Love, Lacey

Amy was furious. Enraged. She was sure the Lord was testing her in some kind of Jobesque tribulation. Her parents were forcing her to spend her weekends at a dog shelter to teach her “the value of the hard-earned dollar”.

Susan was so hurt that Amy destroyed the dress she bought for her (although how you could destroy it anymore than the designers themselves, Amy had yet to work out) she decided that rather than grounding, a lesson was in order. Until Amy could pay off the $700 debt she had accumulated for her mother, she would no longer receive an allowance. Anything she wanted, she’d have to buy herself with her own money. Amy would rather take the grounding and a public flogging.

Early that Saturday morning, both mother and daughter were aggravated and pissed at each other. Susan had to practically rip her daughter out of the passenger’s seat and into the small Pet’s Haven building.

“Mother, I swear, I’ll run away and never return if you make me go through with this!” Amy shouted.

“Of course you won’t. You’d starve to death first! Face it, Amy, you not only need to pay me back for the dress I spent so much on for you, but also need to learn working skills, money management, being more than a pampered brat!” For this, Susan received a sharp kick in the knee, and she responded with a smack over Amy’s head. “What are you, five?” Susan screamed.

“No, I’m 17. And I’m a minor. This constitutes as a violation of the Child Labor Laws and child abuse!”

“You’re over the legal working age! Now start acting like it!” Susan dragged the girl into the lobby and regained her composure. “Hello, I’m Susan Lee. This is my daughter Amy. She’s here to start her first shift today,” the older Lee smiled and pinched the younger, forcing a grimace on her face.

The lanky man behind the counter cleared his throat, pretending he hadn’t witnessed the scene that occurred a few moments ago. “I’m Raymond Tabulstone. I guess Amy and me are gonna be coworkers now, huh?” he smiled, revealing crooked, yellowed teeth that probably hadn’t been brushed since the Berlin Wall was still standing. Ray extended a hand to Amy, which was probably crawling with bacteria, flu viruses, herpes, meth residue, semen samples, and all kinds of things Amy did want to be transferred to her personage. She kept her arms crossed like an impatient child and her face tight as if she had been force fed lemons.

“Please forgive my daughter, Mr. Tabulstone. She has a problem with hard work,” Susan apologized, glancing snidely at the snotty teenager she had raised.

“It’s alright. I mean, once you have to take care of a full grown pit bull that’s just been neutered, you’re pretty much ready to face the world,” Ray assured her. Susan giggled in reply, and Amy pinched her face tighter.

“Now, Mr. Tabulstone, you have my number. If Amy acts up, do not hesitate to call me,” Susan felt she was leaving her ankle gnawing 5 year old with a new babysitter. “Have a good day at work, sweetie,” She leaned in and gave Amy a peck on the cheek, which was immediately wiped off the moment she walked out the door.

“Well, Amy, go ahead and punch in and meet me in the storage room,” Ray smiled, handing her a punch card and pointing to the machine next to the desk he was standing behind. Amy obeyed as snotty as she could muster and stalked behind the man. She made sure to stay at least 3 paces behind him at all times. She was sure his greasy, black hair was infested with fleas and she knew they were nature’s pogo stick.

“Well, its 7: 30, which means the dogs are about to get up. I think you’ll probably wanna change into some more rugged clothes. I’d hate to see that outfit ruined,” Ray suggested. He asked himself who in their right mind would wear skinny jeans and Mary Janes to a shelter, especially if they would be working there.

“I don’t have any rugged clothes. I’m not a hillbilly,” Amy spat. Ray clenched his fist in an attempt to not reach over and smack the girl upside the face. His mother, God rest her soul, had taught him to never hit a lady, no matter how much she truly deserved it.

“I think I have an extra pair of basketball shorts in here somewhere,” Ray rooted through the Box of Miscellaneous Shit, as he so lovingly called it, trying to find said article of clothing.

“I don’t wear clothes from strange men I just met,” the girl sneered. Seconds later, she was pelted with something that smelled springtime fresh. She opened her eyes and saw what she assumed to be Ray’s shorts gracing her face. She shrieked and threw them to the ground.

