"No?" David asks, although it doesn't matter if he's ready or not. This was a gift he'd wanted to give to Patrick and he had sincerely meant it at the time, even if now he's having many, many regrets.

Not enough regrets to stop it, though. If he wanted to, he could shut it down and Patrick would be broken hearted and he'd feel like a complete shit, but they would get over it. David can't do that, though. He knows how much Patrick wants a dog and he thinks, given a choice between a dog and a human child, he will pick the dog every single time. At least a dog dies quicker than a human.

"I mean, yes, definitely," he says. "Until one of them jumps on me and then I won't be ready again."