The Perfect Gift
Random plot bunny that attacked after 'Lying Down With Dogs'. Ummm... CSI isn't mine. Enjoy!
Greg had been hard pressed to find the perfect gift for his lover this Christmas, after all, he'd been given the best gift ever last year. The two of them had moved into a house of their own, after several years of living together in Nick's apartment. But, after their most recent case, he finally knew just what to do.
He was rather glad that he hadn't been needed all the much on the case, just enough not to be reassigned, so he clocked out just a bit early and headed over to the local humane society.
He and Nick had been considering getting a dog for a good while now, but for some reason they'd yet to actually go through with it. Greg figured this would be a good time to do so. Not to mention, they'd be giving a dog a home for Christmas as well.
"Hello, I'm here looking to adopt." He smiled politely at the young girl behind the counter.
She smiled back, stepping out from behind the desk to lead him toward the double doors that went back to the kennels. "Right this way, then, sir."
The silence of the front room was gone the second he stepped onto the concrete floor in the other room, the sound of dogs barking and conversing amongst themselves filled his ears. Some comment he'd made to Grissom a while back came to mind for a fleeting moment. Something about what humans sound like to dogs and woof-woof, and blah blah blah, it wasn't all the clear anymore, but it brought a smile to his face.
"Were you looking for anything in particular?" The woman, Lee, as her nametag read, questioned, stopping at one of the pens to scratch an old yellow labs head. "A puppy or an adult? Big or small?"
"They're all rescue dogs, right?"
She nodded. "They were all strays, or seized from abusive owners." Obviously having been asked this often, she continued. "The dogs are given an exam and a personality read to make sure they're not vicious, these guys have all passed with flying colors."
Greg absorbed that information while he browsed the crowds of dogs, some of the cages he thought were empty at first turned out not to be, when excited puppies and less hyper elders strolled inside from the outdoor pens. "What's this guys story?" He knelt down beside a cage holding a tan and white Corgi.
"Mac there's a newbie. Came in the day before yesterday. Someone found him running around near Boulder Highway. He's not up for adoption yet, though. There's a week long waiting period in case his owners come forward."
"I'm thinking I might want to go for an older one, there seem to be a lot of them here." He commented, eyeing the numerous canines with graying hairs around their noses.
Her eyes lit up at that prospect. "Then I have an idea for you." She led him down the aisle to the door to go outside, where some of the dogs preferred to stay. "How do you feel about Australian Shepherds? They're not huge and they're very loyal companions, too." They stopped at a pen near the end of the row. "These two guys are brothers. They've been here for a few weeks now and they're running out of time. Their owner passed away and the family sent them to us."
"How old are they?" Greg inquired, letting the closest one sniff his hand. One was a bit larger than the other, but both were a combination of grey, brown and white, with short little stubby tails that made their entire bodies wiggle.
"About 7, from what they told us." She watched his reaction to the dogs to see if he seemed interested. "I can bring them out if you'd like?" He nodded eagerly, and she went to get leashes. "You can meet me right over there, in the dog run." She pointed to the long fenced in area with several toys inside.
A moment later the two dogs were prancing excitedly, but not overly so, towards him. "That's right boys, go say hello." She encouraged, slipping them both inside the gate and closing it behind her. "They're total sweethearts."
"I see that." Greg laughed, as he was overwhelmed with wiggling rear ends and kisses. "You two've got my heart already." He scratched behind one's ears and the dog leaned in eagerly. The other nudged his other hand as if asking for the same. He complied eagerly.
"So, you're interested then?" Lee asked hopefully, knowing that these dogs didn't have much longer. "I mean, would you consider taking both of them?"
"I'm very interested. In both of them."
"Would you like to adopt them, then?" Greg nodded. "I'll need an ID and I'll need to ask you some questions."
"Sure." He was rather sad to see the dogs returned to their pen, even temporarily, but he was one step closer to adopting them now.
"If you'll just follow me to the front desk again. It won't take long."
And it didn't. She asked pretty standard questions, and soon the paperwork was completed.
"It takes 24 hours to process all of this, and we'll microchip them for you. They've already both been neutered, but you will need leashes and collars when you pick them up. If you come in around noon tomorrow I'll be here and I'll have them ready to go."
"Thank you so much for all your help." Greg smiled, as he shook her hand. "It seems I need to make a trip to Petsmart, though."
"No, thank you. I'll see you tomorrow."
-----
The next day could not have come soon enough. They had both already been scheduled for the day off, but doing all of this without arising Nick's suspicions would be quite a task. With two collars and two leashes in hand, he stepped into the building again. Lee was sitting behind the desk. "Hey." He smiled, holding up the leashes.
"You're all set." She laughed, and urged him to follow her again. The two dogs were inside today, and, since the hatch to the outside was closed, he supposed that was to make it easier to get them hooked up. "They're rather excited to be going home."
Greg accepted the first leashed dog she offered him, the smaller of the two, as she hooked the second. "Yeah, I've been quite excited myself."
"Have names picked out yet?"
"Not just yet."
"I'm sure you'll come up with something." Lee smiled again, leading them back into the lobby. "I'll just need you to sign a few more things and you'll be on your way."
"Awesome."
And within a few moments, Lee was helping him get the animals into the back of his Tahoe, the dogs seemed to like cars, so that went rather smoothly.
"Thanks again, Mr. Sanders."
"You, too."
------
Fortunately for his plan, Nick was not at home when he returned. The two canines were immensely cooperative in being led into the house. This morning before he left, he'd stashed the bags in the laundry room, and that was where he led the dogs.
"Just give me a few minutes to get this stuff all organized and then I'll let you explore your new home." He said, as he spread out the two dog beds he'd purchased. A basket full of toys sat in the corner and water and food bowls were sitting on top of the washer.
Once he was done with all of that he led them to the backyard, where they could run around and sniff and get used to their new home. While he watched them, he phoned Nick, who was on his way home from the lab. "I've got a surprise for you, Nicky." He grinned as the two dogs pranced around in the fenced in area.
"And what might that be, G?"
"That would kind of ruin the general concept of a surprise, would it not?"
He could practically hear Nick roll his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'll be home in a few, baby."
"Great." He had one thing to do first, though. "Come on over here, boys." He whistled, and they ran towards him. He slid a ribbon over each of their heads, admiring his handiwork with pride.
"So, Greggo, what's my surpri--" Nick stopped dead in his tracks upon seeing the two dogs. "Whoa."
Greg watched him cautiously, the canines stayed at his feet, awaiting an indication of what they were supposed to do.
"Are... Are they ours?"
Greg nodded.
"For real?"
Another nod. "I got them at the Humane Society. They were gonna be put down if they weren't adopted soon…"
The next thing he knew he was wrapped in the Texan's strong arms. "This is a surprise." Nick laughed, before he bent down to greet his new housemates. "Amazing Christmas present, G."
"I thought you might like them." Greg smiled.
"Do they have names yet?"
"I was gonna let you decide on that."
Nick seemed to contemplate that for a brief moment, before something came to mind. "What do you think of Lucky and Chance?" He inquired, moving to sit on the ground beside the two dogs, who seemed incredibly appreciative of the affection.
Greg sat down as well, grinning. "I think that's perfect."
May I also say: Adopt a shelter dog.