Four Paws and A New Tale

Chapter 13: Pixie

Jacob closed the door and left, I had to find a way out. I ran to the back door, it was closed and locked, all the kitchen windows were closed. I ran to Jacob's room; his window was open. I rammed the flyscreen, I bounced off and landed on the bed.

I tried again, and again, until finally, it gave way under my onslaught. I went tumbling out the window and landed in the dirt.

Every afternoon I watched for Jacob from his bedroom window, I saw him come up the driveway and Rosie go the other way. I ran in the direction I always saw her walk, I went up a driveway and found a house with in a clearing with trees around it.

I crouched behind a tree and watched the house, I saw Rosie walk past the window, Jacob and his mother followed her, I was in the right place.

The house was big, it was classy and full of light, I could hear loud laughter from inside. I approached the house, I had got here, now I just needed a way in. I checked doors and windows on the front, they wouldn't work.

I checked the back, that was a mistake, sleeping there was a big Greyhound, its body was sleek and muscular. Every instinct was telling me to get away. There was a loud bang from inside followed by more laugher. The Greyhound woke up.

I had learned a new phrase since coming to the human world and now seemed like an appropriate time to use it.

"Oh, shit."

I ran, and the Greyhound gave chase, he was barking madly and gaining quickly. I tried to lose him by making sharp turns, it was no use, he was too agile, I climbed a tree as quickly as possible and huddled on the branch.

Rosie and Jacob came out of the house to see what was happening.

"Prancer!" Rosie called for her dog, it just kept barking at me. Rosie hadn't seen me yet, but Jacob had.

He ran towards the tree, Rosie followed close on his heels. The two struggled to calm the large dog and eventually got him inside the house.

"Sorry." Rosie apologised. "I have no idea why he started acting like that."

Jacob glared at me, "I do." He said angrily. Rosie followed his line of sight and saw me in the tree.

Rosie gasped loudly, "Is that Pixie?" She asked.

Jacob walked to the base of the tree and whistled. "Come on Pixie, down you come."

I leapt from the tree into his open arms and drew myself as close to him as possible, he held me tight and looked at Rosie with an apologetic smile.

"Sorry, I'll take her back and make sure she doesn't get out again."

"I'll come with you, just let me tell our parents."

Jacob nodded, and Rosie ran back inside the house.

Jacob sighed and started scratching behind my ear.

"Seriously girl? Why'd you have to do this tonight?"

I whimpered quietly.

He sighed, "I'm glad you're okay." He said.

Rosie came out of the house, "Alright, let's go!"

"Sorry about this." Jacob said.

"Nah, don't worry about it." Rosie replied.

The pair were silent until we got back to the house, Jacob noticed the flyscreen lying on the ground and he growled at me. "So that's how you got out."

He walked inside, placed the flyscreen on his desk, closed the door to his room so I couldn't get out again, then he went out front and locked me inside again. I jumped on the kitchen bench and watched from the window.

Jacob stood next to Rosie on the balcony, the moon sat high in the sky and the stars twinkled, it was sickeningly romantic and cliché.

I could hear them talking.

"I swear that fox is crazy." Jacob said.

"Don't they say that pets take after their owners?"

"You got me there."

...

The pair stood in a comfortable silence. Rosie moved closer and held Jacob's hand.

"Jacob?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm scared."

"Of what?"

"Last time I felt this way about someone, it didn't end well."

Jacob smiled sadly at her. "I know what you mean, I read something a while back it said, 'when you love someone, you never realise it, when you do realise it it's too late, the person you love always leaves you, and you always leave the person you love'. It was true, I loved someone but didn't realise until it was too late, I left her."

Tears blinked in Rosie's eyes, this was the first sign of vulnerability either had shown since they had met. Rosie, she always seemed so confident, perhaps that was a pretence she used to hide the truth.

"I don't know how to recognise love, I don't know what it looks like, once I thought I did, then I realized it wasn't real, I'm scared Jacob, I don't want that to happen again."

Jacob squeezed Rosie's hand.

"I'll keep you safe." He whispered.

She closed her eyes, leaned in and kissed him on the lips, he kissed her back.

My heart broke. I jumped from the countertop and lay on the couch, I closed my eyes and went to sleep. Perhaps it was time I left, maybe it was time to go home.