other.

   This is the worst date I've ever been on, Steele thought, frustrated, what's wrong with you? Are you too chicken to ask her? Steele was no doubt a bit nervous about asking Jenna about their childhood, but he wanted it to not sound awkward, much like their previous conversation. Come, be an alpha-male, and ask her!

   "Steele, are you talking to yourself?" Jenna asked the malamute, as it was clear that Steele wasn't thinking, but in fact mumbling to himself.

   I really need to keep my mouth shut, he thought. "Oh, I was just wondering where…um, where you acquired such a lovely scarf." He said, as the comment was the first thing that came to his head.

   "It's a bandana," Jenna replied, correcting the malamute.

   "Whatever," He said, not really paying the huskies displease of calling her bandana a scarf any mind. "So, where did you get it?"

   "If was from my Mother when she passed away. I've had it ever since."

   "That's sweet," Steele said, his tone of voice not matching the words, "I'm sure you take care of it."

   "Always," Jenna replied, "But there was this one time that I almost lost it." The malamute's eyes lit up.

   Wait…does she…?

   "You almost lost it? How?" He asked, rather curious as to what happened.

   "When my father was still alive, we lived in the town of Perros-Guriec, you know, the little village by the sea? Well, I was playing down by the shore of the beach, near the hotel Plage Saint-Guirec, and even though my father told me to leave to not take off my bandana while I was playing, was still young and didn't know any better. Well, I took it off by accident, and the wind was so strong, that it slipped from my paws and it blew out to see, despite my efforts to catch it."

   "Did someone come to your rescue?" He asked, feeling more and more confident as Jenna recalled the memory the he had, "Someone like…another dog?"

   "Yes, I think he was Border collie," She said, as she pondered the memory with a paw on her chin.

   What?! Steele thought, I'm not a farm dog! He then looked down at his black and white fur. Well…

   "No, I think it was a husky," She said, raising her eyes in thought, "No, it was a malamute, that's it."

   Steele chuckled, "Like me?"

   "Yes, what a coincidence, hehe," She chuckled as well, "He was, I think, 4 years older than me at the time, and he rescued my bandana from the waves. It was so funny, since he was completely drenched upon coming out, and his mother came over and dragged him by his ears!"

   "Did he shake off all the water and get you wet too?" He asked, seeing if she remembered any more of the event.

   "Yes, how did you know?" Jenna asked, wondering as to how Steele would know about that.

   "Oh, just a guess," Steele said, looking away from the husky. "Go on,"

   "Well, after he rescued my bandana, he came to my window that night, and even though he tried coming up with a rope…"

   "You couldn't hold on to the rope because he was too heavy, and you accidentally dropped it, making him land on his back?"

   "Yes, but…" Steele ignored her, and continued

   "And then after that, you started to spend time with him, and you became friends with him. You would play with him in the forest,"

   "Steele…"

   "You used to have picnics with him in your father's attic, and listen to him play his violin,"

   "Steele…"

   "We would sing songs with each other, and tell each other-."

   "Steele!" Jenna cried, cutting the malamute off from his rambling.

   "Yes?" He replied, as the carriage came to a stop.

   "How could you possibly know all of this?" She asked, completely confused by what the malamute was talking about, or why he was saying all of this.

   "Well, it's because-" Before he could finish, the driver opened the door for him, and Steele hopped out, with Jenna following suit.

   "Have a wonderful evening you two." The driver said, and with a strike of his whip, he drove off, leaving the two dogs behind.

   "So, shall we?" The husky asked, taking off his hat. Jenna nodded and the two started walking down the entrance to the park.

   As they walked down the tiled trail, Steele realized that the moon had finally come out, and the park had fallen into a blue haze, as a few autumn leaves fell from the trees. All was calm in the park, with the tranquil silence only being broken by the fountain in the middle of the area that the dogs were at.

   The two sat down on a bench near the fountain, and they remained silent, not exactly sure what to say to each other. Jenna breathed in the breezy, whispering wind, as the scent of honeysuckle and water droplets filled her nostrils.

   "So, Steele," Jenna began, turning her head to the dog, "How did you know so much about…I mean…I don't understand what you're trying to do?"

   "Well, it's because, um…uh…" Steele wiggled his tie a bit, "Do…Do you remember that the dog's name? The one that rescued you're bandana?"

   Jenna pondered the question, "Um…I think it started with an S."

   "Like, Stephen?" Steele grinned.

   "Yes, that's right. It was Stephen. Stephen de Cha…gny…" Jenna looked at the malamute, her eyes lighting up with the memory of the brave dog that rescued her scarf suddenly came to life. "It was you…Steele…Stephen."

   Finally, she remembers, Steele thought proudly, now its time to put the moves on her.

   The two hopped off the bench, and started hopping up and down like excited pups about to receive a big, juicy steak.

   "I can't believe it's really you!" Jenna said happily, "I…I always dreamed that you would return to me, and would never forget me, like we promised."

   "That's funny," Steele responded smiling. "I felt the same way. When I saw you at the Gala, I knew, I just knew that it was you. And, I guess something came to me, and all those wonderful days we spent together came flooding back."

   "So, you remember everything? The games we played, the stories we read, the songs we sang together, after all this time?"

   "Always," The malamute replied, as the two drew each other in for a hug. "Say, I want to see if this singer can still run after 15 years." He said, taking off his coat, and making a playful stance, stretching his paws out. "That is, if you're up for it?"

   "You think just because I'm a singer, that I can't still beat you?" Jenna asked playfully, going into the same stance as Steele. It was true that Jenna used to beat Steele in races when they used to run on the beach at Perros, despite how fit Steele was back then. Now it was time to see if she could still win.

   Steele snickered, "Well, let's see if you can keep up, Jen." He licked his lips as the husky went over next to him, "See that gate way over there? Who ever can touch it and run back to this bench is the winner."

   "Got it!" Jenna exclaimed, as she took off with great speed, which almost took the malamute off guard. He hadn't expected her to do this, and chased after the husky as fast as he could.

   "Hey, no fair!" Steele exclaimed, and it wasn't long till the malamute caught up to the husky, the two running as fast at their strong, Alaskan legs could carry them.

   "No…fair…you…can't…beat…me!" Steele shouted, panting.

   "Oh, we'll see, won't we?" Jenna grinned, and started sprinting even faster, leaving the malamute in the dust. Steele hadn't realized that he would be outmatched by his old friend, and couldn't help but give it up for her incredible endurance and speed, but of course, he wasn't about to let her win.

   Steele bared his canines and propelled himself forward, his paws hitting the tile ground hard, as he bolted towards the gate, his powerful, steel-like muscles made his speed go up ten-fold. He laughed as he panted, and suddenly, he managed to pass the husky, whipping by her like a fierce blast of wind, making her almost fall over.

   "Ha, take that, Jenny!" Jenna raised a brow, and smirked, remembering that Steele used to tease her and call her "Jenny", a nickname that the husky wasn't all too thrilled about. She responded by raising her front paws up like a horse rearing up on its hind legs, and ran towards the gate. However, she wasn't quick enough, as Steele managed to make it to the gate first, touching it with paw, before swiftly turned right back around.

   "See you at the finish line, Jenny!"