A Girl’s Best Friend

She stomped out of the waiting room, tears streaming down her face. The door slammed behind her. She knew all the other people waiting in line to get their loved ones taken care of were staring after her but she could not have cared less. She was having terrible trouble breathing. A huge lump of misery was choking her. She was not even sure if she wanted to fight to breathe anymore. It all seemed so useless now that he was gone.

   She had met him when she was walking home from school. She had no idea where he came from; she had never stopped to wonder. He had been too shy to approach her directly. He started out by following her for a while until she grew nervous and turned around to confront him. He had looked so sorry and adorable that her harsh words died on her lips. From the very first glance, she knew that she needed him in her life desperately. He followed her all the way home. She figured that he had somewhere else to go so she left him on her doorstep, restraining herself to do all the things her impulsive and passionate self was urging her to do. After all, she knew very little about him. They had after all just met although she felt like she’d known him for a lifetime.

   From that first day and after, she always found him waiting for her outside of her school. There was no arguing about it, he was a beauty. She had no idea what made him choose her but she was glad that he had. All the other girls would coo over him and do everything in their power to retain his attention yet he barely acknowledged them. He only stirred once he saw her. He’d often come running towards her which made her feel very special every single time he did it. Once, he had bravely entered through the main doors but, since he did not belong in the school, a hall monitor had spotted him and thrown him out. She had nearly gotten in trouble for it but it was worth it to see the look on people’s faces when he trotted down to her locker to greet her.

   He was always there to cheer her up. He was, before everything else, her best friend in the world. She shared a deep bond with him. They took frequent walks at dusk, just him and her walking down the street. Her mother had always been against the idea of having him around. He had a way of charming people however that even her strict mother had not been able to resist. The rules were clear though: he was never aloud inside the house whether or not an adult was present except for meals. Once in a while, she managed to sneak him into the house for a few hours. One time, her parents had come home while he was still in her room and she had had to keep him there for the whole night. If only her mother had known.

   She was now sitting on the bench in front of the clinic, holding a limp leash and sobbing for her heart’s worth. Memories of him kept on flashing before her eyes. She wiped her eyes on the back of her hand. She heard a door open and close gently behind her. She could suddenly smell her mother’s gentle perfume and felt her soft hand on her shoulder. She turned around and threw herself into her mother’s hug. Her whole body was shaking from the intense pain ripping her from within.

A man talking on his cell phone stepped out of the vet’s office. She could hear him although he sounded so far away:

“Gosh, some people are so ridiculous! All this for a stupid dog!”

-ThE