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“Oh my God! You have the cutest dog! Beezlee, look!”
I snap out of my reverie when I hear a woman shout across the street. I did not really comprehend what she said, so I just continue walking Jack. He is a 5-year-old, Samoyed named after one the one and only… Jack the Ripper. Yes. Jack the Ripper. Not Jack from the Titanic. I know it’s weird to name my dog after a serial killer… But, hey. Everyone has their hobbies.
I usually take Jack out after work. I work as a content editor in a marketing agency. Our afternoon walks really helps a lot with the stress after a very long day. Living alone in the city can become lonely and stressful. Luckily, I have Jack with me.
Jack is our couple dog, which was a gift my ex-girlfriend decided to give me on our first anniversary. When we broke up a year after, I insisted on keeping him. She had to go away for work and she decided that long-distance relationships don't work. That break up really did a number on me, but luckily, I have Jack with me. I can live without her, but I CANNOT live without Jack. He’s my baby boy.
“Hey! Wait!”
I stop on my tracks when I hear the same woman’s voice call out again. Was she talking to me? I looked for the source of the voice and I spot her crossing the street with a cute little french bulldog trailing behind her. I can’t help but stare at the woman. She looked so adorable in her big colorful tie-dye shirt and denim shorts. To top it all off, she had a wide smile that seemed to just brighten up the place. The pretty woman approached us and instantly pets Jack while her dog sat beside her, enjoying his little break from walking.
“Hi, baby boy. You’re so cute! What’s your name?”
I didn’t realize that I was still staring until the woman suddenly expectantly looked up to me. I hope she didn’t catch me staring. I can’t help but stutter at my response.
“J-Jack. He’s a Samoyed.”
“Hi, Jack! You really are one of the cutest things ever!”
Jack seems to like the attention he was getting because he hasn’t stopped wagging his tail. The woman gives Jack one last scratch behind the ear before standing up. She smiles sheepishly.
“Sorry I can’t help myself when it comes to dogs. I hope I didn’t invade your privacy or something.”
“Oh no. No. Not at all. We were just walking.”
Why am I using my hands so much? Get yourself together Ava! In the corner of my eye, I see Jack and the woman’s dog take turns smelling each other’s butt. They seem to like each other. The woman notices as well and she lets out a chuckle.
“How cute! Our dogs like each other.”
“Well, Jack is really a friendly dog. What’s his name?”
“Beezlee.”
“That’s an adorable name. It fits him.”
“That dog is my life. Quite literally.”
I narrow my eyes at her remark. I see a flash of something in her eyes. But it disappeared as soon as I saw it. She gives me a cheery smile and she holds out her hand.
“I’m sorry. How rude of me. I’m Sara. Sara Lance.”
I take her hand to shake it. I can’t help but notice how soft her hands were.
“Ava Josslyn Sharpe. You can just call me Ava.”
“Nice to meet you, Ava.”
Sara sends me a smirk and I feel my face grow warmer. Her smirk gets bigger and I see a hint of teasing in her eyes.
“Ms Ava Sharpe. Are you blushing?”
I duck my head to try to hide my face, willing my cheeks to stop burning.
“N-No. Just the-the heat getting to me. Yah know.”
“Sure…”
Sara drags the end of the word hinting that she doesn’t believe me. I quickly come up with something to divert the topic from me.
“Anyways… Are you from around here? I mean… Jack and I pretty much roam around this area every afternoon but I think this is the first time that I have seen you.”
I know she knows that I evaded the topic but she bites.
“I actually just moved into this neighborhood a week ago. New opportunity. The works.”
“Oh have you tried going to the Waverider?”
“Waverider? Is that the coffee place down the street? I’ve been meaning to go there but unpacking and settling down at my new space didn’t leave much time. This is one of the few times I got to go out.”
“Yeah… Do you… Maybe… Wanna hang out there for a while?”
I motion towards our dogs, who are actually enjoying each other's company at the moment. I see her put her thinking face on. Was I too straight forward? Am I being a creep? I try to reign in my internal panic.
“Sure. Why not. I mean… I was the one who actually disturbed your afternoon walk.”
I let out the breath I didn’t know I was holding in.
“Great. Let’s go then. It’s just a couple more blocks.”
We walk at a comfortable pace. Trading stories about Jack and Beezlee. Before we know it, we reach Waverider.
~
“So… I’m just curious. Why did you name him Beezlee? It’s quite a unique name.”
We are currently sitting outside the cafe. Jack and Beezlee are currently snuggled up with each other while Sara and I are enjoying the frappes and cake slices that we bought.
“Beezlee was actually given by his original owner. Beezlee was a cool name so I chose to keep it that way when I adopted him. Sorry, the story isn’t exactly that grand.”
I really love how light I feel around Sara. She has this way of presenting herself. Carefree. Sara brings out that smirk again. And I realize that she caught me staring at her once again, but she decides to not mention it. Much to my benefit.
“Well… Now that you know the somewhat origin of Beezlee’s name, what’s Jack’s? Titanic?”
