“I’m finally free! Goodbye Elizabeth, you piece of trash!”, said Cornelius, a yellow and orange, thin bearded dragon. He jumps out of the opened window, through the torn mesh. “It’s a miracle that I broke out of that fish tank unscathed. Good things she’s not home, or else she would kill me. For a woman as messy as she is, she does like a clean house. Well, she shouldn’t leave me there for hours, almost a day, on the edge.” He hops from the white window ledge. Down below, he creeps through the barrier made with varieties of dianthus flowers along the light, mint green stucco wall of a small, single-story house. “Joseph, where could you be? You’re never gone this long. Six days, really?” He pokes his head between flowers and its spicy-sweet fragrance. “And at this woman’s house. I’m pretty sure humans are supposed to be monogamous. But not this one.”

He licks the serrated ends of the petals, and the narrow, limp, green leaves. 

“Out here is kind of nice. I have never been out in the untamed wilderness.” He giggles with a bobbing head. “Is-is that a beetle? No way!” Cornelius lunges at the nearby ladybug. “Darn it!” He lunges again. “What! Oh-oh. Oh no! Get back here!” He runs out of the flower bed, following the beetle. He leaps with his mouth wide open. The beetle flies higher, and fades away into the bright, blue sky. “They’re not like the ones I eat.”, he said as he landed. He scrutinizes the area. He licks the tall, warm, crunchy, greenish grass, and the hard, crack ground. “I don’t mind chilling here for a minute. No. What am I talking about? I need to find Joseph. For years I lived with him. We are forever companions. I will not let these things distract me from my commitment to him. I’ll find you, Joseph!” Cornelius waddles onward in the uncut front lawn, licking the air as he goes.

Moments later, a shadow with wings starts to trail him. It slowly gets bigger. 

“Huh? Why is it dark all of a sudden?” Cornelius tilts the side of his head up. “Wh-what is that?” He stops and lowers his body. His tongue flickers. “It’s coming in kind of fast.” Instantly, he gasps and leaps to the side. Large talons crash onto the ground next to him. He scatters towards a nearby bush. The bird whips around. It holds its head high, with its short, curved, yellowish beak with a black tip, glistening in the sun. It faces the scattering Cornelius. It flaps its wings and quickly marches toward him. “It’s fast! It’s fast!” Cornelius launches himself into the large bush. He snaps around. “What in the world was that? I should be safe in here. Ooh, more snacks!”, he said as his eye caught sight of a few ants next to him. As he abducts the ants from the branch with his short, sticky tongue, the young bird slams into the bush. It forces its head through the branches. Cornelius’ stomach turns inside out as his blood gets colder. He dashes out of the bush. “Not safe! Not safe! Joseph! Where are you?”

He aimlessly zigs zags around the lawn. “There! I can go in there! It can’t possibly break into that.” He crawls as quickly as he can with rapid heartbeat and breath. The bird lets out a screech. It jumps out of the bush with unfolded wings as leaves shower down. It picks at a falling leaf with its sharp beak. Its eyes suddenly lock onto Cornelius. It flicks away the leaf that was in its beak and runs towards him with flapping wings. Gradually, it becomes airborne, as he reaches closer to the tree. “I can make it. I can make it!” Cornelius leaps. “For you Joseph, I’ll make it!” He lands just a few centimeters from an entrance in the tree’s base. Now airborne, the bird glides nearer. He starts running. The bird pulls its talons forward. It clutches its curved spares. Cornelius screams as he jumps into the tree’s base through the grasp of the bird. “H-ha, ha ha!” He flips around. “Better luck next time, fool! Ahhh!” The bird shoves its talons into the opening of the roots. It swings and slices the area. Cornelius backs up as far as he can. The bird pulls its scimitars away. Suddenly, a side of its yellowish and black tipped beak covers the entrance. It slowly drifts past until the bird’s bright orange eye, surrounded with tiny brown and white feathers, blocks the way. Cornelius hisses with an extended beard. It blinks and pulls back. Cornelius inches forward. “It’s gone?” He screams, springing back. He watches with widened eyes as the bird pecks and pulls on the edges of the entrance. “Joseph, where are you? I need help! Joseph!”

The bird nips and claws at the tree for several minutes. A silver car blasting music abruptly speeds into the driveway, next to the tree. The bird turns to look at it. It then glimpses at something in the far distance. The bird gathers some air before flying away. A heavy-set, beige woman with straight, dark brown hair in a high ponytail rush into the house, slamming the door shut. The silver car pulls out of the driveway and speeds off. “What the hell!”, the women shouted from inside the house. Moments later, a black SUV parked into the driveway. A thin, light skinned man with short, straight golden hair in a fade unloads his bags from the vehicle before it slowly drives off. Cornelius peeks his head out of the tree. “Is it gone? Will I live another day to see Joseph.” He immediately whips his head around in every direction, constantly licking the air. “Joseph, is that you!” He steps out of the tree. He licks the air again. He jerks to face the right, with the side of his head tilting up. “Joseph!” The bearded dragon slithers to the man in the driveway. 

