I peered out my window. Rain poured heavily outside my room. Great. I threw on my jacket and pulled up my hood before heading outside.

The cold rain pounded against the pavement and roofs as I hurried to Taka’s place. I could see my breath as I ran down the sidewalk.

~~~

When I knocked on the door I heard Dreamer barking behind it. I could hear someone say something before they opened the door.

The door opened to reveal Taka and Dreamer standing there. Taka flashed me his signature smile and invited me inside.

I took a good look at Dreamer. He had grown since I last saw him.

“He uhhh…got bigger.” I said, following Taka to the kitchen.

“Yeah. He’s going to be huge. He eats more than I do.” Taka laughed.

I laughed too and watched Taka pour water into Dreamer’s water bowl. Dreamer galloped over towards us and took huge gulps from the bowl.

“So what exactly are we doing today?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Going to the pet store. I have to get a new pet bed since Dreamer destroyed the old one. It took me hours to clean up the stuffing.” Taka said, shaking his head.

“Today is our only free day and you want to spend it on going shopping for your dog?” I gave him a questioning look.

“Well yeah. I have plans tomorrow so I can’t do it then and he really needs a bed.” Taka shrugged.

I just sighed and followed Taka, leaving Dreamer behind us.

~~~

The pet store smelled of wet dog and those chips that you put in hamster cages. It was easy to get lost in this place. The store was huge and it had stuff for every kind of pet you could think of.

I looked around in amazement and I didn’t realize Taka had stopped walking until I ran right into him.

Taka stumbled forward but I grabbed his arm before he fell to the ground. We just stood there staring into each other’s eyes before I finally let go of his arm. Sorry, I mumbled to him as we started walking beside each other.

The dog aisle had everything from food to training pads in it. We headed towards the end of the aisle where the beds were. I watched Taka as he became deep in thought.

“Is something wrong, Taka?” I asked him suddenly.

“Well I’m trying to decide which bed would be more comfortable for him.” Taka said as he placed a finger to his lips.

At that I couldn’t help but burst out laughing. Taka just stared at me with a wtf expression on his face.

“Sorry but you would think that this dog is you child or something.” I stated.

“Well in a way he kind of is. If you ever get a pet then you’ll understand.” Taka said, flashing me his signature smile before grabbing a red fluffy bed.

The check-out line was empty as we walked up to a female cashier. Her golden name-tag read “Yuka” in big black letters. She was a cute girl with long golden blonde hair hanging down her down shoulder. Her hair had a purple flower hair-clip just above her eyebrow. She wore purple eyeshadow and a light pink lip-gloss.  She was staring down at something on the table before she looked up at us and smiled brightly.

“Nice to see you again, Taka. I’m looking forward to tomorrow.” She said through giggles.

I gave both of them a questioning look but didn’t ask.

“So do you know that girl back there or something?” I asked, trying not to sound jealous.

“Yeah. She’s always working when I stop by. We’ve talked a few times. I uhh…have a date with her tomorrow.” Taka said, pursing his lips.

My heart stopped when I heard those words. A date….with that girl? He barely even knows her, and she wasn’t even that cute. Why did this new found information make me want to go and punch that girl? Could it be jealousy? No. that’s crazy, I thought as I shook those images from my mind.

“Oh. Really? That’s great.” I stated.

I watched a frown form on Taka’s lips. His eyes became saddened as he looked at me.

“You’re not happy for me. Are you?” he asked.

“No, I am. It’s great, really. Just unexpected. Now let’s go give Dreamer his bed before he destroys your home.” I said as I ruffled his hair.

Taka smiled up at me and I wrapped my arm around his shoulder. A silent sigh of sadness escaped my mouth.

~~~

We made it back to Taka’s place with everything still the way it was when we left.

“I’m glad you finally decided to start leaving Dreamer here by himself now.” I said as I hung my jacket on the coat hanger.

“Yeah! I had my doubts at first but it works out great now.” Taka beamed.

I watched him as he placed the new bed in the place where the old one once sat. Dreamer walked over and sniffed the bed before he laid down on it.

“I think he likes it.” Taka said happily.

I gave him a nod of approval before I sat down on the couch. Taka took a seat beside me and scooted into me.

“You know something. I’m actually looking forward to my date tomorrow.” Taka said, in a matter of fact tone.

I didn’t say anything. I just shut him out as he continued to talk. I didn’t hear anything else he said. My head was swarming with so many thoughts.

“Hey, I think I’m going to go home now. I uhh…need to get some stuff done for tomorrow.” I said as I stood up.

“Oh, okay then. See you tomorrow.” Taka said shyly.

On the way home I let my thoughts consume me. There was only one thing to do in this kind of situation. I was going to have to stalk Taka on his date. A mischievous smile formed across my lips as I walked through the rain humming an unfamiliar tune.

To Be Continued….