"Dad."
Vanessa was torn between being elated and drowning in dread seeing the colossal figure sitting on the sofa, eyes narrowed at the newspaper in his hand. The relationship that she shared with her father was twisted in ways she couldn't untangle them anymore, she let go of them and started living with them. It was easy that way.
Vanessa's father looked up and his eyes lightened instantly. "Hello, sweetheart."
"Did you come home now?"
She dropped her duffel bag on the floor and squatted down, arms outstretched at the German Shepherd running to greet her. Buddy jumped over her and she fell behind, laughing. He was legally her father's police dog, but at home, he was domestic and completely belonged to Vanessa. He was six years old, lavishly covered in jet black fur and dangerous to danger itself.
"Buddy," she crooned as the dog licked her face. "Did you miss mommy?"
Her dad walked to her and stopped infront of her, shaking his head in pretense dismay. "You pet him to extremities that sometimes he doesn't even act like a police dog anymore. You have turned him to the bark no bite category, Van. God knows when they'll sue him out of the system."
"I'm waiting for that day to arrive, dad," she said, sighing dreamily. She could gain full power over Buddy's life, alter his strict diet and feed him all the junk he had been craving for, give him bubble baths with rubber duckies in their garden and take him to walks every morning.
"You know, he belongs to the government," Vanessa's dad said strictly and added after a moment of reluctance, "Once they sue him, they'll throw him into some pound."
"That's not fair," Vanessa said, taking a defensive stance and pulling Buddy impossibly closer to her. "I won't let that happen."
He nodded. "Good. Now my beautiful daughter should go to her room, get rid of the stench and come down for dinner. Thirty minutes."
"I want to play with Buddy."
Buddy barked and wagged his tail in response. But whimpered at the look thrown to him by his actual master.
"Buddy," he said, his voice level and calm. "Come now. We both know that you despise stinky girls."
Listing out every con in her pathetic life indistinctly, Vanessa grabbed her duffel bag and walked up the stairs, deliberately slowing her pace. Before she closed her door, she shouted, "I'm not stinky."
Peeling off the mucky clothes, she got down on the bathtub and washed herself. No matter what she did to erase his picture from her mind, it didn't take leave. Seems like his image had acquired the wondrous traits of the arrogance that dominated his smile.
"Vanessa."
She heard her brother's annoyed voice from outside her room. He had always hated walking all the way up to call her extremely bored sister who never bothered to answer back. He could be a big shot, but their father was an even bigger big shot, both at home and work, so you couldn't exactly give a no for an answer.
Vanessa sighed and got out of the bath tub, careful in not slipping down to her death. No one desired to die in a bathtub, naked. Unless she was the drop dead gorgeous heroine of a soapy mystery novel.
She wore a huge black t-shirt that reached till her knee and a short. That would compensate for the lack of brassiere on her skin, she had always found it annoying and pesky at night.
She took the stairs two at a time, gearing her way towards Buddy who sat on the floor, patiently waiting for the only person who gave him complete attention and love to come.
He barked and ran to her, making her presence known to the family. Which constituted of a sullen brother and a tired father, both their eyes grinding laser holes into the magazine in their hands. They looked like two reluctant patients at a dental waiting fir their turns. Albeit the contrast in their interests, her brother had a typical man 'toolkit' where each page was adorned with either a bikini models or tramps with their smoldering smiles. Men will always be men.
"What's up dad?" she said and sat on the arm of the couch where her father sat.
He closed the paper immediately and smiled. "Just the usual boilings in Baltimore."
She nodded, not wanting to continue with the conversation. She had always hated hearing about crime scenes, never wanted to be in one or see them.
"Took you long enough sissy," Alex said and tapped her head lightly. "I've been starving myself to death like a homeless dog all day."
"You haven't even got a meagre caliber of patience as Buddy here has," Vanessa said as she took her seat in the table. Buddy woofed in approval.
Alex sat opposite to her, their father sitting infront of them. It had always been this way for as long as Vanessa could remember. They had always had home cooked meals together for dinner, it was like a ritual that no one denied. Vanessa liked it anyway, it was the only time she could spend quality time with her small family. Most of the time, the two men were invested in the never-ending crimes revolving in Baltimore.
"This reminds me of things I don't want to mention," Alex said making a disgusted face. They were trying Chinese cuisine today, as Vanessa had requested, but she hadn't realized that the food wouldn't look humanly edible.
"It is very considerate of you to not mention it, Alexander," her father said, throwing a suspicion glance at the food himself.
"Ladies first," Alex said, feigning sincerity.
Vanessa rolled her eyes and muttered, "Coward." She opened the first dish, despite its stark apparition it tasted pretty good. But just like the men in her family, she knew nothing about a kitchen, much less point the difference between capsicums and green chilies.
They started eating and infact enjoyed it, despite not knowing least the name of the food. No one learnt Chinese at school.
"So, Vanessa," her father started. "Is any of your friends unwell?"
Vanessa shook her head, partly curious and confused. "No, we are hale and healthy oestrogen loaded girls, dad. Why do you ask?"
He frowned and shook his head. "When you came from practise today, you smelled like someone coming from a hospital. That's why."
The chopsticks that she had boasted about holding it like a native chinese fell from her hand. She looked at her father, not blinking. Damn, he was like a sniffing dog.
She remembered the small visit up to the seventh floor of the Baltimore county hospital, looking through the narrow gap of the open door at the sleeping figure. Was she just a coward or an egotistic being? She was going to figure that out soon.
"Vanessa?" Alex shook her by the shoulder. "What's up? You look distracted lately, calm your nerves down before the big game. Okay?"
She nodded. She realised that her father had left to sleep, it was pretty late in the night and he had to leave to work early the next morning. The dishes and plates were cleared by their maid. Wow, that was quick.
"Good night." He planted a kiss on her wet hair. "Don't forget to blow dry your hair before you sleep, you'll end up having a fever tomorrow."
She sighed as she heard the door close behind. She was alone, again.
Woof.
Not exactly alone then.
She looked down and broke into a grin. Buddy was pawing at her feet lightly as if reassuring her that she would never be alone.
"Shall we play?"
Buddy woofed in response, sharing his enthusiasm by standing on his hind legs. Standing beside Vanessa, the huge mammal reached over her waist.
Vanessa played fetch with Buddy till the dog lay flat on her bed, his black taut skin heaving up and down. She lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling, her mind reeling back to the day's significant events. Which happened to be null. Except-
"Why are you doing this to me?" She pulled her wet hair by the ends in frustration and groaned loudly. Why couldn't she sleep? Why was she thinking of a stranger? Upon analyzing the situation a trillion times, there were three things that registered in her mind.
One, he was a stranger.
Two, he was a complete stranger.
Three, he was an arrogant conceited complete stranger.
Despite knowing it was a portentous need, why did he occupy her min?