Women And the Demons Who Love Them

Bad At Love-2

Halsey- Alone

Chapter Two: There Are Sharks In The Ocean

    "Evan stop," I called out for my dog rushing after her as she breezed through the crowd of people headed towards the edge of the pier. "Evan, no!" I shouted when she stopped at the edge. The cheeky b***h looked back at me wagging her tail excitedly. "No, Evan. Do not jump!" 

    The man came out of nowhere grabbing her before she leaped over the banister. I finally caught up with her trying to take deep breaths. The stupid dog almost jumped into the water. Not just any water. She was going to leap into the ocean. There are sharks in the ocean. I shouldn't have taught her to love the water this much. It was just so cute then. 

    "Thank you so much," I said grabbing Evan by the harness. "She was going to jump," 

    "It's okay. I saw you running up the pier," he laughed rubbing the dumb dog behind her ears. Her tongue hung out flopping all over the place as she gazed up at him with those big innocent looking pale blue eyes of hers.

    "Thank you. I don't know what I would have done if she jumped," he looked up at me. His green eyes sparkled with amusement. 

    "You're welcome. What kind of breed is this?" 

    "Great Dane. She's albino. A rescue," I said. "She was taken from a breeding site. They cut her ears like this. A lot of people tell me she kind of looks like a Doberman," 

    "That's what I originally thought. She's way too big for that though. I've never seen a dog this white. I'm Oliver," he offered me his hand. 

    "Lany," I said taking it. 

    "Lonnie?" 

    "Like Law and knee put together. Actually, my whole name is Lannyesville," 

    "Lannyesville. That is a mouthful. How do you even spell that?" I laughed. 

    "L A N N Y E S V I L L E," 

    "What does it mean?" 

    "I have no idea. My parents were hippies," he laughed making me smile. Evan barked making us both jump. "Uh, thank you again for keeping my dog from jumping, Oliver. We have to get going," 

    "You're welcome, Lany," he smiled. 

    I looked away pulling Evan with me. She jumped into the backseat of my beetle happily before jumping into the front seat. 

    "You're the biggest i***t ever," I said looking over at her. Her pointy pulled back resting against her head. She barked making me jump again. "Yes, you are. You could have been eaten by sharks dummy. What would I have done without you?" 

    She wagged her tail turning over to the window. I reached for her spare leash clicking it into her harness so she wouldn't be able to jump out. I threw the one she had broken when she got loose.  I pressed the button for the soft top as I started the car. I looked back to make sure I was okay to pull out of the parking space. I hit the break when Evan barked jumping on me her claws digging into my chest. 

    "Evan, you f*****g spaz," I shouted pushing her back into her seat. She just pushed back against me. I had to put the gear in park so I could put her in the back seat.  "You're going in the back seat. That's twice today, Evan," 

    She continued to bark pulling on the leash as I climbed out. I looked over in the direction she was looking to see the guy from earlier. Oliver. He was standing with a group of others. The noise she was making caught his attention which only served to make the dumb dog crazier. He smiled and started making his way over to us. 

    "You little hussy," I laughed going over to her side. 

    "Are you okay?" he asked when he reached us. Evan howled out for his attention. 

    "Yeah, she's being crazy. I've never seen her like this," he reached for her giving her exactly what she wanted. She eased into him. The little flirt."Dog Whisperer," 

    "I'm a vet," he smirked taking the compliment. "She's probably picking up on the other dogs," 

    "That kind of explains everything," I smiled. 

    "Here," he said reaching into his pocket. "I'm not too far from here. If you live in town you can bring her by. I can give her a physical. We do grooming as well," 

    "Oh," I said when he handed me a fancy blue card. "That would be great. I really don't much about her. I got her in Texas and they really didn't tell me much. I just have the paperwork for her vaccinations," 

    "We can run some blood work. She's beautiful and kind of rare. I've never had an albino Great Dane come in," 

    "Okay, yeah. I actually don't live very far from this location. I'll call and make an appointment," 

    "Ask for me personally. There are three of us and I don't want anyone to get their hands on yo- her. Get their hands on her first," 

    "Okay," I nodded. "Doctor Oliver Ward," 

    "I'll see you, Lany," he said giving Evan one last scratch behind her ears. 

