Climbing the stairs with the dog clutched against my belly, I pant and heave while the beer sweats out of me with a vengeance. It’s not far, yet in these conditions—in my condition—it might as well be to the moon. Licking my hand, the dog grins at me as the blood from his paws drips onto the steps beneath my feet, leaving a trail straight out of a horror flick. It doesn’t look like it bothers him, though. In fact, he seems pretty much indifferent to everything that’s happening save for the act of being in my arms. When I reach the top of the stairwell, I stand for a second to catch my breath. As I do so, there are sounds to be heard coming from the apartment opposite ours. The young woman is cursing, but I can’t work out if she’s having an argument or being fucked. Taking a few steps to her door holding the dog like a baby, I press my ear against the wood, hoping to catch an insight into another life. I can’t be sure, but it sounds like she’s being fucked. There’s groaning and banging, and if I strain, I can make out the grunts of her lover, slow and methodical as he does his best to teach his woman a lesson she’ll never forget. Glancing at the dog, I see he’s got his head cocked to one side as if listening the same as me.

“What do you think, boy? You reckon they’re up to no good?”

Sticking out his tongue, he smiles at me as the woman lets out a muffled scream.

“I reckon he’s choking her, or he’s got a pillow over her face.”

Like myself, he holds his breath, and for a moment the two of us are not just staring at the door, we’re looking beyond it, imagining in our own ways what’s going on. Most likely we’ll never know, but if only for a second, the other side is tangible.

“You just can’t help yourself, can you?”

Spinning around, I see Meeko standing in the doorway of our apartment with her arms folded across her breasts.

“I… thought I heard screams,” I say.

“Don’t lie to me, you smelly fuck.”

Hanging my head out of shame, I notice the dog doing the same.

“Not only do you go against my wishes bringing up that mangey mutt, but you stand there listening to our neighbour fucking when I caught you doing it only a few hours ago. Incredible!”

Grimacing, I lift my eyes to her all guilty like.

“So you agree that she’s fucking?”

Raising her right hand to my face, I think she’s going to hit me, but instead, she grabs my right ear and yanks me indoors. Like a naughty child, I’m taken into the living room, but where I expect to be further scolded for my perverse interests, to my surprise—and to the dog’s—I’m subject to something else entirely.

A Journal for Damned Lovers UK

A Journal for Damned Lovers US

Anthology UK / Anthology US