Beggars, Choosers, Finders & Keepers

Rain pitter pattered against the windshield as Shania stopped at the red light. She looked at the blurry glow of red through the glass as her foot pressed the brake pedal to the metal. There was no one else on the road as she just stared at the light, prompting it to turn green so she could continue her tedious trip home.

Every day was tiring, but today just felt so draining and exhausting. New stories, old habits, more hours, less lunch. It seemed like all of her career choices were put to a test today as Shania sat at her desk and stared at the DELL© desktop from minutes and hours on end. By the time it was 11 o’clock, Shania’s eyes felt like they were about to roll into the back of her head and never make an appearance again. It wasn't long before she shut the monitor off and grabbed her purse out of a drawer and zipped off to lunch. Lunch didn't do much to get her mind off of everything awaiting her back at work. It was only for 30 minutes until she dragged herself to the elevator and went back up to the fifteenth floor.

She was willing to debate with her grandmother that she did indeed not take the easy way out. No doubt, Shania was really happy with her career choice, she just wasn't happy about every single day she sat at that maddening desk in her corner office of the Creé Valencia.

Time ticked on as there was no one to cross the street and no one to drive through the intersection. Shania really contemplated running the red light and risking getting the traffic ticket in the mail the next week. She took hold of the smooth, shellacked steering wheel and pulled herself forward. Her face came closer to the front window and she looked both ways of the intersection while the windshield wipers violently swiped back and forth. It got enough rain out of sight in order to see that there were no cars coming, but not enough to know what was travelling along the sidewalks heading in and out of the closest neighborhood. There was always that unmistakable shark fin shape at the center of the bottom of the windshield. It accumulated excess water that didn't get wiped to the side of the car. Then it would dry up days later, when the rainfall was over and left the shark fin-shaped print.

Not too long later, after three elongated minutes, the red light overhead switched to green and Shania wasted little time in speeding forward to get ahead. The black Infiniti lurched forward gradually getting back to the previous speed at which Shania was driving. As soon as she hit forty miles per hour and she flicked her left turn signal on, Shania’s foot eased down over the brake. She looked to her left to check down the street before catching a glimpse of a body of brown fur run out from the opposite side of the street and stop in front of her car.

Her head snapped back to the front of her car when her foot instinctively slammed on the brake harder so as not to hit the halted figure. The tire restraints of her car kicked into full gear as Shania’s body jolted towards her steering wheel catching onto her seatbelt. It held her back from the car horn as the car itself skidded on two feet ahead from the slippery ground. Shania’s heart beat worked to lessen as she breathed in and out quickly after stopping. Her hands gripped the dashboard while she stared at the dog huffing lightly in her headlights. He or she sat there completely alert in the light, but as calm as a baby waterfall. Shania’s breath didn’t stop, but it only got faster.

For a minute, she just sat at the wheel and stared at the dog while it stared back into the headlights of her dark car. It wouldn’t be a surprise if the dog could not see her because she was driving a black on black car that most likely blended with the darkness of night while the windows were also tinted about 45 percent black. As soon as her heart slowed down to a reasonable pace, Shania activated her hazard lights and set her car to park while she opened her door to step out.

When she was walking towards the dog, she expected it to run away, but the animal stayed in front of the vehicle and only moved its head following Shania’s body as she got closer. Many thoughts ran through Shania’s head when she bent down to the dog’s level. It had a tag around its neck, but there wasn't a leash or a proper collar.

“Dulley’s Pet Stop” read across the tag, though which gave Shania a pretty solid idea of where the big guy came from. She didn’t know much about dogs, but she knew that this one was a full grown Boxer. Her dad had always wanted one growing up, but her grandmother and older sister both hated animals. She personally didn’t care for them, but she could say she wasn't too fond of horses.

“What are you doing out here?” she asked the dog as she grabbed onto the shop’s tag. As Shania began to tug on the dog’s neck, the Boxer pulled back; resisting her. “You have to come on now,” she retorted, but he or she did not budge. Shania let a sigh escape her lips as her shoulders hunched over. “This is just what I need.”

Suddenly, the dog barked and pulled lightly with its neck to alert Shania. Its head yanked over to the right side of the road about four times while barking continuously. Trying to catch the hint, Shania looked over past her car and tried hard to make sense of anything that could jump out at her. But all she saw were tall grasses-- that had been long past mowing time --and recycling and waste bins littering the corners of the sidewalk. Dim street lights up above did little to help her see any density within the tall grass.

An exhale left her lips as Shania suddenly became tired from the day and now it seemed the night wanted to take its toll, too. “What am I supposed to be looking at?” She looked at the Boxer blankly, but the pooch just turned and began its trek over to the opposite sidewalk of Shania’s neighborhood. It barely had to climb the step for it was almost the size of a pony. She watched as it sat its haunches onto the curb and just lied its head on top of its own paws as if it were tired and going to bed.

A taken aback gasp left Shania’s mouth after watching the dog. His or her nonchalance annoyed and bewildered her just a little bit. Not only did it run out in front of her and almost cause an accident that could’ve killed it and her, but it made apparent inquiries about something inside of the large prairie across the street. Still no one drove down the street so it was pretty clear that the dog had been waiting a while to make a scene.

Frankly, Shania didn’t know what to think with the animal as she tore her car door open to get back in and go home. What am I supposed to do about it, she asked herself once she started the car up again. Looking over at the dog lying across the sidewalk again, Shania sighed heavily and dropped her head up against the headrest of her driver’s seat. With a determined, unladylike grunt, she turned off her hazard lights and restarted her car with haste.