Chapter 5 Emotions
They found lodgings on a side street and Bogg left to bring back some food, while Jeff stayed with the puppy.
Jeff put the pup down in a corner and walked across the room and sat on one of the beds. "Okay, I'll feed you and let you sleep here, but that's all," he said aloud to the puppy in a harsh voice. The puppy laid down and looked at him. Jeff looked away, and suddenly an image of his Aunt Elizabeth appeared in his mind. He heard his own thoughts from somewhere deep inside, "she gave me food and shelter, but she never hugged me...", and suddenly tears were streaming down his face. He was surprised by the strength of the emotions he was feeling. Where had all this come from all of a sudden?
The puppy cried and took one hesitant step towards Jeffrey, then it stood looking at him. Jeff sat in silence, staring at it for another few seconds, then went to sit on the floor beside the dog, and cuddled it as tears trickled silently down his cheeks. "I'm not like Aunt Elizabeth," he thought, "I'm me, and right now I need to take care of this puppy."
Phineas placed the bag of food on the bench in the small plaza across from their lodgings and sat down. He wanted to give Jeffrey as much time as possible alone with the dog. Sometimes animals could communicate better without words, than people could with words. He was fairly sure that Jeffrey would warm up to the puppy and maybe even talk to it. Maybe it would help him deal with whatever was wrong. He sighed and looked up at the sky wishing he knew what was bothering Jeff.
Inside their room, Jeff had moved up onto the bed and was lying with the dog beside him. He was tired, and the puppy seemed to need a nap too. He didn't hear the door open as Phineas entered quietly. He smiled as he spread a blanket over Jeff and the pup.