It's really cold in Wisconsin right now. Every day for the past week (and it's gonna be like this for a while) it's been in the single digits, with wind chills in the negatives. Feelin' like a husky out here getting carts as a grocery worker. It's one of those days. -mitch
chapter 2: we don't know which way it's gonna go
10 DAYS LATER
The pups rehearsed, rehearsed and rehearsed. Rocky chose an 80s song to cover. Even though he wasn't a good singer by any stretch, he had a trick up his fur that would sure "wow" the crowd. Zuma tried to look for a rapper to help him out, and he eventually found an unlikely face. Rubble was still trimming on ideas on what to remix for his act. Chase and Skye settled on a pop song-even though the german shepherd initially opposed singing a certain person's lines. Ryder proposed that the pups all do an opening act together, and they all agreed. Marshall had free range to choose the song, since he was the best singer. Even though a chocolate lab initially rejected the group song the dally intended because it wasn't his style, things were now going smoothly. Marshall and Everest practiced their ideas-remotely. They never had time to even practice together, with the husky not living at the lookout. Still, they practiced each song vigilantly by themselves. That night, the dally was walking into the basement. Rocky had an extra set of unused random supplies not commonly used for missions that he went on.
Now, let's see what I can use for soundproof barriers… Marshall thought. After a few more tedious moments of searching, he found it. Yes! Some foam. This should help. He thought with glee as he grabbed it with his mouth. Dear god, I can't imagine anyone eating this. He wondered as he silently snuck back upstairs. He opened the basement door inside the lookout as quietly as he could. It was 10 PM. Everyone was in bed, snoozing away. Marshall was wide awake, as he couldn't stop thinking about practicing. He snuck outside the lookout, using his famous technique. Quiet as a mouse. He whispered to himself as he snuck to his pup house. He shut his door and got to work, taping the foam all over his walls. With everything set to go, Marshall got his papers of song lyrics, list of songs, a portable radio and let it rip. The dally was having the time of his life, dancing the night away while belting out some big hits. Less than three minutes into his singing extravaganza, unfamiliar noises filtered into his eardrums. He stopped the music to hear loud banging on his door.
"OPEN THE DAMN DOOR, MARSHALL!" Chase boomed. The dally's mood changed from ecstasy to guilt in no time flat. Marshall opened his door to reveal 5 dogs, tired out of their minds and not in the mood for malarkey.
"Uhhhhh…..sorry guys." Marshall gulped, ears drooping and guilt-ridden. Zuma let out a deep sigh as he rubbed his eyes.
"Bro. Those walls are NOT SOUNDPROOF. We all heard you." Marshall sat in silence as the rest of the pups gave him dirty looks for interrupting their sleep.
"We know you're great and all. We know you wanna win this talent show. We all do. But there's one problem. It's ten at night. And you're ripping out the world's biggest solo without even thinking about us." Chase grumbled.
"I-I-I tried to put foam on my walls. Guess it didn't work." The fire pup stuttered.
"Hell no it didn't. Just...go and practice with Everest...if she's even up. I doubt it." Skye groaned.
"I'll try and talk with her." Marshall responded, still a little shaken up.
"GOOD. Goodnight, Marshall." Chase snapped as the rest of the gang walked back to their houses. Marshall closed the door to his in silence. He sat on his pup bed, wondering if his girlfriend was even up. Guess it's worth a shot. He called Everest through his pup tag, waiting for an answer.
The mountain rescue pup was already asleep at her owner's cabin in the mountains. Her pup tag lit up, making her rise from her slumber.
"Hey...who is it…" Everest mumbled with drowsiness.
"Hey, Eve? It's me." She recognized that voice instantly. A small smirk made its way to her face.
"Hey...what's up?" A few seconds of silence.
"I just wanted to know if you were still up." Marshall spoke.
"Yeah. You kinda woke me up." The husky whispered.
"I did something really dumb earlier. Just a few minutes ago, I was practicing really hard in my pup house. I learned the hard way that foam doesn't make your pup house soundproof at all." Everest had to stifle her laughter.
"Wait. What happened after that?" she questioned the fire pup in burning curiosity.
"Well, they were pissed. For sure. They let me off though. I'm not tired at all."