    As I pulled away Evan began to howl out for him. He looked over at us laughing as she went out of her way to try and keep him in sight all while howling. I laughed shaking my head. She had fallen in love with a total stranger.

    "Shut up," I laughed. She howled one last time before dropping into the seat looking over at me with the saddest expression she could muster. "I'll make you an appointment. Stop your fussing," 

    When we got to my apartment she went straight up the stairs of my loft and jumped on my bed. Drama queen. I made dinner While watching reruns of Stranger Things on Netflix. My phone rang making Evan bark once. 

    "Hello?" I laughed. 

    "You're in a good mood," Malcolm answered. 

    "Yeah, Evan was being a spaz. She's in love," he laughed. 

    "With?" 

    "We went to the beach earlier. We were on the pier and she pulled away and broke the leash clip. She almost jumped off the edge. This guy stopped her. Turns out he's a vet. You should have seen her. She was crying and howling. Little slut," he laughed. 

    "How are you doing?" he asked. 

    "Good, got into the workflow. I like college kids a lot more than I like high school kids and I don't have to deal with ratchet ass moms," 

    "Good, I'm glad to hear it. I'm going to be off for spring break. I was thinking of coming down there," 

    "Oh, hell yeah. You know you're welcome in my house whenever you want. I have a pullout couch you can crash on," 

    "Nice. That's not actually why I was calling," 

"What's up?" 

    "Joe came by asking for you today," I looked down at my plate and pushed it away. 

    "What did he want?" 

    "He brought a couple of boxes. He put the house on the market and wanted me to tell you since the house was under both your names that you're getting half," 

    "Okay," I sighed. "Did..." I paused taking a deep breath. "Did he look okay to you?" 

    "Honestly, he seemed a little reserved. Kind of standoff-ish. I don't want you to be worried about him. You can call your lawyer to see what he says about the house and the money. You don't have to contact him anyway if you don't want to," 

    "I'll do that," I said sitting down. 

    "Great. I'm going to mail you the boxes. I won't be able to take these on the plane with me," 

    "Okay, tell me when so I can send you my address," 

    "Awesome possum. Good night," 

    "Afternoon," I laughed. 

    "Oh, right. Laters bro," he said and hung up. 

    Evan came down from my bedroom and sat in front of her food bowl with her head hanging waiting for me to fill it. I grabbed the scoop and filled it. She immediately started eating when I poured the food into the bowl. I had lost my appetite. I put everything away and washed the dishes before going over to my couch. I know it's not healthy to do this but I ended up watching Romantic Comedies the rest of the day and cried in parts where I was supposed to.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

    "Hey, Alan," 

    "How are you doing Ms. Porter? How's California treating you?"

    "Good, and amazing. I'm actually calling you because Joeseph contacted my cousin Malcolm and told him he was putting the house on the market and that he wanted to split the profit in half once it's sold because the house was under both our names," 

    "Well, Ms. Porter you basically gave everything up in your divorce. This is a decision you're going to have to make yourself. The price of the house actually went up after you two bought it. Gated community housing is in demand. If he wants to give you half then it's a decision he made himself. You both invested in the house and I think you should talk to him about this. It's a large sum of money," 

    "The house was eight thousand," 

    "Yes, when you first bought it. The property is now worth two hundred and seventy-eight thousand," my eyes felt like they were going to pop out of my eye sockets. 

    "Holy s**t," I whispered. 

    "Yeah, I think if he wants to give you half then take it. You deserve it," he encouraged. 

    "Thank you, Alan. If this does happen do I have to call you back and deal with it legally?" 

    "If you like I can look into for you. I can contact him," 

    "Umm, I think I should contact him first and talk to him about this before he gets snippy about involving you," 

    "Okay, I'll be waiting for your decision. Thank you for the call," he hung up. I put my phone down looking over at Evan who was laying on her back rolling back and forth. 

