She paused for fresh air. He checked it for biscuits.
On Nora’s walks, a sniff was supposed to take three seconds. Pip had never agreed to this.
He was still considering the first lamppost when she counted to four.
“That’s extra.”
His nose moved an inch to the left.
“You can’t start again on the other side.”
Pip started again on the other side.
Important Information
The morning air nipped Nora’s cheeks above her pink scarf. Her boots scuffed along the pavement, while Pip’s little brass tag ticked against his collar. At the next corner, a gust lifted his ears and blew a curl across her mouth.
She tucked it away with a glove. Something small and gritty brushed her fingertips inside her coat pocket.
“Come on. We’ve hardly gone anywhere.”
Pip left the lamppost. He inspected a leaf, a drain cover, and the place where the leaf had been before the wind moved it.
Nora waited with one hand on her hip.
“Are you reading the whole pavement?”
He lifted his head at last. She took this as a yes.
Her Turn
Beyond the houses, the path opened beside a patch of frosty grass. The wind came cleanly across it, carrying the damp smell of earth and a faint trace of woodsmoke.
Nora stopped.
She tipped her face toward the sun and breathed in. The cold reached right to the back of her nose. Beside her, Pip raised his muzzle too, his eyes narrowing beneath the ruffled white curls.
For a moment, they stood exactly alike.
“See?” she said. “This is a nice smell.”
Pip sniffed again. His tail began to move.
“No investigating. Just enjoying.”
He stepped closer to her yellow coat.
Nora turned toward the grass. Pip turned with her. She faced the other way, checking whether the woodsmoke came from the houses.
Pip followed that way too.
“It’s not a dance.”
He sat down beside her pocket.
A Second Opinion
Nora put her free hand inside and felt the gritty crumbs again. Beneath them lay two little dog biscuits, wrapped in a folded paper bag.
Mum had tucked them there before they left.
“Oh.”
Pip’s tail swept the pavement.
“You’ve been smelling my coat.”
She took out the bag. His eyes opened fully.
“I thought we were having a moment.”
Pip remained seated. He was prepared to continue having it.
Nora crouched and offered him one biscuit. It disappeared with a dry little crunch. She brushed a crumb from his chin, then slipped the folded bag back into her pocket.
The lead lay loose between them when she stood. This time, she left it that way.
Fresh Air
They stayed beside the grass a little longer. Nora breathed in again, letting the sun warm her eyelids. Pip lifted his nose beside her knee.
“There,” she said. “Now you’re getting fresh air.”
His nose turned toward her pocket.
“There’s only one left.”
Pip sat down again.
Nora looked at him, then up at the blue sky.
“Apparently the air needs another minute.”
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