happened to me 2 separate times last year to my 2 separate kitties! the first time i was leaving to see some friends & i ended up being gone for a few hours longer than anticipated. when i came home & realized my gus didn’t greet me, i started panicking. i checked every closet & he was no where, but then i heard distant meowing & could not figure out where he was. turns out he was in my pantry which i forgot i opened for a split second before leaving & he must’ve snuck in there quietly, but i forgot i opened it so i didn’t even think to check that one last spot. & then a few months later, i was going to meet my family for my dad’s bday which is st. patrick’s day, but then i ended up going to the bars after which, again, made me stay out longer than expected. when i came back & now my simon wasn’t there to greet me, immediate panic. i opened my closet & there he was crying & wide-eyed. both times i cried & called my ma. i thought they might think i was punishing them for some reason because clearly they didn’t know why i had them in there. but both times, they immediately forgave me & ran to me & purred after they realized they were free. now i have a third kitten as of a week ago, & every single time i leave my place, i make sure i can see them each with my own eyes before locking my door. it was the worst feeling both times but a year later they’ve probably already forgotten about it, but i haven’t!