    "Weirdo," I said when she let out little-satisfied groans. "What should I do, Evan? Call Joe?" she looked over when I said her name. "Or make that appointment with Oliver for you," she barked and continued to wiggle around the tile. "I'll make your appointment for you first," 

    "Prada Claws. This is Amber, how can I help you?" the girl chirped into the phone as soon as she answered. 

    "Hi, Amber. I want to make an appointment for my dog," 

    "Great. Can I have your name?" 

    "Lannyesville Porter," 

    "Can you please spell your first name for me?" I spelled it out for her. "And who is the cutie you're bringing in?" 

    "Evan Porter," 

    "Evan, I love it. What breed is she, do you know?" 

    "I think she's a Great Dane," 

    "Okay, do you know how old she is?" 

    "Umm, I was told she was seven to nine months when I got her but I think she might have been younger because she wasn't as big as she is now. I want to say she's a year old now,"

    "Okay, do you have immunity records?" 

    "Yes,"

    "Great. Do you have a doctor in mind or would you like me to set you up with whoever?" 

    "I wanted to request, Doctor Oliver Ward," 

    "Oooo, yeah he's amazing with big dogs. They're particular especially if they are indoor dogs," 

    "She is," I laughed watching her flop her legs back and forth. 

    "I have an opening for Wednesday at four PM," 

    "That would be perfect," I said. 

    "Is there a particular reason you're bringing her in or is it just a check-up?" 

    "A check-up. I've never had her checked before," 

    "Awesome. Would you like me to put your phone into my system? It'll send you a reminder the day before your appointment and the day of," 

    "Sure," I said and gave her my number. 

    "Are you from Kansas?" she asked. 

    "Yes, I am. From Wichita," 

    "That is so cool. I've never met anyone from there. I am a big Superman enthusiast," I laughed. "Alright, Lannyesville Porter. You are all set up. I am looking forward to meeting you and Ms. Evan Wednesday," 

    "So am I. Thank you, Amber," 

    "You are very welcome, honey. Have a nice day," 

    "You two," 

    "Thank you," she beamed and hung up. 

    "Evan, the receptionist literally just made my day brighter. How pathetic am I?" she didn't even glance back at me. "Very. I'm talking to a dog who finds her legs more entertaining than her owner," 

    I stared down at my phone a little while longer before I made the call I really didn't want to make. I had changed my number because I hadn't wanted him to call me at all. I'd probably have to do it again after this. I sighed picking it up finding his contact. The knot formed in my throat when the picture of our wedding day popped up. I pressed the phone icon not wanting to look at anymore. 

    "Halestorm," he answered after a few rings. 

    "Hi..." 

    "Lana," he said before I could say anything else. It killed me knowing he knew it was me that fast. I didn't even get a full sentence out. It was just one word.

    "Yeah, Malcolm asked me to contact you," I said clearing my throat.

    "Yeah. Yes. I wasn't expecting you to get back to me so fast. I took some of your things over," 

    "Yeah, he's shipping them over," 

    "Great. How's California?" I looked around and smiled. 

    "It's good. I like it here," I jumped when Evan barked at her chew toy. 

    "You got a dog?" he asked. I hadn't been able to get one when we were together because he's allergic.

    "Yeah, her name is Evan. She's a floppy giant," I laughed watching her toss the toy in the air and then chase after it. 

    "You always did want a big dog," he said softly. 

    "How have you been? Have you eaten anything other than takeout?" I quickly changed the subject. He paused telling me he hadn't. 

    "I don't know how to work the stove. There's been a few murders downtown and I've been kind of busy. I haven't had the chance to go grocery shopping," 

    "You should throw a salad in there. There's Panera across the street from the station," I said trying so hard to keep myself from asking about his work. 

    "Yeah, I should probably do that. I wanted to talk to you about the house," 

    "Malcolm said you wanted to sell it?" 

    "Yes. It's really big. I'm hardly ever there. Uh, this is going to make you laugh. I contacted the realtor and she told me the price of the property went up. It's worth like three times more than we paid for it. The property itself went up to two seventy k. With the remodelings and details, you put into it, it's now worth three fifteen. Hailey already has a potential buyer," 

    "That's great," I said sitting back. It got really hard for me to breathe. My eyes stung with hot tears before the rolled down my face. 

