Thomas
** ** Ft. 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘰 & 𝘮𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘯ö𝘦.

*"We don't mess with strange people- oh. Hey."*
Patricia
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`With the now settled quiet, she continued her detail work on her piece with blissful unawareness of her surroundings.`
Paul
** ** 𝐇𝐎𝐖 𝐋𝐀𝐓𝐄 𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐀𝐘 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐓𝐎𝐎 𝐋𝐀𝐓𝐄? Was it when the sun went down or was it when the stars came from the clouds? When the moon shone round or the birds stopped exchanging gossip? Or was it when traffic slowed to a trickle and cars filled driveways? When porch lights flickered to life and curfew bells were rang? *How late in the day was too late?*

** ** The crunch of battered sneakers on pavement echoed off the brick wall lining the park trail. Matteo couldn't remember the last time that he'd been on it. It'd been a year or so; maybe two if he was being close to exact. The last time he'd seen it, the branches had been brittle and the leaves had been dried. They'd been riddled by holes, brittle and dead in the fall. Now, they were lively, singing the call of summer. 

** ** Eyes raised heavenward, Matteo slowed to a jog before halting completely, hands meeting his knees and back relaxing as he doubled over. Three hours. They'd been at this for three hours. The german shepherd in front of him leading the way, and him following with no choice. Now, as they stalled, the dog snuffled at a nearby patch of wilted grass, tail wagging slowly as if he'd somehow managed to find himself treasure. Through the fluffy coverage of overgrown hair, Matteo watched, jaw set. "Fang. Let's go, man, I've got work tonight." 
_ _

** ** It wasn't as if the dog could hear complaints. If he had, he certainly didn't care. Lifting its head, the shepherd tugged at the leash, trotting off towards the center of the path. *Resume.* Three hours, and yet, to the dog, it probably felt like ten seconds. Matteo tossed a look over his shoulder, free hand popping up the wrinkled folds of his hood. He didn't mind being outside in the evening. It was peaceful; just the hum of crickets unseen and the faint chirps of birds who'd yet to silence themselves. Just the sun as it slowly sank, shadows yawning like spilled ink across the cooling sidewalk. Again, Fang yanked, and Matteo finally complied, straightening up and following the dog. It was decided in his mind already- at the end of the trail, they'd turn off at the streetlight and head home. He had a late night booking today. They weren't the usual deal that he was accustomed to, but it was an old friend. An extra bill or two in his wallet sounded nice to him. Jamming his hand into his hoodie pocket, Matteo stepped off into the brush of grass at the edge of the trail as a cyclist rode by, old bell crowing a hello and goodbye as the man rode off. People were packing up to go home. 

** ** That should have been him.
_ _

** ** "Fang. Let's go, boy. We can come back around this trail tomorrow, yeah? Spend all the time in the world you want here." It was a promise. One he intended to keep. *Honestly.* And yet, it appeared as if it wasn't reciprocated. One second, he was a dog owner. The next? He was an owner quite alright, yet he lacked the most important feature that made him an owner. *The dog.* In the slim scrap of time that he'd been distracted, Matteo had allowed his hold on his dog's leash to go slack. With that given opportunity, Fang had bounded off after the departing bicycle, investigation mode in full effect. Matteo blinked, flexing his poised fingers as he realized that they now held nothing. Had this been a cartoon, he was sure that there would've been a question mark and a dotted outline of his missing dog right where the shepherd had been just a moment ago. 

** ** "Fang?" Whipping his head to the side, he followed the dragging leash cuff on the ground. "Fang!" And just like that? The chase was on again. Matteo bit the inside of his cheek and tore after the canine, hair dancing on his forehead as he hopped a fire hydrant and side stepped a rather upset looking Karen. She didn't get her chance to shout- *Neither did he.* The moment Matteo broke from underneath the makeshift canopy of the trail, he watched as Fang bounded up to a stranger at a bench. There, just a few paces ahead, the cyclist rode off, but Fang had lost interest. Matteo groaned beneath his breath as he watched the now confused dog turn to the stranger, panting as he tilted his head to stare at the unfamiliar face.
_ _

** ** This could go one of two ways.

** ** Fang bit the stranger and Matteo dealt with the expensive aftermath.

** ** *Or-*

** ** He got there and intervened in time. For his sake, he sincerely hoped the latter of the two options was the outcome.

** ** "Fang! Cmere, dude! What's the matter with you? We don't mess with strange people-" Breathless, Matteo finally caught up, hand diving to snatch the end of the leash and wrap it in his hand. Straightening up, he side eyed the lady at the bench, chest heaving. "Oh. Hey. Sorry about that, he was following that bike." He didn't really know why; it looked tacky. "Are you okay? I don't know if he bit you or not." Just in case, he was already preparing a spiel to defend himself and explain why he couldn't and *Shouldn't* Be sued. What would she take; the ten dollar bill in his back pocket?

** ** ( ||