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Jasmine
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Oh, my god!! It’s her! I thought I saw her from a distance but wouldn’t believe it was her until I got closer. That damn Coco! This woman was going to think I’m some kind of nut who can’t control her dog. I swear, that dog insisted on saying ‘hello’ to everybody and made me look foolish. She just took off running... again. I couldn’t have caught her if I tried, and Lord knows I did. Who knows why Coco was chasing her but whatever the reason, Coco was as close to her as I wanted to be.
Damn! I felt an intense tingling sensation radiating down my spine. Breathe, Jasmine, speak slowly and clearly. “Enunciate your words,” I heard my aunt saying in my head. I tried to be cool, I didn’t want to seem too interested and I certainly didn’t want her to think I was desperate for attention.
“Well, hello?! I would say funny running into you again, but somehow the look on your face doesn’t make me believe this reunion has been pleasurable,” I said, trying unsuccessfully not to laugh as the look of fear slowly disappeared from her face. Was she really that afraid of dogs? This might not be a good thing. I thought the three of us had established a nice rapport the first time we met. But dogs can really sense good and not so good people. I have tried hard to give most people the benefit of the doubt, but dogs can tell. I have always trusted Coco’s instincts and because of that, she’s kept me out of a few situations that I would rather not think about.
Coco patiently waited for her head to be rubbed or at least some acknowledgement from my mystery woman. She slowly reached out to rub Coco, but Coco, who was so impatient, jumped up at her. “Hey!” She screamed—lost her mack and everything—and jumped back.
“She didn’t do so well in obedience class... the instructor said she anticipated the commands,” I rambled, trying to explain my dog’s excitement.
“You don’t say?” she said sarcastically, seeming not to notice that I cared that Coco and I were not making a good impression.
I decided to stop talking, smiled, and attempted to gracefully walk away. I had lost every cool point that I was born with, so I pulled Coco and turned to leave. Why was I getting so worked up, and why did her opinion matter? I didn’t know this woman from Eve, but she had certainly been on my mind these last few weeks. The voices in my head were having a good laugh. This scene looked like something from a bad romantic comedy. Oh, what the hell.
“Since first impressions, or second impressions in our case, are lasting unfortunately, at least tell me your name. That way I can refer to you correctly as the one who got away,” I said laughing.