The husky yawned. "You can't say the same for me. Today was busy at the resort. You won't even understand." Silence.
"The reason I wanted to talk is that I was wondering if you wanted to practice with me." The husky sighed deeply. "Marshall, I'm tired. I need to be up by 6 in the morning to help Jake. And there's no way that I'm practicing at home." A bit more silence. "Sure, I'll do it. Only because I love you." She whispered.
"Thanks, Eve. I'll repay you with a medal." She had to stifle her laugh again.
"Bye, my little marshmallow." she whispered lovingly. She hung up.
The fire pup pumped his fist. YES! I finally get to practice with her. He thought to himself excitedly. Marshall ran outside his pup house and turned his house into a fire truck. He turned the lights and sirens off immediately, otherwise it would wake the whole damn team again. Ok, got my song lyrics...check. Got my song list… double check. Got my karaoke machine… triple check. He pondered as he started his truck quietly as possible. Let's do this. He thought in determination as he drove into the night.
15 minutes later, the dally made it to the cabin. Marshall silently snuck through the snow to the residence, before remembering where Everest's room was. He snuck there before knocking on her bedroom window. The husky inside noticed. Marshall waved in a friendly gesture. The husky made it outside the cabin in no time flat-not even waking her owner. She shut the door to the cabin behind her.
"So, where do you wanna go?" The husky asked.
"I know exactly where to go." Marshall replied. The two hopped into Marshall's fire truck. He drove down to an isolated spot, overlooking a wide patch of snow, with trees spread far away from there. "This should be good." Marshall clarified as he stopped his truck. Everest hopped out.
"You got all the song lyrics?" The husky inquired.
"Check."
"List of songs?"
"Discount...double check." Marshall joked. The husky laughed a bit.
"Karaoke radio?"
"Triple check." They sat on the snow, list of songs and lyrics in paw, with the radio sitting a few feet away from them.
"Ok, let's get this show on the road. The first song's kinda cool." Marshall spoke as he adjusted the radio to the first song's instrumental. The song started. Marshall felt uneasy all of a sudden. All of his confidence disappeared as he gazed at Everest and her stunning blue eyes. His mind was racing. His heart was pumping. He was blushing like mad. He couldn't handle it. Gripped with crippling anxiety, the dally leapt at the radio to pause the song. As he regained his breath, Everest couldn't hide her disappointment.
"Why did you stop?" The dally nearly choked his words.
"I-I-I have to be honest. Being in a duet with you...is nerve-racking. I want to win this, believe me. But I just don't know." Everest sighed in frustration. "
Look. I didn't wake up at 10 at night to watch you choke up words to a song in the middle of the night in the middle of the freaking forest." She calmed down a bit. "Here, just imagine. You and I are the only ones on this planet. Just us. It's one of those fantasies that you 'guys' have. Only it's real and she's right in front of you." She assured him. Just as Marshall was about to restart the song, Everest licked him on the cheek. This was a huge motivation for him. Marshall turned the radio on and restarted the song. He looked at his stack of lyrics and started to sing.
I'm sick I like it, there's a moment when we fight, I get so excited
Holy shit...he's amazing. Everest thought as her jaw dropped. Being 13 years old, his voice hasn't changed yet, so he could hit high notes easily. The husky was entranced by its beauty. The dally continued.
The next move is someone's...maybe that's what makes it fun, we don't know what's coming
Oh my god, it's my turn. Everest pondered nervously as she looked at the lyrics. Soon enough, she began to sing as well.
But you got me and I got you, couldn't stop this if we wanted to, you got me and I got you
Dude, she's better than I expected. She's awesome. Oh boy... here we go. Marshall focused. They started to sing together, still gazing at the pages.
I like us when we're unpredictable
Cause that's why love is so phenomenal
It's better when there's no one in control
We don't know which way it's gonna go
Marshall was confident now. He was in the driver's seat.
It drives me crazy
Go to bed at night in love, you wake up and hate me
But I just can't fight it
Other people might break up, but that's how I like it
They looked at each other for the first time, as they started to harmonize once again.
Cause you got me and I got you
It's enough for us to make it through
You got me, and I got you
The thought of making music together couldn't stop them from smiling. They threw away the lyrics, as they had it memorized all along.
