black roses | The Lost Boys (1987)

v.

I woke up around late afternoon if the sun's position in the sky was correct. I drug myself out of the bed, took a moment to freak out about what I did the night before, pulled on my clothes, and left with my bike, following the trail I had last night. I thought about leaving the boys a note of sorts, but I didn't care to, so I didn't. The fifteen-minute drive to my house was filled with me simply questioning what the hell I had done the night before. It was out of character for me! I was losing my mind! I didn't know these four boys at all, and yet I let one kiss my neck, let the other see me almost naked and make out with me, and the other two had seen my underwear and me with my walls down. What was I doing?

I wanted to scream. I wanted to shout at someone or something because something inside me was changing when I was around them, and I didn't like change. They made me feel pretty and like I finally had real friends, and I was scared. Why was I feeling like this?

When I got home, I took a quick shower, dressed up again in an outfit similar to the one from last night but still different. I wore a short black skirt again, but I had on a forest green tight tank top that exposed a small amount of skin above my high-waisted skirt. I didn't wear shoes, but I had on black socks that reached mid-thigh. My hair was sitting high like it normally did, the curls tickling the bare skin of my back.

Then, I left my home with one thought on my mind: a dog. I wanted a dog, and I had been too caught up in other stuff to even think about getting one. I wanted an older one. Maybe I would stop by the pound and then go to the pet shop on the board walk. Both were open around now.

By the time I had walked over to the pound – I didn't have anywhere to put a dog on my bike – the sun was setting. The pound was a large building, and I could hear dogs barking from where I was outside. I stepped into the building cautiously, and I was immediately greeted by a boy behind a counter who looked like he would rather be anywhere else than there. "What can I do for you?"

I smiled a bit, trying to be polite. "I was wondering if you had any dogs? I'm interested in taking one home."

The boy nodded and pulled himself away from his desk. He motioned for me to follow him, and I matched his steps, stepping into a large area filled with cages on the walls. It was filled with dogs of all kinds and ages, and though I found the puppies cute, I was drawn to one dog in particular. He was obviously decently old, and he was curled in the back of his cage, watching me from his small area. I bent next to the cage and whistled for him, watching as he stood on sturdy legs and walked toward me. The tag said he was an eight-year-old Dobermann with all his shots.

I hesitantly reached into the cage and let him sniff my hand. He sniffed it slowly before pushing his face into the palm of my hand like a cat. I giggled and pet him lightly. "How much is he?"

The boy looked over. "That guy? One hundred."

I grinned and pulled out the money. The dog was watching me, his tongue lolling out the side of his mouth. The boy handed me over a form I had to fill out, and soon, I was out of the building, the dog I had named Rain walked beside me easily. The sun was gone by this point, but I felt a bit safer with Rain beside me. He was standing tall and looking around happily. His long leash was tied around my waist so he could walk a bit away, but he still stayed near me.

I led him to the boardwalk, and he seemed to be even more excited with all the people around. He panted loudly and jumped around a bit as I pulled him into the pet shop near the middle of everything. I moved through the aisles, looking at all the things I could possibly get him. I already knew I was going to spoil the dog. He deserved it, after all, and I had a decent amount of money left over as I didn't have to pay much for the house. It was old, and nobody wanted it in the first place.