Dreamscape

Sit, Stay

Effay sped across the beach in pursuit of a stick flying overhead. The crashing waves ensured most ears rested easy like down feather pillows while the sun gave life to the breeze in creation of a warm, perpetual hug. Seagulls glided above and below kites of many shapes and sizes under the cloud patched blue tapestry. Effay's friends and their owners spread out along the sands and waters until the incandescent sunset scattered purples, reds, oranges, and yellow lights throughout the clouds. It was the longest Effay ever spent on the beach; his closest friend and owners returned him to his family and collected their babysitting payment.

Later that night, Effay's dreams were filled with running at exaggerated speeds surrounded by friends and his favorite master of the family through beaches and waters. He could run instead of swimming on the water, and the other dogs he knew since puppyhood ran alongside the chase of a stick and back to the master who threw it. The master then gave Effay a rare hug before his dream's end.

The next day, Effay's family minus two of the younger members took a trip to a place he never been to, and his favorite member smelled and looked upset. The others shared none of these, and took Effay to a woman behind a desk. His favorite constantly petting and scratching his ears, gave two last commands while the woman leashed his collar.

"Sit." Effay sat down beside the desk. "Stay." Effay tilted his head as he glanced to the others who already left for the car, then back to his favorite. Tears hit the floor, and Effay embraced one last hug from his favorite before getting tugged into a hallway by the women who lead him into a cage.

Effay got used to being away from his family, though he grew to miss his favorite master the most in such times. It wasn't until after the second week He grew anxious. Effay's dreams helped him remain calm, but the longer he remained in the cage, the less assured he became that his family would come back for him. None of the other dogs seemed to care much for each other's company, for many left and others replaced them. One night, Effay's dream took him back to the beach where his favorite master told him something he never heard before.

"It's not your fault. You're a good boy." Said his favorite as the struggle to hold tears back took up half the dream. Effay's responding whimpers didn't help. A month later, Effay's new master picked him up. She retaught Effay simple commands, and two in particular brought renewed pangs of sadness.

"Sit." Reluctantly, Effay sat as his new master walked away three paces. Effay immediately sat up and followed her. "Stay." Effay stopped, but remained standing as she stepped away again. She turned around to an almost whimpering Effay. "Maybe I should've asked if you have separation anxiety." She said in slight concern. The fear was dismissed after a week in times she left their home and came back to the well behaved dog, but soon replaced with another confusing one when she took him to a park. Effay obeyed all but one of her commands, and set her questioning why Effay would obey the 'stay' command at home, but not outside. That night she had a mostly forgotten dream where Effay was thrown outside a window beside what appeared to be a dumpster. A person tried and failed to grab at the dog before it landed on the ground feet first. The garbage man gently picked Effay up, and drove away before it rain clouds blocked out the sun.

"It kind of makes sense, is that what happened to you?" Effay's new owner asked after explaining the dream to him. He softly barked in response; Effay didn't understand most of the words she said. She proceeded to give him a hug before someone knocked at the door.

"Connie?" A voice asked.

"Yes I am." Replied Connie. Effay hadn't learned his new owner's name up until now.

"Sign here." Said the voice. A hand then gave Connie a package.

"Open it, go ahead. Open it." Connie said repeatedly as she gave the package to Effay. He bit the package open to find a chew toy inside. From then on a new toy marked the following months after his adoption. For two more years Effay enjoyed the company of his last owner. In the third, he fell sick and died. A month after Effay's passing, Connie received one last package she forgot she ordered the month before.

"I'm glad I got to know you." Connie mouthed to a space where Effay would've been sitting in this day. That night Connie's thoughts sparked one more train of thought renewed by the package into Effay's memory. That night, she found herself walking along a beach she hasn't been to among kites flying in numbers she hasn't seen. Effay came running to her with what looked like a smile in his face. Connie knelt down and hugged him while calls from seagulls sounded in the background.

"You're a good girl." Connie seemed to hear Effay say. "Sit," Effay licked Connie's face as lovingly as she remembered. "Stay," Effay put one of his paws on her shoulder and barked.

"He was a good dog. He was lucky to have you." Said a seemingly younger person a few paces away. Connie stood up and tried to commit the new face to memory, and would later fail. "He would've wanted you to be happy again, and so you will again soon." Said the stranger, who then picked a stick up and threw it towards the ocean.

"Sit," Effay seemed to have said again, though he didn't enjoy saying it. Connie knelt back down and gave Effay one last hug. "Stay," Effay half whimpered, half barked, but his face wasn't one of sadness. Effay then turned around and ran on top of the ocean and into the horizon after the flying stick. Other dogs Connie wouldn't have recognized joined him in the run. A soft classical song played in the background, and rose in volume. Soon, it woke Connie up as the gradually increasingly loud song played on from her phone. She soon forgotten what the stranger's face looked like along with most of the other dogs; she liked to think it was Effay's previous owner, and reasoned that the other dogs joined him because she often entertained thoughts of getting more dogs to keep Effay company.

"He's happy he joined his friends, if that's what you're thinking." Rachel commented since she couldn't directly read minds. It's been a while since Rachel last seen the dog herself, so it joyed her in creating this dream of Effay's favorite beach because she loved it ever since she saw it, and further more in sharing it with Connie.