Cougar hauls the leash and the dog over closer to Jake, so it can't slip away, retying it closer to the stump. Once he's there, he points at Jake, thinking the heaviness of that gesture will show. "Because you get all excited about the dog. Then, as soon as I talk about if he will help me, you deflate."

Around them, the dog is starting to prance and twist, the leash starting to wrap around Cougar's ankles without him realizing because he's poking a finger against Jake's bare chest. "He's your dog. He will help me, yes, but he's yours. And you act like he should be mine."

"You're upset," he says. "And it's me that..." He'd go on, but when he steps in to try and push at Jake again, he realizes that the dog has wound the leash up so tightly around his ankles that he's tripping, about to smack his chin on the ground any second.