Page 49 of Avenging Azalea

“We made him comfortable and had the owner come back to say goodbye. I stood there and watched this woman break. It was so clear that she loved her dog like anyone would love a child, and in that moment, I knew that I needed to be their rock. Even when I can’t save them and there’s nothing more I can do. Then my job becomes something else. They need to cry and know someone is there to hold them up without judgment.”

“That’s incredible.”

He smiled and tossed the cat toy back into the jar.

“I wasn’t kidding about the drink. Sometimes, it’s the only thing that works to wipe away the memory of all the faces I couldn’t help.”

“I’m worried that I won’t make a good vet.”

It felt good to share the fear that was racing around in my brain. What if I completed all this schooling and was terrible at it?

“You don’t need to worry about that. I’ve had many students come through this place, and you can always tell the good from the bad. Some are here for the animals, while others are doing it for the money. You love the animals, and your instincts are always on point. You’re far more advanced than any of the other techs, but don’t tell them I said that. Just keep your grades up, and you’ll be able to open your own clinic one day.”

I smiled wide. “Thanks, Dr. Taylor. I needed to hear that.”

“I meant to ask earlier, is your family coming to the barbeque next weekend? I’d love to meet them?”

My stomach dropped, and just like that, I was transported back to my elementary school days. It was embarrassing when my parents never showed up for anything, including teacher conferences and awards nights.

“I’m not sure if they’ll make it,” I lied, walking to the front door to lock it and turn off the open sign. “If you want to head out, I can finish closing up.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I still have some paperwork to finish, and I like doing final rounds. I want to make sure the animals are comfortable. I’ll be fine.”

He gave me a curt nod. “Alright, I’ll see you in a couple days.”

“Bye, Dr. Taylor.”

“Good night, Fawn.”

Once he was gone, I swept and mopped the floors, filed the paperwork, and balanced out the POS machine before shutting everything down. Grabbing a handful of treats, I headed back to the kennel area.

“Hi there, babies. Do you want some soft music to help you sleep? Are you in the mood for light rock, or is this an R&B night?”

Walking from cage to cage, I checked to make sure the patients were doing okay before slipping them a treat. I turned on the radio, which might have seemed silly to others, but if I had to sit in a cage for six hours alone, I’d want music. Anything to make their experience here less scary.

“There you go. I’m feeling R&B for this crowd.” I flicked off the fluorescents, leaving the soft glow of the nightlight.

My last stop was at the very back of the clinic, where the surrenders and rescues were kept. If these animals weren’t adopted, it became a death sentence. I thought I hated people before working here, but I’d realized early on that there was a whole other layer of loathing that extended past what was done to me. There was a special place in hell for animal abusers.

“Hey, Winston,” I said, sitting down and opening his kennel. The golden retriever’s head lifted. His white face framed the saddest brown eyes I’d ever seen.

It had been eight weeks since we rescued Winston. He had finally stopped cowering in his kennel and was starting to socialize. He had even put on enough weight to cover his ribs. I needed to find him a home soon. Dr. Taylor could only keep him for another month before we would have to put him down. I wasn’t going to let that happen.

Softly humming the song on the radio, I held out my hand full of treats. His nose poked out first and then his whole face. I kept my arm far enough away that he’d have to step fully out of his kennel to get what he wanted, but then he could choose to go back in or stay with me. So far, he’d gone back in each time, but I was hopeful.

“That’s a good boy, Winston. I know it must feel like no one loves you right now, but I do,” I said softly as he gently took the treats from my open palm. “When I was younger, I didn’t have anyone looking out for me. I felt worthless and believed that everyone would eventually hurt me. But then I was saved by a man named Titus. You’d love him. He’s a dog person. Anyway, he took me in and showed me that there are still good people in the world. I’m going to find you a forever home. I won’t let you down.”

He turned in a circle and looked at me. I smiled as he sniffed my arm and didn’t jump away when I slowly moved my hand to scratch his neck.

“See, you’re not broken, just like I wasn’t. You’ll learn to fly again, Winston.”

He stepped back, and I let him go as he walked into the kennel. He didn’t run this time, and that was progress. Pulling the last of the treats from my pocket, I put them just inside the door before closing and locking it.

Remembering what my life was like before Titus made me think of my brother. Grabbing my jacket and backpack, I pulled out my phone to call him, but as usual, he sent me straight to voicemail.

F: Rude, George. You could at least say hi. We haven’t talked in weeks.