone in a care home, without her cat.

Maya wanted to help. She had an idea.

The next morning, Maya waited for Ginger. When Ginger came, Maya opened her front door wide.

“Come inside,” she said softly. “It is cold outside.”

Ginger looked at her. She was not sure. But Maya put a small bowl of food inside the flat, near the door. Slowly, slowly, Ginger walked in. She ate. Then she sat on the mat and looked at Maya with big green eyes.

“Good girl,” Maya said. She took out her phone and took a photo of the cat. In the photo, Ginger’s green eyes looked bright and clean.

That afternoon, Maya went back to the old woman next door to number twelve.

“Do you know the name of Mrs Green’s care home?” Maya asked.

“Yes,” the old woman said. “It is Rose House. It is not far. Only two streets away.”

Maya walked to Rose House. It was a big old building with a green garden and yellow flowers. Maya went to the desk.

“I would like to visit Mrs Green, please,” she said. “I am a neighbour.”

The woman at the desk smiled. “That is very kind of you,” she said. “Mrs Green has no visitors. Her son lives in London. She will be very happy to see you.”

Mrs Green sat in a big chair by the window. She was a small woman with soft white hair and blue eyes. When she saw Maya, she looked confused.

“I am sorry — I do not know you,” Mrs Green said.

“My name is Maya,” Maya said. “I live at number nineteen. I moved in two weeks ago. I want to show you something on my phone.”

Maya sat down next to Mrs Green. She showed her the photo of Ginger.

Mrs Green looked at the photo. Her hand went slowly to her mouth. Her eyes filled with tears. She took the phone in both hands.

“Ginger!” she said. “My little Ginger! Is she alive? Is she all right?”

“Yes,” Maya said gently. “She is fine. She comes to my door every morning at eight o’clock. I give her food. She is safe.”

Mrs Green cried and laughed at the same time. “My son told me he could not find her. I thought — I thought she was lost forever. Every night, I could not sleep. I was so worried about my sweet Ginger.”

Maya took Mrs Green’s hand. “I will look after her,” she said. “And I can bring her to see you. I have a small box. Would you like that?”

Mrs Green nodded. She could not speak.

Two days later, Maya came back with a small blue box. Ginger was inside. Maya opened the box slowly in Mrs Green’s room. Ginger looked out. She saw Mrs Green — and she jumped straight into her lap.

Mrs Green held the cat close to her heart. Ginger began to purr. It was a big, deep, happy purr. Mrs Green closed her eyes and smiled.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

The woman from the care home came in and watched. She smiled too.

“Well,” she said. “We do not usually have cats here. But look at Mrs Green’s face. Maybe this little cat can stay.”

Maya’s heart was full. She looked at Ginger on Mrs Green’s lap. The mystery was over. She knew now where Ginger came from. She knew now why Ginger sat on her doorstep every morning.

But as Maya walked home that evening, she thought about something else. Because that morning, before she left the flat, she had found something strange. Something new. Something on her doorstep that was not a cat.

But that is a story for another day.

Check your understanding

Read each question. Think about your answer. Then click “Show answer” to check.

Words to remember

Here are the key words again, in new sentences. Say each one out loud.

• tenant — The tenant pays her rent on the first day of every month.
• doorstep — I found a small letter on my doorstep this morning.
• collar — My dog’s collar is red and has his name on it.
• neighbour — My neighbour is very kind. She helps me with my shopping.
• mystery — Who ate my cake? It is a mystery.
• purr — The cat sat on my knee and started to purr.
• care home — My grandmother lives in a care home. We visit her on Sundays.
• worried — My friend was late last night. I was worried about her.

Talk about it · Write about it

Talk about it: Do you have a pet, or do you know a friendly street cat or dog? Where does it live? What does it do every day?

Write about it: Write 6 short sentences about a time you helped a neighbour or a stranger. What did you do? How did they feel? Use the past simple tense.

🎉 Well done — you read a whole mystery story in English! That is a big step for an A2 learner. And did you notice? You now know eight new words too.

But wait — what did Maya find on her doorstep that morning? Was it another lost animal? A letter? A small gift from Mrs Green? You will find out in the next story…

Next story: Read another A2 story →

About this story: This is an original A2 graded reader (~1,900 words). It uses simple, controlled vocabulary and the past simple tense, so elementary readers can understand about 98% of the words. Any harder word is explained before the story and used again inside it.

Khamis Maiouf

My name is Khamis Maiouf. I am the creator of the English Teacher Site, dedicated to providing valuable resources and insights for students around the world. With a passion for education and a commitment to helping students enhance their skills, I aim to make English teaching more effective and enjoyable for both educators and students.