I can’t help but laugh at her assumption. Everyone always assumes that Jack is named after Leonardo Di Caprio’s famous character.
“Actually, it isn’t. It’s from Jack the Ripper.”
Her eyes widened at that.
“You named your dog after a serial killer?”
“Yeah. Is there a problem with that?”
I try to keep a straight face while sending a glare at her. She just laughs at my remark and shakes her head.
“None at all. It’s just unusual. I mean… Serial killers aren’t exactly the best models in life.”
“I’m fascinated by them”
“You like serial killers?”
Her eyes narrow at me.
“Are you a serial killer?”
She tries to keep a straight face but her lips betray her and she lets out a smile. I chuckle at her dramatics.
“Oh stop. Everyone has their hobbies. Like… Come on. Don’t tell me you do not have some sort of weird hobby.”
The look on Sara’s face tells me everything I need to know.
“See! Come on. Spill. What is it?”
“I am addicted to everything, Star Trek. CDs, posters, merchs… You name it.”
I can’t help but laugh at her guilty face. She’s so adorable.
“See. Everyone has their own guilty pleasures. Don’t worry. I won’t shame you for it. Unlike some others.”
Sara just laughs at my comment as she jokingly rolls her eyes at me. Our afternoon at the cafe was filled with light hearted jabs, jokes, and it was an overall fun conversation. I really enjoyed getting to know her. Our conversation flowed endlessly. Even after our drinks were long gone. Before we knew it, the sun was already setting.
We were talking about our shared annoyance towards Sisqo's “Thong Song” when Sara’s phone lights up with a notification.
“Oh, shoot! I almost forgot. It’s my boss. I'm supposed to iron out some details before I go to work on Monday in… 30 minutes. I’m sorry Ava. This has been really fun but I really have to go.”
“Sure. Sure. Take care.”
“Thank you too. Bye.”
Sara carries Beezlee in her arms and stands up. She flashes me one last smile and immediately calls a taxi. She must really be in a hurry.
And just like that, she was gone.
Jack and I silently walk home. As I was opening my front door, I realized something…
I didn’t even get to take her number! Great. Now I have no way of contacting her. I try to fight the complete and utter disappointment that I’m starting to feel.
I entered my house and prepared dinner for me and Jack. After dinner, Jack and I snuggle up on the couch while I continue binge-watching Suits. Though that isn’t exactly what happened since my mind kept drifting to those sparkling blue eyes that I saw earlier.
I wonder if I’ll get to see her again.
~
Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.
I groan at the sound of the alarm that woke me up from my sleep. I turn it off and roll to my back.
The weekend’s over. Now I have to go back to the reality that is, my work. I quickly do my morning routine. Before I leave, I refill the containers for Jack’s food and water. After one last kiss, hug and a pat on the head for Jack, I am finally ready to go to work.
Work has been jam-packed as usual. After our routine morning brainstorming, I go back to our “creative office”, as our team likes to call our brightly and wildly designed room, to continue editing the videos needed for our client’s advertisements.
I fight the groan that I almost let out because of how my back was aching. Sometimes I get too focused on my job that I forget to stretch out. Deciding that I wouldn’t function as productively because of my back, I leave my desk to take a short break.
While making coffee in our break room, I hear a very familiar voice call me.
“Ava?’
I turn around and I spot those tantalizing blue eyes looking at me. My breath catches at the beauty in front of me.
“Sara.”
“Hi, Ava.”
She gives me that smirk that makes me melt and I can’t help but smile at that. Looks like I’m going to enjoy work much more now.
~
“Do you remember the first time we met?”
Sara and I are currently snuggled on our couch in the living room of our home for the last 3 years. We were binge-watching Game of Thrones while Jack and Beezlee were asleep n their respective beds.
“Yeah. How can I forget? I saw the most beautiful woman I have ever seen and I knew I had to talk to you.”
“I distinctly remember that you approached me because of Jack.”
“Babe, as much as I love Jack and how cute he is. You were actually the reason why I approached you. I just used him an excuse because I wasn’t sure if you were going to actually talk to me.”
“Believe me, babe. I would have talked to you. I mean… Have you seen yourself?”
I see a hint of pink slowly creeping up Sara’ cheeks. She laughs and tries to hide it by putting her head on my lap and snuggling her face on my tummy. After a while she looks up to me and I see pure sincerity in her eyes.
“I really, really do love you, Mrs Ava Lance.”
I smile and lean down to kiss her. But before our lips touch, I say to her what my heart always yearns to say.
“I love you, too, Mrs Sara Lance.”
We built our relationship from the ground up. It wasn’t perfect, but it only made us stronger. Now, I have my most beloved wife, Sara Lance. After 4 years of working together while our relationship kept developing, we decided to build our own marketing company, Legends. With the success of our business, at the anniversary of Legends, Sara proposed to me and we got married just 6 months after.
We have built a beautiful life together. And maybe, I just have Jack to thank for it.