Page 26 of Before We're More Than Friends
After around ten minutes, we arrived at April Springs Animal Shelter. The building already looked much bigger than our shelter from Dallas. Dogs, cats, and paw prints filled the walls, the shelter’s name plastered on the front. The lot was filled with cars while still having enough space left. A family walked to their car with two kitten boxes, the little boy and girl smiling.
We got out of the car and walked into the lobby, a freshsmell greeting us. Yeah, calling this a massive upgrade was an understatement. The ceilings were higher, and photos of animals surrounded the large seating area. There was even a full-blown store for pet supplies, not just a small shopping corner like the last shelter had.
As much as I hated to admit it, this place was almost better than what I was used to.Almost. The work experience would determine the rest.
Kami inhaled a breath. “Ah, smells so good in here. Not like stinky animals.”
“It does,” I said, staring up at the large ceiling, where a single balloon stayed. I wished I could float away like it.You can get through this,I reminded myself.It won’t be as painful as you think.
The blonde lady at the front desk gave us a warm smile as she walked over, her clacking high heels bringing her to my height. “Hello, how can I help you?”
I mustered a smile, trying to appear more excited than I felt, though her warm welcome did calm my nerves. “Hello. Our mom is Dr. Leanne Friar. We’re stopping by to take a tour of the shelter.” I was surprised that I was the one who spoke first and not Kami, but that was when I noticed she was looking off in the distance at someone.
“Oh, Dallas and Kami!” The woman’s smile grew as she shook our hands. “Amy Landers. Your mom has been telling me how much you loved helping out at the shelter in Dallas.” She faced a boy who looked through some sheets at the front desk. “Oliver, would you like to give Dallas and Kami a tour?”
The boy looked up from the papers. He resembled the woman a lot—tall and lean, honey-blond hair, golden-brown eyes. “Sure.” A smile lit up his face, his lip ring shining. “Welcome to our shelter, guys.”
“Thanks,” Kami and I said at the same time, though she sounded way livelier than I did.
“This place looks amazing,” she continued, twirling a lock of black hair around her finger. “You guys do a really great job maintaining it.”
Freaking heck, I hoped she wasn’t flirting with him.
“Thanks.” Oliver’s warm smile grew, the dimple in his left cheek prominent. “But the best part of this place isn’t the looks.”
“Yeah, there are some attractive people here, don’t you think?”
My jaw about hit the floor. What the heck was she doing? Hadn’t she gotten dumped two weeks ago?
Oliver’s cheeks turned pink as his lashes fluttered. “Um, thank you. If you’re talking about me.” His warm smile turned into a sultry grin. “Because if you are, I’d have to say the same back.”
“Can you cut it out?” Mrs. Landers let out a tired groan like she’d seen this happen too often. “Oh, Dallas, I’m so sorry. Oliver forgets that this isn’t the place to look for hot chicks.”
Now all our jaws were on the floor, though I was on the verge of laughing, unlike Oliver and Kami, who both had cheeks as red as an animal’s gumline.
“Mom! I thought you were the adult!” Oliver exclaimed, the red in his cheeks expanding. Gosh, and I thoughtIgot red fast. He faced me again but couldn’t look Kami in the eyes. “I was going to say the best part about this place is the adorableanimals.” His normal smile returned. “Let me show you guys down the hall.”
Oliver walked us to the store and gave us a tour. Like I’d observed earlier, there was much more stuff here for pets and their owners. It was big enough to be a small mall shop or tourist attraction. There were two people working at cash registers while several customers shopped around.
I played with a black-and-purple cat toy before noticing Oliver and Kami were already walking down the hallway again. I scurried to follow them.
Oliver gestured to the windows, where people were meeting new cats. “This is where families are born.”
“Aw, they’re so cute.” Kami stepped closer to a window where a couple had brown-and-black kitty twins, both kittens rubbing against them. When the couple looked up at us, Kami backed away. “Sorry. Have fun with your new family.” She spun around and faced us. “We need to adopt a cat here, Dallas.”
I snorted. “Houston would have a time and a half chasing them around.”
Oliver laughed. “The joy of having dogs.” He gestured for us to follow him. “The bunny and hamster room is next.” He went to the other side of the hallway and led us to a small room where bunnies and hamsters sat in their cages. “We don’t have many here, but they’re still just as important. My friend just adopted one.”
I smiled at a black bunny in the cage. Crescent. “They’re perfect.”
“Cuties,” Kami cooed, examining each bunny and hamster cage. “I want them all.”
After we met the bunnies and hamsters, Oliver led us into the cat kennel. The long hallways went on for days, cat cages covering the walls from ceiling to floor. Kami stopped at a fluffy white cat’s cage and cooed at her.
I took a few pictures of the cats and sent them to Toby, hoping it would make it feel like he was still with me. I knew he wouldn’t reply for a few hours because the dude was the worst at replying—despite promising he would blow up my phone—but it still felt lonely.
Sighing, I approached a cage that had a poster.Yellow needsa home.Male. Eight years old. My heart clenched. People didn’t like adopting older cats, and some never ended up with a home. Thank goodness this wasn’t a kill shelter.
