You Will Be Found

Chapter Nine

Grant and his fiancé Joan followed along with Sir Percival and I. We all walked in the large city park with lovely tall trees alongside the walkways. The cream-coloured dog was well behaved and obedient, as he should be. Grant and Joan told me all about the extensive training he had gone through as a puppy and young dog, and they explained why the both of them volunteered to take on his care and become Therapy Pet handlers here in City C.

Grant and Joan seemed really nice people and were very patient with me and my social shyness. I struggled to speak to them, but they gave me the space to say what I wanted to say, when I wanted to say it. It became easier to talk to them, and begin to trust them, especially knowing that their doggy 'son' loved them so much. That trust proved to me that they were trustworthy people.

I discovered I really liked spending time with them. When they offered to take me to afternoon tea, they phrased the request from the angle that Sir Percival would protest if I wasn't along for the fun. So I nodded quietly and smiled my thanks and followed them into a pet-friendly cafe with an outdoor area where Sir Percival could rest while we ate.

The egg sandwich Joan ordered for me was very fancy with salad and eggs on a lovely soft dark rye bread of the deepest brown I'd ever seen. The eggs had a hint of curry flavour and cayenne pepper that enhanced the other flavours without adding salt or nasty chemicals. It was washed down with a chamomile tea that Joan recommended. I couldn't finish my whole sandwich, so I quietly asked if there was anything in it that would be harmful to dogs. Grant smiled at me and nodded.

"Feel free to feed the pooch. He's only along for clean up," he joked. Sir Percival barked as we all laughed. I broke off the remains of my meal and fed them to the hungry labradoodle who was very careful with his lips and teeth, trying not to bite me. This evoked more praise for my new doggy friend.

"You are such a good boy, yes you are. Yes you are!" I gave his curly snout another kiss. He didn't pretend to faint this time.

"You've just finished exams, Lina? What are you planning during your summer break?" Grant moved the conversation away from the excited animal and on to what I felt were more adult-like topics.

"Um." I responded, to give myself more time to figure out if I should reveal my plans or not. I decided that giving part answers was OK. "I am planning to take a Vet Nurse Assistant course online over the summer break. The O Community College offers distant learning. I just have to raise the funds for it before I can enrol."

"Vet Nursing, I can see you'd be really good at that," said Joan. She smiled at Grant with some unspoken thought that they seemed to share.

"Will you be needing any work experience to go along with your training?" Grant asked. "We have another batch of puppies that require human social interaction training and I think you'd be perfect."

"Puppy training?" I asked. My heart thumped in my chest, excited at the possibility of playing with more cute curly-haired labradoodles.

"I think she'd be perfect, Grant. Why don't I give her our numbers and we can arrange with your boss for an appointment?" Joan suggested. I started fidgeting when I realised I'd have to meet new people and even be interviewed by them. I'd totally fail any normal semblance of a job interview straight from the start. That worried me.

"That sounds good." He noticed my becoming unsettled. "You wouldn't have to do much, just show how well you can care for the puppies. Sir Percival here would be your interviewer. Wouldn't you, Percy?" He asked his dog. Sir Percival barked in agreement. That settled things really nicely.

"I'd love to, thank you," came my quiet voice. I smiled then laughed as Sir Percival raised his paw for a handshake. It was like he was sealing the agreement straight away.