North & West

Nine

I hadn't had a drink in two weeks, which was ironically the same amount of time that it had been since West and I had first kissed.

Maybe it was coincidence or maybe it was the small part of me that insisted drinking was bad rising to the surface and putting me off from picking up a drink. But I had to admit that I longed for one, sometimes so much in the middle of the night that I feared I'd break apart.

If that was addiction, the intense longing for what I knew wasn't needed, then it sure was one hell of an ugly thing.

Nonetheless, the volunteer work that my mother had gotten me into was certainly at least partially helpful at keeping my mind off the locked cabinet in my parents' bedroom where I knew they kept the alcohol.

Even with the work I had at the cinema, which admittedly wasn't too great – not only were some of the customers total jackasses, but I didn't get all that much time either because Gloria had somehow hired more help than she needed and she'd yet to fire any of the new people she had hired; that meant that an opening for time to work was scarce – I didn't have enough money to waste on the hit or miss alcohol that I got from Kevin.

I'd shown up to the animal shelter at just after eight in the morning, my hair in a messy bun and something akin to what I'd wear if I were sick with the flu on my body. I'd been a bit embarrassed to find West's sister already in the back, playing around with one of the puppies, but that embarrassment had quickly dissipated when she greeted me with a smile.

She really was too kind, and I almost wanted to ask her how she did it. My curiosity was immense because if she'd been as bad as West had insinuated, then I didn't see how she'd seemed to make a full three sixty. But I didn't want to risk her not liking me, so I left it as just that: curiosity.

I was drawn out of my thoughts and essentially out of the hole I'd dug myself into somewhere within myself when the lady in charge of the shelter, Amber, called my name.

She was a relatively short woman, a bit round around the waist, but her face made up for what she lacked in height. I wasn't quite sure what her race was, but she was definitely something exotic and she had the sort of silky dark hair a girl would kill for.

“I want you to take the two puppies for a walk, they're getting a bit antsy and I don't want them making a fuss and scaring some of the people who come in with young children away.” She explained, handing me two leashes, which the puppies were already hooked up to.

I didn't really have much of an option other than to do as she said, seeing as she'd just about shoved the leashes into my hand. But I didn't mind all that much, heading towards the door and pulling the puppies behind me.

One of them was a golden Labrador, and the other was some really fluffy kind that I wasn't quite sure of the particular name for. They seemed to be enjoying the sunshine and their excitement helped to ease the embarrassment I was feeling for looking rather similar to a hobo in public.

After a bit, the puppies began pulling me forward, rather than me walking them, and I had to tug a bit on the leashes because they were getting dangerously close to pulling me down to the ground and undoubtedly dragging me across the sidewalk behind them. We stopped at the park then, more for me to take a breather than for them to.

There was something kind of refreshing about watching something relatively innocent enjoy the world around you. The puppies seemed to be enjoying themselves, rolling around a bit in the grass and nipping at each other. I wondered, for a brief moment, if that was what being carefree felt like and if I'd ever reach that point in my life.

After spending about fifteen minutes at the park, staring at the trees and enjoying the quiet that the park offered me, I grabbed the leashes and started heading back to the shelter. It felt a bit strange for me to be at the park without West, seeing as we'd spent time together there on countless occasions, but it definitely didn't feel wrong.