Canines and Chaos

Chapter 2 Part 3

Author's Note - this is the end of Chapter 2. Feedback would be great and if you like it, voting takes about 3 seconds but means a lot. This bit is a bit longer than the first two parts, but it wasn't enough to break in half.

        Rosi felt microscopic under Wendy’s disapproving gaze. Nick and Alex seemed either unaware or unaffected by the secretary’s reaction to their plan, which they had just finished presenting to her. Perhaps it was because thier plan would require more work from the secretary that she disapproved, but Rosi didn’t think so. She felt that it was much more likely that Wendy believed that the whole idea should just be abandoned as soon as possible and that this idea was giving everyone a false hope of success. Well, Rosi thought to herself, I’m no optimist, but I think we have at least a chance.

“You’ll need a larger workforce. There’s no way you’ll get that much done with that many people,” said the secretary, interrupting Rosi’s thoughts. Wendy looked up to meet Alex’s, then Nick’s, then Rosi’s eyes in turn after finishing her scan of the plans. “Who’s going to manage it all and keep everyone on task? When are workers going to get a break? What happens if someone’s sick? You’ve been calculating this assuming that everyone is working at maximum efficiency. Make some revisions and come back.”

Alex and Nick nodded and turned to leave, which surprised Rosi. They weren’t supposed to give up - they were supposed to stick up for their idea. The plan might not be perfect, but it had a lot of potential. Rosi, Alex and Nick were the ones keeping everyone on task. They could jump in to replace someone who needed a break. More employees could be found - after all, there was always someone who needed a job. This plan was a starting point. They could make revisions as they went, but it was important to get started soon. The dogs were creating new bad habits every day, and something needed to change.

“No.” Alex and Nick turned back to look at her, slightly puzzled. Wendy seemed confused as well, as though this was not at all expected, which it probably wasn’t. “I think we need a new plan fast. This one isn’t perfect, but it’s better than nothing, and we can make revisions later. Put ads up for more employees. Let’s organize a meeting to instruct the current volunteers and workers. Oh, volunteers - let’s get some more of those.”

When Rosi paused for a breath, Wendy broke in. “We can’t technically accept anymore volunteers. I was going to say something to you, but then you beat me to it. You might want to find a new position, because only non-profit organizations count towards volunteer hours.”

Rosi was confused - something wasn't right. Slowly, still attempting to process this new information, she turned around to face Alex. “This is for profit?” she asked accusingly.

“Why shouldn’t it be?” Alex replied defensively.

“Because it should be a place designed to help people get well-trained dogs! Do you know how many people adopt a dog but don’t understand or know how to train it? And then the dogs just have to suffer because the humans don’t take proper care of them! I thought this was a place that was going to combat that, but no, it’s just another way of stealing money! Besides - there’s no way you need it!”

“If that’s how you feel, you can leave. This won’t count towards your precious hours anyway. Perhaps you’ll have learned to respect your boss by the time you find a new position,” Alex snapped coldly.

“Fine,” she replied weakly and stalked out the door, her mind reeling. She found her beaten up old car quickly in the nearly empty lap and collapsed into the driver’s seat. She shouldn’t have shouted. Or been so rude. And had she really thought that Alex would listen to her, Rosi, a friend she had known for a few hours? But then, Rosi didn’t understand a lot of things about Alex that she thought she knew. You would think that an animal lover, bouncy and cheerful and social, would also be giving. You wouldn’t expect that person to be selfish. Ah, selfish - that fit explained somethings about her behavior. It wasn't good, but it was an explanation. Or maybe Rosi had forgotten just a little bit that Alex was human too. A bouncy, rich, pretty, animal loving, giving, social, funny girl was not very realistic. What else had Rosi missed about her new friends? If she had been paying better attention, would she still have a position? Would she be calmly explaining the benefits of becoming non-profit? Would Alex, no longer with a reason to be defensive, have thoughtfully listened? Would she have been able to keep her position and help the kennels? What-if’s, why’s, how’s, and I-should-have-done’s raced around Rosi’s head in a dizzying tangle. Suddenly, she felt an overwhelming urge to crawl into bed and not come out for a long, long time. Maybe she’d stay there for a year. With books and tea. And then when she crawled out from under the covers, everything bad about today would be a dream. Yes, that sounded like a good plan.

Rosi did indeed crawl home. Fortunately, she did not manage to hide for a year, mostly because in all her thoughts and evaluations and wonderings, she had forgotten something. Something important. Something that would change her life.