Lydia- The Pet Communicator (Wattys13- Finalist!)

Chapter 11

Lydia- The Pet Communicator

Chapter 11

The month passed quickly. I began to walk on my own without the help of crutches, and I thanked my nurse Britney for it—she always worked hard on my exercise and daily nutrition. She also stayed in the evenings to cook for my father and me, since my father couldn’t cook very well. Even though we’d only meant for her to work two months, she saw we needed her help and decided to stay for two more weeks at our request.

My new teacher was very good. Not only was he attractive, he was also intelligent and caring too. He didn’t pressure me too much when it came to learning, and he went through the material at a good pace. Plus when he heard that I could talk to animals, he actually believed me. He gave me a chance to prove it to him, and I did so successfully.

That meant my father, Britney, and now Mr. Drake knew that I could talk to animals. It was the greatest thing to have some support, though I did miss Ricky and my mother a lot of the time.

The shelter was doing great. With the help of our new funds, I was able to provide a good home for all my pets. Lucky was a big dog now, and he’d grown even more irritating than before. Sadly, the Abyssinian horse had left us—he’d contracted Potomac horse fever and suffered greatly before his eventual death. The shelter was quiet without him, as he’d been the noisiest out of us all; everyone missed his presence. On the other hand, we received two more disowned cats for the shelter, so the number of animals we housed was growing.

I tried to make my daily routine the way it had been eight months ago. I’d spent six months in the coma and two months in recovery, but I still attempted to make things as normal as they had been before. During the day, my father would work from 8:45 in the morning to 8:30 at night, so Britney looked after me most of the time.

There was no sign of Vivian or my mother. Still, I had a feeling that they were planning something big.

Since there were only four months left before my exams, I needed to study harder than ever before. I’d forgotten a lot, but Mr. Drake helped me fill in the gaps; he was good with chemistry and physics, and he always treated me like a friend, maybe because he was only twenty-four.

One morning I had my breakfast and went to check up on the animals back at the shelter. I gave them their food and went quickly back into the house—it was time for me to study.

Soon, Mr. Drake arrived with a lot of books. “Good morning! You ready for today’s lesson?” he said as he entered.

“Good morning, Mr. Drake! Yes, all ready, and I did the homework you gave me.”

“Good. And how many times have I told you to stop calling me Mr. Drake? It makes me sound like an old man.”

“Sorry, sir.” I rolled my eyes at him and chuckled. I really liked Mr. Drake’s sense of humor, and on top of that, he was broad-minded and a gentleman. Anger was not in his dictionary.

“Good morning, Lydia! Good morning, Lydia’s secret crush!” Lucky barked. Lucky never left my side and was always annoying me.

“Lucky, shut up! You know who my heart really belongs to.”

“Don’t say it right in front of him, crazy! He actually does have a crush on you. I heard him talking to himself on the bench outside.”

“Could you leave? I can’t concentrate with you talking rubbish.”

When I looked up at Drake, I saw him staring at me with big green eyes. He smirked and cleared his throat. “If you’re done talking to your pet, can we continue?”

I nodded, gulping loudly. My mind was replaying what Lucky had said, and I considered whether it was true or not. Drake did care a lot about me, and he sometimes looked at me affectionately.

“So can you define love, I mean refraction? Sorry,” said Drake, biting his lower lip nervously.

"Refraction is the change in direction of a wave due to a change in medium. It’s a surface phenomenon that follows the law of conservation of energy and motion.” After finishing, I stood up quickly. “I have to wake up my father, or he’ll be late for work. Give me a few minutes—I’ll be right back.”

What’s happening to me? I’ve only known Drake for a month, but whenever he’s around, I always feel happy and relaxed. I do like him, but it’s not like I can give my heart away to just anyone. I only have feelings for Ricky... I miss Ricky a lot. Why doesn’t he call or check up on me? We could talk this out; the argument wasn’t that big of a deal, and besides, I need him badly. Where is he?

I rubbed my forehead in frustration.

“Boo!” my dad said from behind me.

“Dad, you practically gave me a heart attack!” I yelled, putting a hand over my chest.

“He-he! Say, where’s Mr. Drake? And what are you doing outside my bedroom?” he asked.

“I was coming to wake you up, but it looks like you’re all ready. That’s good! Drake is downstairs.”

“Lucky’s been waking me up in the mornings.” My father laughed and led me downstairs, where we found Mr. Drake. “Good morning, young man,” he said to him. “How’s my daughter?”

“Your daughter’s perfect. Good-hearted and very gifted.”

“No, I was talking about her studies.”

“I meant that she’s a perfect student. Sorry, sir. She’s doing awesome with all the coursework, and she’ll probably ace her board exams.”

“Good to see you’re doing your job well.” My father glared at Drake darkly, and he lowered his gaze and began perusing my physics textbook.

I grabbed my father’s arm and pulled him away from there. “Daddy, please eat your breakfast. You’re going to be late.”

Just then, Britney walked in. She hadn’t arrived on time today, and my dad seemed concerned.

“Where have you been?” my dad asked her as she entered.

“I had a date last night, and it went pretty late,” she replied. “I’m sorry.”

My dad nodded in reply. I thought I could see disappointment in his face, but maybe I was just imagining things.

Love was really in the air this morning.

I hurried back to Drake and started going through my coursework. Before long, Drake came closer to me and brushed a wayward strand of hair behind my ear. When I looked up, he smiled and said, “I thought loose hair would distract you.”

 My heart started beating faster, but I ignored the butterflies in my stomach and got back to work.

___________________________________________________________

Love is in the air! :P So how was this chapter, good or bad?

So to cheer you up, I have an Indian love song for you on the side with english translations ;) Hope you like it, even if you don't understand it :)