Chapter V "Everybody Loves Roger" Sneek Peak

Running.
Running from something or someone.
Running towards something or someone.
Running just to leave your problems behind or in the worst case scenario other people’s problems.
Clear your mind; get some fresh air; stretch your legs; get some exercise; just get on moving.
Now that Roger had a dog he had taken on his old routine of waking up early and going out for a run around the neighborhood. Domino had proved himself he was the best dog Roger could have ever had, he was giving his owner a run for his money, or his run actually.
Roger didn’t smoke and had a good condition but he was having a hard time catching up with his dog. Still Domino would ran off and come back, most of the times with an item from someone else that had also decided to start the day the healthy way.
In order to be a part of the big cosmic cliché after their run Roger and Domino headed to the park where Roger would throw a ball and his dog would run after it and bring it back. Roger was pleased to see that when Domino had something to bring back he will stay out of other people’s stuff.
“Ok now, this is going to be a curve ball you got it? won’t be easy to catch.” Roger was teasing Domino before throwing the ball, which made him a lot more anxious about the ball jumping and bouncing around waiting for the ball to go off.
And he was off.
The dog was fast but Roger had thrown the ball farther and harder he was even impressed with himself.
Domino wasn’t coming back.
At first Roger felt a little proud about his strength, maybe he had beat his dog finally. But after two minutes Roger started to worry and ran off to look for his friend.
It didn’t took Roger too much to find him and he was pleased to see that Domino was alright, even better too bad that couldn’t be said for Grace Aldrin’s favorite blue sweatshirt.
If you where to choose just one word to describe Grace that word would be: cool.
Grace worked as chef in a restaurant downtown called Ramekers, owned by a forty year old man from the Netherlands; it was a good place to work, the pay was good, the reputation of the restaurant was good and Grace was good at doing it, still she had always dream on opening her own bakery shop.
But right now Grace had some bigger worries in her mind because her favorite blue sweatshirt, which she liked to wear when she went out for a run in the park, was held captive in a young and hyper Dalmatian’s mouth she had just met ten seconds ago.
Domino wasn’t moving, he had Grace’s sweatshirt on his mouth and was staring right into her eyes waiting for her to launch and make his run.
“Easy Cujo, no one is launching on you, tackle you and take my lucky sweatshirt off you.” She was moving very slowly, trying not to make any subtle moves that would make the dog ran off.
Domino was paying a lot of attention to any sudden moves on him.
Roger found the two of them staring at each other like if they were on some kind of old Wild West duel.
“Ok don’t make any subtle moves, he likes that.” Roger felt like a hostage negotiator and try to both parties walk out of this unharmed.
“Who are you?”
“My name is Roger and the one holding your sweatshirt is my dog.”
“This is your dog?” Later on Grace would ask herself why would this piece of information had shocked her so much, because as she said it she turned to look at Roger and used a higher tone than the one she should have used that made Domino ran off whit the sweatshirt.
“FAQ later now run for him or we’ll never catch him.”
“Isn’t that part of the game? If we run after him he will keep running and never give it back?”
“Not with him, running after him enables him to stop and chew it off part by part.”
Grace and Roger ran after Domino, together, side by side, from different angles but no matter how the plan it Domino was faster and sneakier.
Roger figured out the best way to get Domino to release the sweatshirt would be to exchange it for something else, he also knew that would be easy.
Thankfully and rarely just when both Grace and Roger were about to give up a squirrel made the wrong choice of coming down from a tree to what it thought would be a peaceful outing, little did it knew Domino had spotted it and now was on the run after it.
So the sweatshirt was free, the squirrel once again up in the tree and Domino barking and jumping under it.
The sweatshirt wasn’t ruined, just very chewed and may just needed a good wash.
“Is it ruined? Ready-for-the-trash ruined or just send-it-to-the-dry-cleaning-ruined?”
“More of the second one, I’m sorry he is new and apparently he wants to be the Winona of the family; again I’m so sorry.”
“It’s ok, I do like dogs and I do like mi sweatshirt it will survive it’s been trough worse.”
“Glad to hear that, or no; I’m sorry.”
“I’m Grace BTW, Grace Aldrin and you are Roger right? Roger Summers?”
“Right and he is Domino.” The dog was back.
“I’ll call him Cujo for the time being if that is ok with you.” Domino didn’t seem to mind, he was walking with them now, sweatshirt and squirrel all forgotten by now.
“No problem, he deserves it; So how scared I must be that you know who I am?” He wasn’t really scared but you can never know
“Not much I think, we have some people in common.” Some people do keep track on whom they know and where.
“Really? Wow I think I’m not done apologizing to you yet, sorry, I don’t remember you.” There is so much someone can apologize for in a short period of time, after a few of those people stop believing you.
“I know your sister, Emma, we met in college had some classes together until I graduated two years ago.” Emma was a popular girl keeping track of all of her friends it was no easy task.
“She is in Europe now, she just graduated.” And she would be for at least the next three months
“Good for her, I remember her saying she wanted to do a European back packing experience tour trip.”
“Is that how she called it?”
“Exact words.”
“Anyone else we have in common?”
“Your friend Alex.”If Roger ever had a nickel for every girl he knew thanks to Alex he would be the one giving away nickels to people saying they deserve nickels for their very common situations.
“Ouch, that probably didn’t end well.”
“It didn’t but not for me, he and my roommate were dating.”
“Alex doesn’t date, I mean not with the ING at the end.” No he didn’t.
“That’s what I told her; anyway in a nutshell she didn’t took it very well and kind of became her stalker.”
“Your roommate is Nosy Mindy?” How small was the world right now.
“Exactly and now after the court order she is also in therapy with a Dr. Weathers.”
“My friend Greg works with him!” Very small world.
“Small world.”
“And now you and my dog are mortal nemesises, nemesis? Is that how it’s called?”
“Nemesis and we don’t worry we will work through it.”
“You know since you are now part of the gang, and in order to help your relationship with Domino there is going to be a party this Friday in my house.”
“Occasion?”
“It’s my birthday actually.”