What did a normal day in Trina Hudson's life look like?
There was one thing she could say with confidence: it was nothing like she had imagined when she was a starry-eyed fresher or passing the licensing examination. When Trina was a little girl, she had dreamed of being the Florence Nightingale of farm animals. Her parents were simple cattle farmers and having a doctor in the family was not as important as having a veterinarian.
Her love for the cows and chicken, as awful as it sounded to her posh classmates, had driven her to study like a dog (no pun intended). By then, she had excepted to be in the countryside, treating the cows and sheep, maybe shaving their hooves, and taking care of infected horns. She had been ready to settle down somewhere remote and far away from the hustle and bustle of Summerhaven. She would have a job she loved and spend all her free time looking out the window of her house and sighing at open fields and trees.
How delusional she was.
She hated her life.
After her licensing exam, she finally figured out how saturated the veterinarian scene in the farmlands was. There were no vacancies anywhere and her parents didn't trust her to treat their cattle. So much for getting scholarships and graduating top of the class. The withered old man that had taken care of the cattle since before she was conceived still treated the cattle.
Unable to get a job in the rural areas, she was stuck in one of those fancy vet clinics where celebrities and socialites came to prune and crib about their dogs and cats. Some bought cats that looked like they had been shaved without mercy, while others brought in dogs panicking that they were violently sick. Nope, the dogs had just gotten high from passively smoking whatever their owners were using.
Poor things.
The worst part of it all was the nagging about infant dogs with suspected ADHD. Now, she had been to university for this, but she didn't understand how the search engine was more trustworthy than her.
In short, she wanted to cry to sleep every night and quit her job every morning. But she couldn't because rent and living cost in the entertainment capital in the world was sucking her bank account and soul dry. If she quit without a backup plan, she might as well go back home and shut herself in the basement.
Moreover, people thought doctors were so popular and that everyone wanted a piece of them. Not animal doctors, at least. She had wanted to at least have a boyfriend at this point in her life—but nope… there was not even a sign of 'b—' in the near future. The hope for sex was an illusion.
She went to college and studied her ass off to keep the scholarship she had sacrificed her social life for. Therefore, her vibrator was her best friend.
Which brought her to reality. She looked at the dog that towered over her. It had somehow rolled around in God knows what kind of mud and stank like nobody's business.
She had a few more months left before she was 'sure' that there would be an opening in one of the locations she liked.
"Argh!" she coughed and sputtered as the dog shook itself. Trina had been given the unfortunate job of cleaning the dog because the groomer was on sick leave. Trina had tried her best to get soap and water on the mammoth, but as it shook, it all went into her mouth.
That was an exaggeration. But she gagged and stepped away. "Stop that!" she scolded as gently as she could. Wouldn't want a snobby owner complaining about scolding their baby.
The dog shook some more and then looked at her with what she was sure was amusement.
"Seriously, Kylie," Trina groaned. "The dog weighs more than I do. Who needs a wolf for a dog, huh?" She tried to rinse him off, but only managed to shake slobber all over her again. "I am not trained to do this. And now I need a bath, too."
Kylie outright laughed at her. "I think he is cute, Trina. Just look at how innocently he is looking at you. How can you say no to that sweet face?" she cooed.
Trina looked at the dog incredulously. "This is cute?" she asked. It was a grey and white husky, the kind which could imitate words.
She finally got some of the soap and grime out of its thick fur.
"Of course. Don't you know about Mishka?" Kylie commented, still a foot away from the crime scene. Trina raised her brow. "I still wail every time I remember that good girl." She sighed.
"Can't say I know what you are talking about. I don't watch television."
Kylie snorted. "Youtube."
Trina finally managed to get the dog rinsed off and toweled him dry. She put the collar back on and attached the leash. Then she let him out of the tub. The dog took off running towards the door, dragging her with him. She slipped on the wet track he left behind, landing on her ass painfully with her jaw snapping shut. The impact made her head pound.
When she looked at the dog, she saw it sit beside her innocently. He even turned his head around like if he didn't look at her, he had not committed any wrong.
Trina looked back at Kylie. "I can't do this anymore. I want to quit." The other looked at her in shock. "Seriously, I can't do this anymore. It is Day 4 of the groomer's sick leave and I suspect he ran away."
"Hey—"
"Is this really a vet clinic? I just want to help animals but I keep meeting humans with expensive animals they don't love."
Trina finally stood up and tugged at the leash. "Come on, big boy, let's get you to the playpen," she said softly. After airing her frustrations, she felt bad for showing it in front of the dog.
After stationing him, she went back to the washroom to scrub her face with her hands. Kylie trudged behind her. She was a nurse at the clinic and had become close to Trina in the months she had worked there.
"Do you know anyone hiring at another location?" Trina asked in defeat.