Devil's Fate

Courage

Cheeseburger Bennington, Chester wrote at the top of the information form he'd been handed when he and Mike had walked into the veterinarian's office with Cheese. She needed her last round of puppy shots and then she'd be good for a whole year before she would need to come back. It sounded simple enough, but it was their first time bringing her; the humane society had taken care of everything before them.

Chester easily filled in the basic information - address, phone numbers, and breed type. He balanced the clipboard with the paperwork on his leg as he reached into his jacket pocket to pull out the adoption papers they'd gotten when they had brought Cheese home. "I need her date of birth," he said, glancing over at Mike. His boyfriend had Cheese on his lap, holding her closely as they sat in the waiting room. There were other dogs around, waiting their turn to go back and see the doctor, but for the most part, Cheese was being good. It was Mike who looked like he was on the verge of losing it.

Chester scanned the papers and spotted the information he needed. He wrote it down before he signed his name at the bottom. Technically, Cheese belonged to him, since it was his name on the Humane Society adoption forms. Forrest Mullan had paid the fees, but Chester was the Score employee who got the benefit. He looked over at Cheese, her head cocked as she watched the other pets, like she was trying to figure out what they were doing. She looked curious, not scared, and that made Chester feel better.

Mike wasn't doing as well. He'd insisted on bringing her stuffed piece of cheese along, as a form of comfort, but their puppy had ignored it, even with it squeezed next to her in Mike's arms. "Hey," Chester said in a low voice as he cupped Mike's flannel-clad arm, "it's going to be okay. She's a good girl. She'll take these shots like a champ. You'll see. We'll go get her some doggie ice cream after." He flashed Mike a smile before he stood up to take the paperwork back to the front desk. There was someone ahead of him, and he had to wait his turn. He eyed the other dogs, some sitting quietly next to their owners, and others trying to sniff around at the fake plants and lines of chairs where people were sitting. They were all twice the size of Cheese, and half as cute.

Chester smiled as he looked back at his boyfriend and their puppy. Even though a dog hadn't really been in their plans, he was happy they'd decided to bring the little one home. The entire day had been a success in his mind. He'd taken his pictures for the Human Society, and to his surprise, it had gone better than expected. They'd picked up six of his still photos with the dogs, and his small bit had made it into the final cut of the commercial. The entire deal had turned out lucrative, and Julia Vox had already invited Chester to come back in the spring to do more ads for their annual cat adoption month. It was a nice boost to Chester's checking account, which always made things easier. Not having to worry as much about money always helped. I just have to make sure we don't end up with a kitten next time.

It was a serious thought. Cheese was enough for the two of them to handle without Mike falling in love with some cute kitten that would run around their tiny apartment, getting into everything and torturing Cheese. Chester frowned at that idea. If the subject came up, he'd have to be strong and not give into Mike's pleading brown eyes. Not again. Forrest will probably adopt five anyway.

Chester let out a sigh. Even though he wasn't scheduled to work, he really needed to go in and talk to Forrest one day soon. He hadn't been back to Score since Ryan had gotten fired last week. He knew Ryan wasn't his responsibility, but they'd been hired as a team, and Chester couldn't deny he felt an edge of nervousness about where all this left him when it came to his contract with Score. He's been with Jay for three days. We've been talking every day, and every day he sounds a little better. Exhausted, but better. I'm ready for him to start sounding like himself again. At least I'm hearing from him every day now.