An:// my grandma passed yesterday and was sick for the past week so that's why my updates have been so infrequent. I've been working on my writing as it comes. Please bear with me during this time//

I felt a pleasant surprise overtake me as I stepped into the dusky building that seemed eerie from the outside. The ambiance of the inside decor did not match its decaying exterior. A woman sat at the front desk with a smile on her face that she sent in our direction. I felt relaxed by her smile as she beckoned towards the three of us to step forward.

"You're going to love the pit. It's my favorite place of all time. Plus you will get to meet Denver and Rocky. I'm so excited", Valerie stated in a soft tone next to me excitedly. She reached out to grab my hand as she pushed towards the front desk receptionist.

"Valerie, Nixon. The usual?", she asked. I looked at the flowers on the front desk with wonder in my gaze. The beautifully vibrant blue flower made her office seem brighter. I wanted to capture the flowers beauty with my paint brush at a later point. "Your friend has to sign in. The boys will be right in the back waiting for you", she said cheerily.

"Thanks Sharon", Nixon said in a kind tone. It seemed like Nixon treated a majority of the people around him with kindness. Even when he spoke to Valerie he was only teasing her in a brotherly manner. When it came to me he meant every unkind word that he directed my way.

"Fill this out before you go in", The blonde woman stated as she handed me a form. It was a consent form but I didn't understand the reason I needed to consent. I filled it out anyway because I was curious to see what Nixon and Valerie kept talking about. The woman took my form then buzzed the door open to let us through.

"The boys are playing outside. They're going to be so excited to see you", Sharon stated excitedly. I stayed next to Valerie as we walked down a long corridor towards our destination. There was nothing on the walls that give away details about that location but I felt my heart pumping rapidly in my chest. Suddenly a door opened so that we were in a special room with different types of toys littering the floor.

I stepped into the room after a very eager Valerie who practically jumped inside. I stood behind Valerie as two massive Bulldogs ran this way. The smaller bulldog ran up to Valerie with its tail wagging excitedly. Valerie embraced the dog by patting it tenderly on the ears as it jumped up to lick her. I knew instantly that the dog she pet was Denver.

The other bulldog who was definitely Rocky barreled down the room towards this direction at full speed. There was nowhere for me to hide from the massive dog as he rushed across the room. Nixon stepped forward to meet the dog but Rocky had set his sights on me. Next thing I knew I was on the floor being stared down by the massive dog. Despite his domineering build I wasn't afraid of him at all.

I used to have a spunky boxer who brought joy to everyone she met. I remembered my father standing in the front door with a box in his hand. 'Gabby I have something for you' he said with a smile on his face. In the box was a baby boxer with a ribbon tied around its neck. I thought It was the cutest little puppy I ever saw in my life at that time. I remembered scooping the puppy up into my arms thinking about the time we would spend together.

One day the darkness came that took away everything I loved without mercy. It was too painful to think about that dog so I buried all my thoughts of Sally in the back of my mind. The memories were so triggering that every time I thought about the past an intense headache formed leaving me debilitated.

"Don't move Rowen. Rocky is rough sometimes", Valerie stated as she looked at the both of us nervously. I stared at the big dog in front of me that reminded of my little Sally. Instead of scaring me, Rocky started leaving wet sloppy kisses on my cheek. He began to thump his tail loudly on the carpeting as I ruffled my hands through his fur affectionately.

"Aren't you a cute little pup" I said as I pet his ears tenderly. The bull dog basked in my touch by rubbing his ears against my head for more attention. Suddenly Rocky bounded away from the area to grab something off the floor. He came back with a Frisbee in his teeth that he dropped by my feet. I grabbed the Frisbee in my hand tossing it out for him to chase. I turned around to see both Nixon and Valerie watching me with open mouthed expressions. "What? Did I do something wrong?", I asked as I stood there waiting for Rocky to return.

"Rocky doesn't like strangers", Nixon stated. The dog bounded towards me with the Frisbee again. His tongue lolled around in his mouth as he sat panting by my feet. He dropped the Frisbee looking up expectantly into my eyes. "Traitor", Nixon said as he grabbed the Frisbee from the floor. Nixon took Rocky off to play on the other side of the room in a sulky manner. It wasn't my fault that Rocky wanted to play with me.

