The golden retriever dashed ahead. Its tail was in full propeller mode and it lowered its snout to sniff at even the slightest upturned patch of dirt. The dog yipped playfully to Nicole, reminding her that the leash had gone taut and she needed to catch up. She took long strides forward, her dark hair matted and pulled into a ponytail that revealed the sweaty nape of her neck. Wiping the sleeve of her sweatshirt across her face, she pulled back to a stain darkening the fabric. I couldn’t blame her for her exhaustion. She had an obvious soft spot for dogs and had assumed the role of being the personal walker for those who needed the practice of being on a leash at the shelter.

I looked down at the miniature pug named Bugsy–a fitting name from its wide, vacant eyes–that had been thrust upon me when I walked in the doors. It must have been obvious that I was a little out of my element to the staff, so they gave me the most harmless-looking dog to spend the day with. She stared up at me, tongue lolled to the side, and rolled onto her back. Her little tail wagged back and forth when I scratched at her stomach, her white belly nearly lost in the expanse of her otherwise dark fur. 

A few of the older staff members who were supervising the other dogs running around the fenced-in space cooed at us. I fought back a blush and motioned for Bugsy to get up and start walking around like she was expected to. Nobody could claim she was a dumb dog. She rose to her little legs, paws swiping at the dew-laden grass as she proudly strutted over to the cement block that held up a generator. The generator itself was surrounded by a rusty railing that implied we should stay away from it.

“C’mon, Bugs, let’s go somewhere else.”

Raising her back leg, she pissed on the cement, then kicked up some grass to cover the deed. I could only sigh in shame while I led her over to Nicole and the horde of dogs that had gathered over her.

“Alright, alright.” She laughed, teeth on full display as she took turns petting each of them. “I see you all! I see you.”

Bugsy let out a bark and bounded over to sniff at the golden retriever whom one of the staff members had kindly taken over for. There wasn’t much chance she would be able to walk with him when every other dog seemed to want her attention.

When she noticed us approaching, Nicole tried to glare but it was a futile attempt when a terrier mix licked her face. “You know, this isn’t what I exactly had in mind for a date.”

“You can take that up with Aubrey,” I said. “I told Miss Halsey that we had plans for Saturday.”

“Then you should’ve said something to her.”

“You know I can’t say no to her when she’s determined to do something. She’s too damn cute.”

She sighed, dropping onto her backside when the swarm became too heavy to bear. “That’s the problem.”

Through the screen door off in the distance, I could just make out Aubrey sitting in the pen with some of the cats they had let out. A pair of white ones were asleep, nestled in the crook of her arms, while a few of the more playful ones nipped and nosed at her laces. Her eyes were half-closed, and if she hadn’t been occasionally poked at the kittens dangling from her shoes, I would have thought she had fallen asleep as well.

“It’s fine, isn’t it? We’re doing something for a good cause.”

“I’m not really complaining. Just nervous about how this is going.”

“I get that.” I watched Bugsy run at another dog before deciding that was more trouble than it was worth. She padded back over to me, pressing her flat snout into the back of my knee. “For what it’s worth, I’m very happy to have such a beautiful, caring, and thoughtful girlfriend.”

“Flattery won’t get you anywhere.”

I smirked, glad she fell for the bait. “That’s fine because I was talking about Aubrey, anyway.”

She swatted at my arm, riling the dogs into a frenzy and starting a makeshift game of tag. The rules were made up, Bugsy bounding at my heels and the other dogs tapping at me and Nicole with their paws. I had no idea what I was supposed to be doing, so I chased the dogs around. Then, I would turn and they would run at me. Soon enough, a few of the staff members at the shelter joined in, and it was an all-out mutiny.

And I knew the only way to end it was to take down their leader.

I dashed around two slobbering pit bulls, knowing that Bugsy would cover my back and distract the rest. She didn’t disappoint and laid down her life, literally sprawling across the ground, for the good of the rebellion. Nicole stammered when I caught her around the waist, twirling her around and planting a chaste kiss on her cheek. That action earned an outcry from her and a few chuckles from the staff members.

“What do you think you’re doing?” she hissed, looking around embarrassedly at everyone else.

“What do you mean?” I asked. “I saw an opening, and I took it. I must have missed the part where only you were allowed to plant sneaky kisses on people.”

She jerked away from me, crossing her arms and doing what she could to hide the fact that she was pouting. “You’re insufferable.”

The dogs all took her side, except for my loyal pug who I picked up and held against my chest. She licked at my nose, and I kissed the top of her head in return. “See, Bugsy doesn’t complain. She’s a good girl.”

“Shut up.”

I moved closer, whispering in her ear to avoid any more jeering from them. “You’re super cute.”

That was what pushed her over the edge. She darted away from me but not before I caught how heated her face had become. Stopping at the screen door, she turned back to me. “You should know you’ll be buying dinner for us tonight!”

One of the workers made a whipping sound to the jeers of her colleagues as Nicole disappeared into the building, assumedly to go be with Aubrey.

“Sounds like someone’s in the dog house.” A heavy hand clapped my back from the giant of a man who had met us at the front of the shelter and helped situate us. “Eh, don’t sweat it too much, though. You know what they say about anger boiling over and all that.”

I smiled at him and the obvious pun, knowing how Nicole’s famous temper would fizzle out soon enough. He wandered back over to his group of cohorts, and I found myself at the outskirts of the outdoor enclosure by the chain link fence. The dogs became restless in her absence, continuing to run around and play with one another. I sunk down into the grass, still cradling the pug in my arms. “Women, am I right, Bugs? Can live with ‘em, can’t live without ‘em.”

She pressed her wet nose into my forearm and let out a high-pitched whine. 

I laughed. “Sorry, I should have specified I was talking about humans.”

Speaking of which, I maneuvered Bugsy into the crux of my elbow, so I could get my phone from my pocket. I took a quick picture of her dorky face and sent my dad a message about her.

“You all were a big help today.” The man said from behind the counter, his elbows firmly planted on the worn surface as he regarded us with a smile. When he was like this, we were nearly the same height, which really put things into perspective for me. "Really makes a difference for the animals."

“The work you do here is amazing,” Aubrey said.

“Nah, we just do what we can to help,” he replied. “It’s not always the easiest of things, so if you do decide to stop by again, we’d love to have you. Oh, and make sure you give my regards to Halsey. I’m glad to know she’s gotten a little more proactive with her teaching.”

It was weird hearing our English teacher being talked about like she was an old friend, even if that was the case. I could find some comfort in the fact that apparently not much had changed about her from when she was a kid. At most, she might have gotten like five percent less lazy.

Nicole turned up her nose at the piece of information but nonetheless tried to be polite. “We’ll let her know.”

Obviously, that was going to be up to Aubrey and me to ensure that the poor man’s words weren’t twisted.

We said our goodbyes and left the shelter, trudging over the asphalt lot to Nicole’s minivan. The sun had been concealed by a long line of gray clouds, and the air had that smell of impending rain. Despite the weather, I had a strange longing to cross the parking lot and walk down the grassy incline to the beach that was just within sight. Grasping both of their hands, I practically dragged them past the car and onto the slight overhang. They stared ahead in confusion, while I gestured to the distant shoreline.

“You guys up for a little more walking?”

LonMair399

A more Nicole-centric chapter today, but Aubrey will get her time to shine next. I'm glad the last chapter was well-received and will be posting the next one on Wednesday hopefully. Otherwise, it will come out Thursday. As always, thanks for sticking around and I hope you enjoy!