La Belle Amour

vi. blue

Nathan's mom liked to always call him 'peculiar'.

It started at the very simple age of five, when he met a young teenage girl with a massive dog that looked to be wholly made up of its thick shaggy fur.

Tentatively, he began to walk towards the little girl and her dog while he pulled his mother along with him. His mother had faltered in her steps, weakly raising her voice in protest to stop her son, but it had been too late—Nathan's interest was piqued and insatiable.

"Is this your dog?" Nathan had asked, voice curious.

The girl had nodded her head vigorously, excitement causing her cheeks to tint pink. "His name is Blue!" she replied, voice proud as she began to ruffle the dog's ears.

Nathan had glanced at the mutt, studying its clearly black shaggy fur. He began to wonder if he was colour blind.

"Would you like to pet him?" the girl asked, eyes curious.

"He's not blue, right?" he responded, a serious frown on the child's face.

The girl's excitement faltered as she began to grow uncomfortable from the severity of seriousness on the child's face. She glanced once at his mother as if to question her regarding her peculiar son. "No, he's not," she finally answered, a bemused expression on her face.

"Oh. So why is his name Blue then?"

His mother tried to disguise her laughter with an admonishing gasp, and before he could get his answer Nathan felt himself being hauled away from the girl and her beast.

"What a peculiar boy you are," his mother had whispered at him, her tongue lilting the word in an endearing way.

Nathan could remember glancing up at her, seeing the way the sun caught the red tone of her auburn hair, and wondering what the word could possibly mean.