(Feb. 23, 2021, Tuesday, 09:15 AM)
(Antipolo, Rizal)
"Please survive out there. And find us again when you're stronger. I love you."
These words may sound cheesy to some, but these were the parting words Jayden gave to their dogs as they released them one by one at the back gates of their house. He couldn't risk just letting them be helpless food to the growing number of infected ones, and he was sure that these guys could take care of themselves if alone.
He just released Kuro, their black Aspin, a few moments ago. Now he was talking to Haru, their other Aspin with brown fur.
"Kuya. Is that really necessary?" Jeorden asked him out of annoyance. He understood the point of releasing them to avoid unnecessary noise but Jayden was prolonging the process.
"Now, go." He opened the secondary back gate and watched Haru run away before closing it.
Jayden turned to his brother. "This is necessary. This way, they wouldn't forget us."
What the fuck is wrong with him?! Jeorden thought to himself. Now he was convinced that this brother of his had a lot of loose screws in his head.
Jeorden passed Keina, a black Shih Tzu-Maltese hybrid, and Cardo, a brown Shih Tzu-Aspin hybrid to Jayden. He then went back to retrieve another dog.
"Ah... Keina. Cardo. I love you both," Jayden snuggled the two medium-sized dogs while wagging their tails.
"Please survive out there and get stronger. In time, we'll all be together again. Please, please, please get stronger!"
Jayden opened the secondary back gate again and let the dogs run free.
"Here's the last one." Jeorden came back and passed Violetta, a brown Shih Tzu, in his arms. Violetta is the mother dog of their family.
"Ha... Violetta. We've been together for so long," Jayden began to reminisce about his memories together with this dog.
Before the pandemic, Jayden left home and found a place near his work in Quezon City, together with a former colleague. Jayden's colleague had several issues on her own and disappeared without a trace. Jayden moved back to his home in Antipolo after a year, and took the dog with him, adopting her.
This dog had been passed over to many as well. As far as he knew, he and his family were the fifth set of owners.
He began to open the second back gate.
"Please survive. Come find us when you're stronger. I love you." Jayden crouched and put Violetta to the ground.
But Violetta did not move an inch. Instead, it went back inside and put her front paw above Jayden's hand, which was still holding the gate.
Jayden smiled.
"You don't wanna leave, do you?"
****
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Apocrypha: Apocalypse 2021
Action2021. A pandemic-stricken Earth was hit by another virus, known commonly as Necrovirus, turning those infected into cannibalistic, feral creatures, eating the flesh of both the dead and the living. With it being merged with the pandemic virus, the N...
