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Get a dog, and you’ll never eat another meal alone.
I chuckled, rubbed his head and made sure to keep a bite of chicken for him at the end.
***
On Monday morning, I woke at my usual time, turning off my alarm clock as I headed for the shower. Dad was still asleep. He was retired, so he normally slept until about eight or nine. Before I started working at the hotel, I’d gotten into the bad habit of sleeping until noon, which only seemed to worsen my depression.
I’d always be grateful to Rhys for dragging me out of it and forcing me back into the land of the living.
A little while later, I headed for the bus, eager to see Maggie. I wanted another chance at interacting with her. Sometimes, my being mute could be uncomfortable for people to get their heads around. But Maggie didn’t seem like the kind of person who would think less of me because I couldn’t speak. Then again, I’d built her up in my head to be this kind, non-judgemental person, and she might not be how I imagined her at all.
I did, after all, have a track record of putting my faith in the wrong people. Well, the wrong person. My last relationship ended poorly. My girlfriend, Emer, confessed she’d cheated on me while out drinking with her friends one night. She’d gone home with a random man she’d picked up and had kept it a secret for several weeks. Then the guilt got to her, and she’d finally told me. I’d been heartbroken, and though she’d begged for us to work through it and stay together, I just couldn’t.
Everything between us changed, and I couldn’t look at her the same way. The feelings I’d had for her vanished, like a puff of dust. It just didn’t make sense how she could throw away our two-year relationship on a random hookup. It was out of character for her, and I still sometimes found myself wondering why she did it. I never got a straight answer, and I probably never would.
Still, maybe I didn’t need one. I didn’t love Emer anymore. Her betrayal destroyed that. Maybe if I were a more forgiving person, we could’ve made it work, but I wasn’t. If she could ruin our relationship on something as frivolous as a one-night stand, on a fleeting bit of excitement and pleasure, then we weren’t meant to be.
I reached the bus stop, but Maggie hadn’t arrived yet. It was a cold morning, and there were several other people waiting. When the bus approached, Maggie still hadn’t appeared. In all the months I’d been taking the bus to work, she’d never failed to show. It was possible she was sick, but it seemed unlikely. She was always there. Gut twisting, I climbed on and scanned my card. I took my seat and peered out the window. Maybe she was running late.
The bus pulled away, but there was still no sign of her. The pain in my gut increased. I needed to know if something about me, besides the obvious, freaked her out so much she had to rush off so swiftly on Friday. That she’d decided to skip work today or perhaps take a different bus.
My thoughts went in circles, and by the time I’d arrived at the hotel, I was in a bad mood. I walked through the staff entrance, my face twisted into a glower as I headed for the security office. Rhys was already there, watching the monitors when I arrived.
My cousin was a big man. He’d been chubby as a kid, but all the baby fat had transformed into muscle and brawn as he got older. I wasn’t a small bloke either, but Rhys was even bigger than I was. It was no wonder he was so suited to his job as Head of Security because he was the sort of man you took one look at and thought yeah, I’m not going to push my luck with him.
“Morning, Shay,” he said.
Hi, Rhys, I signed. Any trouble yet this morning?
He shook his head. “It’s been quiet so far.” His eyes went to my jacket as I took it off and shook out some of the rain. “Christ man, are you still taking the bus? I thought you might’ve saved enough for a car by now.”
Not yet, I replied, though that wasn’t technically true. I had enough savings for a modest second-hand car, but I hadn’t looked into buying one because that meant I wouldn’t need to take the bus anymore. And as established, I had my reasons for taking the bus.
My dad also had an old Volkswagen I could’ve used to drive to work, but I preferred him to have access to it while I was away in case of an emergency. He also liked to drive to the beach in the mornings, so Daniel could go for a run, and he couldn’t do that if I took the car to work with me.
