To the Pier
by Ankit Govil
Come on come on... Please change. Yes, finally.
I dragged Jo across the street, just as the green light came on. It was a Sunday morning and we both loved walking through downtown to the pier by the bay. The streets almost pushed us in that direction with their natural slope. Jo always had to stop in the wrong places and I’d have to drag him forward by the leash.
The colorful windows of the stores held his attention, he sure loved the shiny things on the other side of the glass. How he could just stand and drool all over the sidewalk on such a beautiful day is beyond me. Sure it was a little cloudy, but this was Seattle, the “Rain City.” Jo hated the clouds, they depressed him. But I had grown accustomed to them over the years.
Sunny days were a luxury, the moment it shone bright the streets were filled with topless cars and similarly clad women in them. Jo would run behind the speeding motors and their occupants then change direction for a hotter number and so on, while the girls just giggled. It was quite the task to hold him back. Anyway, I preferred the clouds; they didn’t blind me like the sun.
Getting Jo’s attention back on the street, we walked along. The glassy skyscrapers rose into the dark clouds around us. We were overtaken by Sunday morning joggers and cyclists. Jo would have taken off after them had I not pulled on the leash.
Thankfully it wasn’t windy today; last week it was. We were pushed into the bay by the slope and the wind. Now that I think of it, it was kind of fun. But the clouds were still today, I could see why their dark gloom would depress people enough to jump off the Space Needle. But for me, though, it was just another Sunday on the road to the pier by the bay.
Speaking of which, we were almost there. The last red light before crossing onto the Pier.
The moment we reached across the road, Jo and I broke into a run. He took the lead but I soon caught up. I won, again.
We were on the pier catching our breath and waving to a passing boat, ferrying passengers across Puget Sound. Quite a huge ship the ferry was. Jo and I were aboard it once. If you thought hanging your head out the window of a car was a rush, try hanging it over the side of a fast-moving ferry. Following Jo’s lead isn’t always a bad idea.
It was time for the uphill walk home, before Jo dragged me to play fetch with his friends from the bay side.
“You ready for a quick run, Coco?” Jo said. “You won’t win this time.” He broke into a sprint.
The boy never learns. He barely heard me yell in excitement. I tried again: “Woof..!!”
Copyright © 2012 by Ankit Govil
