Ezra's POV

The raucous alarm thundered through the tranquil morning air, jolting me wide awake. With a pounding heart and ever so slightly shaking hands, I reached over to the nightstand to snooze the alarm, making a mental reminder to turn the volume down on it later. One would think that the rousey sound would deter me from my slumber, but fortunately, that was not the case. I waited until my heart slowed its frantic rhythm before I made an attempt at comfort once more. I snuggled back into my cozy covers, my mind and body fully prepared to indulge in the blissful wonders of sleep for a few more measly minutes. Alas that would not be the case because that euphoric feeling crumpled at the sound of a tiny bark that echoed throughout the quiet apartment.

With a deep sigh and a heavy heart, I opened my eyes, fully saying goodbye to any possibility of getting more sleep. My hazel eyes connected with the dark ones of a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel staring back at me. Her tiny white tail wagging with anticipation as she awaits my next move. While I was upset with not being able to fall back asleep once more, that feeling completely dissipated when I stared into her sparkling black eyes. The memory of how I got her came crashing back like a tsunami.

I just got off the phone with my mother. She was pressuring me, once again, to get a guard dog. Can you believe it? My own mother was insinuating the notion that I was weak. Which was a ridiculous assumption if I do say so myself. Even though I knew I was capable of protecting myself, convincing my mother of that fact was damn near impossible. Therefore, to put her mind at ease and also to keep myself sane, I decided to get a dog.

I got dressed and set out on my journey, uncertainty weighing heavily on my mind. I had no idea what type of dog I wanted to get, I just knew it had to be, "big and strong enough to protect me," according to the wishes of my mother. So I did what any unsure adult would do in a time of panic, I called my mom.

"Hey mommy," I said after she finally answered.

"Hey baby, how are you doing?" she asked.

"I'm ok, I was calling because I don't know what type of dog to get mommy. Like what if I get the wrong type and then something happens to them?" I whined to her.

"Ok ok..." she laughed softly, "...Don't think about it too much. Just get whichever dog you fall in love with." She explained.

"But Ma, you said to get one big enough to protect me or whatever." I complained once again. This felt like a really big decision and I didn't want to make a mistake.

"Baby it's ok, you don't have to get exactly what I said..." she rationalized, "...also why didn't you use google, or better yet, ask a really cute guy from the pound? Then maybe you can get a dog and a man." She finished.

"Oh my gosh, you know what Ma, I'll talk to you later." I hung up the phone before she could get another word in. I was not about to talk about my fictitious love life with her. I did however, go on google, which now that I thought about it, was the better decision compared to calling her, but oh well.

Google gave me a numerous amount of dogs to choose from. The list ranged from Bullmastiffs to Rottweilers. I was so engrossed in my reading that I never realized I made the wrong turn down an alley. It was the sound of a small whimper was what drew my eyes away from the web page. My head shot up and I fully took in my surroundings. I gave a silent 'thank you', to myself for leaving my apartment somewhat early because if I was stuck in this alley at night, then there was a strong possibility of me crying.

The alley was creepy and dangerous personified. It was desolate and sad. I don't know how else to describe it. There wasn't even a dumpster in sight, it was just long, narrow and empty. To make matters, I suddenly felt a chill run down my spine and a drop in the pit of my stomach. I wasn't sure what this feeling was but every cell in my body was screaming at me to leave, and unlike most, I listened.

I spun on heels and got ready to high tail it out of there, but sadly my movements were halted when I heard a whimper again. I did a quick survey of the wasteland known as an alleyway and a tattered box caught my eye. How did I miss that before? Even though every instinct in my soul screamed at me to turn around and run, my curiosity got the best of me and I walked towards the box. Not the smartest choice, I know.

I slowly approached the box. A million thoughts running through my head about what could be in it. My heart started pounding in my chest and my hands started to shake. Why was I so nervous? I held my breath as I stepped in front of it, and let it out slowly as I peered inside of the box. I wish I could say it was a breath of relief but unfortunately I couldn't. I looked inside the box and my heart broke at the sight.

There were 3 puppies inside it. 3 tiny, hurt, battered puppies whose eyes weren't even open. Hesitantly, I reached out for the box. I gently picked it up and to my dismay, the puppies didn't even stir, there wasn't a single movement between any of them. Are they even alive? Should I just leave them?

I was frozen in that spot until I heard the whimper again and that solidified my resolve, I had to get these little guys some help. I quickly spun around only to hit into a hard body. Oh no, I could've hurt the puppies even more. I did a quick inspection of them just to make sure they were "alright." They didn't look any worse than before, so I knew I didn't add any more damage, hopefully. I calmed myself down and looked up at the person I bumped into, getting ready to apologize.

Only the words caught in my throat as soon as I rose my head. He was just staring at me. The look in his eyes sent shivers down my body. In those dark, dull, green eyes, there was simply nothing. There was no type of light, no type of hope, no type of happiness. They just seemed empty. I know those eyes well, because I stared into a pair of similar ones every morning for 6 months.

I must've had a look on my face because he suddenly started blinking rapidly. His eyes casted downwards, away from my face and towards the precious babies I was cradling in my arms and then back towards my face. I am not the best at knowing someone's emotion but there was no type of change in his face, there was no sign of remorse after seeing the state of the puppies. He licked his lips and then spoke in a horse voice.

