Dusty

by Jane B. Mason

  Shelby rose from her chair, stretching and brushing tiny black and white hairs off her jeans. Dusty left a lot of fur for a little dog.

  “Shelby, you’re a mess!” Morgan blurted, seeing how fuzzed-up her sister had gotten. Morgan clamped her hand over her mouth, realizing her mistake, and braced for her older sister’s reaction. Shelby used to love dogs as much as Morgan, but since she started high school last year, the oldest Sterling couldn’t stand having dog hair—or slobber or anything dog-related—on her clothes.

  Shelby gave a couple more brushes at the hair and shrugged. Normally the state of her clothes would be intolerable, but this was Dusty’s hair. And nothing about Dusty was intolerable. Ever. “Oh well,” she said lightly. “If that’s the price I pay for the honor of having this little angel on my lap, then so be it!” She was being a bit over-the-top, she knew, but she was in a terrific mood. Last month’s thwarted opportunity to go to the movies with a group of friends—including you-know-who—was getting a rain check tonight! Alice had just texted, and Shelby only had to float the idea past her mom …

  Morgan’s nose wrinkled in confusion. “Do you have a fever or something?”

  Shelby flushed. “Of course not. It’s just that he’s … that I’m … oh, whatever. I just don’t care.”

  “He’s a charmer, huh?” Pedro asked, nodding. “I like him a lot myself. I’ve got to find a home for him, though. He’s been here close to four weeks and it’s time for him to start his new life.” He felt a pang in his chest as the words lingered in the air, but he forged ahead. “I’ve been putting it off, but I’m committed to making some calls tonight. Have we gotten any response to your posts?”

  Shelby’s embarrassed expression morphed into one of anguish … and also guilt. She didn’t want to tell him that she hadn’t posted a single announcement about the center’s adoptable dog. She hadn’t meant to procrastinate this long and had typed up a cute description. But every time she went to post it she just couldn’t. She shook her head, unable to explain.

  “Well, we’re off,” Pedro said. “We will see you ladies tomorrow, when you can have him on your lap all day.”

  Shelby smiled at that. Yes, tomorrow was Saturday!

  Like he did every evening, Dusty kept his ears up and his nose high as they walked the path to the trailer. Until he arrived at the ranch he’d had to use his nose to smell for one thing and one thing only: food. Now he was noticing ALL the smells. It had taken a while to adjust, but at this point his nose was free to sniff the world. There were so many smells, and he could discern them all! There was dirt and dog and trees and rubble and Morgan and Pedro and Forrest and Shelby and rabbit and squirrel and lots of deer poop. For a dog it was a cornucopia of delights!

  When they were past the bus, Pedro set Dusty onto the ground and he ran to the door. He loved the cozy cavern where he and Pedro spent their evenings. “I know you’ve eaten, but I haven’t!” Pedro announced as he opened the trailer door. He warmed up a can of soup and made several pieces of toast, while Dusty kept watch by the window. When he heard the clatter of dishes going into the sink, Dusty came and settled on the couch with Pedro and his bag of cookies. “These aren’t for you,” Pedro warned. But Dusty already knew. He didn’t get people food.

  Tonight Pedro had a pad of paper and a little book. Instead of turning on the big light-up rectangle, he talked into the little one he carried in his pocket. Dusty couldn’t understand the words, but he could tell that Pedro was mixed up inside. He smelled sad and determined. Dusty put his paws on Pedro’s chest, licked his cheek, and then lay belly-up beside him, inviting him to do something more fun like rub his belly.

  Pedro let out a long breath and gave Dusty a nice stomach scratching.

  Shelby wasn’t the only one who would miss this little guy … Pedro would, too.

  Shelby tapped her foot impatiently and shot a look toward Morgan, who was still perusing books. Her mood had darkened since Dusty’s departure, which, she’d noticed, happened almost every day.

  “Haven’t you read all of those books … like, five times each?” she asked pointedly.

  Morgan ignored her, which soured Shelby’s mood even more. “Can you step on it?” she huffed, picking at a blue-painted fingernail.

