1Fuzz Ball -
The dreary weather reflects Clarissa's mood impeccably. The sky is filled with swirls upon swirls of bleak clouds. The wind is carrying miniscule flakes of snow from Canada down to Clarissa's porch, where she is currently sitting. She is sitting Indian style on the porch watching flurries of snow.
Amidst the mounds of snow, Clarissa spotted a small animal of some sort. She made her way through the flurry of snowflakes, which is rapidly becoming a major snowstorm. Clarissa knelt down in front of what looked like a furry fuzz ball with eyes.
She automatically scooped up the poor thing in her arms when she noticed that one of its paws was twisted at an odd angle. As she carried the puppy through the now full-on blizzard, she whispered words of comfort, not knowing whether or not this helped to calm the fuzz ball or not. Once at home, she dried off her shoes and made to go up to her bedroom.
"Hello Pumpkin! Before you go upstairs."
The rest of her mother's words were drowned out by the shrill screams of Melissa. Melissa ran all the way down the stairs and practically attacked the poor little fuzz ball. Their mom entered the hallway to examine the situation.
"What's all this ruckus about", she inquired, directing the question at Clarissa.
"Oh nothing! Melissa was just excited to see err. Fuzz Ball", Clarissa replied.
"Who's Fuzz Ball?"
Clarissa snatched the puppy from Melissa's vice-like grip and showed her mother. She squealed with excitement at the site. Clarissa rolled her eyes, all the while thinking Like mother, like daughter.
"Where'd you get this adorable pup?"
"I found him in the snow. I think we should take him to the vet. Look at his paw!"
"Aw poor thing!" her mother cooed as she handed the newly named Fuzz Ball to Clarissa. "We'll take him to the vet tomorrow morning. Now go upstairs and get ready for dinner."
* * *
Clarissa lay on her bed with her head resting on her arms. She watched Fuzz Ball lie peacefully in his "bed". His bed consisted of a laundry basket and her old baby blanket.
A small smile crept upon her face. She was already in love with this puppy, yet she only knew him for a couple of hours. The smile faltered when she realized that this puppy must already belong to someone; someone who loves and cares for this puppy; someone who must be really anxious about his whereabouts.
* * *
"Good morning sleepyhead!"
Clarissa opened her eyes to find bright sunlight streaming into the room through the cracks in the blinds. She sat up, taking a better look around, wondering where the voice came from. Her question was answered when Melissa popped out from behind her, nearly giving Clarissa a stroke.
"What are you doing here?"
"I'm waking you up silly."
"No, I mean what are you doing behind me?"
"I was just playing a trick."
Melissa skipped off giggling madly. Clarissa shook her head; thinking Was I that weird when I was 8? I hope not! Clarissa jumped out of bed and followed the essence of blueberry pancakes.
"Why aren't you dressed yet Clarissa? We're going to be late for our appointment with the vet!" her mother exclaimed, perturbed by the thought of missing an appointment or being late.
"Okay mom! Take a chill-pill!"
She walked back upstairs, laughing silently. Clarissa knew that her mother hated "that" type of language and thought it was funny to see her reaction.
* * *
The drive to and from the vet was uneventful. Fuzz Ball was fixed up rather quickly, but he has to wear a "puppy cast" for a week.
Clarissa watched Fuzz Ball stumble through the house in his cast. He looked so adorable that she just wanted to eat him up. She snapped out of her reverie at the sound of the doorbell.
"I'll get it!" she yelled, apparently to no one.
"It's not like anyone else was going to get it anyway." she muttered to herself.
Clarissa opened the door. There, stood a tall, dark haired boy her age. She gave him an inquiring look, as if asking him what he wanted through her facial expressions.
"Hey! My name is Jake. I was wondering if you have seen my pup? Its very tiny, has black fur; he almost looks like a fuzz ball."
Clarissa became dismayed at having to give her Fuzz Ball back, but she nodded anyway.
"Come in. I'll get him."
The unfamiliar boy stepped inside as Clarissa ascended the stairs slowly to prolong the time she had with Fuzz Ball.
"Who was that at the door?" her mother asked, making her jump up in surprise.
"Oh. It's this guy. He is the 'owner' of Fuzz Ball. He came to pick Fuzz Ball up"
"Oh" was all she said and "oh" summed it all up.
Clarissa seized Fuzz Ball.
"You should really keep better track of Fuzz Ball. You don't want him getting lost." She said as she descended the stairs.
"Oh is that what you named Fuzz?" he said taking hold of Fuzz. Clarissa nodded.
"What happened to his paw?" he asked concernedly.
"I'm not too sure. I found him outside with his paw in an odd angle. I felt so sorry for him. We took him to the vet and she fixed him up. You have to go with him to the vet next Saturday to get that cast removed."
"Kay. Thanks for taking care of him." He said with a smile. "I think I've seen you somewhere before?"
* * *
It turns out that Jake is in her Math class. They had an amusing conversation. They wound up exchanging numbers.
* * *
Clarissa and Jake kept in touch a lot over the next month. They began to hang out more and more often. Melissa became highly attached to Jake, calling him her "new older brother". It was so sweet. He played along with Melissa and even took her on a couple of "trips".
One day after school, while they were working on an extra credit assignment, Jake stopped talking mid-sentence. He stared at Clarissa as if he's never seen her before.
"A-are you okay?" she asked in a worried tone.
Jake moved his jaw, but nothing came out. Minutes passed, in which they just stared at each other. Jake in realization and Clarissa in worry.
"I-I-I."
"Yea?"
"I think I'm falling for you." Jake looked startled at his own forwardness.
Clarissa looked shocked.
"I'm sorry, Jake, but I don't feel the same way."
Jake's eyes welled up with tears and he walked out, dejected.
A/N: I know that time passed REALLY fast in the end and that it was a bit rushed, but I've never wrote a conversation-y story before and I didn't know how to pass the time anyway. Sorry for the cliffie but this is a one- shot.