Carry On

“For fucks sake, don’t tell me you’re camping too.” Matt groans in my head piece. I laugh at him, doing it purposely because I know it annoys the shit out of him when people camp, whether they’re on the opposing team or on his team. “Play the game the way it’s mean to be played.”

“You sure like to complain a lot for someone who’s gamer-tag says they’re a sniper” I rebut.

Matt and I had met a week ago and we practically played together every day. I enjoyed talking to him, mostly when he wasn’t complaining about the gameplay. So much so, that we exchanged Line information. Now, if you don’t know what Line is, it’s a texting app, kind of like Kik. But I much rather preferred it because you don’t get random spam messages. Matt and I talked daily and I enjoyed conversations with him probably more than I should. After all, he was some guy I met online in a video game who I knew absolutely nothing about other than that his name was Matt. Hell, I had no idea where he was from, and I sure as hell wasn’t planning on telling him where I was from. For all I knew, he could be a total creep who says he’s one person and turns out to be a homicidal stalker.

“Oh please, you don’t need to be a camper to be a great sniper. Just gotta play strategically.” Matt replies. I laugh at his comment, knowing that he’s just chirping me because he knows I can actually get kills without camping.

I felt guilty talking to Matt so often, I knew he had a girlfriend and although we were solely friends, I still felt like he shouldn’t be talking to another female as frequently as he was. Maybe he just felt as comfortable talking to me, as I was felt talking to him. I appreciated the ability to talk to someone who didn’t know me face to face, who wouldn’t judge me because they honestly didn’t know me and didn’t judge me before being able to get to know me. I was able to tell him things I couldn’t tell my other friends. IT was one of those things where I didn’t mind if he knew personal stuff about me, because I never felt like he would be able to use it against me. All he knew was that my name was Alexis and that I was a girl. H was able to see my picture because of my Line account, and vice versa, but that didn’t stop him from treating me like a person and not like an attractive female like most guys would. I was slowly growing accustomed to talking to him daily, and it was beginning to freak me out because we barely even knew each other. Hell, I didn’t even know what he did for a living, not that I was going to pester him about it. If he wanted to tell me, I would be all ears. But until then, I was content with how our friendship was going right now.

I, however, couldn’t deny the fact that Matt was attractive, based off the picture he had on his account. His head was nearly completely shaved, his eyes were a beautiful hazel that had more green than brown, he has the largest yet cutest dimples and from what I could see, he has many tattoos. His picture was gorgeous and seemed the have the perfect amount of ruggedness and a softness. Mix that with the roughness of his voice, and I’m sure he had girls swoon at him wherever he went. I was actually becoming weary that he was who he claimed to be. A person cause be that aesthetically pleasing, could they? Shaking the thoughts from my head, I zoned back into the game after I died twice in a row.

“Alright, I’m getting off. Need to do something with my life.” I joke. I actually had to do some grocery shopping and clean the house. Gina and I had an agreement: she cooked and did the laundry while I cleaned the house and did the dishes. It’s not that I’m a terrible cook, but I really only excelled at a few recipes and I’m sure Gina would get tired of eating spaghetti and meatballs and chicken parmesan every single day.

“Ah yeah, the perks of being an adult.” Matt laughs. “I’ll talk to you later, yeah?” he questions. Matt had made it a habit of texting me until he went to sleep, and while I thought it was nice of him, I also found it strange considering he admitted he had a girlfriend.

“Yeah, sure, sounds good.” I respond. “talk to you later.” After saying our goodbyes, I turn the console off and grab the list of groceries Gina left pre-made for me.


Grocery shopping had to be one of the things I dreaded most. Not because the act itself was terrible, but because being around food made me uncontrollably hungry and I wanted to buy every single junk food item I came across. And while some sounded gross that I asked myself who in their right mind would buy it, I realized that I would be the one to buy it just to see if it really was as gross as it sounded. Shaking my head, I pull out my phone. I needed a distraction from all the food, or I’d most definitely go insane.

“why’d you send me grocery shopping. This is both heaven and hell for me! I can’t do it. I want everything non-healthy. Help!” I type, sending it to Gina. I knew damn well she was at work and the chances of her responding to my text any time soon were slim to none. I continue down the aisle as I skim over the list Gina left me. Carrots, check. Eggs, check. Milk, check. Corn, check. Babyback ribs, check. Dish detergent. Oh right, where the hell is the dish detergent. That aisle sure will help me get my mind off of food.

