Page 47 of Freeze Frame

I nodded my head, and went to Wally and gave him a pet and a kiss, and then slipped out of the room. The waiting room felt too stuffy for me, like the walls were closing in on me, so I stepped outside and gulped down lungfuls of fresh air.

I pulled my phone out and texted Josh.

Had a bit of an emergency. Can we meet at yours when it’s done?

I wasn’t sure I was ready to return to the scene of the crime. My kitchen looked like a tornado went through it, and the pantry door was still hanging open. More than anything, I didn’t want to go back there. Not until I knew what was going to happen with Wally. They said he’d be okay and I had to trust that. But that didn’t make it any easier to stand out here and wait.

Josh didn’t reply right away. It took him twenty minutes to read my message. But when he finally did, a reply came through in seconds.

OMG is everything okay? Of course we can. Do you need anything?

Everything is fine apparently. I’ll explain when we’re together.

Let me know when you’re on your way and I’ll order dinner for us. Are you sure you don’t need anything?

I’m sure.

I just need you.

I’ll be here

I didn’t want the first time I told him I loved him to be through a text message, or I’d have said it. Just knowing that I had someone to quietly freak out with later about what a shit day this was helped calm me down a little and hold it together.

Blue came and found me outside sometime later. It might have been minutes and it might have been hours. I wasn’t sure. I’d kind of spaced out, like my brain shut down to prevent a meltdown.

“You can come see him now. He’s a little less happy with life at the moment, but that’s just because we made him puke. Noone likes to puke. I’m sure he could use a cuddle from you now.” Blue gently took hold of my arm and led me back inside.

“You’re good at this,” I told him when we approached the room where Wally was waiting for me.

“Well, thank you.” Blue smiled at me and he opened the door.

Wally was a little droopier than normal, but he seemed to perk right up when I walked in.

“What’s the prognosis, Doc?” I asked, not waiting for permission to scoop my dog up into my arms. In the short time I’d had Wally, he’d quickly become one of the most important things in my life.

I had the strange thought that no one believed it was weird when you fell in love with an animal. People almost expected you to immediately bond with your pets. But when it came to people, there was a different kind of standard. You weren’t supposed to take one look at a person and just know. You weren’t supposed to go on a couple of dates and then want to declare your undying love for them. But you could walk into an animal shelter, take one look at a dog, and declare that it was the one.

Josh wasn’t a dog, but I wanted to have that same freedom with him. To tell everyone that he was it for me. That I’d found the person I wanted to spend time with. That I found someone who made me feel alive. That I’d fallen hopelessly in love with him.

After receiving a good prognosis from Rex and a list of things to watch out for just in case, I finally got to leave the vet’s office. My wallet was a little lighter, my heart a little shakier. I wasn’t the only one feeling out of sorts, though. Wally hadn’t liked the experience any more than I had, and if I hadn’t planned on seeing Josh afterward, Wally’s droopy face would have had me going there anyway so he could get some best friend time in with Nitro.

By the time I made it up to Josh’s apartment, I felt like I’d aged another decade. Josh whipped the door open and after I set Wally down, I practically fell into his arms. He was shorter than me, and not as thick, but he was strong enough to hold me up. He squeezed me tight, and I buried my face in the curve of his neck. Every breath I took smelled of him. Of something fresh and clean and slightly like citrus.

“What’s wrong?” Josh rubbed my back and didn’t buckle under my weight.

“Nothing now,” I mumbled into his skin. “I—Wally got into some muffins and they were chocolate chip so I had to rush him to the vet.”

“Oh, no!” Josh held me tighter. “Is he okay? He looked okay.”

“They say he’ll be fine. They weren’t too concerned because of the amount he likely ingested and his size, but they made him vomit and gave him charcoal to absorb any lingering toxins. They say he’ll be fine. But… Ugh.” I let out a breath that made me feel like my whole body was deflating. “It scared the shit out of me.”

“Tell me what you need.” Josh held me close and kissed my cheek. He continued to rub my back in soothing strokes, up and down.

I let out a dry, shaky laugh. “I’m not sure what way is up. Or what I need.” I paused for a moment, tempted to tell him how I felt, but there was no good segue I could think of to lead me into that sort of confession, so I stuck with the simple truth. “I just need you.”

“You have me.” Josh kissed my cheek. “How about—” He paused at the sound of someone knocking on his door. The dogs, of course, went nuts, and a second later the door swung open. We both turned in time to see a woman who was clearly older than Josh and clearly related to him, waltz into his apartment like she owned the place.

“Hey I hope you don’t mind—” She stopped short and stared at the two of us, still tangled up together.