Title: Fun in the Sun?
Author: Sarge
E-Mail: Shalimarfox2@aol.com
She was tired, she was hot, she was sick, and all she wanted to do was get a little rest, but no. Every time she would shut her eyes, she would hear a very annoying high pitched bark and frankly, she was getting pissed off.
"Dammit Emma! If that dog doesn't shut its mouth, I will shut if for him…permanently!!" Shalimar yelled when Taco wouldn't stop barking out the car window.
Both Emma and Taco looked over at Shalimar with frowns on their faces…Well, Taco's was more of a snarl.
Shalimar glared at the dog which only made him growl at her.
"What is with you two?" Jesse asked Shalimar. "I mean, it's like you and Taco actually hate each other."
"We do," Shalimar replied, not taking her eyes off of the small dog.
"Why?" Brennan questioned as he looked back and forth between Shalimar and Taco.
"I don't know. I've just always disliked dogs," she answered.
"It's probably a cat verses dog thing. I think you don't like dogs because your DNA is mixed with cat DNA and I think Taco doesn't like you because he can sense that," Jesse stated logically.
"Yeah, that might be it," Brennan said with a nod.
"Well, all I know is that I don't like that thing and if it even looks at me in a strange way, I won't hesitate to snap its neck," Shalimar declared as she sent one more death glare Taco's way and then looked away.
"Man, Shal. I don't think I've ever seen you this hostile toward anything before…Well, except maybe Eckhart and his goons," Brennan said with a lopsided grin.
"I agree and it's kind of freaky. I mean, who would want to hurt such a cute little dog?" Emma asked as she patted Taco on the head.
"I would," Shalimar plainly stated.
"Shalimar! Don't be so mean!" Emma scolded.
"Why? Look Emma, I'm tired, I don't feel well, and all I want to do is sleep, but I can't because that damn dog won't keep its mouth shut!" Shalimar replied angrily.
Deciding that the safest thing to do would be to keep Shalimar's wrath directed toward Taco and Emma, Brennan immediately sided with his girlfriend.
"I agree with Shal. Taco's barking is beginning to get annoying. So, can you please try to keep him from doing that?" he asked.
Emma nodded and then let out a sigh. "Alright, I guess I can try," she answered as she looked down at the dog sitting in her lap. "Taco, you have to stop barking, ok?"
Taco gave her his best, big, watery puppy eyes and then he curled up in her lap. Closing his eyes, he seemed to fall asleep almost instantly.
"Thank you, Em," Brennan said with a small smile before he looked over at Shalimar. "You can get some sleep now, Shal," he stated as he got a thankful nod from his girlfriend. Reaching over, he pulled Shalimar down so she had her head in his lap and her legs stretched out the other way. He watched as she closed her eyes and, just as Taco had, fell asleep almost instantly.
She just stood there. Her eyes gleamed with the immense hate that she had for him and her body was tense with the anticipation for the upcoming fight. Why did she despise him so much? She didn't know. All she knew was she that she wanted to snap him in two.
It was then that he made a fatal move that would cost him dearly. He lunged at her. She quickly dodged him and then grabbed him behind his head. In one swift movement, she twisted his head until she heard the satisfying crack of his neck breaking. Letting his dead body drop from her hands, she looked down at him and smiled. Yes, she had killed Taco!!
"Shal? Shal wake up," Brennan said as he gently shook his girlfriend's shoulder.
"Huh?" she muttered as she slowly opened her eyes. She looked up to see Brennan smiling down at her.
"Good dream?" he asked as he helped her sit up.
Shalimar looked confused for a second. "Dream?"
"Yeah, you were dreaming about something. You kept mumbling and then you got a big smile on your face," he replied.
Shalimar glanced toward the front of the car to see Taco still alive and well, sitting in Emma's lap.
"Damn," she muttered to herself. She hadn't killed Taco. It was only a dream.
Brennan gave Shalimar a curious look. "You want to tell me about it?"
"My dream?" she asked, getting a nod from Brennan. "No, that's alright. While it was an extremely good dream, it was kinda stupid."
"Oh, ok," he replied simply.
Shalimar smiled at him. "So, was there a reason that you woke me up or was I just talking too loud in my sleep?"
"Well, actually we're stopping a rest area in a minute or two and I just woke you up so you could go to the bathroom...That's if you need to, of course," he answered with a sheepish grin.
"Well, I'm glad you did," she stated as she leaned over and kissed him gently on the lips.
"Alright, break it up back there," Jesse said as he let out a small laugh. "We're at rest area."
After breaking apart and after Jesse had pulled the car into a parking place, Shalimar reached forward and smacked Jesse on the back of the head.
"Ow! Shalimar, that hurt!" Jesse exclaimed as he rubbed the back of his head.
"You're such a baby," Shalimar said with a giggle.
"Am not!" Jesse declared with a frown.
Hearing the whole little argument, Taco looked away from the window and growled at Shalimar.
"Don't you growl at me or I'll smack you too," Shalimar said as she flashed her feral eyes at the small dog which only made him growl more.
Emma sighed and shook her head. "Can we just get out of the car, please?"
"I second that," Brennan put in as he opened his door and stepped out of the car.
Following his example, the other three and the dog got out of the car as well.
"I'm going to take Taco on a little walk so he can go to the bathroom," Emma declared before she walked away with Taco.
