Categories > Original > Drama > The Last Goodbye
A/N: I do not own David Cook or the title, "The Last Goodbye" as well as the chapter titles.
THE LAST GOODBYE
CHAPTER FOUR:
I WON'T BE THERE WHEN YOU GET HOME
David walked up the stairs to his apartment and unlocked the door. He was greeted by Dublin.
“Hey, Dublin! How have you been?” he asked him, scratching his back. Dublin stretched and wagged his tail.
Andrew walked into the living room just then. “He's been a terror. He knew you were gone.”
David laughed and scratched Dublin's ears. “Good boy!” David hooked Dublin's leash around his neck and took him out for a walk. As he was using the bathroom, David looked around absentmindedly at his surroundings. He felt a slight tug on the end of the leash and looked over at Dublin. He was busy smelling Jayde's puppy.
“Hey!” she called out to him. She jogged over to him with her puppy in tow.
“Hey,” he said to her. His heart started beating really fast.
As they stood there talking to each other, Dublin went over and began smelling her puppy. He wagged his tail and deemed him friendly. “I think Dublin likes your puppy,” he told her. “I'm going to take him back home before anything... happens.” He tugged on Dublin's leash, and he didn't budge. David shifted his weight.
“Well, my puppy is a girl, so... yeah that might be best,” she told him. As she picked up her puppy, she watched as David picked up Dublin and walked away with him in his arms. As she turned away, she saw her puppy sniffing around to find a spot to pee.
“No, not there... Ahh...” she said. She waited as her puppy did her business and trotted off. She felt someone walk up behind her and she jumped. She turned around and saw David there.
“I'm sorry, I just... maybe we can get together sometime and let the dogs run together?” he asked her. He looked at her and felt a warm blush creeping across his face.
“Um, sure. Where would you like to meet?” she asked him.
“How about a dog park or something like that?” he asked her. She wrote down the location of the nearest dog park and handed it to him.
“This is the closest dog park to here; meet me later, 'kay?” she said.
“Okay,” he told her. He stared at the address on the slip of paper. “Wait, what time?” he hollered after her as she walked away.
“Maybe tomorrow?” she yelled back. She waved at David and left with her puppy. He chewed on his lip.
“Yeah... sure thing,” he said quietly. He tugged on Dublin's leash. “C'mon, boy! Time to go!”
When he got back, he noticed Andrew was rearranging their rented furniture to make it look like David's house back in L.A. He had left the television where it was, but was moving the couch and the armchairs around the living room like they were in a game of literal musical chairs. He turned to look at David and asked, “Help me?”
David set Dublin down and walked over to help his brother move the biggest armchair over by the window. The very first day David and Andrew arrived, they both sat down in the chair at the same time and laughed at the joke that the chair was big enough to seat them both. When David leaned back up, he rested his arms on the right arm of the chair. “I have another date with Jayde tomorrow,” he told Andrew.
“Huh,” his brother said. He leaned up and had some of Dublin's toys in his arms. “These were under the chair.”
David grabbed them. He picked out one that Dublin specially liked, a squeaky frog, and started squeaking it. Dublin came running with one of his treats still in his mouth. David squeaked the frog three times and tossed it toward his and Andrew's bedrooms. Dublin skidded and ran after it, dropping his treat.
“He needs another squeaky frog,” David said to himself. He wrote it down on a piece of paper. “He also needs some more dog food and treats...”
“Dude, you're in the zone! Snap out of it!” Andrew told him.
“I am not in the zone! I'm writing down stuff Dublin needs!” David sighed. He wrote down some more things he needed and headed out the door.
“Where are you going?” Andrew called after him.
“I'm heading to the store. I have to get some things for both us and Dublin,” David replied. He felt of his pockets to make sure he still had his wallet and phone. “You need anything? I have a list for Dublin; we can make our own list.”
“Yeah, we need things. Beer, chips, sandwich items...” Andrew rattled off.
“Bread and eggs, too. Hot dogs and buns?” David said as he scribbled out the list.
Andrew looked at the list while David was holding it. They thought over some of the things they might need and thought they were good.
“I'm adding orange juice and milk and cereal,” David remembered. He wrote them down and grabbed both lists.
“I'll come with you; with both of us it might get done quicker,” Andrew said. He ran to his room and grabbed his wallet and his phone. “Okay. Let's go, and be done with the grocery shopping for now.”
They headed downstairs and walked past the Chinese restaurant. The smells of sesame chicken and soy sauce wafted over toward them. David looked over at Andrew and noticed he was drooling just a bit.
“Stop that. It's disgusting and noticeable,” David hissed at him. Andrew quickly wiped his mouth and kept walking.
