2019-06-22 - A [Dog] Walk in the Park

The storm had passed and Gray Harbor was still standing, even if a handful of its citzens were not quite standing again yet. The park is scattered with people enjoying the peace after the storm and the surprisingly nice summer night. Most of Dahlia's day had been spent cleaning up some debris around the trailer and making sure her mom was okay. Now, Dahlia just needed some air away from the trailer park and away from her mother. So she had decided to walk the park and maybe figure out something to eat a little later. It wasn't quite dark out yet and the light breeze was somewhat refreshing. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she wore a pair of jean shorts that stopped about mid-thigh with a black tank top.

A dog goes thundering past, in hot pursuit of a beaten-up tennis ball. It's a chocolate lab with a crooked tail and a missing eye. Despite its injuries, the animal has plenty of pep, and its reflexes aren't slowed much by the lack of depth perception. The dog chomps on the ball, then runs full tilt back.

Gideon lowers himself to receive a few slobbery kisses from the dog and to retrieve the ball. He's wearing an unremarkable ensemble of a plaid shirt and a pair of blue jeans, with a red rain jacket. He hauls back and throws the ball, and the dogs goes bounding after.

The dog barrels ahead and darts at the last minute to get around Dahlia, letting out a little bark of surprise.

"Hey, hey, Sandie. C'mere, girl," Gideon lets out a sharp whistle and the dog abandons the ball to come bounding back towards him. "Sorry. She's gentle. She just didn't see you."

Dahlia, admittedly, was being your typical millenial type and tapping at something or other on her phone as she enjoyed the weather. Therefore, she didn't see Sandie either. A startled gasp as she looked up and side stepped a touch, turning to watch the dog and then sliding her attention to its owner. The phone gets slid into her back pocket and Dahlia offers Gideon a smile. "Hey, no harm no foul. She's a cutie." And Dahlia meant it. She enjoyed animals, well, other people's animals. She likely didn't have the patience to take care of any herself. Kneeling down to greet Sandie on her level if Gideon allowed it, "How long have you had her?" Giving the lab some side scritches and pets.

Sandie seems a very happy girl in spite of her injuries. She readily accepts scratches and wags her crooked tail. She lets out a little whuff, then trots over to grab up the ball, which she drops (slobbery and all) at Dahlia's hands or at her feet if she doesn't take it.

"Oh, I'm just fostering her. Her owner passed away a few weeks ago so I'm just taking care of her until we find her a new home." Gideon twitches a smile, "I have enough animals of my own."

Dahlia easily takes the ball, though there is a slight cringe at the slobbery feeling. It's been a while since she's really gotten her hands any kind of dirty. The smile maintains though! She gets to her feet and tosses the ball a short distance away for Sandie to fetch. "Awe, that's a shame." About her owner dying. Looking towards Gideon a bit curiously. "How many animals do you have?" A beat of pause before wiping her hand on her shorts and offering it to him, "Dahlia Evergreen."

Sandie bounds after the ball and chases it a few times before she gets her mouth around it. Then she bounds back again.

"I uh, well, that depends," says Gideon. "I'm a vet, so I end up taking in animals like Sandie when we're short on shelter space or fostering, or if an animal needs someone to keep an eye on them while they recover. I also do a bit of wildlife rescue. Same sort of thing. As a stopgap measure before they can be transferred to a full facility." He leans over to pick up the ball. "Ah, Gideon Hughes."

"So way too many but you like them all?" Dahlia offered with a chuckle. "What sort of wildlife have you helped to rescue lately?" Nothing too crazy probably. Dahlia just seemed curious. "How many animals are you currently fostering then?" So many questions. Maybe she was just an inquisitive sort. Or maybe she'd never met a vet personally before. Maybe all of the above! The world may never know.

Gideon chuckles softly. He hasn't really made eye contact except for brief moments. He ruffles Sandie, then tosses the ball quite a distance out so the dog has to go bounding after it. "Ah, uh, I'm...not sure? A couple of squirrels. A few birds. I rescued a raven once and now she just sort of...hangs around."

"Sounds exciting." Dahlia mused, studying him for a moment. "I won't bite, promise." Maybe a light bit of teasing in her tone, but a smile still on her lips. "I suppose if they choose to hang around they aren't really pets. They're more like roommates hm?" Thinking on that briefly. And conjuring a mental image of a Big Bird-esque raven walking into a house that caused her to bite back a giggle. "Anywho...how long have you been in town for?" Because just because you grew up in Grey Harbor doesn't mean you know everyone else who did too!