“Shut it! You’ll irritate the dogs! And for your information, those were just washed. Shocking to find out we ‘hillbillies’ have a sense of hygiene, ain’t it?” Ray said, trying to keep his tone under control. He worked at Pet’s Haven for nearly 6 years and had come across some of the most ornery, vicious dogs and owners ever to walk the planet. He’d sooner deal with them all again, wearing a chicken costume than have to spend 2 days a week with Amy Lee. “The employee bathroom is down the hall. You can change in there. Go ahead and pick up a smock while you’re in there, so you don’t mess up your shirt. You’ll be dealing with shedding dogs, feeding dogs, and crapping dogs, so believe you me when I say you’ll thank God for it, no matter how ‘tacky’ it might be,”

Amy felt like crying, but she wouldn’t give that anorexic Neanderthal the satisfaction. She couldn’t believe his nerve. How dare he make fun of her like that? What did she ever do to deserve any of this? Besides all the gossip, bullying, and stealing Lacey’s diary? Amy mentally slapped her conscience. Finally, she returned to the storage room.

“Took ya long enough. What were you doing in there, your makeup?” Ray joked. He meant for it to come out friendly, hopefully easing the tension between the two, but he could tell by the look on Amy’s face that it came out much harsher than desired. Ray cleared his throat. “I, uh, got most of the dogs up. You wanna get the rest?” Amy nodded and headed towards the row of cages, most empty except for a bed and a water dish, with excited, bouncing bodies dotting the walls. She opened the doors one by one and watched as shit zus, German Shepards, Rottweilers, and mixed breeds hopped out of their small homes and towards the door leading to the outdoor play area.

“The older dogs spend the majority of their day out here hanging out with each other, while the puppies are in that little playpen near the front door. See, most people want babies, so we keep em closer to the public eye,” Ray explained as he let the anxious dogs out. Amy nodded and followed him outside. “We open to the public at 9 am, so in about 30 minutes. That’s also when the rest of the weekend staff comes and clocks in. We got Rhonda, who helps me man the front desk and Danny, who keeps adoption records and other paperwork we need. Basically, he’s the resident nerd,” Ray laughed. Amy smiled sadly. “Basically, all you have to do is stay here with the dogs and make sure they don’t try to kill each other, they’re fed again at noon, and at 4 before you clock out, and that you clean up any solid waste the dogs deposit. That means if they shit, its Pooper Scooper time,” Ray clarified when he saw Amy’s quizzical expression. “For the first week or so, me or Rhonda will assist you if you need any help, but you probably won’t. There are only about 15 dogs, and they’re all relatively calm and friendly. It’s a shame they’re not small and cute, or they’d all be adopted like that,” Ray explained snapping his fingers. “Anyways, you wanna get acquainted to some of the guys and girls?” Before Amy could answer, Ray dragged her around the field. “Here’s Courtney,” he said, patting a shaggy haired Golden Lab mix. “Here’s her brother, Kurt. Their old owner was a 12 year old girl whose family was moving to an apartment building that didn’t allow dogs. God, I’d never seen such a sad sight. Poor girl didn’t wanna let go. For days, they would sit looking out the window hoping she’d come back,” Ray clicked his tongue. “But look at them now. Happy and healthy,”

Amy let out a shriek and looked down to see a sandy colored pug that looked like it had just taken a hit of crack. The stupid thing had attached itself to her leg and was now humping it like it was Tommy Lee and her calf was Pamela.

“I see you’ve met Tre. I know he acts like a kid with ADD, but trust me, he’s harmless,” Ray giggled, detaching the beast from her.

“Who’s that?” Amy asked, pointing to a chocolate lab lying in the corner by itself.

“That’s Adie. Her little boyfriend, Billie Joe, got adopted a few weeks ago and she’s been pretty depressed ever since. Not to mention, she had a pretty rough life. In fact, I only remember r her connecting to one person ever since she’s been here, and we first got her 3 years ago,” the man ran a hand through his greasy locks and exhaled sharply. “Poor girl, she might spend the rest of her life here.”

Amy inched closer to the dog, examining it subtly. She noticed it was missing a chunk of its ear. Amy wondered if it was a result of the “hard life” Ray was talking about. Out of nowhere, the dog started barking and growling at Amy. She gasped and ran to hide behind Ray.

“Calm down, Amy. She’s just not used to you. She gets defensive with strangers,” Ray whispered, kneeling next to Adie and scratching her behind her ears. Adie immediately calmed and lay back on her belly. “Trust me, she’s a real sweetie. Once she gets to know ya, she’ll love ya. She’s not hateful, just defensive. Like someone else I know,” Ray smiled knowingly. Amy had an idea who he was talking about and frankly didn’t take well to people trying to judge her. She resorted back to her huffy, snotty demeanor of that morning and stormed off, tripping on her own feet and landing face first into a food bowl. Ray stifled a laugh. “Looks like we’ll have to break her in soon, eh, girl?” Ray whispered to Adie, who panted in agreement.