Chapter Text
Life had calmed down finally.
You had a hybrid job that you've gotten the hang of and only had to go on site to work once or twice a week which left you with a lot of free time being at home.
You had a big house that you were grateful for and a dog park nearby.
You'd always wanted a dog, but with school and college, and jobs that required on site presence daily, you were busy and had little time to dedicate to a dog.
You wanted your first pet to be absolutely spoiled.
It was finally time!
You'd gotten into the rhythm of work and your home was finally big enough to accommodate a canine friend.
You were excited.
The last month was spent with you toiling over magazines, articles and videos from experts on how to best acclimate new dogs to their forever homes.
You bought tons of toys and had various food options available already.
It was time to meet your friend!
You called ahead of time and spoke with the dog shelter worker and specifically requested the dog that had been there the longest.
You wanted to treat your new buddy like the king/queen they were.
It was time for you appointment and you drove to the shelter.
You stepped inside and gave them your name.
"Hi. He's ready for you. I saw that you filled out all the paperwork and paid the fee online already so this should be quick."
You walked through the shelter and saw tons of dog cages.
At the front of the shelter were cute puppies that were so energetic and jumping up and down at the sight of a person.
They were adorable.
As you went in deeper, there were additional rows of metal cages with seemingly older dogs as they were larger in size.
It made you kind of sad that the less desirable dogs were pushed to the back, but you could understand the logic.
The cuter dogs and puppies had a higher chance of getting adopted and were the hook to draw people into the shelter and shelters were almost always at capacity already.
The smell of the shelter was strong and mostly smelled like wet fur, straw, and disinfectant.
Each kennel had a water bowl, blanket and at least one toy.
You made your way all the way to the back corner and the lighting was dim. It felt a bit isolated.
"This is him. When you're ready to go just let me know."
There were tons of posters near the dog that seemed to try and market him in a positive light. His bedding was worn and his blanket was slightly tattered.
"Name's Dabi. Mixed breed mutt. Been here for an entire year. We found him in front of the shelter with rope around his paws."
The dog Dabi, was medium sized and had uneven patches of fur, almost like he was in some sort of accident.
His fur was a patchy mix of black and grey that looked to be matted in certain spots. Under his eyes, there were neat rows of seemingly surgical staples that separated a purple blocks of skin, giving him a dangerous and slightly unapproachable look.
One of his legs was entirely purple.
"He came to us like that." The worker said, reading your mind.
His eyes were a piercing blue, and he was curled up on the straw bed, with his eyes on a corner of his enclosure and his ears perked up.
He didn't bother looking your way, as though you weren't worth the effort.
Maybe he was used to people leaving once they saw what he looked like, considering how long he'd been here.
That thought broke your heart slightly.
You took in a deep breath and gave him a small smile.
You were going to shower him with all the love and affection he deserves.
You wanted to make a good first impression and didn't want to startle him.
"Hi there! My name's Y/N. I'm here to bring you to your new home." You said in a soft and gentle voice.
His ears twitched slightly and the dog glanced up at you.