Dog Pound

31

The girl pulled on her shoes and stood excitedly at the door. Finally, finally, she would be able to go to the local Pound, and be able to meet the mysterious boy she had been talking to on the phone.

"Blair? You ready to go?" Her mom, Sam, called out.

"Yep." Blair nodded.

"Okay. Let's go." Blair's dad, Jake, said.

The three of them walked out the door together, each climbing into their small car. Blair fidgeted with her necklace, one that her Grandmother gave her, and looked out onto the road with nervousness and anticipation.

"Are you excited, kid?" Jake asked his daughter, when he heard the jingling of the rings clanking together. The necklace was a gold chain, and on the end of it were two gold rings that Blair's grandmother used to wear.

"Yeah." Blair said simply, setting the rings back down on her chest.

"Blair, your dad and I were thinking that we probably won't get a Hund. Seeming as you'll have yours." Sam told Blair, using the German word "Hund" for dog.

"I figured so." Blair replied, still looking out the window.

The car came to a sudden stop, and when Blair looked out the front window she saw a huge building in front of them, and she could hear the faint noise of barking. Butterflies swirled in her stomach as she opened the car door.

She quickly took her phone out of her pocket and dialed Grey's number.

"Hey Blair."

"Heyo. I'm in the parking lot."

"Wait, seriously? You actually came?"

"Oh shush. I told you I would come and I did."

"I just can't believe you actually did it."

"Shut up."

Blair ended the call, and hopped out of the car. Her parents didn't follow.

"Are you guys coming?" Blair asked through the open window.

"Nah. We wouldn't want to embarrass you in front of your friend." Sam grinned as Blair's face become flushed, and she sped away from the car as fast as she could.

Blair swung open the door, warm air hitting her face and the barking now more pronounced. No one was at the front desk, so she wandered through another pair of doors and found herself with all the dogs. Lines of barred cages covered the walls, making isles, almost as if it was a grocery market.

She kept wandering down the isles, looking at all the dogs one by one. A lot of them jumped at her, some looked just plain sad, and some of them actually looked very happy.

"Blair?" A voice made her jump.

Blair spun around on her heel to face a red head boy. Greyson.

"Oh. Hi." She waved daintily. Seeing him in person, she realized that he was way more handsome than she imagined. And tall.

"What kind of dog are you looking for?" Grey asked, stuffing his hands in his pocket.

"I'm not picky about gender or breed." Blair replied.

Blair kept walking around, before stopping at one cage. A dog, all white with a black spot on it's ear, sat on the middle of it. The spot was in the shape of a box, and perfectly shaped, oddly enough. It was looking around the cage, swiveling his head around but not moving.

"What about this one?" Blair asked, sitting criss-cross in front of the dog. She saw the scar on the side of it's face and frowned slightly.

"He came from an abusive home." Grey said sadly.

"Oh." Blair said as the dog walked over to her. He wasn't barking like the others did, he just stuck his snout through and licked her hand.

"He's an American Bulldog." Grey told her, to which Blair nodded and scratched the dog's head.

"Is he aloud to come out?" Blair asked, looking up at Grey who nodded and opened the cage with a key. The dogs slowly trotted out and up to Blair. He sat in Blair's lap and put his paws on her shoulder, then laid his head on top of one, as if he was giving Blair a hug.

"I'll take him." Blair grinned, kissing the side of the dog's head. They were staring at each other, but the dog broke the gaze when he licked Blair's nose.

"Perfect." Grey smiled down at the two, and started walking back to the front desk.

Blair stood up, the dog next to her, and started following Grey. She stopped in front of the desk, and a collection of collars sat in front of her. She immediately pulled out her wallet when Grey stopped her.

"Don't I have to pay?" Blair asked, furrowing her eyebrows in confusion.

"Collars are free, the dog is not." Grey laughed.

"Fair enough." Blair laughed with him, picking up a red collar and leash, then shimmied it over her dog's head.

"Any ideas for names?" Grey asked as she handed him a credit card.

"Not yet. I always told myself if I got a dog I would name it Benny, but I don't think it suits him." Blair snickered, taking back her card and shoving it into her wallet.

"Eh. I like the name." Grey shrugged, putting his elbows on the counter and leaning forward.

"I'll convince my uncle to name his Benny." Blair smiled, scratching her dog's head.

"Well, it was nice to meet you in person."

"Yeah. I'll call yah later." Blair laughed, taking her dog's leash in her hand and leading him out the door.

"Bye." Grey smiled, watching her retreating figure.

Sam rolled down her window, "Cute choice hun!"

"Thanks mom." Blair grinned. She opened her car door, letting the dog hop in first.

"What's it's name?" Jake asked, starting up the car.

"Box." Blair said.

Her parents burst out laughing, but stopped when they saw her serious face.

"Box?" Her dad asked.

"Yes." Blair glared at him.

"Alright then. Box the bulldog." Her mother smiled.

"Box the bulldog." Blair smiled.

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Yes, I have named her dog Box. I thought it was cute. When Box first met Blair (when he gave her a "hug"), I put that in because the same thing happened to me when we were buying a dog :)