The two guys and Shalimar watched her walk away before heading to the restrooms.
When she was finished in the bathroom, Shalimar walked out feeling a lot better than she had before. She didn't really feel sick anymore and she wasn't tired either. She felt almost great until she spotted Emma standing outside the bathroom door with Taco.
"Shal, I know you hate Taco, but could you watch him really quick while I go to the bathroom?" Emma asked with a hopeful look on her face.
Shalimar let of a huff and then nodded, "Fine, but hurry up. I might not be able to account for my actions if he does anything that bugs me in any way," she replied as she sent a death glare Taco's way, daring him to try anything.
"Ok, I'll be really fast," Emma said as she practically ran into the bathroom.
Shalimar and Taco just stood there glaring at each other.
Brennan and Jesse walked out of the men's bathroom to see them standing there. Brennan put his hand up to stop Jesse from saying anything or from walking over.
"Let's just watch," he whispered as a sly grin spread across his face.
Jesse grinned back and nodded.
It was then that Taco began to growl at Shalimar. His teeth were bared and his eyes were gleaming. He started walking in a circle around Shalimar, like a fierce animal circling its prey; getting ready for the attack.
Shalimar just continued to glare at the small dog.
"What's Taco doing?" Jesse asked Brennan in a hushed voice.
"I don't know, but it reminds me of how Shalimar sometimes circles people before she attacks them," Brennan replied.
"You don't think that Taco would actually take on Shalimar, do you?"
"I don't know, but strangely enough, I wouldn't be surprised if he did."
Just as Brennan said that, Taco suddenly launched himself at Shalimar.
Although she was ready for a fight, Shalimar hadn't anticipated that Taco would actually attack her and she was caught off guard.
As Taco bit down on Shalimar arm, she quickly brought her other hand around and attempted to get him off, but she couldn't. He was clamped on hard.
"Dammit! Get off of me!" Shalimar exclaimed she wrapped her hand around Taco's small throat and began to choke him.
Shocked, the guys stood there for a few seconds watching before Brennan finally snapped out of his daze and ran over to help Shalimar. He grabbed onto Taco and attempted to pull him away from Shalimar's arm.
Finally, Taco let go of Shalimar's arm. Both Brennan and Shalimar let go of the dog and let him drop to the ground, causing him to yelp as he hit the pavement hard.
"What the hell is going on?!!!" Emma exclaimed when she emerged from the bathroom to see Shalimar dropping Taco and to hear him yelp. She immediately ran over to him and picked him up.
Shalimar backed away cradling her injured arm. When she looked up again, she saw that Emma was holding a whimpering Taco in her arms and the two guys were just standing there with shocked looks on their faces.
Emma looked over at Shalimar with a frown on her face. "Shalimar, what the hell is your problem?!" she asked angrily.
"My problem? MY PROBLEM?!!!" Shalimar yelled. "It was your damn dog that bit me!!"
"Well, I'm sure you did something to provoke him!" Emma retorted.
"WHAT?! I didn't do anything!!!!" Emma didn't look like she believed her. "I can't believe that you're siding with that damn dog over one of your best friends! You know what? I don't care. Just…forget it!!" Shalimar declared before she turned around and stormed off towards the car.
Brennan looked at Jesse and then over at Emma before running after Shalimar without saying a word to either of them.
"Shalimar? Shalimar, will you wait up?!" Brennan called after his girlfriend.
"What Brennan? What?!" She replied angrily as she stopped walking and turned around.
Brennan threw his hands up in surrender. "I just wanted to see if you were alright," he said as he pointed to her injured arm.
"I'm fine," Shalimar retorted stubbornly.
Brennan reached over and took Shalimar's arm into his hands so he could examine the wound more closely. "You're not fine," he said with a sigh. "He might be small, but that dog took a pretty big chunk out of your arm. We should probably go to the hospital or something to get it fixed up." When he didn't hear a protest from Shalimar, or actually a reply of any kind, Brennan looked up at her to see that she was staring at the ground with tears in her eyes. "Shal Baby, what's wrong? Does your arm hurt that much?" he asked in concern.
She shook her head. "No, it's not that. It's just…this was supposed to be a vacation, but I've already gotten sick, got bitten by a dog, and have gotten in a fight with Emma all in one day! It's just not fair," she replied as tears began to trickle down her face.
Brennan immediately pulled her into his arms and held her as she cried. When her tears subsided, Brennan opened the car door and sat her down. Then he went around the back of the car and opened the trunk. Pulling out a first aid kit, he walked back to Shalimar and squatted down in front of her.
"After what happened last time, Adam has now stocked all the vehicles with first aid kits," Brennan said with a grin as he began to wrap Shalimar's arm with some gauze and medical tape.
By this time, Emma, Jesse, and Taco had wandered over to car as well.
Looking up at them, Brennan stated, "I think we should take Shal to the hospital. Taco took a pretty big bite out of her arm and she needs to get stitches."
The other two nodded before getting into the car.
Brennan helped Shalimar get all the way into the car and then he slid in next to her. When he felt Shalimar put her head on his shoulder, he gently wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her in close as they drove out of the rest area.
TO BE CONTINUED
(A/N: I hope you all like it so far! Tell me what you think! PLEASE REVIEW!!!)
