The Lunacy Fringe

The little white puppy my dad got me seemed to like the backyard a lot more than we did. My dad wanted to have grass and a front fence put in as soon as we could afford it, but for the moment, it was just dirt with some orange trees, bushes, and one lone apple tree. The puppy still seemed pretty content just getting herself dirty in random holes and chasing frogs.

“Come here, you butthead,” I yelled to her as she bounced around the yard and avoided me.

“Are you talking to me or your dog?” someone asked from across the fence. I could see Felix through the breaks in the jasmines. I laughed and stood up.

“The dog.”

“It’s cute. What’s its name?”

“Her name is Cerberus.”

“Cerberus?” He came to the fence and laced his fingers in the chain link. I went to stand in front of him.

“Yeah, Cerbie for short.”

“Where the hell did you come up with that?”

“Well—funny you should ask that way. We were studying Greek mythology again in History this morning. And that’s where I got the idea. Cerberus is the three-headed dog that guards Hades.” He smiled.

“That’s a little dark for a little puffball. I used to have one just like it. He was kind of an asshole.”

“Was he mean to you?” I asked.

“Yeah, he bit my hand. Look, I still have the scar.” He lifted his hand to show me the scar between his thumb and index finger.

“You don’t think she’ll get like that, do you?” He shook his head and returned his hand to the fence.

“Nah, probably not. Depends on how you raise them. My mom fosters dogs and rehomes them. He was already a dick when we got him. Yours is a baby. I’m sure she’ll be fine if you treat her right.”

“You seem to know a lot about them.” He laughed and pinched his eyes shut as if he’d said something embarrassing. I really liked seeing this side of him, though. This wasn’t the cool, mysterious Felix from school. Or the aloof party guy. Just an ordinary seventeen-year-old boy hanging out in the backyard talking about dogs.

“I’m used to them. Obedience training is a family effort. The better behaved they are, the easier it is to find them new homes.”

“Do you miss them when they’re gone?”

“Every time.” He laughed and leaned his face against the fence, pressing the chain link to his forehead. I smiled as I watched him. He was kind of beautiful. But he seemed so normal and approachable when he was embarrassed and flustered. Then he opened his green eyes again, and his smile faded. I knew he was about to bring up what happened.

“Listen,” he started. “I really am sorry for what happened this weekend.”

“It’s not your fault. But I thought you were cheating on your girlfriend. You could have just told me.”

“I just shouldn’t have kissed you in the first place. I was having a shitty time, and it was really—uncool.” I nodded slowly.

“You said I didn’t deserve it. Would you think I deserved it if you’d told me that you weren’t cheating?” He took a moment to respond, taking a deep breath and letting it go. He was still hanging onto the fence but kicking his feet.

“No,” he finally said with a half attempt at a smile. “Wrong place; wrong time kind of situation. Still wasn’t cool of me.”

“Well—we can still be friends, right?” He smiled, almost genuinely.

“Yeah, we can do that.” There was a sudden burst of barking and crashing noises. He sighed loudly and shut his eyes again.

“Felix! You left the pantry open!” a woman yelled. He half laughed and groaned all at once.

“I guess that means I should go.”

“Yeah, probably a good idea.”

“Alright, I’ll see you later then.”

“Okay. Bye, Felix.”

“Bye, Ruby. It was—nice talking to you.” I watched him walk away. I think it would be easy to be his friend. If I wasn’t so damned head over heels.