Always Us

welcome home pt. ii

Here's a part two that nobody asked for lol. I saw a TikTok about this and thought it'd be fun to write. It's a one-off story that provides a little backstory and follows after my very first one shot. And it's unrelated to the usual James family I write.

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Sitting at the kitchen table, Olivia stared down at Bella while Bella stared back up at her.

Getting a dog was never something Olivia had really considered in life. She and Spencer wanted kids, of course, but pets had never been on either of their radars. Instead, they were focused on work, and they had agreed that their twenties would be for advancing their careers.

After four seasons at UCLA, Spencer had gotten drafted to the Bills. Which meant they had just enough time to squeeze in a wedding and a honeymoon before packing up all their belonging and moving to Buffalo. Thanks to her more flexible career path, Olivia had been able to secure a journalism job that also provided her enough free time to work on her painting on the side.

Thus, everything had been going according to plan. Spencer had had a decent first season, and Olivia had managed to make new friends and connections within the local art community. They were happy and doing what they loved.

So it had come as a complete surprise when one day Spencer came home with a new idea.

"I think we should get a dog."

"What?" She shook her head, unsure if she heard correctly. "Did you just say we should get a dog?"

"Yeah, I think it's a good idea."

"I'm sorry, Spencer," she closed her laptop to give him her full attention, "but, um, where is this coming from?"

"A dog would keep you company. You spend so many hours alone in this house."

Olivia eyed him skeptically. "You do realize who would have to take care of said dog?"

She worked from home full-time. He was gone ten to twelve hours a day for more than half of the year. Not the mention the weekends where he wasn't home at all.

"I already looked into it. The shelter downtown is full of dogs that need homes. I called, and we can go check them out this week."

Olivia took a deep breath. The conversation was getting stranger and stranger. Her husband had always been passionate about social causes, but it would be a lie to say that animal rights was anywhere near the top of his list.

"Spencer, it sounds a little unfair for you to make a decision like this on your own. Don't you think?"

"Please, Liv. It would give me peace of mind to know that you're not here alone. I'm gone for weeks at a time during camp, and we don't have anyone out here who we trust like that. I may not have been as open about it with you as I should have been, but I'm realizing how much stress I put myself under worrying about anything happening to you while I'm gone." He brushed his fingers through his curls before dropping his arms to his sides. "It would help to know that someone is here keeping you safe.

Olivia went quiet, thinking back to the daily check-ins. The relief in his voice when they'd finally have time to talk on the phone after a long day of minimal communication. Then she remembered the nerves that would bubble up whenever she walked down a dark hall at night and realized Spencer was thousands of miles away. 

It hadn't been easy on her either.

"Okay, fine." She sat back in her seat. "We can get a dog."

And so, by that Friday, they had pulled into their driveway with a shy, trembling pitbull in the backseat. At the kennel, Spencer had argued for one of her siblings. One with a stronger personality. Maybe a male. But Olivia had insisted that if he got to decide on getting a dog, she should at least get to pick it out, and she wanted this one.