I watched Nixon intrigued as he played alongside the enormous bull dog. The affectionate nature that Nixon showed Rocky made me feel even more confused about my opinion of Nixon. The Nixon that I knew kept walls a mile high to keep himself closed off from the people around him. Nixon was hot and cold at the turn of a hat which left me wondering which one was the true Nixon. Heck, just before I thought that Nixon was incapable of loving someone unconditionally. As I watched them interact I saw that unconditional love shining in his eyes. I realized than that Valerie stopped playing with Denver to watch me gaze towards Nixon.

"Rocky is usually afraid of people because of the way he was treated as a pup. Nixon is the same way towards others so they're like kindred souls", she explained interrupting my staring session. "If Rocky likes you then Nixon will soon follow:", Valerie said as she nudged my side suggestively. I shook my head at her consistently sly teasing to glance towards Nixon and Rocky once more. I felt a blush marring my pale skin as I thought about Nixon as someone that would become closer to me.

"I don't think so Valerie. I need more convincing than that to believe we will become friends", I told her honestly. I turned away from the interaction between dog and boy to focus on hanging out with Valerie and Denver. "How about we focus on this cute little pup right here", I said to Valerie as I grabbed a nearby toy to toss in Denver's direction.

Denver was a much smaller bull dog with a playful nature that seemed to be endless. Valerie and I chased Denver around the play area until he grew tired. He sat down panting on the green turf of the playroom signalizing that he finished playing. As Nixon and Rocky settled down from their rough housing the receptionist came into the room with a dour look on her face.

"Sorry guys but these boys have to go back in their cages. I know how much you love them both but they need their rest", Sharon stated with her arms folded at her sides. Sharon looked at Nixon with a woeful expression for a moment. "Nixon you should really try to adopt Rocky. I know that Skylar would have wanted you to have him", Sharon stated in a despondent tone. I felt a tension enter the room so thick that a knife could cut through it.

"Don't mention her ever again", he yelled at Sharon with a dark tone. "Its better that Rocky stays here", he said as he stormed passed her to the outdoors. I followed him on pure instinct as he tried to escape whatever haunted him. I saw darkness in his eyes that I understood all too well and pain too. Valerie was further behind but walked towards this direction with a worried expression on her face. She tried to catch up with us but the both us were already too far ahead of her.

"Stop following me. Can't you see that I want to be alone?", he yelled towards me in a hoarse voice. I could feel the grief emanating from his shaking form as her propelled himself into the parking lot. In that moment I saw Nixon as that pain filled young boy that he used to be. The older boy before me looked ready to explode at any moment taking as many people as possible with him.

"I'm sorry but I can't help myself", I answered honestly. I felt true sadness towards Nixon who had no outlet to let that grief escape. Even though I felt overwhelmed with grief I always had my painting to remove the grief from my aching soul. It looked like the wounds from many years ago were still fresh in Nixon's mind. I was so wrong about every single judgement that I made about him. There was a pull that was low in belly that brought me closer to him in every room.

"Stop looking at me like that", Nixon stated as I stared into his soul shamelessly. Nixon moved into my face so that his hot breath fanned across my skin. I held his gaze as his fist punched into the wall above my head. "You said you wanted to get to know me. This is who I am. I'm a monster who you should be afraid of", he screamed in my face ferociously.

"I'm not afraid. There are worse monsters out there. You have no idea", I said to him unflinchingly. Nixon removed his now bloody fist from above my head accidentally running it across my face. He used his sleeve to wipe the blood from my face looking guilty for a brief moment. Valerie was here now watching the interaction between the both of us with a concerned expression.

"No Rowen you have no idea. But don't say I didn't warn you to stay away", Nixon huffed out. As much as I wanted to stay away from Nixon I realized I needed to follow through with my word. I had to prove to him that the my words were the truth. I wasn't afraid of him but I was afraid of the way he made me feel. Every step closer to him I felt myself getting closer to something dangerous. There were monsters out there but I didn't know that the monsters were much closer than I thought.