deep love | 2

spca

a/n 

this is kind of a filler, but i enjoyed writing it and thought it was cute haha, the next chaper will have more plot development. 

i'd also like to dedicate this chapter to @NorCalSoccer07 . thanks for voting on so many chapters in this book! 

more dedications are coming in the next chapter 

enjoy! 

Joe's pov 

"Look at this one!" Alena yells as she runs over to J and I holding a squirming puppy- a golden retriever. Kev, Alena, Valentina, Dani, J and I are at the SPCA, as planned. 

"Awww" J gently takes the dog out of Alena's arms and almost immediately, the puppy stops squirming and snuggles close to J. Sometimes I'm jealous of her way with animals. 

"See, you have to hold him like this." J shows Alena, who nods eagerly and reaches for the dog. 

"What's his name?" Alena asks me, giggling as the dog licks her face. I take her hand and lead her to the dog's crate, which has it's name labelled on it. "8 month old male... up for adoption because he's from a puppy mill... uh, I can't find a name here." I scan the paper pasted on the crate to tell visitors details of the dog, and finally find the name written in tiny font at the bottom of the paper. 

"His name is... Nick!" I say, glancing at J, who's reading over my shoulder. "Nicky!" Alena laughs and hugs the dog close to her chest. "Like uncle Nick!" She grins and runs to show the dog to her sister. "Why's that a good thing..." I mutter under my breath as I watch my nieces playing happily with Nick, or as Alena named him, Nicky. 

J hears my comment and laughs, swatting my shoulder. Just then, Kevin comes up to us. "Why's Alena talking about Nick?" He asks, confused. I take one look at his confused expression and burst out laughing. "The golden retriever puppy is named Nick!" I grin, as he starts to laugh too. 

As the laughter dies down and Kevin goes over to Alena to gently explain to her that she couldn't keep the puppy, I stare at him wistfully. It seems like forever since we've shared a laugh, and I can't help thinking it's because of Nick. 

I sigh and try to brush the thought out of my mind, but even as I stare at one of the corgis in the cages, I can't stop thinking about the band. The dog wags its tail hopefully, and I smile a little, but I can feel tears welling up in my eyes. 

This was all Nick's fault. 

I take a deep breath and try to control my emotions, but before I can get the tears out of my eyes,  I turn around to see J grinning as she walks up to me, holding a husky. Its eyes are ice blue and I can't help getting mesmerised my them. "Woah" I breathe, reaching out a hand to stroke the dog's head. "Her name is Luna" J whispers, handing her to me. 

Luna looks up at me, and in that instant I feel a tear roll down my face. Without skipping a beat, Luna wags her tail and I can almost see her smiling as she licks my face and barks.

"You good?" J asks quietly, giving me a side hug and letting me bury my face in her shoulder for a second. "Yeah" I say, taking a deep breath and managing a smile. J smiles a little and nods, and my heart stops for a second as the mid-day sunlight catches in her hair, making her look like a fairy. 

I walk over to Luna's cage and put her back inside, shutting the crate door gently. 

30 minutes later, Alena is whining about how she wants to video call Nick and tell him about the puppy named after him. "Why? You used to let me talk to Nick all the time! Why not now?" She sulks, glaring at her dad. His shoulders slump for a split second, and I see the sadness in his eyes.