Most people disapproved of Gavin’s and my relationship because he wasn’t good looking, and some said he walked funny, but I couldn’t see it. To them, Gavin was only imperfection, but he was made perfectly for me. We met just two years ago on the hottest evening when I went for a jog. My calves were burning, and I was huffing and puffing when I saw Gavin. He was walking his beautiful brown dog when he stared at me. I smiled at him and he waved back, just to trip on his dog’s leash.
“Are you okay?” I rushed to him.
“Yeah,” he stood up. “This is humiliating. Please, continue your jog.”
“I am done for today,” I said sitting down on the wooden bench. I looked at Gavin’s dog and being an animal lover, I touched his dog.
“Wow, Leia doesn’t mind at all,” Gavin pointed out. “She doesn’t really like strangers touching her.”
“Really?” I was as surprised as Gavin. Seeing those beautiful huge eyes, I couldn’t help but rubbed Leia’s head again and talked to her as if she was a human, “You’re a good girl. A beautiful girl. Your owner must really take care of you.”
Leia let out a bark and licked my hand sending us into a laughter.
“I am Gavin by the way,” Gavin introduced himself.
“Amber,” I told him my name. “How old is Leia?”
“She’s five. She was this mangy looking stray I found on the street not too far from my home. She didn’t belong to anyone, maybe she did at one point but she was abandoned. Perhaps because of her skin condition.”
“You can never tell she had skin condition,” I stroke Leia’s soft and shiny fur.
“All she needed was medical treatment. She is as good as new after two weeks. I took her to the vet’s for neutering as well after that. By then, I’ve bonded with her and I decided to keep her. I know it’s cliché and some might say silly, but Leia is my best friend. She’s always there.”
“And she doesn’t judge,” I smiled. “I remember.”
“Remember?”
“I had a dog. He passed away three years ago,” I explained, feeling a lump formed in my throat. “I thought I had more time with him but time ran out. He was my best friend too. Although it has been years, I still miss him.”
“I’m sorry. What’s his name?”
“Bubba,” I smiled thinking of Bubba.
“Do you have another dog?”
“No. I have a cat, Roscoe. He was abandoned in front of my house. When I asked the neighbours if the cat was theirs, they denied it. I adopted him and he’s two now.”
Gavin and I exchanged phone numbers before saying goodbye that evening. I watched him walked away with Leia, and I caught myself smiling.
“You can tell a person’s characteristic by the love he has for an animal,” my mother’s words rang loudly in my head.
We texted each other for a week before deciding to meet up for a date. We didn’t go anywhere fancy or expensive. We bought foods from the food vendor by the roadside. We ate from recyclable boxes and drank from a giant paper cup while discussing our pets and animal welfare. I thought I was finally winning in life when I received a letter of termination due to a misunderstanding.
I fought so hard to stay in that company, but at the end of the day, I lost. I stopped contacting Gavin as I didn’t know how to face anyone at the time. I was ashamed of myself, so I stayed indoor even more. I was in bed until late afternoon, ate unhealthily, and my life was a constant cycle between sleep and food.
“Amber,” Gavin woke me up one morning. I was shocked to see him in my house. “Wake up. Time to get up and start the day.”
“What are you doing here? How did you get in?” I asked sleepily.
“You didn’t lock your front door,” he answered. “I thought you were dead. You didn’t reply my messages or answer any of my calls. What is going on?”
“This is not a good time. Leave me alone,” I said hugging my bolster.
“Fine,” he stood up. “I’m taking Roscoe to my place because his home is no longer a home. It’s a dump,” he disappeared from my room.
I got out of bed at his words and found him carrying Roscoe in the living room. “He doesn’t like dogs. He has to stay here.”
“That got you out of bed,” Gavin smiled, putting Roscoe on his cat tree and hugged me.
No words were needed because somehow Gavin knew. There he stood, in the middle of the living room just holding me as I cried into his clean shirt. He took the next two days off from work to stay with me and supported me by listening to my woes and lending me his shoulder to cry on.
When people disapproved of my relationship with Gavin, I no longer cared. He wasn’t born with a beautiful physique, but he was born with a beautiful heart.
Carina Lim bears different messages through her fiction. These messages could be useful in life. She can be contacted at mermaidgal03@yahoo.com
