A Pet To Keep

Don't Like Girls

"What do you mean Kurt wasn't here today?" Jack's voice was slowly rising, eyes trying to lock onto the girls infront of him and scan the daycare play room at the same. "Where are they?"

"Kurt had something come up and couldn't come into work today," a blonde girl tries to calm Jack. He doesn't know their names, because he only ever talks with Kurt.

"Why didn't you tell me that when I dropped off Jay?" His hands ball up slowly.

"You didn't seem concerned at the time."

"That's because I thought Kurt was here somewhere! Where's Jay?"

"We had to kennel him this morning."

Jack's jaw locks. "Kenneled him this morning? Was he in there all damn day?"

"He hasn't stopped with the agressive-"

"Where is he?" Jack snaps. "Take me to him now."

The woman straightens her clothes and leads Jack back to a room parallel to the office. There was about a dozen kennel set up. Small ones, not like the big kennel full of pillows Jay has at home. Little ones with just the carpet floor and bar walls. Jay was the only one in a kennel, curled up on his side in one corner. There was a sippy cup on the ground but other wise he had nothing.

When the door opened, Jay peers over his shoulder and growls, but when he sees Jack he whimpers and presses farther into the corner of his kennel.

"Jay, baby Jay," Jack rushes over and has to kneel down to open the door. Fighting the lock a moment before the door swung open. He opens his arms wide, expecting Jay to rush to him like any other day, even more so than usual really. But Jay doesn't even look at Jack, he stays huddled in the small kennel. Jack reaches for him, but his broad shoulders stop him in the tiny door.

"Jay come here. Come on out so we can go home baby boy."

Jay shakes his head. "No. No trouble. No leave."

"Baby you aren't in trouble. Please come out." Jack tries to grab him again but can't get any closer.

"Nooooo. Bad Jay! Bad bad Jay!" The boy breaks into hard sobs and presses his face to the stiff carpet.

"What did you do to him!" Jack turns on the girls.

"We haven't done anything to him sense kenneling him. We checked on him every half hour to see if he would cooperate, but he was still completely agressive. We eventually tried to convince him to drink some water but I don't know if he did."

"Has he eatten? Have you changed him? He hasn't left this cage sense I dropped him off!" Jack felt himself begin to panic. His baby had been so horribly mistreated. He'd left Jay here alone and look what had happened!

"Mr. Pipper we couldn't do any of that. If we let him out we were endangering ourselves and the other pets. You're lucky we didn't call authorities."

"Why didn't you call me?" Jack raises his voice. "Jay is my pet. Why didn't you call me and tell me something was wrong!" Jack turns back to the kennel and shakes it but it was bolted to the ground. "Jay," Jack speaks softer. "Baby Jay. Don't you wanna go home? Don't you want to get away from this place and come home with me?"

The boy nodded, his crying sounding dry and shakey.

"Then come on out and I'll make you all better. Kay? I'm so sorry I left you here. I should have made sure Kurt was here for you. You don't like the girls huh? I don't like girls either, nope." Jay peeks out then. "Yeah. Never have. Girls as friends are nice, but not special friends."