It’s been a long two weeks since the appointment, and for most of it I haven’t really been acting normal. Like for example the other day I was shopping for the cafe, when I stopped in front of the snack aisle, and it really got me thinking that I'm gonna have to take a dog with me everywhere I go and to get comfortable with the idea that my legs can stop working anytime,anywhere for who knows how long and most likely for the rest of my life.

I stood in front of the snacks like a total weirdo for at least half an hour when a poor lady tapped my shoulder in order to get some fruit snacks. I was in her way, must have looked high just standing there staring, ha!

“Dakota, stop daydreaming!” It was Shary,one of my three employees in my Bookstore Cafe. Guess I was out of it again. “You good?You’ve been on the same page for at least 20 minutes just staring. Are you thinking about your problems?”

“Yeah, just things. I have another training session to go to tomorrow and, I don’t know, a lot has been going on lately and it’s really getting to me.”  Now that I think of it, I need to organize things for my new furry friend.Yup, last week  I finally met the one who will be forever accompanying me on this journey. She is a really cute dog too.

It's an Australian shepherd. A very Beautiful one too , with mostly gray fur and some spots of black around its body. But the most mesmerizing thing about the dog are its eyes, one light blueish gray and the other being light green. Also her name is adorable. It's Ozzie, how cute!

Finishing my thoughts and all, I look over at the time and it's half past 8. The Shop has been closed for half an hour. “ Hey Shary, are you planning on staying over time? You know I'm not paying you extra on your salary. You were off when the store closed.”

She turned to me and gave an exasperated look. Oof drama queen.

“You know you should be thankful I'm still here, and look I did the dishes for you so you can go home and rest. You meanie you’re lucky i'm still your bestie, if not you’d be here for who knows how long.” She’s got a point she’s been here through all of my highs and lows

Shary and I first met in our first year of college. I, a business major and she was studying English Literature. It was kinda funny how we both met. I was on my way to the library, ironically, when I accidentally bumped into her spilling my pumpkin spice frappe all over her. My god the look of disgust on her face when that happened, anyway I offered her my sweater and from there its history. We hit it off quickly in the beginning having some things in common and others not so much. But hey here we are, still friends.

“You know what you’re right, dinner is one me, you pick where.”

“Yes! There is this new place I’ve been dying to go to for months. It's a Korean BBQ place and supposedly it has a high rating.”

She ran to the backroom to grab her stuff, while I stayed back to finish a couple of things before we head out. Around ten minutes later she came back with her purse and car keys. I washed my hands, got my coat and met her outside, locking the door on my way out.

 Before leaving, an overwhelming and familiar feeling was leaving me nervous. “Hey Shary, I think it's happening again.” I was starting to lose balance as my legs were about to go out beneath me.

“Oh gosh, come on, hurry! My car is literally parked right there.” She pointed to a red SUV parked in front of the shop. We both hustled to the car with her by my side just as I was about to fall to the ground. “ I got you!” She hoisted me into the car and closed the door running to the other side to get in the driver's seat. We were in silence for a bit.

“So should we order take out and go to your place to eat?”

I looked at her and just nodded my head in approval. We don't know how long I will be in this condition. As she proceeded to order I looked out the window and heaved a big sigh. This is getting tiring. “ Hey Shary, take the day off tomorrow and come with me to my training session.”

“ Does this mean I get to see your new friend!” 

“ Yes, you can meet ozzie. But only after the training session is over.”

“ You bet. What time do I come to pick you up? Who will be incharge of the shop tomorrow?”

“ Hmm, tomorrow Sean and Hazel will be working. So come around 9:30 in the morning and come back to the shop when the training is done, get  some lunch and you can go home from there.” I looked at her waiting for her answer. She gave me not one, but two thumbs up with a toothy smile. From there we headed toward the restaurant and back to my place.