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....."I'll be back in an hour or so!" I bark, excitement bubbling in my voice, as I nudge the door open, stepping over the threshold onto the cool packed soil of our entryway.■
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....."Don't forget your scarf, Caz!" a voice, who I vaguely make out to be my mothers, calls after me, the loud sound of pots and pans banging in the background. Her warning and the clatter is followed by a low murmur of instructions, likely directed at my younger sister. She was always trying to help out with cooking and cleaning, though she never did a great job at either. Still, though, Ma always says it's the thought that counts, so I guess her helps is appreciated.
....."Caz, in or out!" Ma's voice rings again, a bit strained, jolting me from my thoughts.
....."Don't worry," I call back, "I never forget my scarf!" But even as I say this, I notice the absence of its fuzzy warmth on my neck. Ma replies with a teasing comment that doesn't quite reach my ears as I pull back inside, snatch my scarf, and leap outside a final time, whipping the door closed behind me with my back paw. It's a habit I need to get better about and break, closing the door with my leg, I mean. More times than not, I end up slamming it between the frame and wood, sending jolts of tingles and pain into my leg. This time, though, I seem to have spared myself this outcome.
.....With a sense of triumph in my chest, I stick my chin up and begin walking in wide strides, quickly pulling my scarf over my head and rest the knot off to the side, allowing the little bit of spare material to hang loose, brushing against my shoulder. The task at hand was to go to the store, grab a pack of straight Ramen noodles, and scavenge over topping and broths for the remaining time within my hour; though I didn't expect myself to keep my time limit promise, I often don't as shopping for Ramen is definitely a passion of mine.
.....But, to my dismay, the Grand Asian Market was recently closed up -- and by recently I mean it’s been closed for two weeks now––and made ready for renovations. This left me with the less exciting and hardly authentic... Super Market.
.....I don't mind the Super Market, I mean it did have the main ingredients I needed for my Ramen meals, but it doesn't have hardly any of the extra stuff to look at. The Grand Asian Market, while its building was filled with the smell of fish and briny water, had much more than the bare minimum. It contained hundreds upon hundreds of toppings, sides, broths, noodle types... and this is only the beginning! Not only did they have the basics and above-and-beyond additions for Ramen, they also have other foods and knick-knacks to look at. I often spent most of my time looking at these too.
.....Probably one of the most entertaining places in the store is towards the back, where they keep the fish––live! It's kind of sad to look at their little faces and know you're ganna be eating them for dinner, but I guess that's just how the dice roll. Unfortunately, while I am a vegetarian, I'm only semi; meaning I still eat fish. Nonetheless, they're pretty cool to look at... but apparently it's not wise, nor are you allowed, to put your paws in the tank; they should really have a sign! Or, maybe they do? I’ve never noticed––normally I’m just sticking my paw in the tank, then next thing I know I'm being reprimanded and swatted at, shooed away.
.....Pulling myself out of my thoughts, I shake my head a bit, tilting my chin to the sky, peering above the tree line and into the pink-tinged sky. It was already starting to get dark, I note, dropping my nose to the ground and sniffing a moment. Something smelled funny, but almost familiar. I shrug it off ant continue on, hurrying my stride. The night seemed to be coming faster again, and no matter how early I get up, the day seems to get away from me. Not that I’ve had much to do recently, just lay around and brainstorm ideas of what to do with my life.
.....That’s another thing I need to work on––wasting time. I realize I don’t really have much going on in life right now, other than the never ending crisis of having to take over my pops business (yeah, yeah, it may not be an actual crisis, but still), but I still need to start getting things together and get a plan up and forming. I was never all that great at planning, but there’s always time for practice and a start somewhere, right? I sigh, drooping my head a bit. I hated planning.
.....“Ey, if it isn’t Noodles on a noodle run!” a rough voice rumbles happily behind me, one I don’t have to turn my head to know who its owner is.
.....“Rufus,” I grunt back with a slight smile, lifting my head to a normal stance, though I don’t stop or slow my pace.
.....The mutt works his way to my side, bumping my shoulder playfully. “Looking stylish as always,” he teases, falling into step beside me, his breath already a tad short. He was never the one to be in shape, though he wasn’t out of shape––or, he was, you just couldn’t tell by looking at him.
.....I cock my head a bit, “Oh I do try, thank you for noticing,” I chuckle a bit, nudging him back and grinning, “but hey, you can’t talk, all you wear is that ratty collar.”
.....“It’s no better than your ratty scarf!” He objects with a howl of amusement, his eyes twinkling.
.....I shake my head and turn my snout straight again, smiling to myself. Typical Rufus, willing to poke at my scarf any chance he gets. While he rambles on about it and somehow digresses to some Steampunk style he’s been thinking about, I zone out and settle back into my thoughts, nodding every so often so that he gets the idea that I'm paying attention––which in this case, I'm not.
.....My life. It was like a, oh how could you say, a broken butterfly? Everyone likes to think life starts out small––you know, as the caterpillar or whatever––and then you pull back into this weird stage of no progress, then suddenly your life explodes with excitement. I guess this is how it is for some, maybe those who’ve become famous or millionaires; the ones you read and hear about through various networks. But I guess I’m still stuck in that metamorphosis stage, unwilling––or even unable––to crack out of this chrysalis.
.....Maybe someday I will be something big, something everyone hears about and talk about, excitedly chattering about my appearances to the public. Maybe…
.....“Hellooo, earth to Noodle-brain,” Rufus drones, his words long and annoyed, but playful. “Since when are you Mr. Thoughtful?”
.....“What?” I blink, snapping myself from my fantasy and back to the world, “oh, nahh, I was just thinking. Been kinda weird lately, huh?”
.....Rufus rolls his eyes, “Weird how?”
.....I shrug, “Dunno… hey did I tell you ‘bout my pop and how he’s expecting me to go on another shrimping trip again?”
.....“What? Gross,” Rufus laughs, “sucks for you, man. You ganna barf all over deck like you did last time?”
.....Now it’s my time to roll my eyes, “I never said I actually threw up, I said I almost did. God, boats make me so sick. I can’t tell ya how much I love land once I'm out on the water. I swear, sometimes I’ll just huddle to one of the masts and pray for it to end.” I joke, laughing lightly, though it was true.
.....Rufus and I walk and talk the remainder of the way to the Super Market, and when I ask of he wants to join me, he jokes for a bit then declines my offer, claiming he has places to be and others to see.
Somewhat relieved of this, I head inside, thinking maybe, just maybe, my life could change for the better behind these doors.
**Ideas expressed are original and my own -- please do not steal! This little image was found online, though originally it was not a moving image. I edited to make it do so <3
