The house is quiet.
Loneliness squeezes at my heart and fills me with sadness. It's a cold Friday evening. As night falls, I put on my pajamas and make myself a cup of lemon balm tea.
Why is my love life such a wreck? I ask myself.
It was like a post office—people arrived only to be sent away. One disappointment after another fell on me like bombs, and now, inside, I feel like a city left in ruins.
My weekends have been like this for a while. Luigi spends them with his father, and I stay home alone, writing. I can't seem to take an interest in anyone anymore. At the same time, I feel as though my heart couldn't survive another disappointment. It would simply break.
Luigi comes home on Sunday afternoon. He tells me what he did and all the places he visited with his father.
"You know, Luigi, I feel older every day."
"That's normal, Mom. You are getting older."
"Thanks for that," I reply, offended.
"But you're beautiful, Mom."
"Thank you for the consolation."
"I want to ask you for something, but I think you're going to say no," he says, lowering his voice with every word.
"What is it, Luigi?"
"I want a puppy! At least say you'll think about it!" he pleads, clasping his hands together.
"I'll think about it."
"Yay!"
It wasn't a bad idea.
I'd have some company on the weekends.
We went online to look at puppies.
"Look at this mama!"
"She's adorable!"
We spoke with the kennel owner over a video call, and on the agreed day, they brought her over.
The young man opened the crate door, carefully picked her up, and looked at me.
"The baby's here," he said as he handed her over.
I took her gently and passed her to Luigi.
He smiled, his eyes filling with tears.
The man explained how to care for her, then left.
"Mom, I almost cried, but I held it together," Luigi told me, holding her against his cheek. Then he added, "Her name will be Pompom because she looks like a pompom."
She was fluffy and brown.
As soon as we got home...
"Mom, she's hungry! She went looking for food in her bowl, and there's nothing there!"
"We don't have any puppy food! The guy forgot to bring it!" I exclaimed, pressing a hand to my forehead.
Then I remembered he had left his phone number.
I rushed to the pet store.
They didn't have it.
I went to another one and found a brand with a similar name.
Now what?
Meanwhile, Luigi kept sending me voice messages.
"Mom, hurry! She's starving!" he complained, nearly crying.
"Mom, did you find it?"
I sent the young man a photo of the package.
"Yes, that's the one she eats!"
I bought the food and hurried home.
"Mom, are you almost here? She keeps looking at her bowl and crying!"
When I walked through the door, I found Luigi sitting on the floor, shoulders slumped, the puppy in his lap beside the empty bowl.
The moment he saw me, he smiled.
"Quick, Mom!"
I poured the food into her bowl.
She devoured it so fast she nearly choked.
Afterward, she fell asleep.
Somewhere between one game and the next, we started calling her Pomps, and eventually Pamps, because she was a girl.
"I like Pamps better, Mom. It's prettier."
She looked like a little fox and had the temperament to match—stubborn, nippy, and always growling at something.
Over time, we became friends, and her eyes grew full of affection.
"Mom, Pamps loves you more than I do!" Luigi said with a grin.
"What do you mean? Are you telling me a dog loves me more than my own son?" I asked, pretending to be offended.
"I'll explain. I love you one hundred percent, but Pamps loves you one hundred and ten percent!"
Luigi laughed at me.
I think he was jealous.
"I love you very much, my son."
I hugged him tightly and kissed him on the forehead.
He hugged me back and went off to watch cartoons.
I picked Pamps up.
"I'll take care of you forever, Pamps," I promised.
My weekends were never the same again.
She ran through the house, played nonstop, and filled every room with joy.
"Woof! Woof!" she barked happily.
Pamps became my faithful companion, always close by.
And, surprisingly enough, she loved being held.
After a while, though, something started to bother me.
While I worked and Luigi was at school, she stayed home alone.
Being alone isn't good.
The sad look in her eyes whenever she watched us leave tugged at my heart.
Come to think of it, I think Pamps is about to get a puppy of her own...