Part 2:
He’s a Really Cool Dog
Kara arrived at the Market shortly before 7:00
a.m. to the disapproving glare of her older sister Allie, who was hard at work
lugging crates of fruit from the back of her grandfather’s truck to the
makeshift tent.
“You’re late,” Allie said, shooting her “the
look” that she had inherited from their mother.
“I’m sorry.
I was at Cammie’s bachelorette party last night, and I didn’t get home
until after 3:00 a.m.”
“So I heard.”
Kara climbed from her car, coffee cup in hand,
and walked over to the truck, leaning against the tailgate. “What did you
hear?” she asked, trying to sound indifferent when she knew that Allie knew
better.
“I heard that you drank yourself into a stupor
and then danced with the stripper. Macy
Allen said you left with him and ended up with your legs over your head in the
backseat of his Gremlin in the driveway.”
Spitting out her coffee, Kara gasped. “That is
not true!”
Rolling her eyes, Allie grabbed another crate
and headed in the direction of the tent.
“Kara!”
Her grandmother came from the direction of the tent, arms open wide and
a warm, inviting smile on her seventy-year-old face. She enveloped Kara in a close, familiar hug.
“I’m so glad you came. Your grandfather and I were getting worried
that you might have changed your mind.”
Kara squeezed her grandmother back, the sweet
scent of jasmine filling her nostrils, reminding her of her mother. Her grandmother and mother had worn the same
perfume for as long as Kara could remember, and it made her feel comforted to
smell it now.
“I’m sorry I’m late, Gram.”
“No need to ever apologize, sweetheart; we’re
just happy you’re here now. Grab an
apron and help your sister with the last of the crates. The market opens in five minutes, and we
don’t want to disappoint our customers.”
Groups of people milled the field where the
Market was set up, waiting for the signal that they could start buying. Kara lugged the last two crates beneath the
tent, scanning the crowd for the familiar faces of her youth.
***
Nick wound up on a frontage road that was
lined with cars and people all pointed in the same direction. Propping himself up in the seat, he slowed
down.
“Excuse me!” he shouted to a young couple
walking along the side of the road with two small children in strollers. “Can I ask you where you all are going?”
“The Farmers Market!” the woman called back to
him, pointing in the direction of the crowd.
“It just opened.” Nick smiled
back with a small wave and sat back down in his seat.
It was 7:00 in the morning, and he didn’t have
anything better to do. Pulling the
convertible off of the road into a dirt field to his right, he parked alongside
five or so dozen more cars. Grabbing his
sunglasses from the glove box, he placed them on his head and stepped from the
car, following the crowd.
***
Allie was pissed, Kara could tell. Every time her older sister moved past her to
reach for an orange or some grapefruit for a customer, she would bump hard into
Kara’s hip or step on her foot. And then
shoot her the nastiest look, followed by a sarcastic “excuse you” that made
Kara want to puke. It was so ridiculous
that they could be twenty-six and twenty-four years old, respectively, and
still act like they were in grade school.
They had never been the best of friends. Allie was studious, smart, and
levelheaded. She had always taken the
safe path carved out for her by their mother. High school, a college degree in
business management, and a job at a bank that paid well and gave her things
like insurance and a 401k. While Kara,
on the other hand, was spontaneous, free-thinking, and fun, like their father.
She, too, had done the high school and college
route, getting a degree in early childhood education, which allowed her to
teach kindergarten at a local grade school.
But her real ambition in life was her art and a burning desire to travel
the world. And with the help of the
inheritance she had received from her parents, she planned on doing just that
once the summer was over.
“Excuse you.”
Allie moved by Kara, elbowing her in the ribs and causing her to drop
the dozen peaches she had pooled in her apron for Mrs. Klinger.
“Oh dear, I don’t want those now,” Mrs.
Klinger said, as Kara stooped to retrieve the now bruised produce.
“Don’t worry, Mrs. Klinger, I’ll get you some
new ones; we’ll just throw these out.” Or shove them up Allie’s ass, is
what she wanted to say.
Moving over to the crates with the peaches,
Kara counted out a dozen more and placed them in the brown bag. Then, walking
back to the front of the tent, she passed the bag to Mrs. Klinger, taking her
money and giving her a big hug.
“Thank you, sweet girl.” Mrs. Klinger backed away, leaning on her cane
for balance. “And, Kara, I was so sorry
to hear about your mom and dad. They
were such beautiful people.”
