Crossing Boundaries [COMPLETE]

Off to a Whole New World

Tiffany hadn't seen Mike, her husband, perhaps soon-to-be-ex, in weeks. She wasn't sure what she was feeling while walking to open the door. Her hands were shivering when she reached for the knob.

Chris was tucked away in the kitchen, out of sight, but in earshot.

She breathed in a lot of the winter air before unlocking the door. There on her front porch stood the man he fell in love with and married. His short blonde hair was parted on the side. Mike is as tall as Chris. He isn't muscular but lean.

Tiffany's heart thumped, her mind debated on what to do. Should she hug him, slap him, or just freeze while she stared into his green eyes? Poring over him, she could observe Mike didn't bear any traces of someone who was going through a divorce. His green eyes still glistened, no indication of bags under them.

"You look neat." Mike stated in his strapping voice.

She cleared her throat trying to recover from the mix of emotions inside her, ignoring his comment. "What are you doing here?"

Mike moved his peepers from her to the floor below him. There she saw Penny, the west highland terrier she adopted from the dog shelter. Tiffany immediately called out her name and as a response it promptly jumped to her human's knees barking excitedly.

She scooped the dog from the porch and cradled it in her arms, it's tongue happily licking her face.

"I'm leaving for the holidays and I can't take her. I figured you want to see Penny," Mike's tone wasn't requesting. He made up his mind he'll leave the terrier with Tiffany.

"The truth is, I want Penny to live with me for good. In the first place, I was the one who rescued her from the shelter." She couldn't hid her annoyance.

"I came here just to let you take care of her for a few-"

"F@#k off Mike!" Her voice resonated, Chris heard the sharpness in it. "If you want me to sign the divorce papers, be sure I get Penny's custody written in print. Now get the hell out of my property!" Tiffany's eagerness to hug the man she loved faded as fast as she sensed his apathy. She threw the door shut and heard Mike's car driving off.

Tiffany fell to her knees as Chris rushed to her, his face manifested panic. He worried she'll be in another episode of meltdown but when he got to her, she was quietly hugging Penny.

"Oh thank goodness you look okay." He locked her small frame in his arms and between his squatting thighs.

"Don't crush me, Evans," she wriggled out of his grip, giggling. Tiffany leaned on the wall beside the door. "I would like you to meet Penny." She held it's paw and waved it at Chris.

He held it and brush its fur with his thumb. "Nice to meet you, Penny." It licked his thumb. He smirked. "She likes me already." He grimaced as he saw Tiffany's distant gaze. "Oh don't even go there, Foster. We're not canceling this trip."

*

In the packed van, the Evanses, Tiffany, Penny and Dodger sat through a short drive to the airport. They drove through an almost pitch black winter night. Chris sat next to his friend, Dodger on his right side while Penny satisfyingly slept on Tiffany's lap.

Lisa kindly offered to take care of the highland terrier while the two were on vacation. Of course, the kids gladly volunteered to help out given that they were instantly mesmerized with the dog.

Scott was driving, Shanna in the passenger seat. Behind Chris and Tiffany were Lisa and Rob and Stella while Carly her hubby and their two sons were at the back-most seat.