When they walked outside, David noticed it was drizzling. “We're going to have to hurry if we want to make it back before it starts pouring down rain.”
“Let me go back upstairs and get an umbrella and the rental car keys,” Andrew said. He turned around and hurried up the stairs.
David sighed and stepped inside the Chinese restaurant to wait on him. He noticed that at some point in the confusion, he had gotten a new text message from Jayde.
“Didn't you tell me you're staying in the apartment above the Chinese restaurant?” she had sent him.
David hurriedly messaged her back: “Yeah. Just my brother and I; some of my friends came out here with us and we're scattered all over Monroeville.” He pressed 'SEND' and waited anxiously for her reply. He looked at the time on the text and realized it was sent over an hour ago; he cursed himself for not noticing it before he sent the reply.
“I'm back,” Andrew told him. “I had to search for an umbrella; I couldn't find one!”
“Did you look under the table by the door?” David asked him innocently enough.
“Everywhere. I grabbed the big red one and the car keys.” Andrew tossed him the keys but kept the umbrella. “I'll carry the umbrella.”
David hung his head and made a stabbing motion with the keys. “Let's hurry and go before I kill you.”
As they walked toward the side parking lot where their rental car was, the drizzle became a steady rain. “Hurry!” Andrew told David. They began jogging toward the cherry red Chevrolet in a far corner. The second they got in and slammed the doors, rain began pouring down; it was like God had opened the floodgates of Heaven.
“Next time, park a little farther away, Andrew, eh?” David asked him jokingly. Andrew smirked.
“Okay, so we're here...” Andrew said, looking at a map on his iPhone, “...and here's the closest Wal-Mart.” He pointed at a little blue pin that had dropped out of nowhere on his iPhone.
“So let's go,” David told him. Suddenly his phone beeped, signaling a new voicemail. He grabbed his phone and listened to it.
“Hey David, I, uh... just went upstairs to your place and no one's there? I guess you and your brother are still settling in, out getting things you need and such. Just text me back or call me when you get this alright? Bye.” He listened as Jayde's nervous voice left him a voicemail. He waited until the message was over and sent her a text back: “Sorry, I didn't know you had called. My brother and I are going out grocery shopping and we had probably just left when you came by. We'll be back soon, though, I promise.”
“Texting your girlfriend?” Andrew guessed, looking over David's shoulder at the message.
“She's not my girlfriend,” David said. He was smiling.
THE LAST GOODBYE
CHAPTER FOUR:
I WON'T BE THERE WHEN YOU GET HOME
David walked up the stairs to his apartment and unlocked the door. He was greeted by Dublin.
“Hey, Dublin! How have you been?” he asked him, scratching his back. Dublin stretched and wagged his tail.
Andrew walked into the living room just then. “He's been a terror. He knew you were gone.”
David laughed and scratched Dublin's ears. “Good boy!” David hooked Dublin's leash around his neck and took him out for a walk. As he was using the bathroom, David looked around absentmindedly at his surroundings. He felt a slight tug on the end of the leash and looked over at Dublin. He was busy smelling Jayde's puppy.
“Hey!” she called out to him. She jogged over to him with her puppy in tow.
“Hey,” he said to her. His heart started beating really fast.
As they stood there talking to each other, Dublin went over and began smelling her puppy. He wagged his tail and deemed him friendly. “I think Dublin likes your puppy,” he told her. “I'm going to take him back home before anything... happens.” He tugged on Dublin's leash, and he didn't budge. David shifted his weight.
“Well, my puppy is a girl, so... yeah that might be best,” she told him. As she picked up her puppy, she watched as David picked up Dublin and walked away with him in his arms. As she turned away, she saw her puppy sniffing around to find a spot to pee.
“No, not there... Ahh...” she said. She waited as her puppy did her business and trotted off. She felt someone walk up behind her and she jumped. She turned around and saw David there.
“I'm sorry, I just... maybe we can get together sometime and let the dogs run together?” he asked her. He looked at her and felt a warm blush creeping across his face.
“Um, sure. Where would you like to meet?” she asked him.
“How about a dog park or something like that?” he asked her. She wrote down the location of the nearest dog park and handed it to him.
“This is the closest dog park to here; meet me later, 'kay?” she said.
“Okay,” he told her. He stared at the address on the slip of paper. “Wait, what time?” he hollered after her as she walked away.
“Maybe tomorrow?” she yelled back. She waved at David and left with her puppy. He chewed on his lip.
“Yeah... sure thing,” he said quietly. He tugged on Dublin's leash. “C'mon, boy! Time to go!”
