“I see,” she replied. “Well, definitely bring him in and we’ll let the doctor know what’s been going on with him, okay?”
He was grateful that at least the people at the vet seemed kind and understanding. They were probably used to coping with sad situations. “Thank you.”
Going to hang out with his friends after this was going to be the pick-me-up that he needed. As soon as he ended the call with the animal hospital, he went through his suitcase for an appropriate outfit for meeting up with his friends. He was so glad that the suitcase had been delivered to his parents’ house from the hotel; he didn’t think that he wanted to go out in public dressed in his dad’s clothing. His friends would definitely wonder about his mental state.
He changed into a black button-down shirt with long sleeves and a white/silver stitched pattern on the chest. It looked a bit like a western shirt, the kind of thing that he suspected Coloradans would appreciate. They didn’t need to know that it was actually high-end fashion that Ashton had bought in New York, on Fifth Avenue. He did his best to impress the people in his new city just as much as he wanted to impress the people back home. The shirt paired with jeans made him look laid-back enough to fit in. His friends weren’t going to ask about the shirt’s price tag. It was something for him alone to think about and take no small measure of pride in.
“I’ll be back later, boy,” Ashton told Skipper, scratching him behind the ears. I’ll miss you.
He borrowed his dad’s truck and drove to The Clock Tower Grille. I wonder if they still look the same. I might not even recognize them. He smiled a little, remembering all the good times he’d shared with Kevin and Matt back in high school. All the lunchtime laughs and goofing around in science class when they thought the teacher wasn’t looking. He didn’t expect everything to be the same between them, but he hoped that at least a glimmer of that stuff was still there. When he went into the restaurant, he was seated by a hostess and spent the next several minutes craning his neck in search of his friends.
Matt arrived first. Ashton grinned and stood up from the table so he could wave him down. Matt was tall and slender with raven hair that was a bit shaggy, and a close-cropped beard with full sideburns. ‘Muttonchops,’ Ashton thought they were called. I wonder if he’s still in a band. He sure looks like he is.
Matt nodded once and came over to meet him, smiling a semi-wicked smile as he approached. “Hey, bro.” He clapped Ashton on the back in a half hug before they sat down across from each other at the table.
“How’s it going?” Ashton asked him. “You look good. The same.” He grinned back at his friend.
“So do you,” Matt replied. “Though it looks like you bathe more than you used to.” He winked.
Ashton laughed. “Hey now! Are you still into music?” He felt bad for not really knowing. He could’ve poured over his friends’ Facebook accounts, but he didn’t want to treat this reunion like it was a job interview or anything. He wanted to catch back up with them in a natural way.
Thankfully, Matt didn’t seem fazed. “Yep,” he said with a proud nod. The Cedar Doors are still going strong.”
“Wow, that’s great man,” Ashton replied. He didn’t expect that Matt would even still be in the very same band that he’d started in high school. Things really haven’t changed here… Instead of thinking that it was unusual, he found himself envying it a little. Meridian felt like a snowglobe at the moment, a perfect little world where things were untouched by time.
He wished that his dog could be like that, though. The snowglobe seemed to have at least one crack.
Before Ashton could talk with Matt more about his band, Kevin arrived at the table. He was a stocky guy with short brown curls and a European nose. He looked like he belonged in an old painting. He also looked more or less the same, except he’d exchanged his ripped denim and plaid for a button-down shirt and black dress pants. He also wore black plastic-rimmed glasses now. He looked sharp. Ashton wondered if Kevin was treating this reunion a bit like an interview as well.
“How’s it going?” Kevin said to the other two guys. They all stood there and gave each other loose side-hugs.
“It’s good to see you,” Ashton said to him with a smile, sitting back down.
Now that they were all there at the table, he flagged down a waitress and they ordered some drinks. The restaurant was basically a sports bar, which Ashton didn’t mind. He could check out the game scores on the flat screens around the room. As soon as the waitress came back with their drinks, they ordered some appetizers as well, nachos and pretzels and onion rings. It had been a while since Ashton had experienced some real bro time like this. His friends in New York participated in get togethers like this, but there was always something a bit more sophisticated about it. It was largely because they met in a social club. Meridian was so small that the entire town could be considered a social club.
“So, you said you were in town because your dog is sick?” Kevin asked him, a look of sympathy on his face. “I’m sorry to hear that, man.”
“Yeah, that’s the worst,” Matt agreed.
Ashton nodded and took a sip of his soda. He hadn’t really wanted to discuss that at this friendly get-together, but he supposed that there was no avoiding it. This two guys had actually met old Skipper before, so they understood his grief better than anyone in New York would. “Yeah, he’s really run-down and not eating much. My parents don’t know what happened, but they asked me to come say goodbye.” He sighed softly. “I’m kind of hoping for a miracle at this point. Which might be crazy; it’s probably crazy.”
Matt shook his head. “It’s not,” he said. “Take him to the vet and see what they have to say.”