Kara nodded, blinking back tears as she patted
Mrs. Klinger's gnarled hand. “Thank you
so much, Mrs. Klinger. And I’ll see you
tomorrow morning, right?”
“Bright and early. Mr. Klinger and I will probably finish this
whole bag of peaches on the way home in the car!”
Both of them laughed as Mrs. Klinger walked
away and another customer filled in the space vacated by her.
“Kara, could you hurry up? We have a lot of people waiting, and we don’t
have time for you to just sit around and talk all day.” Allie moved up alongside of Kara, shoving her
out of her way so she could get to the boxes of oranges.
“I’ve had enough. I don’t need this shit from
you, Allie.” Standing back, Kara
stripped off her apron and threw it to the ground. “Grandma, I’m going on a break.”
Grabbing two apples, she stopped to kiss her
grandmother on the cheek before storming out of the tent.
***
Nick walked down the row of tent after tent,
his sunglasses now shading his eyes from the intense morning sun.
There were tents selling fruits, vegetables,
and homemade beef jerky. There were also tents with people hocking mason jars
filled with fresh, sweet-smelling salsa, dried herbs, and even one tent with
dogs and cats in need of a home.
Stopping at the animal tent, he bent down to
scratch the head of a lonely-looking mutt with black scraggly hair and smiled.
“Hey boy, you look like you could use a day at
the spa,” he said with a laugh, as the dog wildly began licking his hand and
arm. “What’s his name?”
A kind-looking man sat in a metal folding
chair beside the dog, holding his leash.
“His name is Toby. Someone found
him last week, wandering the highway.
His owners must have dumped him out by the side of the road.”
“Man, that’s sad,” Nick replied taking hold of
the mutt’s snout and giving him a big kiss.
---
“No Nick, we don’t have room for that dog in
the car, let alone the money to feed him.”
“He can have my food, Mom.”
“Nicky, just tie him to that tree and get the
hell back in the car. Somebody will come along and see him eventually, and
they’ll give him a good home.”
Nick walked across the street, away from the
beat up old Chevette that his parents had bought for $200 from a neighbor, the
dog in tow. He was so sick of moving
from town to town with nothing but the clothes on their backs and the few
necessities that they could fit in the car with three kids his parents and a
dog. He would have gladly given up his He-Man doll and even one of his sisters
so that there was room in the car for that little dog.
“I’m really sorry, boy,” he muttered, stooping
down to scratch the scruffy black dog under the chin. “I tried to keep you, I really did.”
“Nick, get your ass moving; we don’t have all
day.” Looking back to the car, Nick’s
mom was waving at him to hurry from the driver side window, an irritated look
on her face, while his father sat glassy-eyed in the passenger seat, staring
straight ahead.
“Someone will give you a good home, boy, don’t
worry.” As Nick looped the frayed rope
around the tree, the dog looked up at him with sad eyes that said he understood
and he forgave Nick for what he had to do.
With a kiss on the top of the old dog’s head,
Nick turned and ran back across the street to the idling car. Climbing in the backseat where his sisters
lay curled up sleeping, he wiped a stray tear from his cheek as they pulled
away.
---
“He’s a really cool dog. Reminds me of one I had as a kid,” Nick said
to the guy, giving the dog another kiss on the head.
***
Kara walked along the row of tents, her mouth
turned down in a semi-frown, her eyes blazing with anger. Screw Allie, she thought, taking a
bite from the apple in her hand. Who needed her and her holier-than-thou
attitude anyway? She would put up with
it for the summer for the sake of her grandparents, but after that they could
go their separate ways, and Kara wouldn’t care if she ever saw her sister
again.
Making her way towards the tent set up to help
the shelter animals find a home, she was anxious to see if the scraggly black
mutt she had found on the highway the week before had found any takers.
She spotted the dog right away, sitting back
on his haunches, enjoying some kisses and hugs from a blonde guy in a
sleeveless black shirt, tan shorts and a pair of Tevas. Walking up behind the guy, Kara smiled at the
man in the chair and pointed to the dog.
“So has Toby found a home yet?” she asked,
taking another bite from her apple.
The man shook his head. “Not yet, Kara, but it’s only been an hour. We still got all summer to find the little
guy a home.”
Nick stood up, wiping his hands on his shorts,
and turned to face the girl. “Hey, are
you the one who found this little guy?” he asked, pulling his sunglasses up
onto his head and flashing her a sweet, goofy grin.
***