    "Lan- are you- are you crying?" 

    "Yeah, you i***t," I said wiping my tears away angrily. "That's my house. Our house. We were supposed to have kids and grow old there and leave it as an inheritance to them and now it's going to belong to someone else. Someone else is going to live in my house," 

    "Lan," he said softly. "I'm- f**k," there was a shuffling sound and then the sound of his stupid creaky office door shutting. "Lana, please don't cry. It f***s me up when you cry," 

    "You deserve to be f****d up," I choked out trying to get a hold of myself. Evan came over to me calmly like she knew I was upset and set her giant head on my lap letting out a low whine. 

    "I'm sorry, Lany," he said after a while. His voice getting thick. 

    "What do you want?" 

    "I- You invested just as much as I did and I wanted to give you half of the money. It's the least I can do," 

    "You don't have to. Thanks to you I'm not in debt up to my nose with school loans," 

    "I want to. You worked hard for those degrees. All I did was patrol some country. You deserve so much more and I wish I could give you more. I just... This is all I can do now. I- Lana I am so sorry for hurting you. That was the last thing I wanted to do. Everyone is right. I don't deserve you. I never did... You wanted to go to Tokyo and I promised I was going to do that. You can use this and go. You can do whatever you want with it. It's yours," 

    "I wanted to go to Tokyo with you because I wanted to show you the house that was built in honor of Goku and Chi-chi. They're your favorite," I said sitting back. 

    "You also wanted to visit all the Hello Kitty museums," I laughed wiping my face. 

    "There's a Hello Kitty cafe here. I've gone twice now. There's a cupcake ATM," we both laughed. 

    "That sounds like something you'd get excited about. Please just accept this. It's the last thing I'll give you, Lana. Please just say yes or okay and let me give you this. I know it doesn't make up for any of the things we planned to do. That's not why I'm doing this, baby. I'm not even doing it because I want to take care of you. I know you can take care of yourself. You deserve it," 

    "I deserved for you to love me. I deserved the family we planned to have. I was... I was preparing for that. I thought we were ready. It was all I could think about for weeks adding up to what happened. I was so excited and now. I look at my dog and I get f*****g angry at you because that's what I had to settle for, Joe. I look around my loft and I miss my home. I miss you. It's so hard to be here.

    "I thought that if I changed my surroundings it would help but it's all just a big f*****g reminder of what I lost. I can't even enjoy that I have a better job. I walk down to the beach and all I can think of is that you're not here. I just recently started eating full meals. Malcolm calls me four times a day to make sure I'm alive. I haven't even tried to make friends because everything just seems so ephemeral now. 

    "You could give me all the money in the world and it wouldn't change a single thing. None of that is worst in all of this. The f****d up part is that all I think about all day is, has he eaten? Did he get enough sleep last night? Is he hurting like I am? Does he miss me like I do? How sick is that Joeseph?" 

    "I'm eating okay," he whispered. "No. I haven't slept well in the past six months. I am hurting because I miss you so f*****g much. Every time I open my eyes to see that you're not there I feel like a part of me is dying inside. But none of that should concern you anymore, Lannyesville. I'm going to give half the money to Malcolm so he can give to you. I'm not going to call you. I don't want you to call me. You need to stay away from me. I'm not good- I'm not good for you. I want you to move on with your life," 

    "What if I can't?" 

    "Oh, baby. You can. You're Lannyesville Porter. You are a soldier and this world is f*****g lucky to have someone like you in it. Thank you for everything you've done for me. I'm never going to forget you," 

    "I'm never going to forget you either," I said feeling myself completely shatter. 

    "You should. Goodbye, Lannyesville Porter," the line went dead. 

    I stared dead ahead without looking at anything in particular. That was how it happened. In that moment, that is how Lannyesville Halestorm, the wife of Chief Lieutenant Joeseph Halestorm died. 

    "Bye, Joe," I whispered letting all of this burn in my chest until I couldn't take in a proper breath.