  Morgan tossed a look over her shoulder. She had in fact read most of these books multiple times, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t value in reading them again. You couldn’t absorb all the information on the first—or even second—read. Dogs and dog training were incredibly nuanced. That was one of the things she loved about them both.

  “What’s your hurry?” she tossed back. “Got a date or something?” To her surprise Shelby ducked her head as if to hide her expression. Morgan smiled to herself. Bingo!

  “Of course not,” Shelby sputtered. “I just, I mean … let’s go!”

  Morgan didn’t press. She simply snatched Dog Training Trials and Triumphs and Breeding Isn’t Everything off the shelf and breezily made her way to the door, where Shelby was waiting and jangling the keys in her hand. Shelby yanked the door closed behind them and locked up, rushing past her sister along the pathway to the Sterling house. Her heart was pounding fast. She didn’t have much time to change before the movie, and being able to go at all might take some convincing. Georgia Sterling was no pushover.

  “Mo-om!” she shouted as she raced through the door, bombarding her mother in the kitchen. “Alice invited me to the movies. There’s a group of us going. I’ve already started Monday’s homework, and we’ll be back by ten,” she said breathlessly. She threw in every bit of information that might help her cause. She could not make this sound like a date. And it wasn’t a date … she just wished it was a date. Kind of. Maybe.

  She rocked back and forth on her toes while she waited for her mother’s response. Georgia blinked several times and opened her mouth to reply just as Morgan strolled through the kitchen door with her nose in a book. Shoot! Shelby had wanted this conversation to be private.

  “That sounds fun,” Georgia said, pulling a can of beans out of the cupboard. “You should take your sisters.”

  “Take us where?” Morgan asked, glancing up from the first chapter of Dog Training Trials and Triumphs. Shelby turned away from both of them and closed her eyes to keep from rolling them … Eye rolling was her mother’s pet peeve and strictly verboten and the kind of behavior that made her mom break into German. This was not what she had in mind!

  It was clearly what her mother suddenly had in mind, however, and Georgia was running with it. “Shelby’s taking you to the movies,” she told Morgan.

  “Really?” Morgan’s face lit up. She loved a good movie, and her books would be waiting when she got home.

  The girls’ mother was nodding and now held her phone in her hand. “I’ll text Alice’s mom to see if she has room in the car. Your father can pick all of you up.”

  Shelby bit her tongue. The last thing she wanted was to have to drag half her family to the movies … with Ryan! Still, she consoled herself, it was better than not being able to go at all. And there had been no mention of taking Forrest. She needed to quit while she was ahead.

  “Okay, fine,” she said, trying to sound cheerful enough to avoid an “attitude” discussion with her mother. “I’m going to change.” She half smiled at Morgan and rushed upstairs to the bathroom, only to find the door closed.

  “Juniper!” she called, knocking loudly. Her eight-year-old sister was capable of spending hours on end in the bathroom—and often did. But Shelby needed to pee and make sure she didn’t look like she just rolled out of bed … or spent the afternoon with a dog on her lap! She made a quick decision. “Get out here or I won’t take you to the movies!”

  The door was open in a flash. “The movies?” Juniper asked, her eyes wide with excitement.

  “Yes, the movies. With me and Morgan.”

  “Reeooowww!”

  “Oh, boys, I know. I’ll miss you, too.” Juniper turned toward Twig and Bud, who sat on the vanity.
While Bud gazed at himself in the mirror, Twig licked the younger cat’s neck. They were both wearing bonnets.

  “There’s room for everyone in Alice’s car, but you all need to be out front in ten minutes,” Georgia shouted up the stairs.

  “Out. Now. Or you’re not coming,” Shelby growled.

  Juniper snatched up the cats and flounced out of the bathroom, leaving it mercifully vacant.

  With no time to shower, Shelby quickly washed her face and swept her hair into a loose half-back style. In the bedroom she shared with Morgan, she slipped into her favorite sweater and dabbed essential oil on her wrists, wishing her mother would let her wear real perfume.

  “Let’s go!” she shouted as she took the stairs two at a time. Her sisters were already waiting at the door.

