Remember when my dog jumped on you and showered you with kisses?
A golden retriever instantly greeted Maine as soon as she entered the townhouse. Giving the excited dog an affectionate pat on the head, she let the two men inside. The three-bedroom home was her parents'. She stayed with them after she was released from the hospital and sent home.
The dog, one-year-old Hunter, was the official guardian of the house and he began sniffing the newcomers. He must have found them harmless that he began walking around Paolo and Richard alternatively. His tail was wagging furiously at them.
"Maine?" An elder woman came into the foyer and saw them. She stilled and glanced at her daughter. There was a sudden worried look in her eyes, "What happened?"
Maine took off her coat and put it in the closet. She hugged her mother. "Mom, these are my friends, Richard and Paolo from the café. Guys, this is Lynda, my mom." She watched as they shook hands with her mother. Richard glanced at her. She smiled at him. "Stay here for dinner. Where's Artie, Mom?"
Lynda gestured for the men to sit on the sofa. "Your son is in your room with your Dad. You're supposed to be home five hours ago, right? Did something happen?"
"Well..." Maine looked at the men. She took a deep breath. "I'm fine now. The doctor says I am. I fainted this afternoon and these guys brought me to the hospital. I also called my doctor on the way home and I will be on a check-up first thing tomorrow morning." She held her mother's hand. "Don't worry." When she turned to the men, Richard was staring at her, surprise etched on his face. She wondered why. "Are you alright, Richard? I think you're hungry. We'll eat soon. I'll just go get my son." She looked down to Hunter, who was still wagging his tail in front of Maine.
"Maine was not used to dogs before. But after her accident, she came back here, and she adopted Hunter from a community pet center." Lynda said to them. Hunter, who probably seemed to know that he was the topic of the conversation, went to the middle of the room and barked, wagging his tail at the same time. He went to Paolo and tried to sit on his lap, much to everyone's amusement.
"He still thought that he is a baby," Maine chuckled and then, she walked away. "I'll get Artie and introduce him to you." She went upstairs and found her father and her son in her room. When her tenth-month-old son, Arthur, or Artie as she fondly called him, saw her, his eyes brightened even more. The dimples on both cheeks made him more adorable. After greeting her father, Jaime, she took Arthur who was incoherently making noises, as if he was telling his mother about what happened to him that day. "Did Grandpa play with you all day? Really?" Maine blew her son raspberry kisses on his neck and chest, and her son giggled noisily. He was a happy child, and Maine wanted to keep it that way, even if his father was not around.
She turned to her father. "I have visitors downstairs." She told him about what happened. They went out of the room. When they reached her mom and the two men, Jaime stopped when he saw the visitors. Maine introduced Richard and Paolo. "This is Jaime, my Dad, and guys, let me introduce to you this little chubby adorable angel, my son, Arthur. I call him Artie."
"I will take you to the doctor tomorrow," Jaime said with finality in his tone. "We have to make sure that you're really fine."
Meanwhile, Hunter was excited to see the baby that he stood on two feet and tried to reach for the little boy in Maine's arms.
While she and the grandparents were used to the playful dog, the two men clearly were not, especially Richard. He stood up and took the baby from Maine. Being the tallest among them, the baby was high enough that the dog could not reach it from him. Maine pacified Hunter and told him to sit. The dog followed and sat, his tail was still wagging.
And then, everyone turned to Richard and Arthur.