"Are you lost?"

I hesitated before I answered him, "Uh n-no, I just heard these little guys crying out for help and I guess I wanted to help them." I let out a dry chuckle towards the end. I don't know what it was but I felt as if I was standing on pins and needles.

He didn't respond to me, he just simply stared at me. I shifted my eyes down towards the puppies and my heart broke again. I didn't have time for this. I sidestepped him and made an attempt to leave but my movements halted, once again, when he grabbed my upper arm. I looked up at him with confusion plastered over my entire face.

"I'm a taxi driver..." he pointed towards the yellow cab that I failed to notice before, "...I can drop you off at the nearest vet." He finished and started walking away from me.

Oh I guess he wasn't asking. I looked down at the puppies before finding my resolve and followed him to the taxi. I just had to get these little guys some help.

I was drawn out of my thoughts at the wailing sound of my second alarm. There goes my few extra minutes of sleep. I closed my eyes and let out a loud, heavy sigh, as if I was attempting to eliminate all the tiredness from my body. I opened my eyes only to be greeted with the sight of Babe staring at me curiously.

"You must be hungry Babe, let's go get you some food." I said and picked her up. I awkwardly crawled from under my daisy-themed blankets. It would've been smarter to get out and then pick her up but oh well. I made my way from my bedroom to the small kitchen. After I placed Babe down on the floor, I walked towards the cabinets to prepare her breakfast.

I dished out her kibble and secretly added her medication to it. Even though I found her months ago, she still needed her meds to help her be as healthy as possible. I grabbed her food bowl and placed it next to her water bowl. She saw her food and happily yipped at me before digging in, greedy little thing. I glanced at the clock in the kitchen clock, it was 3:54am. If I intend on making it to the bakery by 4:45am, I should start getting ready.

"I'm going to start getting ready Babe, I'll be out of the shower soon..." I started walking off but then I stopped and narrowed my eyes at her, "...do not make a mess of my kitchen." I warned her. She gave me a tiny bark before going back to her food. I simply rolled my eyes and proceeded to my bathroom.

I didn't bother to close the door because I learned the hard way that if Babe wants to get in the bathroom with me, she'll bark and scratch at the door until I have to jump out the shower to appease her by opening the door. With my head held straight, I stripped out my clothes and hopped in the shower without looking at myself in the mirror. I could argue with you and say I didn't look because I was trying to get ready quickly but truly it was because my bonnet was not on my head when I woke up this morning. The condition of my hair is something that no one is in any rush to see soon.

I spent about 20 minutes in the shower despite my efforts for a quick one. I walked passed the mirror, still not looking at my reflection and went straight towards my closet. Many people often despise their work uniform but I happen to like mine. I had the option to wear a pink, yellow, purple, red, or blue pastel colored shirt with black slacks, which are insanely comfortable. Who in their right mind would not love that simple but oh so cute uniform? Today, I chose the pink shirt. Did I mention it has my name embroidered in the top right side? I possibly got bored one night and had a needle and thread on hand and then one thing led to another.

I quickly got dressed and decided to do thing that I had been dreading since I woke up, I looked in the mirror. While I knew what to expect, nothing could have prepared me for the reflection that stared back at me, or even the scream that emitted from the throat. It was horrible, downright atrocious.

It wasn't long after my ear shattering scream that I heard tiny footsteps race towards me. I can always count on Babe to save me from danger, unfortunately I don't think she can save me from my own hair.

I turned towards my dog with fear in my eyes.

"How am I supposed to fix this Babe?" I asked her with panic lacing my voice. One side of my hair was completely stuck to my scalp while the other side was sticking up in the air as if I had been electrocuted. Any resemblance of my curl pattern was now gone. How was I supposed to fix this in 10 minutes?

I looked back towards the mirror when Babe ignored me and simply walked away as if saying she had better things to worry about than my hair. Ok! I know what to do. I'll just put it in a ugly ass ponytail. I grabbed my spray bottle and my hair products before taking a deep breath and getting to work.

Now, I've been on this Earth for 20 years and I've been doing my own hair for about 5 of those years and not to toot my own horn but seeing that my hair looks somewhat presentable and it only took me roughly 8 minutes to do, I deserve a cookie. Granted there was a lot of spraying, and tugging and pulling and I might have a slight headache now, I am still quite proud of myself...Oh shit I don't have time to stare at myself, I had to go to work.

I quickly grabbed my wallet and keys before rushing to put my shoes on. It was now 4:30 and it normally takes me 20 minutes to get to work. "Babe! Babe! Hurry up! We're gonna be late for work!" I shouted from the door where I was lacing up my white converse. She came with me to work because I'm still scared to leave her by herself at home. I know that she is better but what can I say? I'm a doting mother. Don't worry, she doesn't just run around the bakery aimlessly, she actually stays in my bosses office because he himself is absolutely in love with her.

"Babe, you have 5 seconds to get to this door before I leave you!" God, I felt like my mother.

The patter of her small paws across the floor resonated throughout the apartment. I went into the closet and grabbed her leash. It was just plain pink but it matched her collar perfectly, which was also pink but it had many tiny flowers all around it. I hooked her leash to her collar and we both stepped out the door, getting ready to face the day.