  “You don’t have to shout,” Juniper replied with a slow blink and a toss of her braids.

  Sighing and with both of her sisters in tow, Shelby raced out to the parking lot in front of the ranch.

  The back seat of the car was crowded, and Shelby was relieved when, fifteen minutes later, they pulled up outside the theater.

  “Have fun!” Alice’s mom called as they piled out of the car. Ryan, Saul, and Beth were already there, waiting by the ticket line.

  Shelby let Alice walk ahead to greet them, then turned to her sisters.

  “After I get your tickets I want you guys to go sit by yourselves,” she said.

  Morgan couldn’t resist the opportunity to tease her older sister. “Oh, so this is a …” Morgan stopped when she saw the look of anguish on Shelby’s face. “I mean so long as popcorn is the first priority, we’re good with that. Right, June?”

  Juniper was staring through the window at the concession stand. “Only if there are also Milk Duds!”

  Their mom didn’t give them money for snacks, but it only took Shelby a split second to decide it would be worth it to spend her welcome center work allowance on snacks if it would mean getting her sisters off her back. They bought three tickets and headed inside to the snack line. After waiting ten minutes and forking out half of her savings—out of which all she got was one medium soda—Shelby finally wrenched herself free and joined her friends.

  As Alice’s careful planning would have it, Shelby’s saved seat was right next to Ryan’s. “Thanks,” she mouthed to her friend as she stepped over Alice’s long legs to the second seat in. The trailers had ended and the movie was starting, which was a-okay with Shelby because she was so nervous her tongue felt as dry as a dog biscuit. She couldn’t even manage a simple hello to the adorable dark-haired boy sitting next to her!

  Settled into her seat, she stared straight ahead at the screen. The movie was a comedy she’d been wanting to see, but she couldn’t focus on the story. For one thing, she was sitting next to Ryan! For another, her heart was pounding so loudly in her ears she was one hundred percent certain half the theater could hear it. She fidgeted and tried to see what Ryan was doing without turning her head. As far as she could tell he was totally engrossed in the actors on the big screen.

  Shelby tried to breathe and focus, and eventually found herself getting wrapped up in the story. She was really starting to root for the main character when she felt something touch her wrist. At first she started. But then she realized it was Ryan reaching for her hand! She opened her palm, and his fingers wrapped shyly around hers.

  Shelby’s face warmed and she smiled the widest smile of her life. His hand was warm and smooth and fit perfectly with hers. She sat back, happy and unbelieving. They. Were. Holding. Hands!

  Shelby turned her head to see Ryan’s expression in the dark and noticed his eyes were glistening. He was tearing up at the sweet story on the screen! Shelby’s heart melted a little, and she scooted closer and squeezed his hand, beaming in his direction and hoping he would look in her direction. Instead he jerked his hand away to cover his face. A second later he made a stifled, exploding sound. Then another. Shelby tried to lean closer to ask if he was okay, but her sleeve snagged the lid of the soda, jerking it out of the cup holder and upending the whole drink into Ryan’s lap.

  “Ugh!” Ryan jumped to his feet.

  “Dude!” someone called from the back. Someone else shushed them.

  Ryan swatted at his crotch while he continued to make stifled, exploding sounds. Sneezes! He sneezed louder and louder.

  “Sit down or leave!” the guy behind them hissed.

  Covering his nose with his elbow, Ryan made a beeline for the aisle, tripping and knocking Alice’s popcorn everywhere along the way. Shelby shot Alice a look of utter desperation. She had no idea what to do!

  “Go after him!” Alice whispered fiercely.

  Shelby gulped. Um, okay …

  When she got to the lobby, Shelby’s eyes darted frantically to every corner, but Ryan was nowhere to be seen. She was wondering if he might be in the bathroom, when she spotted him on the sidewalk through the window. He held a wad of tissue under his nose with one hand and was using the other to blot the large wet spot on his pants. Shelby rushed outside in time to hear a couple of kids in line for another show laughing.

  “Just couldn’t make it, huh?” one of them laughed.

  Shelby gaped. It looked exactly like he had peed his pants.

