Fenced In

By Dan Leicht

Cassandra placed her spoon beside her bowl and got up from the table. From the moment she moved, she could hear her dog Rocky barreling down the hall.

Every morning, after breakfast, Cassandra would play fetch with Rocky in the backyard. She put on her shoes and pulled a beige coat over her shoulders as her golden retriever friend waited impatiently.

“Come one, boy,” she said. She walked across the kitchen floor and opened the sliding glass door to the deck. Sitting in a bucket right outside the door was a selection of tennis balls, some in better shape than others. She picked one up and threw it as far as she could, almost reaching the fence at the far end of the backyard.

“You’ve got a heck of an arm.”

Cassandra didn’t recognize the voice. She looked over to see a man sitting in the yard on the other side of her fence. He wore a flannel and a pair of light-colored jeans, the bottoms of which he’d tucked into his tan work boots. His dark brown beard finished off the ensemble.

“Thank you,” she replied. “I don’t think we’ve met.”

“I just moved in.” The man got up and walked toward the fence. Cassandra made her way over to shake his hand. “I’m Lance.”

“Cassandra.” She shook his hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.” She stepped back, curious if he too was blushing under that beard. “When did you move in? I haven’t noticed any trucks.”

“Yesterday.” He shrugged. “I had my brothers help me and we got it all done quickly. I moved from a single bedroom apartment and honestly didn’t have a whole lot. A new couch should be coming in a week or so to help fill the place out a bit.”

“Ah,” she nodded, “I spent almost the whole day out with friends yesterday. We all took our dogs on a hike. That’s Rocky over there playing with the tennis ball.”

“I’d like to get one of my own.” He turned around and then back to Cassandra. “I just need to get a fence around my yard like you’ve got.”

“It wasn’t too expensive. I can give you the number for the company that did mine.”

“I’d like that.” He raised the mug he was holding in the air. “Do you want some coffee? I just made a fresh pot and can’t finish it myself. Maybe I should get one of those machines that make one cup at a time.”

“I’d like that, actually,” she replied. “Want me to run inside and get a mug?”

“Not needed. I’ve got plenty.”

Lance walked away and entered his house. He returned no less than a minute later with a mug in each hand.

“Getting that sliding door open was an experience,” he said.

“I’m sure it wasn’t easy.” She took the cup from his right hand. “Thank you.”

“I should’ve asked how to take it. Do you want me to run back for any cream or sugar? I think I’ve got almond milk in the fridge.”

“This is fine,” she replied. “I actually drink it black most of the time.”

She turned her attention to Rocky when he approached with the ball in his mouth.

“Hey, buddy,” said Lance.

“Do you want to throw the ball for him? He’ll be your friend forever after that.”

“Can I? I haven’t played fetch since I was a kid. We had a yellow lab, looked similar to Rocky here. He was my best friend growing up.” Lance threw the ball and Rocky took off. He smiled. “I needed that.”

“You can play fetch with Rocky any time. I know he’d appreciate it. Me too.”

“You’ll find me out here every weekend with a cup of coffee. Is this your typical routine, too?”

“Oh yeah. We do the same during the work week, too, just earlier.”

“Well, it’s been a pleasure meeting you, Cassandra. Same time tomorrow?”

She nodded.

“Same time.”

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Dan Leicht is a mystery, romance, and science fiction author living in Upstate New York with his wife Barbara and their mischievous tortie cat. He has a Bachelor's in Creative Writing from SUNY Brockport. His work has appeared in Black Cat Weekly, Sci-fi Shorts, 365 Tomorrows, The Kraken Lore, and Ripples in Space. You can find him online at danleicht.com and on Instagram/Threads @danleicht.