Fiction: Chapter 3: Finding Home
Chapter 3: Finding Home
Georgia woke up in a jump. She looked around, having forgotten, where she had rested. She saw Beau and Lainey still sleeping. It took her a moment or two to piece it back together. They had sat down in a corner near the big building after eating so much food. She sat back down and looked around into the day light. The crowd was gone but some cars were still there. Eventually, Lainey and Beau woke up too.
They started walking. They had found their way near a large river not too far from the big building where all the buses had ended up the night before. The sun had come up and the city looked like last night had never happened. No toys anywhere and everyone was back in their normal clothes. No one was dancing, no music, just another day. They decided to follow the river as far as they could then walked, past a big boat with a funny wheel on it, through a parking lot and eventually found their way onto a street behind a bunch of food shops.
Beau was in front his nose in the air sniffing out the perfect spot for them to stop. In no time at all, they found some donut and sausage scraps near a dumpster. There were even crab shells. They had crabs back home too. Someone nearby was hosing down the sidewalk. Georgia got nervous as she heard the Waterman moving towards them. She didn’t think he knew they were there. Sure enough, he was startled when he saw all the dogs there. He turned the water hose on them. Georgia, Beau and Lainey didn’t have much time to grab any more scraps. They started running once they realized the water wasn’t going to stop. Lainey growled in the water man’s direction as they moved past him. Beau was yapping. Georgia ran in between her friends and the water and pushed her friends into the road next to a large wall. They all ran to the sidewalk next to the large road.
They kept walking alongside the wall away from the shops. They could smell so many animals and footsteps. They walked and walked. Eventually, they found a big rusty staircase. They decided to take the stairs instead of crossing the street. They stopped and watched the river at the top of the staircase. Georgia could swear that the river and a big boat looked like it was above the ground in front of them. But that couldn’t be right, she tilted her head for a better look.
Lainey started walking down the stairs towards the river. They could hear little wheels that were very squeaky on a sidewalk coming towards the staircase. Lainey took off down the stairs and towards the wheels barking before Georgia could say anything. Beau and Georgia took off after her. “Lainey! Stop!” Georgia barked. The little boy on the scooter started screaming and his mom got in between the dogs and the little boy. Georgia nudged Lainey with his nose and they all ran off past the mom and little boy down the sidewalk towards the river. Beau looked behind them to see if they were being followed. They weren’t.
Eventually they came to grassy area. Georgia looked up at a structure a little in front of them. It reminded her of a giant table that was as tall as a building. They stopped to smell the grass. When it got too hot they went to sit under the giant building-sized table.
They could feel a breeze off the river and were enjoying the peace and quiet when they heard footsteps and a woman’s voice, “Heeeey little doggies! How are you doing today? Do you have any people with you?” Georgia stood up and slowly approached the woman creating a barrier between the woman and her friends. She remembered to smile big so as not to scare the woman but didn’t want to take a chance if she was going to grab Lainey or Beau like the Sandpaper woman did a few days ago. The woman kept walking towards Georgia with her hand out. Georgia sniffed her hand and then her arm. She smelled like flowers. The woman grouched down and petted Georgia’s head and back. Before she realized it, Georgia had climbed up on the woman’s knees. Her weight keeping the woman in one place while Georgia gave her full sniff all over.
Georgia finally let her up. The woman stood up and looked in the direction of a couple on the swing. Georgia stood next to her watching the couple too. Flowers woman started walking away. Georgia followed her. Then Lainey and Beau got up and followed Georgia. “Georgia, where are we going?” Lainey asked. “I don’t know, but she smells nice, right?” Beau gave a little sneeze.
The Flowers woman kept walking towards the staircase they had walked up to get here. They passed some people running. They passed a mom pushing her baby in a stroller. Lainey managed to keep it together next to those wheels with honorable restraint. They passed a lot of flowers they wanted to smell but the woman smelled better they determined. They walked up the staircase. Down the staircase. The woman walked towards a big car and opened the trunk. Georgia jumped up into the car, then Beau, and then Lainey.
“Whoaa, what are y’all doing? Ha! Are y’all coming with me?” The woman was laughing and looking at them. Beau took a big leap into the front seat. Lainey played with a towel that smelled like sweat to make it flat and comfortable to lie down on. She lay down. Georgia was wagging her tail so hard her body was swaying left, right, left, right. Georgia and the Flowers woman, both with big smiles, just looked at each other. She liked this woman’s car! It smelled like flowers too! Her name must be Flowers Georgia figured.
A few minutes later the woman was still laughing but closed the trunk and opened the door to sit down behind the steering wheel. The woman turned her neck to look at the dogs. “Ok y’all. What’s going on?” Beau jumped into her lap and curled up. She petted Beau’s head. “Are y’all really coming with me?” Georgia gave a little howl with her head up in the air. Lainey was already sleeping. The woman sat there for another couple minutes and then started the car. Georgia sat down with her head resting on top of the back seat headrest looking towards the road. The woman gave them one last glance over, let out a big sigh, and then started driving.
It felt like a long time before they stopped and the woman turned off the car. All the dogs jumped to their feet once she did. They looked out the windows. “Welcome to Josephine street friends!” the woman laughed and opened the door.