  “It’s soda!” Ryan shouted at them. Shelby willed the ground to swallow her up. She’d never seen Ryan so upset. She’d never even heard him raise his voice!

  As she approached she could see that his dark eyes were puffy and red. Was he so embarrassed he was crying? She had to admit she would have been mortified, too. The wet splotch was covered in bits of white shreds that looked just like toilet paper.

  He looked at her, squinting, and started sneezing all over again. Shelby’s stomach churned. She felt sick. This was her fault, and he must hate her!

  “Stay back,” he said. “I can’t take anymore …” Their eyes met for a moment, and his voice softened. “Please,” he said. “Just go.”

  Shelby felt her heart leap into her throat. She wanted to apologize. She wanted to help. But he didn’t want her around. There was only one thing to do. Her eyes welling with tears, she turned and walked hurriedly away.

  Martin Sterling stuck his head into the canine pavilion. He was looking for Pedro but spotted Forrest and Morgan instead. “Have you two seen Pedro?” he called to them.

  The pair looked up from where they were busily scrubbing kennels and filling bowls for the entourage of canines. They were up early this Saturday. They had been back to school for almost two months, and as their parents constantly reminded them, school was their real job, and always came first. So when the weekend rolled around, they both got up early to maximize their dog time.

  “Sorry, Dad,” Forrest called. Morgan looked up and shook her head. She hadn’t seen him, either.

  Martin checked his watch. He was a little early, but Pedro was usually early, too. He took the extra moment to walk down the center row of dog enclosures, greeting each wagging trainee along the way. There were about half a dozen Labs and border collies and golden retrievers, all rested and ready for work—which, in their doggy brains, was pure fun. Martin understood. He always found a way to make his job fun, too.

  “Martin!” Pedro entered the pavilion a moment later with his hand out and wearing a smile. The two men shook hands, patted shoulders, and fell into conversation.

  Forrest strained to hear what the adults were talking about. Two or three words coming out of his dad’s mouth made him wish he had ears like the Chihuahua who had taken up residence on Shelby’s lap. He stepped closer.

  “Did you just say there are two dump trucks on their way to the ranch?” Forrest interrupted. Then he looked a little sheepish. His mom would give him a look or a lecture for interrupting, and he knew it was rude. But his dad understood his exuberance and clapped his hands together instead.

  “You heard right,” he confirmed. “We’re getting a double load of construction debris for the rubble pile.”

  Morgan had
been listening, too. And watching. What she saw made her smile. Her dad, her brother, and Pedro all looked like little kids who’d been given permission to take the hose into the sand box. They were about to have some good messy fun, and the ranch was about to get an upgrade.

  The rubble pile was where the dogs practiced the incredible agility necessary to stay safe when searching after disasters like earthquakes, hurricanes, landslides, and explosions that left destruction in their wakes. It was already quite large, but to keep the dogs on their toes, literally, the training area needed constant refreshing and expanding.

  “I’ll go wait for the trucks so I can guide them in,” Pedro said. “Just have to run back to my place first.”

  Martin nodded. “Great. I’ll go make sure the site’s ready.”

  “And I’m going to come with you?” Forrest asked his dad with a “please, please, please” grin and held up two sets of crossed fingers.

  His dad cracked up. “All right. If you’re done here.” Martin shot a glance at Morgan and raised his eyebrows. It looked like the kids had completed the morning dog chores, but he didn’t want Forrest running off and leaving Morgan to finish the work.

  Forrest gazed at Morgan with the same hopeful, pleading look he’d given their dad.

  Morgan relented with an amused roll of her dark eyes. They were almost done, and she really didn’t mind. “Fine. Go play with trucks.” She waved a hand at them.

  Forrest was out the door first, shouting over his shoulder, “Don’t forget the skid loader! We’re gonna use that, too, right, Dad?”

  The skid loader was already parked by the heap of debris, ready to prep for and adjust the new shipment of rubble. It took a lot of effort and skill to create a pile that replicated destroyed buildings.

  “Can I drive it?” Forrest asked, rushing up to the miniature excavator.