“Yeah, that’s what I’m going to do,” Ashton said. “Tomorrow morning. It’s not looking good, though. He needed me to carry him for most of our walk the other day. He doesn’t seem unhappy, but I think that’s mainly just cos he’s so glad to see me again.” He clenched his jaw to prevent himself from breaking down over his plate of appetizers.
His friends looked at him sadly. “You know, speaking of going to the vet,” Kevin said. “Becca Chapman works at the animal hospital in town.”
This was news to Ashton. Wow, I hadn’t even thought of that as a possibility. He’d been so hung up on what was going on with Skipper that he hadn’t really thought of the vet as an opportunity to run into his ex. “Well, good for her,” he said with a slight smile. “She always wanted to do something with animals.”
So Becca hasn’t left Meridian either, he thought. I don’t know why that surprises me. But at least that means I might have a friend there when I’m going through such a difficult day.
Ashton enjoyed spending time with his old friends, but there was something a bit strained about it. They were the same guys, but they’d been through so much apart and it was difficult to fully understand them now. He also got the feeling that they were envious of him for being able to get away but they didn’t quite understand what it was that he did. He gave money to smaller businesses in the hopes of them being successful, and he made money off of their success; at least a percentage. The people of Meridian were largely into tech or medicine, the sort of things that Ashton might invest in.
“You could’ve stayed here and invested in some of our tech,” Kevin said. “My company could’ve used some help when it was getting started.”
“Hey, I don’t only invest in things in New York,” Ashton pointed out. “Give me your business card and I’ll see what we can do.”
Kevin passed a card across the table, but he didn’t seem like he trusted Ashton much when it came to helping him. Ashton supposed that he would have to prove himself, since he’d up and left all of his friends. Though they were cordial and glad to see him, he knew that he’d still hurt them by leaving and not keeping in touch.
Chapter Six
Looking up from a chart she was signing off on, Becca blinked in confusion when she thought she saw Ashton Miller walk through the front door.
She handed the chart off to one of the receptionists and, doing her best not to stare, peeked over again at the young man – a sidelong sort of glance so she could look at him without being too noticeable. Unless it was a mirage and her eyes were making her see what she wanted to see, Ashton Miller was there in the animal hospital where she worked.
She felt flustered, scrambling to come up with what to say to him. The good thing was that she was at work, so she actually had things to do and distract herself with. But the next chart that was placed in her hands bore the name Ashton Miller. Of course it did.
As she read it over, though, she realized that the last thing she should do was bring up anything about what happened in their past. His dog, good old boy Skipper, was sickly. She felt bad that she hadn’t noticed the dog when he came in; she’d been so focused on the familiar face of her ex.
“Skipper?” Becca called out, pretending to look around the waiting area even though she knew what the owner looked like.
Ashton stood up right away and she realized he was holding the old beagle in his arms. He looked almost like a small blanket.
“Right this way, please,” she said to him, doing her best to not give any indication that she recognized him. Now was neither the time nor the place. She was pleasantly surprised to find that Ashton also wasn’t making any to-do about recognizing her. He might not. It’s been a long time and I’ve cut my hair and changed my general style since I was eighteen.
She led him into one of the exam rooms. Ashton placed the old dog on the cool metal table so she could examine Skipper more easily. “So, what’s been going on with Skipper? He’s lost weight and he’s been lethargic?”
Ashton nodded his head. Becca could tell right away that he was trying his hardest to keep it together. “He’s not eating, and when he does try to eat, he has a hard time keeping it down.”
She frowned a bit as she used her stethoscope to listen to the dog’s heartbeat and breathing. She couldn’t doubt that something was wrong with him, but she was going to need to run some tests to find out what exactly that was. “Well, first of all, I’m glad you brought him in when you did. I can run some tests on him to try and find out what’s going on with him.”
Ashton looked at her and knitted his brows a bit. “I’m worried that he might just have to be… put down.”
She looked from him to Skipper and then petted the dog's head. "Well, of course, that's your decision to make. But in my opinion, we should wait for the test results."
Ashton wasn't really looking at her. He mostly seemed to have his eyes focused on the old beagle. Becca got the impression that he was thinking a few things over. "What kinds of tests?” He asked her.
"Blood tests mainly," she replied. "To try and rule out any diseases that might be causing these symptoms." She had a few guesses of what could be the cause, but she wasn't going to say them because she might be incorrect and she didn't want to scare him. Although, if he's already thinking about euthanasia, then maybe a curable disease wouldn't be such bad news.
Ashton thought it over and nodded his head. Something in his demeanor relaxed a little then. "Okay," he said. "That sounds good. How soon will you have the results?"
"I can give you a call next week," she said, then she gave him a small smile. "You still have the same number?"
That was a bit of a test. She wanted to know if he remembered her. Becca didn't think that their time together could be in any way forgettable, but then again Ash led a busy life in the fast-paced city now. What use did he have for a girl from the boondocks?
"Yes," Ashton replied. "I mean, my parents do. I'm staying with them while I visit."
This information made sense to Becca. She was a little surprised that he was staying with his parents and not in a swanky hotel, but to be fair, there weren't many that could be classified as "swanky" in their town. She wished that she could catch up a little with him, but she knew that there were other, more important things on his mind at the moment. She hoped that maybe he'd stick around for a while so she could have the chance to catch up.