"Back in town. About a year," says Gideon. "But I uh, I grew up here. Been gone about six years or so." He lift s a shoulder. Sandie, meanwhile, has found an interesting smell around some bushes and is investigating. And then she finds a stick. Ah, the life of a dog.

So simple, the life of a dog. Wouldn't it be nice now and then to have such a simple way of living? Likely so. Dahlia tilted her head just a touch. "Oh? I grew up around here too. 7ish years for me." Dahlia offered. "Not much as changed has it? Both disappointing and comforting at the same time I suppose."

"That's certainly true," says Gideon as he looks up, around at the park. "And the things that do feel different, it's hard to know if it's you or the place. I mean...whether it just feels different because you are different."

"Maybe it's a little of both?" Dahlia ran a had through her hair. "I mean, hardly anyone really stays the same...but I know being gone from here for so long feels like...well...like Los Angeles had its own problems and atmosphere. But this town, there's something in the air. Something I can never really quite put my finger on." Dahlia refocused on Gideon and blinked a bit. "Sorry. I probably sound like a nut." She bent down just a bit, calling Sandie over so she could take the stick and then have her fetch it.

Sandie is happy to oblige. The pup just seems to love attention of any kind.

"No, I get what you mean," says Gideon. "I think a lot of small towns end up feeling a little...weird. Especially when I leave and come back with a fresh perspective."

"Have you been to many places?" Was the follow up question to that as Dahlia tossed the stick. See this was fun. Playing fetch with a cute puppy and not having to deal with them later. "I remember hearing about some things that happened around here growing up and then even things my mother or brothers would talk to me about over the phone. And I couldn't help thinking this was a perfect place for a horror movie sometimes. But nonetheless, I'm back here anyway."

Gideon looks...a little awkward when it comes to 'weird happenings' considering his childhood was punctuated with one of said happenings. He rubs the side of his neck and looks up at the trees, then back down, but not directly at her. "I uh, I was in France? I went there to finish my schooling and ended up staying. My mother got sick about a year ago, so I came back home. She's better, but..." he's still here.

Dahlia studied Gideon as she listened. Clearly not having any qualms about looking at people. "France sounds nice. I've never been out of the country before." She gave a subtle shrug. "Sounds like we have a bit in common Gideon. My mom's sick too. She was getting better but she took a bad turn again. So that's why I came back. Only been in town a couple weeks but I'm hoping she starts to get better soon." Sliding the conversation back to him, "Think you'll stick around for the long term?" Her assumed answer was yes since he already said he had a clinic, but you know what they say about assuming.

"That's the way with small towns, isn't it? If your family's here, they'll pull you back one way or another." Gideon slides his hands into his pockets. "I was going to ask what made you come back from LA. I was in rural France, so this isn't too jarring. But LA's a different story." As to whether he'll stick around? He shrugs. "I'm here for now. I don't..." his lip twitches, "...hate it as much as I remember."

"Yeah, I always dreamed about leaving this place and never coming back. Left as soon as I finished high school. I love it in LA. It's so busy and there's always something going on." Dahlia shook her head. "But...sometimes it's not so bad to slow it down I guess. It's a little different, being here as a proper sort of adult." She chuckled. "I want to go back to LA eventually but, until then, I'll make it work here. Still settling in some and remembering my way around."

Sandi lays down at Gideon's feet and he clips the leash on the dog. She promptly rolls over and rolls around in the grass. He looks down at her and sighs. "I just gave you a bath." Then to Dahlia, "After awhile, a place stops feeling real and more like...a memory. It's jarring to remember it exists outside your own mind."

Dahlia laughed softly as Sandie started rolling. "Yeah, that's true." She agreed. "It's definitely a...special kind of town." Though whether she believed that was a good or bad thing remained to be seen. "Even talking to people on the phone from here it's not a thing you really...connect you know? You don't think of it like so-and-so in Gray Harbor'. It's just 'I'm talking to so-and-so'"

"Mhmm," intones Gideon. He looks down at Sandie who has leaves stuck in her fur. She lets out a soft whuff. "Do you want some supper? Worked up an appetite?" The dog lets out a low whine and tilts her head. He glances up at Dahlia, but never fully making eye contact. "I should get her home. It was nice meeting you."

"It was nice to meet you too Gideon. And you Sandie." Another light smile down towards the puppy and then back to him. "Have a good evening. And enjoy the weather while it's nice."