I can do this, you think, as you leave the store and steel yourself for the harsh, bitter, autumnal wind. It's nothing, just think of it as a piece of jewellery. You gaze at the heavens and shudder at the encroaching black clouds. You've always been superstitious. Glaring at the dark clouds you can't help but check the ring box in your pocket. Resting your hand on it you use it as a talisman to ward off the dark thoughts that you can sense lurking in your subconscious biding their time. Waiting. Watching. Judging. You exhale and walk back to where you parked. Can't remember if I paid the parking meter, naturally, this only occurs to you as you see a parking warden just ahead of you. Once again, you touch the talisman through your pocket. You're closer now and notice the warden has taken a seat on a nearby bench and retrieved a sandwich from her pocket. Must be on break. You shake your head and smile. "Hey! Mister!" You stop in your tracks and look around you, searching for the owner of the voice. "Over here! Yoo-Hoo!" You look across the street opposite you and see a smiling child sat in a doorway staring at you with mischief, a large hound is sat with its head in the boy's lap, eyes watching you with a human intelligence. You raise your hand, wave at the boy and smile, before continuing walking. "Hey! Mister!" You shake your head but don't stop. Something about the boy unsettles you. You can't place it, but you can feel your anxiety rising by the second. "Mister!" He'll give up eventually, you think. "Yoo-Hoo! Mister! You dropped something." You're about to turn around and give the boy a piece of your mind when you realise what he just said. You feel inside your pocket expecting the ring box, and your talisman inside, but your hand brushes against nothing. You spin around and stare at the boy. He is stood waving the ring box over his head and grinning like a fool. How the .... You sigh deeply and look both ways before crossing the street, the boy is still waving the box over his head with a madness in his eyes.

"Hey kid, that's mine!" you curse. The boy smirks at you revealing his teeth and you take a few steps back before realizing that you did. The hound tenses, its haunches vibrating in a silent snarl. The boy absentmindedly strokes its back soothing it. "I know. That's why I was calling out to you." The boy giggles as if aware of something you aren't. You unfold your arms from your chest and wonder when you folded them. The two of you are silent for a while and the silence only adds to the unnerving atmosphere. You hold out your hand expectantly and wait. The boy looks you up and down with a smirk before stepping toward you and putting the box in your hands. You expect him to take a step back, but he surprises you and grips your hand, locking eyes with you. "Do you love her?" he asks in a mocking falsetto voice that you'd normally find charming but instead your heart races and your hands become sweaty. You notice the hound take a few hesitant steps behind the boy, its cobalt blue eyes staring at you deeply.

You decide to put your unease behind you and try to relax. You have a couple of icebreakers at your disposal you could be brave, bold even and try to pet the boy's dog. You could dig deep and offer the boy a reward for returning your talisman to you. Or you could compliment the dog and ask what his name is.