Title: And They Call It Puppy Love
Author: SyrupandHoneybuns
Pairing: Aidan/Josh
Rating: M
Summary: Sally decides she wants to adopt a dog and it's up to Aidan and Josh to make it happen for her.
Warnings: Clumsiness and strong language. You have been warned.
"Can we get a dog?" Aidan feels the hairs on the back of his neck stand up before Sally materializes beside him on the couch. Without looking away from the television, he replies, "We already have one. He's currently in the kitchen making dinner."
"Fuck you," Josh yells out from the kitchen and Aidan smirks.
"Aidan, I'm being serious here. You and Josh work eight hour shifts at the hospital every day, leaving me all alone. If I had a dog to keep me company then I wouldn't go through you guys' stuff all the time," Sally whines. Josh rolls his eyes and turns down the burner on the stove so his pasta sauce won't burn.
"I am being serious, Sally. Josh is already house-trained, he enjoys long walks around the neighborhood, and is already practically neutered."
Sally is trying desperately not to laugh when Josh comes barging out of the kitchen waving a sauce spoon threateningly at Aidan, who has his hands up in the universal gesture for "I surrender."
"My sex life is not to be discussed, understand?" Josh growls.
"Don't you mean 'lack of a sex life is not to be discussed'?'' Sally hides behind Aidan when Josh waves the spoon in her direction.
"Your sauce is burning," Aidan says nonchalantly and watches Josh run back into the kitchen cursing.
Julia Child didn't have to put up with Dracula and Casper while cooking, Josh bitterly thinks as he stares down at his ruined sauce and sighs. "Looks like you'll being eating a TV dinner tonight champ," Josh mutters while walking over to the freezer, pulling a frozen meatloaf with peas and mashed potatoes dinner out and popping in the microwave.
"Does this mean I'm not getting a dog?" Sally asks. She wraps her arms around Aidan's bicep. She flutters her eyelashes and pouts, hoping her bitch face would make Aidan say yes. Aidan smirks down as her then kisses her forehead. "You can get a dog as long as you promise I can take a hot shower in the morning."
"Pinky swear," Sally squeals and holds her pinky out to him. Aidan rolls his eyes and clamps his pinky around hers.
The bell above the door jiggles as Aidan and Josh walk through the front door of the pet store. The aroma of ammonia and sawdust tickles Josh's nose hair, causing him to sneeze. Aidan looks back at him with one eyebrow cocked but Josh shrugs off his concerns.
Aidan dings the silver bell on counter and waits for someone to come up front and serve them. "One second, please!" a female voice calls from somewhere in the back of the store. Josh looks around, taking in his surroundings. The pet store is small with only four aisles total. To the side of him, there are mental cages stacked upon each other, containing litters of puppies and a couple of older dogs.
Josh's eyes are immediately drawn to a brown cocker spaniel pawing at the cage door on the top shelf. Aidan follows Josh's line of sight then smirks when he sees what his friend was so fixated on. They both walk over to the metal cage. Josh wiggles his finger in between the bars and scratches behind the little guy's ear. The dog wiggles its tail enthusiastically back and forth and rubs his head alongside the bars, trying to get closer to Josh's hand.
"Does he look like Sally to you?" Aidan asks while flipping through the puppy's chart that is clipped on the side of the cage. The puppy is 12 weeks old and weighs about 6 lbs. The species is English cocker spaniel and he was orphaned when his mom got hit by a truck. The puppy is named James and Aidan can't help but think, Not for long you are.
Josh is about to protest on Sally's behalf but finds himself agreeing with Aidan. The puppy has curly brown fur that feels like warm velvet under Josh's touch and large chocolate eyes that seem to track Josh's fingers as the puppy playfully tries to nip at them.
"Are you two interested in adopting today?" a soft but slightly high pitched voice asks from behind them. Aidan looks up from the chart and politely smiles at the woman.
"Yes, ma'am, we are," Aidan replies smoothly. The woman blushes when she looks over at him. Josh mentally sighs. It is always so easy for Aidan to pick up women; all he has to do is bat an eyelash and lines of woman would be swooning over him like he's God's gift to mankind.
"It's Jodie. Ma'am makes me feel so old," Jodie jokes. Josh has to agree with her, she doesn't look old enough to be called ma'am yet. If it weren't for the fact that age lines crinkle around the corners of her eyes when she smiles Josh would place her age around twenty-nine.
"We're thinking about this one." Aidan pulls Josh to the side of him so Jodie can see what he was referring to.
"Oh, you mean James. A Cocker Spaniel is a very rambunctious breed of dog. They require constant attention and open spaces so they can play," she informs them as she unlatches the lock on the cage door.
"That's fine. Our apartment has a large living room and we live like two blocks from a park." While talking, Aidan slings his arm over Josh's shoulder and is leaning into the wolf's personal space.
Jodie turns, arms full of squirming, tail-wagging dog, and hands James over to Josh, who immediately scoops up the dog into his arms. James strains forward and licks Josh's face like he's a double-bacon cheeseburger. The group moves toward the cash register after Jodie, with their permission, grabs puppy supplies they would need to take care of James properly.
Josh frowns. Three hundred dollars is a lot of money to spend in one store. As if sensing his hesitation, Jodie adds, "But since business has been kind of slow due to the recession, our store offers discounts for couples looking to adopt. So your total would actually be a hundred thirty-two." She smiles, oblivious to their discomfort, and finishes bagging their items.
Josh feels like banging his head repeatedly on the marble counter. There it was again, that accusing tone people used whenever he and Aidan were together. Before Josh could protest at the accusation Aidan elbows him in the side then smiles innocently. Jodie hands Aidan back his change and Aidan grabs the bags and manhandles Josh out the door before he can say something stupid and they have to pay the full fee.
"I can't believe you let that nice lady think we're a couple just so your cheap ass could get a discount,'' Josh growls in the car on the way home. James is sitting in his lap with his nose pressed against the window, watching the traffic go past.
"I can't believe you wouldn't after finding out that fur ball in your lap cost three hundred dollars." Aidan's grip on the steering wheel tightens and he glares at the road ahead.
"How am I supposed to get a girlfriend if everyone thinks I'm gay?" Josh yells. James tilts his head and starts to howl. Josh rubs his underbelly and James starts to quiet down and snuggle against his stomach.
"Hell if I know. People only think I'm gay when I'm with you." Aidan know it's the wrong choice of words when he glances over at Josh, whose lips are pressed in a thin line and eyebrows are furrowed in anger.
The rest of the car ride is silent. When Aidan pulls up to the curb to their apartment, Josh gets out and slams the passenger door closed. Aidan sighs, pulls the key out of the ignition, and follows Josh up the steps.
Whatever tension is between the two drains away when they walk in the door and see Sally's face light up like a thousand fireworks. James squirms out of Josh arms and lands on the floor with a thump, then scampers over to Sally barking happily.
Sally hoists the puppy in into the air, legs dangling and tail wagging wildly, and spins in a circle laughing.
"We did good," Aidan mutters, more to himself than anybody else, but Josh answers him anyway.
"Yes, we did."
Author notes: If you go on Google and type in English Cocker Spaniel, it's like the third picture down if you want to see the dog I based this one-shot on. Also, NakedKing, I love you for reviewing my story. Your review made me giggle so hard when I read it.
