Page 43 of You and Me, For Real
“With Teddy, I presume?”
“Of course. And my two fosters.”
“You have other dogs?”
“Yes. I currently have Teddy and two fosters.”
“Wow. That’s impressive.”
I shrug. “Once you have one, adding a couple more to the mix isn’t so bad. They keep each other busy.” Yeah, busy causing shenanigans in one’s apartment while they’re unsupervised.
“I’d like to meet them. You should bring them over next time.”
He turns my direction, his expression so open and sincere.
I bite my lip and nod. “Sure, maybe I’ll do that.”
The expansive living room glass doors hum as they open and lift overhead like a garage door, merging the outdoors with Griffin’s living area. Luke materializes from inside. He’s sporting a similar look to the last time I saw him—fitted tee, casual jeans, a fresh haircut, and a clean-shaven face. He’s carrying a plain coffee mug like Griffin’s. He tips it in the air.
“Hey Ashton, care for some coffee?” His twang is still prevalent.
“No, I’m good. Thank you, though.”
He slurps from his mug. “No problem.” He gestures toward the yard. “Looks like Roxy is still getting along with Teddy.”
The dogs run around as if they’re two old friends out for a frolic together. The sight squeezes my heart, giving me hope. Wejust need to work on her interaction with humans. Roxy could have a healthy and happy life again. It’ll just take time. Wounds are like that. They’ll heal, though they’ll still prickle beneath the surface on occasion.
Griffin clears his throat and draws my attention. “I was thinking of having Luke take some video clips of us training together.”
My spine straightens. “Why?”
“I thought it’d help me remember some of the training tips.”
“Oh.” I don’t love being filmed, but if it’s for personal use, I can understand that. “That should be fine.”
Griffin glances toward Luke. “Well, I, with the help of Luke, had this idea for your rescue foundation.”
“Uh huh?”
“We thought we could help you set up some social media accounts. Seeing as we noticed you didn’t have any. We thought it’d be good for your rescue. Social media is so important these days. Your blog is great and all?—”
Social media is so important.I lost count of how many times Mom would say that and then proceed to share nearly every personal moment in my life. Nothing was ever private. She posted everything from braces, to my grades—good or bad—to even sharing mortifying details of my first period and shopping for my first bra! No way. I don’t do social media.
“No, thank you,” I respond as politely as I can, not ready to offload my teenage trauma with social media.
“It’d be great publicity. You almost have to have a social media account these days to get any kind of recognition.”
“I don’t need recognition.”
“I don’t mean accolades. I mean support for your rescue. People need to know the concept exists, so they know how to support it. I’m afraid they won’t just happen upon your blog. You said you still need funding, right?”
“Yes?”
“Well, you’ll need sponsors, donors. What better way to build awareness than using social media?”
Social media can’t be my only option. In my experience, it brought nothing good to my life.
“I thought sharing some clips of us would be helpful in showing people what you do—inspire people to donate. I mean, mentioning my name couldn’t hurt either.”
