You’re Welcome,
Princess
“And you’re sure about this, Olivia? I don’t like the idea of leaving this poor bastard here like this.” Olivia stopped short and turned around swiftly, angrily. She made that face again. And went on that rant again. “How dare you call her that, Austin? Of course, I’m sure. It’s the most natural way. How many times do I have to explain this to you?” One more time, please. Austin needed to hear it again, needed to make sure he was hearing her right. Needed to make sure that his girlfriend seriously wanted to do this to Princess. Austin had known that Olivia was kind of weird when they started dating, with her being vegan and all, but he never expected to find himself doing this crap--taking a blind, deaf dog out to the middle of the woods to die. Poor Princess. At least he wouldn’t have to say that stupid name anymore. ******************** Darkness. Princess could only feel, and right now she felt the warmth of Olivia’s chest. She felt the soft, rhythmic shifting of her owner’s sweater on her fur as they walked deeper into the woods. She felt the wind cool her dangling legs and occasionally felt a gentle kiss on the top of her head. Princess tried to think about the things she used to see, but nothing came to her. As a result of years without sight, her memories were reduced to distant feelings. For Princess, time meant nothing. While her disease slowly killed her, she waited to be touched, to be held, to be kissed. And while carried through the woods, staring into the darkness of her primitive mind, she waited for it to be over. “How about here?” “I don’t know, Olivia. You tell me.” “I think it’s perfect--a gorgeous place for my Princess. Look at how beautiful those flowers are!” “Princess can’t see.” Olivia looked annoyed. “Yeah, but she can smell, can’t she?” Walking over to a chrysanthemum plant, Olivia bent down and held Princess out so her nose brushed the yellow petals. Princess flinched. “No, Dr. Brown said the leptospirosis is ruining her sense of smell,” Austin said, annoyed. He impatiently looked around. This was taking too long. “I don’t remember him saying that.” Austin thought about arguing. “Look, if you’re gonna do this, can you just get it over with already?” “Don’t get angry with me. You need to control that.” Olivia rubbed the dark spot under her left eye before continuing.
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