Zoo Breath (8 page)

Streak liked her bath so much she wouldn’t leave the pool. I had to lift her out. She shook herself off all over us, but who cared? We were already soaked.

Julio sniffed Streak. “Still stinks.”

“That’s just wet dog smell,” I said. “Whenever she comes out of the river she smells like that.”

Streak rolled around in the grass. Luckily, it was the clean part. She pretty much did her business in one area of the yard.

“Come eat!” Stella called from the house. We went in through the garage to the kitchen, the one place Streak could go in the house.

Mom and Stella were taking food out to the table, which was in the living room.

“Where’d Ledward go?” I asked.

“He’ll be back in time for dessert. He had to run Blackie home. And he has to feed his dogs.”

Ledward had a pig and four dogs. He must have to scoop poop, too, I thought. I hoped he had more than a shovel. Maybe a bulldozer.

“Yuck!” Stella snapped. “What stinks?”

I glanced at Streak. I sort of smelled something, too.

Mom looked at us.

Julio took a step away. “I think she got into something after the bath.”

Stella gagged, going for drama. “That’s putrid. What
is
it?”

Mom pointed toward the door. “Take her out. Now!”

I snapped to it. “Come on, girl. I’ll bring you your dinner.”

I opened the door to the garage and nudged Streak out.

Me and Julio followed. I flipped on the garage light. It was getting dark.

“Man!” I said. “She rolled in something. Dead toad?”

Julio bent close.

“Yeah, prob’ly.”

“Dang things are everywhere. We got to hose her off.”

I looked at Streak. “You have to get clean and stay clean, girl. Mom is going to make me give you back, and if she does that … well, I’m just going to have to … to … run away, that’s all. You and me both.”

Streak gave me that look dogs give you when they know they’ve done something bad.

I squatted to pet her head. “I know, I know. You can’t help it.”

Streak licked my hand.

Julio squirted us both with the hose.

A
fter Ledward had come back for dessert, the phone rang.

I grabbed it. “Hello?”

“Calvin?”

Dad.

I stretched the phone cord around the
kitchen corner and sat on the floor by our dining room table. Darci and Julio were watching TV. Stella had gone somewhere with her boyfriend, Clarence. Mom and Ledward were sitting in the dark out on the patio.

I looked at the dirt under my fingernails, as if what I was supposed to say might be hidden there.

“Calvin? Is that you?”

“Uh … yeah … I’m here.”

I twisted the mangled phone cord around my fingers.

“Well, how the heck are you, son? We haven’t spoken in ages, and … well, I guess that’s mostly my fault, huh? But you know how busy I’ve been at the club, and all.”

Think, think.

“Yeah … sure,” I said. In the background I heard a yap. My blank head filled with memories. “Was that Chewy?”

“Sure was. Want to say hi?”

“Yeah, Dad, put the phone by his ear.”

“Hang on.” I could hear Dad calling Chewy over. Dad fumbled with the phone, then said, “Go ahead. He’s listening.”

“Chewy!” I said. “How’s it going, boy? You miss me?”

There was a soft whine and some breathing.

“Yeah, boy, I miss you, too,” I said. “You like Las Vegas?”

Chewy barked, and Dad laughed.

“What are you doing, sweetie?” I heard someone in the background say. Marissa? Dad’s wife?

“It’s Calvin,” Dad said. “He’s talking to Chewy.”

“Oh, how sweet,” she said.

Dad took the phone back. “You made Chewy’s day, Calvin. I haven’t seen him this excited in a long time.”

“I found his toothpaste.”

“Huh?”

“Chewy’s toothpaste. I found it under the sink. And his old dog shampoo. Remember?”

Dad laughed. “Your mother should have thrown that stuff out years ago.”

“I have a dog now. Her name is Streak.”

“That’s great, Calvin. Great name, too. What kind of a dog is it?”

“Poi dog … you know, a mix. She’s bigger than Chewy. She’s black and white, and the best dog ever … like Chewy is.”

Dad chuckled. “Guess you and I are pretty lucky, huh?”

“Yeah.”

Dad covered the phone and mumbled something to Marissa. “I’ll be quick,” he said, taking his hand away. “Hey, listen, I got to run in a sec. I just wanted to hear your voice and see how you’re doing.”

“I’m fine, Dad.”

“Great! Well, gotta run. We’ll talk again soon. I’ll call. You take good care of that dog, now.”

“I will. You want to talk to Darci?”

“We talked earlier.”

“Okay.”

“Mind your mom and stay cool, bud. I’m thinking of you.”

“Sure, Dad. Bye.”

He started talking to Marissa before he hung up. I sat looking at the phone. Hearing Chewy, hearing Dad. I hadn’t even known I’d missed them. But I sure did now.

When I put the phone back in the kitchen I saw Mom and Ledward on the patio. Mom waved for me to come out. I slid open the screen door, then quickly shut it to keep the mosquitoes out.

“Was that who I think it was?” Mom asked.

“Yeah.”

Mom nodded. “Did you have a good talk?”

“I guess.”

I looked down. I could feel grains of sand under my bare feet on the polished cement
patio. You couldn’t get away from sand. Even after Ledward swept.

I’d hardly talked to Dad at all, and Mom knew it.

“I talked to Chewy,” I said, looking up.

Mom sighed. “At least there was that, then.”

“Yeah, but … Julio’s here, and …”

“Go on, Cal. I’m just glad he called.”

I nodded and left.

I
always slept on the top bunk, so Julio took the bottom, which was usually Streak’s bed. That was why Julio brought his sleeping bag. Who wanted to sleep in dog fuzz?

Streak curled up on the floor.

Julio pushed up on my mattress with his
feet. “Hey. So what are we doing about the project? We need a good thought.”

“I don’t even have a bad one.”

“Yeah, but we got some examples to show there’s stinks worse than dog breath, ah?”

“Well, yeah … but what do we have to show for it? I mean like props.”

“We should have collected them.”

I leaned over the edge of my bunk. “Collected stinks?”

“That’s our project, right?”

“Yeah, but … collect
stinks?”

“What you going use that jar on your desk for?”

“I don’t know. I just saved it, is all.”

“Good. We can use it.”

“For what?”

He was silent a minute. “Dog doo could be one example.” Julio kicked me through the mattress again.

“Stop
doing
that!”

Julio laughed. “It would be a good prop,
ah? Am I right? Nobody would forget it.”

I had to admit Julio was right. But if we brought dog doo in a jar to class we’d get sent to the principal’s office. For sure.

Still. “I guess it would be good to have examples.”

“Everyone will have them, prob’ly.”