"I see it here on the form you filled out," she said to him with another small smile. "Let me go ahead and get some of his blood for testing and I'll be right back."
With that, she picked up Skipper and carried him out of the exam room. She found the dog's vein pretty easily and carefully extracted the appropriate amount of blood. Then she made sure to treat the site so it wouldn't get infected and brought him back into the room where Ashton stood waiting.
"All right," she said to Ash. "Skipper here is a good boy. I’ll give you a call in about a week to let you know the results of the blood test. In the meantime, make sure that he gets exercise and eats. Even if only a little."
Ashton nodded his head and scooped the dog up into his arms. Skipper seemed comfortable in his arms, which made Becca’s heart flutter a little. She was glad that Ashton was there and doing all that he could for the dog. It couldn’t have been easy or pleasant to have to head back home, thinking that his old dog was dying. She hoped that she would have good news to report back to him.
As soon as he was out of her exam room, she returned the now-updated dog’s chart to the front desk and made sure that the blood samples were properly sent off to the lab. Fortunately, they had an in-house lab at the animal hospital, so getting the results would hopefully not take too much time. Becca knew that the Millers were anxious to know if their dog was going to be okay, and they were fearing that it was too late for him. She hoped to help dispel that for them.
She moved on to her next patients for the time being, though. She couldn’t spare any further thoughts for Ashton, even though she may have wanted to. It wasn’t until later, when she was out of her scrubs and back at home that she allowed herself to freak out a little bit. Oh my gosh, she thought as she sat on her bed, trying to decide if she ought to wriggle into some pajamas or change into some jeans and a t-shirt. The night was young, but all she felt like doing was cozying up on the couch and bingeing Netflix. I was just talking about him with Jaz and then he walked into my animal hospital. What are the odds of that?
She decided that, rather than reeling from the shock alone, she should go ahead and text Jaz and let her know what had happened.
“You’ll never guess who showed up at the vet today,” she texted.
“Who? Who?”
“Ashton.”
“Whaaaaaaat?”
Becca sat there guffawing on her sofa. She didn’t even really know why she was so amused. It was mainly just the shock and giddiness of seeing him again, she supposed. “I know! He’s in town because his parents’ old dog is sick. It’s a sad thing, really, but I was… I dunno if happy is the right word, but it was nice to see him again. He looks good. He didn’t seem like the hot-shot jerk that I thought he might be by now.”
“You’ve been watching too many movies. Just because he went off and got rich doesn’t mean he has to be a jerk now. I would hope that he’s still the same guy. But that doesn’t mean he doesn’t owe you an explanation.”
Becca had to agree with that.
“Well, one good thing is that I’m going to see him again soon,” she replied. “I mean, I guess his parents could come instead. I don’t know how long he’s in town for, but he seems pretty devoted to his dog, which is really sweet.”
“Maybe next time you see him, you could ask him why he left.”
Becca sighed. The truth was, she knew why he left. He wanted to strike it rich in the big city. She didn’t blame him for that. She just wished that he hadn’t had to dump her in order to do that. “That wouldn’t be very professional of me,” she texted Jaz. “But hopefully we can get a coffee or something. I’d love to really catch up with him instead of just seeing him through this sad time.”
She was going to care for Skipper the way she cared for every other pet. That was her passion and she did it well. But there was extra pressure to make sure that everything was okay with Ashton’s dog, because it was Ashton’s dog.
>
She was grateful to be going on her mini vacation to Denver in a few days. Now that this was weighing on her mind, she really needed an escape. Becca could drive herself crazy thinking about all of the ‘might’ve-beens’ with regard to Ashton’s and her relationship.
When the morning of the ladies’ road trip finally arrived, she was thrilled to be spending some quality time with her friends. She’d been craving a change of scenery for some time, and the thought of meeting a handsome new stranger was also not far from her mind. I don’t think that just because Ashton’s in town I’ve got to start fawning all over him again. That’s ancient history. And I also don’t need to sit there fretting over the lab results.
She thought these things, and yet she still felt somewhat guilty as she got into the backseat of Erin’s SUV. During the drive, Becca mostly looked out the window and listened to her friends’ banter. She was too excited to put her feelings into words and she mostly wanted to take it all in so she could remember this trip for as long as possible. As soon as they arrived and parked, the four friends checked into the Warwick Hotel.
“I want to fit in as much as we can here,” Becca said, sitting on the bed she was going to share with Teri and hugging her knees to her chest. “It all seems fun to me.”
Erin laughed. “You’re easy to please.”
“I don’t get out much,” Becca conceded.
“Well, this is perfect then!” Teri exclaimed with a smile. “I see no reason we can’t do as many things as we can possibly cram into a weekend.”
They headed out not long after and went to the zoo first. Becca was reminded of the school trips that the four of them had been on together. They’d always roomed together back then as well, or at least palled around together if they weren’t staying the night somewhere. “Remember when we came here sophomore year?” Erin asked, a big nostalgic grin on her face.
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