Saturday, August 22, 2026

Sometimes it becomes unclear what we’re going to do. But we know we have to do it.

 

Then the unexpected occurs, and we wonder, . . .

 

 

Can We Do It?

 

      It was a cool, autumn evening. A bit too quiet for my liking. Kelly and I sat on the park bench staring at a full moon, as we talked about our next escapade.

      Life could be a bit dull if we didn’t pursue our dreams. So when we were able to get out of the house, we did what we wanted to do.

      “You really think we can do this?” Kelly asked, shaking his head, as if he had bugs crawling through his hair.

      “We’ll never know unless we try.”

      “But don’t we need the four of us?”

      “I don’t know. However, they are our partners. We should ask them?”

      “Yeah, guess so, Winslow,” Kelly muttered.

      “Let’s meet back here in an hour to get it done.”

      “You think we can get Lizzy and Toni to agree to come so quickly?”

      “That’s not the problem.”

      “Then what is?”

      “Getting out of the house again. It’s getting late.”

      “Maybe we should put it off until tomorrow.”

      “Nooooo!”

      “Don’t get so upset, Winslow. We’ll do it tonight,” Kelly groaned.

      “Okay, then let’s go. See you back here soon.”

      Well, off we went to get our partners and prepare for the great adventure. My heart raced in anticipation of our evening endeavor.

      Arriving home, I entered the front yard through the open gate and headed into the house. It was so quiet, it was almost eerie. Only one light was on in the living room. And the TV sound was low. 

      Toni lay on the couch watching it, I think. She didn’t move when I came in. Probably didn’t hear me. So not to scare her, I gently nuzzled her ears. Slowly, she lifted her head and gazed at me. My heart fluttered. Afterall, she was my soulmate.

      It didn’t take much, however, to convince her to come with me. Since the others who shared the house with us were not home, we were able to exit, without explanation, and head to the park to meet Lizzy and Kelly.

      As we crossed Fireside Boulevard, the bright lights at the entrance to the park spooked Toni. She started to back away.

      “Toni, what are you doing?” I asked.

      “I’m going home. This place frightens me. Why are we here, anyway, Winslow?”

      “Because we have something important to do,” I responded.

      “Like what?”

      “You’ll know as soon as I do. 

      “You don’t know?”

      “Uh . . . oh, there they are.”

      “Who?”

      “Lizzy and Kelly.” 

      Toni and I pranced toward the park bench area. Lizzy looked at us, shook her head and tossed her golden hair back. She was quite cute, I thought.

      Kelly looked at me, stuck his nose in the air, and grunted, “You ready to get it done?”

      “Yeah, I think I am.” 

      “You really don’t know what we’re going to do. Do you?” Toni, asked, somewhat angrily.

      “Well, it’s a thing, a big thing,” I responded.

      “A thing!” Lizzy shouted in a way that made me shake.

      “Then she turned toward Kelly, glared at him and yelled, “What thing?”

      Looking bewildered, he said, “I don’t remember.”

      Then the evening took a frightening turn—one I’ll never forget. Two men in black shirts, with the words “Animal Control” printed on them, ran toward us. “You take those two and I’ll get the others,” the big fat man yelled.

      That was my cue, and I finally knew what we were meant to do tonight. . . . “Run like hell!” 

 

 

Copyright © 2026 Alan Lowe. All rights reserved.

No comments:

Post a Comment