When he got back, he noticed Andrew was rearranging their rented furniture to make it look like David's house back in L.A. He had left the television where it was, but was moving the couch and the armchairs around the living room like they were in a game of literal musical chairs. He turned to look at David and asked, “Help me?”
David set Dublin down and walked over to help his brother move the biggest armchair over by the window. The very first day David and Andrew arrived, they both sat down in the chair at the same time and laughed at the joke that the chair was big enough to seat them both. When David leaned back up, he rested his arms on the right arm of the chair. “I have another date with Jayde tomorrow,” he told Andrew.
“Huh,” his brother said. He leaned up and had some of Dublin's toys in his arms. “These were under the chair.”
David grabbed them. He picked out one that Dublin specially liked, a squeaky frog, and started squeaking it. Dublin came running with one of his treats still in his mouth. David squeaked the frog three times and tossed it toward his and Andrew's bedrooms. Dublin skidded and ran after it, dropping his treat.
“He needs another squeaky frog,” David said to himself. He wrote it down on a piece of paper. “He also needs some more dog food and treats...”
“Dude, you're in the zone! Snap out of it!” Andrew told him.
“I am not in the zone! I'm writing down stuff Dublin needs!” David sighed. He wrote down some more things he needed and headed out the door.
“Where are you going?” Andrew called after him.
“I'm heading to the store. I have to get some things for both us and Dublin,” David replied. He felt of his pockets to make sure he still had his wallet and phone. “You need anything? I have a list for Dublin; we can make our own list.”
“Yeah, we need things. Beer, chips, sandwich items...” Andrew rattled off.
“Bread and eggs, too. Hot dogs and buns?” David said as he scribbled out the list.
Andrew looked at the list while David was holding it. They thought over some of the things they might need and thought they were good.
“I'm adding orange juice and milk and cereal,” David remembered. He wrote them down and grabbed both lists.
“I'll come with you; with both of us it might get done quicker,” Andrew said. He ran to his room and grabbed his wallet and his phone. “Okay. Let's go, and be done with the grocery shopping for now.”
They headed downstairs and walked past the Chinese restaurant. The smells of sesame chicken and soy sauce wafted over toward them. David looked over at Andrew and noticed he was drooling just a bit.
“Stop that. It's disgusting and noticeable,” David hissed at him. Andrew quickly wiped his mouth and kept walking.
When they walked outside, David noticed it was drizzling. “We're going to have to hurry if we want to make it back before it starts pouring down rain.”
“Let me go back upstairs and get an umbrella and the rental car keys,” Andrew said. He turned around and hurried up the stairs.
David sighed and stepped inside the Chinese restaurant to wait on him. He noticed that at some point in the confusion, he had gotten a new text message from Jayde.
“Didn't you tell me you're staying in the apartment above the Chinese restaurant?” she had sent him.
David hurriedly messaged her back: “Yeah. Just my brother and I; some of my friends came out here with us and we're scattered all over Monroeville.” He pressed 'SEND' and waited anxiously for her reply. He looked at the time on the text and realized it was sent over an hour ago; he cursed himself for not noticing it before he sent the reply.
“I'm back,” Andrew told him. “I had to search for an umbrella; I couldn't find one!”
“Did you look under the table by the door?” David asked him innocently enough.
“Everywhere. I grabbed the big red one and the car keys.” Andrew tossed him the keys but kept the umbrella. “I'll carry the umbrella.”
David hung his head and made a stabbing motion with the keys. “Let's hurry and go before I kill you.”
As they walked toward the side parking lot where their rental car was, the drizzle became a steady rain. “Hurry!” Andrew told David. They began jogging toward the cherry red Chevrolet in a far corner. The second they got in and slammed the doors, rain began pouring down; it was like God had opened the floodgates of Heaven.
“Next time, park a little farther away, Andrew, eh?” David asked him jokingly. Andrew smirked.
“Okay, so we're here...” Andrew said, looking at a map on his iPhone, “...and here's the closest Wal-Mart.” He pointed at a little blue pin that had dropped out of nowhere on his iPhone.
“So let's go,” David told him. Suddenly his phone beeped, signaling a new voicemail. He grabbed his phone and listened to it.
“Hey David, I, uh... just went upstairs to your place and no one's there? I guess you and your brother are still settling in, out getting things you need and such. Just text me back or call me when you get this alright? Bye.” He listened as Jayde's nervous voice left him a voicemail. He waited until the message was over and sent her a text back: “Sorry, I didn't know you had called. My brother and I are going out grocery shopping and we had probably just left when you came by. We'll be back soon, though, I promise.”
“Texting your girlfriend?” Andrew guessed, looking over David's shoulder at the message.
“She's not my girlfriend,” David said. He was smiling.
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