Lately, my days felt so boring when I wasn’t with Gina. Maybe the feeling of being alone was finally catching up to me. It wasn’t that I was against being in a relationship, it’s just that for the past few years, I found no point of it. There wasn’t anyone who peaked my interest and held it long enough for me to actually want to take them seriously. While I liked being an independent woman, I envied Gina at times. She had someone who would drop what they were doing to do whatever she wanted or needed. She had someone to keep her company when she was lonely or bored, and all I had was an xbox. Maybe I needed to buy a dog. That sounded like a good temporary fix. Plus, I adored animals with all of my being. I was one of those people that if I saw someone walking a dog, I HAD to pet it. Sometimes I think that I had a problem… I loved things too hard. But then I remembered that I was perfectly fine. IT was a normal reaction to think furry mammals were cute.

I decided at that moment that I needed to get myself a dog. I finished grabbing whatever was on the list, doing it in record time. Looks like that was the only motivation I needed. I went to the checkout area and piled everything onto the conveyer belt as quickly as I possibly could. If anyone saw me, they probably thought that I had an emergency I needed to get to. But technically it was an emergency. I needed a dog, and I needed to get to a shelter. The selfish part of me wanted a puppy, while the reasonable part of me reminded me that older dogs needed love too.

The moment I laid my eyes on him, I knew he was the one I wanted. He was a three-legged Beagle who looked extremely sad. Standing in front of the cage he was kept in, I reached up and allowed him to sniff my hand.

“He’s well-behaved. Has been in shelters for over a year, but is about six years old. No one wants to adopt him because of his disability, but let me tell you, that doesn’t stop him.” The worker tells me as the dog carefully sniffs my hand and then nuzzles it with his head for me to pet him. “His name is Buster. His last owner was an elderly man. When he passed, the family claimed they didn’t have the time and patience needed to take care of him.”

“He’s the one. I need him.” I smile. “You wanna come home with me, Buster?” At the sound of his name, his head perks up and he licks my face. “I take that as a yes.” I laugh.

“I’ll get the paperwork written up. He has all his shots and is housebroken. Because he’s been here for so long, the adoption fee is waived off.” We go over the paperwork and the worker tells me about Buster’s habits. Shortly after, I have a make-shift leash around him as he walks happily around the room.

Realizing I have no pet supplies, I head to the per store after leaving the shelter. I grab a shopping cart, putting Buster in it before making my way through the aisles. I grabbed the essentials, food, a bed, a leash and customizable collar and then let Buster choose which toys he wanted. I admit, I might have gone overboard with the dog shopping, but I wanted Buster to be spoiled, especially after being neglected for over a year. After checking out, I made my way back to my car and helped Buster get in. He rode in the passenger seat, his tail wagging as I drove the short distance to my house. Crap, the house I shared with Gina… I didn’t tell Gina that I was adopting a dog. She was going to kill me.. Fuck.
Pulling up to my street, I noticed her car wasn’t in the driveway yet, which meant she wasn’t home. Good, that gave me some time to set Buster’s things up and take him for a walk. In the meantime, I had to find a way to break it to her that I had gotten a dog. Maybe I’d just let her see him and have him make her fall in love with him like he did to me.

“Come on Buster, how about we go for a walk and then you go explore the house.” I scratch the back of his ear, making him lean his head into my hand more. “Who’s a good boy” I kiss his head after I put his leash on. Just as I was standing up, the front door opens.

“Lexi! It’s me!” Gina shouts. Peaking my head around the corner, she smiles and asks, “how was grocery shopping.”

“Horrid” I groan. “okay, now, don’t kill me.”

“Why would I kill you?” her eyebrows pull together in confusion. She has yet to see Buster, and I feel more nervous than I originally thought I did. What is she didn’t like him? What if she thought I was way in over my head for adopting a dog, much less one that had a disability. No, I wasn’t going to let her or anyone this he was a disabled dog. He was loving, and deserved to be loved just as much as a four-legged dog. He actually deserved to be loved even more.

Tugging on his leash, Buster limped into the living room. “I might’ve gotten a dog.” I smile cheekily.

Notes