Lost and Found: Chapter 2

 Chapter 2


Standing outside the gate with Jessica, I looked in to her eyes, and felt like I was looking deep within myself, connecting to places hidden behind such high walls I hadn’t even known they existed. Though we had just met, I knew, just knew, that my life would never be like it was, and whatever happened would be worth the ride, as long as we were in it together.. She giggled, turning her gaze away, then brushed my face with the long, slender fingers of her soft, pale hand.

Odin farted. Beer, human flesh and whatever drugs Brandon had in his system mixed with the general foulness of doggy digestion, especially with these pure-bred little bulldog princes. Loki grunted and staggered towards him, and toppled in to the butt he had been about to sniff. After a stunned second, Loki flopped on his back, paws in the air, and left out a thunderous response, louder and more foul than our foulest of nightmares.

Jessica frowned, covering her nose and taking an involuntary step backwards. ‘Eww! What the hell has Brandon been feeding these guys? You wouldn’t believe it now, but they used to be the sweetest puppies.’

I shrugged. ‘Time can undo all wounds… well, most, I guess. Hopefully some TLC will get them just like their puppy-ish selves… giant versions at least.

Jessica chuckled. ‘Oh Stew, you make it sound so simple.’

‘It is simple.’

‘Well, I… I guess it is. Just a little TLC.’ She smiled, and I felt like watching the sun rise, for the first time. Her teeth were perfectly imperfect, but her lips made them look like they came from the honed eye of a master craftsmen. ‘You’re weird,’ she whispered.’

‘Sorry.’

She stepped closer. ‘That was a compliment,’ she whispered. My heart stopped as her hand touched my chest, and  her soft breathing whispered in my ears. She smelled faintly flowery. 

Nervous, afraid of ruining this perfect moment, I raised my free hand and rested it on her arm. She smiled, gliding in to it, then Loki and Odin both took off, and it took all my strength and focus just to keep on my feet. Jessica burst out laughing as Loki crashed in to a tree as Odin skidded to a halt beside him, while a huge, grim black squirrel started screaming from canopy above, rushing back and forth along the branch as they began to bark. Jessica walked up behind me as the squirrel started hurling pinecones, striking Odin square between the eyes. He yelped and leapt backwards, then lost his balance and fell on his back again. A single turd shot from his exposed butt, bounced off the tree, and struck Loki square between the eyes. Loki yelped, leaping back, but tripped over both leashes and fell over beside his partner-in-crime. Thunk. Thunk. Thunk. The pinecones hurtled to the ground like mortars shot with expert precision. Loki took a cone to the belly, inches from his danger zone, then shrieked, as Jessica gasped and pulled him away from the rampaging rodent. The squirrel bellowed its battle cry, spikey pinecone raised in it’s muscular arms. Two answering cries rang from nearby trees as the fearsome critters vied for dominance
Jessica sighed, holding Loki in her arms as he whimpered and a bruise began to form. She gently patted the unwounded part of his belly. He grunted, kicking his legs in the air as his heavy-lidded eyes rolled back. ‘He loves his belly rubs,’ she whispered, ‘just be ware of uh… projectiles.’

I arched an eyebrow. ‘That’s a good name for it,’ I said, ‘obscure but direct.’

Jessica giggled. ‘Well spend too much time around Brandon and you kinda have to find ways to make the…,’ she shrugged, looking at the sky, ‘how to make the intolerable tolerable?’

‘I uh… don’t exactly, but I’m sorry you had to experience that.’

She looked me in the eyes again. I was lost in their labyrinthine depths, when Loki and Odin took off after their squirrelly aggressor, who was scampering across the street. I frowned, grabbing the leash in both hands, as Jessica gently corralled Loki towards her until he sat down, wobbling back and forth, wagging his tail with reckless abandon. I arched an eyebrow. ‘I ain’t seen a lady wrangle a dawg like that since…’

SHe chuckled. ‘Oh, stop. Like I said, when you’re with Brandon…’

‘You make the intolerable tolerable?’

‘Let’s go home.’

‘Yours or mine?’

‘…you pick…’


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