I like us when we're unpredictable
Cause that's when love is so phenomenal
It's better when there's no one in control
We don't know which way it's gonna go
The two were in pure bliss. Out in the snow in the middle of nowhere, the fact that it was 10:30 PM was in the back of their minds. They sang loudly, to their loving content. Marshall's fear of singing in front of her completely died. The couple were producing harmony at levels they never even expected. This was the first time they even practiced together.
We're better when we're unpredictable
Cause that's when love is so phenomenal
It's harder when there is no one in control
We don't know which way it's gonna go
It was the husky's turn to sing again.
Hey, babe, we could do this a million ways, everyday
And I'll never get tired
I know like it, I'm seeing that expression on your face, on your face, I know you really love it
The two were staring directly into each other's eyes. The instrumental somehow pulled them closer. By the end of that verse, they were inches away from each other.
I like us when we're unpredictable
Cause that's when love is so phenomenal
It's better when there's no one in control
We don't know which way it's gonna go
They pulled away from each other at the end of the verse, as their vocal cords exploded with joy.
I like us when we're unpredictable
Cause that's why love is so phenomenal
It's better when there's no one in control
We don't know which way it's gonna go
The husky and dalmatian were having the time of their lives, with no care in the world. As Everest sang in varying pitches, Marshall backed her up.
We're better when we're unpredictable
Cause that's when love is so phenomenal
They caught each other staring again.
It's harder when there's no one in control
We don't know which way it's gonna go
The song faded out. The two were breathing hard, after leaving it all out there.
"Screw the rest of those songs. This is IT." Everest panted as she regained her breath. The dally put his paw on her back.
"You wanna do it again?" he asked with glee. The husky walked to the radio and rewinded the song back to the beginning.
"I would die to sing with you again." She elaborated. Everest paused the song before it started. She unexpectedly kissed him on the lips. He obliged. The two separated, only to have them gazing at one other with blushing fur. "Tomorrow, I'm gonna be so tired...it's gonna be so worth it." The husky remarked.
They practiced that song 4 more times. By the time that they finished, it was 11. The dally took her back to the cabin and got himself home before anyone noticed.
THE NEXT MORNING
6 AM. "Yo, Everest! It's time for breakfast." Jake called to the still-dozing canine. She let out a big yawn as she got up and walked up to her breakfast bowl like a zombie. "Hey...uhh...where were you last night? I saw some pawprints in the snow." Jake asked as he sipped his morning coffee. Everest snapped awake and panicked.
"N-n-nothing important." She stammered.
"I swear, your pup bed was empty. I thought I heard singing, too." Jake sternly replied. Everest couldn't lie anymore.
"Ok, I admit it. I was practicing for the talent show with Marshall in the woods last night." Jake nodded in understanding.
"Why would you do it so late at night?" Everest scoffed at that question.
"Look, it wasn't my fault that he called me at 10 last night to ask about practicing." As Jake grabbed his coat and walked outside, the husky grabbed her trusty hat and followed.
"So, how did it go?" Jake asked her as they walked up the mountain. The husky couldn't help but blush at the thought of the night before.
"It was a dream. He was so amazing. We just...meshed. We became one. In musical terms." Jake laughed as they continued on their way.
8:30 AM. It was after breakfast at the lookout. As the pups went their separate ways, Skye was approached by a familiar face. A face that shone with white radiance along with black spots to compliment.
"Hey, Skye? I actually took your advice. I did practice with Everest last night." The pilot looked up at him and smirked.
"So, how did it go?" Marshall smiled. His face was turning red. Being that his fur was white with black spots, it was always a dead giveaway when he felt romantically intertwined.
"Marshall...you're blushing." Skye giggled as a very distracted dalmatian daydreamt of the night before. That pulled him out of his deep thoughts.
"Oh, sorry. It was just amazing. We just killed it. She's a great singer, believe me. When we combined, it just felt natural."
"Oh my god, I can't believe it!" Skye squealed in excitement, with a flip to follow.
"You guys are going down! Whether you like it or not!" The dally shouted for everyone to hear. The temperature was turned all the way up.
If you guys wanna know the song that was in the chapter, it was Unpredictable by Olly Murs ft. Lousia Johnson. It's a cool song, at least in my eyes :)