“Cornelius?”, the man said with widened eyes.

“What are you doing outside buddy?” Joseph looks around, then kneels. He tenderly picks up Cornelius and scratches the lizard’s head. He turns the house. “Elizabeth has some explaining to do.” He marches up the concrete steps with his companion and luggages. He bangs on the door with a scowl. The woman from before slides out from the opening. Before Joseph could open his mouth. She hugs him, then speaks.

“I missed you so much.” She tightens her hug. “I’m sooo sorry I didn’t pick you up.” Her eyes dart from side to side. “I-I … I panicked. Y-your lizard. It escaped. And I didn’t know what to do. I know how important he was to you, so I … I have been desperately looking for him.” He softens his face. 

“Don’t worry I have him.” He wriggles himself loose. She steps back and looks at him. 

“Oh, let me help you with your bags.” 

“No no no. I-it’s fine. Here, carry Cornelius in.” 

“What! You’re bringing me back into this woman’s house? She’s no good Joseph.” He hands her the lizard. She looks at Cornelius with a misshapen smile. Suddenly, she withdraws her hands. 

“Hold on, I got something.” She rushes inside. Joseph lets out a deep breath and rolls his eyes.

He lays Cornelius inside and gets the rest of his stuff. Out of nowhere, Elizabeth scoops Cornelius up with a large, metal bowl. 

“I hope you didn’t make this worse for me. I’m not going to lose a man who can pay mortgages to a gross lizard”, she said, with a corner of her nose raised and eyebrows drawn inward. Cornelius looks up at her. 

“What are you going on with? You think I want to be with you?” Joseph slams the door shut as Elizabeth puts the bowl on the living room table. He walks in and sits. 

“How—” he slides his hands down his face and takes a deep breath. “How did Cornelius get outside? He could’ve gotten eaten.” 

“I-I don’t know. He just escaped. I would never purposely put him in danger. I told you before you leave, that I never took care of a lizard before. I tried. Taking care of a lizard is hard—” Joseph exhales loudly, with a tapping foot. 

“But I gave you a long-detailed list.” She looks at him with puppy eyes.

“It’s hard”. He glowers and turns away. 

“Who was that pulling out of our driveway?” 

“What?” 

“The silver car. I saw it pulling out of our driveway from down the street.” 

“Are you sure—” 

“Yes, it was definitely our driveway.” She tilts her head up with squinted eyes. 

“Ohh. You probably saw my friend. Yeah … Yeah. Sh-she was helping me look for the lizard. I couldn’t find him and—” her shoulder slouches as she looks at him with widened eyes, “I was so worried.” 

“Really now”. Joseph said with a bobbing tilted head. Elizabeth suddenly stands up. 

“Really Joseph, really! The first thing you do after coming from an extended business trip is to accuse me for something I didn’t do. You know, instead of properly greeting your fiancée that you haven’t seen for nearly a week.” Joseph looks at her with widened eyes. “An-And not to mention, you’re more concerned about your lizard than me!” Joseph immediately stands up, 

“That’s not true!” In the bowl, Cornelius tilts his head from side-to-side listening. 

“I don’t know what they are saying, but I bet Joseph is giving it to her straight.”

They continued to argue for minutes. 

“Look at what we have here. A nice home, a nice car, a nice career, a possible wedding and family. Are you really going to ruin this because of a lizard? You have to choose. The reptile, or your future?” Elizabeth said with her hands on her hips. Joseph looks at the bowl as his anger slowly disappears. After a few moments of silence, he sighs. 

“Do you have a box?”

Outside Joseph stands on the porch with Cornelius in the box. 

“Are we finally leaving this place? Thank goodness, I was tired of seeing her face.”, Cornelius said as he licked the inside. Joseph begins to sniffle as he looks at the box with dejection in his eyes. The corners of his mouth sags lower with each quiver. He turns to the trash bin with a deep breath. His eyes swell and his lungs tightens. Joseph takes a step forward. A light abruptly flashes into his eyes. With one hand, he shields it. 

“What is that?” Joseph set his sight on the house security camera. “I forgot about those.” He looks down at the box. “I’ll check the footage first … j-just to be sure. I don’t want to get rid of him.” Joseph hugs the box with closed eyes. All of a sudden, he stands up straight with open eyes. Staring through the living area window, he sees Elizabeth leaving the room, giggling at her phone.

“Hey, Joseph, buddy. You’re just standing here. Are we leaving or what?”, Cornelius said, looking up to him with a smile.