was open to it. After she’d robbed me of her the last few months I’d become like a starving wild animal, obsessed with getting her back no matter the cost.
I caught the book on her nightstand. “Anne Rice, huh? Didn’t peg you for a vampire girl.”
I couldn’t see her, but I could feel her eyes traveling my face. “I’m a sucker for an anti-hero.”
I flipped the pages, her words spinning through my mind on repeat. Had I just become her pet project? Was I the scarred, wild animal she thought she could rehab back to life? Suddenly, all the opening up we’d just done felt like an oppressive wave barreling down on my chest.
“I--I forgot tonight was my night to walk the dogs at the animal shelter--I should probably head over there--those dogs are vicious if they don’t get their nightly walk.”
“Since when did you start volunteering at the animal shelter?”
“Also since the day I got back from boarding school. Every Tuesday and Thursday for the last two years. I’ve been a vegan since that day too. The day I realized I liked animals more than humans, I couldn’t keep eating them.”
“Two years, huh?” Her eyebrows rose. “Can I come? I’d love to help you dog walk.”
“It’s not really...I don’t think they’d just appreciate it if I brought someone new…”
“The dogs? Or the humans?” She laughed.
“Either?” I answered seriously.
“I’m pretty much a dog whisperer, and most humans like me too. I mean, if they put up with you…”
I shook my head when the little mouse followed me out of the room. My grand plan to escape her prying little questions was an epic fucking fail.
“How far is the shelter?”
“A ten-minute walk,” I uttered, wondering what in the hell had gotten into me earlier when I’d told her I wanted to be friends after all. I wasn’t adapted to things like friends and common niceties.
“Perfect, you can tell me about the rest of your tattoos.”
I suppressed another groan. “Is oversharing ever, like, a thing in friendships?”
She only laughed as we set off along the edge of the cobbled driveway. “Feeling exposed, Sinclair?”
“No. I’ve just never known anyone to give so many fucks about another person.” My words hung heavy, the truth of them registering fully.
“Well, I’m sorry about that. I don’t know what dinners were like in your house, but every night my parents lingered around the table, talking about their day and their friends and their dreams and...I dunno, just, life.”
“I’m really not good with that stuff,” I breathed.
“I noticed.” She paused. “But you’re pretty good with animals.”
We reached the fence that normally enclosed the dogs all day. “They’re simpler than people.”
We stepped in, and I fished a keycard from my wallet to open the back door of the facility. The dogs roared to life, tails wild as they jumped up and down in greeting.
“Ever wonder what they think about you?” she breathed, taking in all the wagging canine tails.
“Doesn’t matter, does it? It’s humans that make life complicated--the needs, the greed, and the selfish motives. Humans poison everything, even the air we breathe and the food we eat, just to make a profit. These guys,” I let the first two dogs out of their kennels, “only need food, water, a walk, and some love to live. It’s simple, and I appreciate simple.”
“Coming from the most complicated man I’ve ever met,” she whispered at my side as I stood, an errant smile darting across my face.
“Dark and complicated might look good on you if you give it a try, little mouse.”
19
“It made her think that it was curious how much nicer a person looked when he smiled. She had not thought of it before.” ― Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Secret Garden
Madison
Watching Kyler at the animal shelter was like seeing a completely new person. He actually smiled as a small golden retriever licked him in the face, trying to climb him like a monkey.
“He’s amazing with them,” a middle-aged woman, with salt and pepper hair and ruby red cheeks said, beaming at Kyler with the puppy. “He’s the only person that can make the abused ones calm down. They usually hide or growl at people, but not with Kyler. He’s the kindest, gentlest person I have ever met in my entire life.”
I slowly turned to the sweet looking woman, not really sure if she was talking about the same Kyler I knew. The boy I knew was angry and mean. He was brash and insensitive. Kyler Sinclair was a bully in