This, That, and the Other

“You know that turtle, Speedy Gonzalez, I found in my backyard?” Danny asked his friend Tom.

“You mean the dingy looking one with diamond-like outlines on its shell?” Tom asked. “The one your dad ran over with the lawnmower?”

“Yeah, that was a tragedy, for sure,” Danny said. “I told my dad that he was in the backyard and to keep an eye out for him, but my dad is so forgetful these days.”

“But why would you let your turtle just roam around in your backyard like some free-range chicken?” Tom asked. “That’s just asking for trouble.”

“I was training him for the annual turtle race at the YMCA in May,” Danny explained. “He was at his peak, you know.”

“Well, Danny,” Tom said, “I’m sorry for your loss.”

“Thanks, Tom,” Danny said, “but it’s okay. My dad felt so guilty about what he did to Speedy that he bought me a new turtle. I swear to you, Tom, it’s a literal doppelgänger of Speedy.”

You mean it has a dingy shell with diamond-shapes on it?” Tom asked, mockingly.

“Exactly,” Danny said. “And he’s even speedier than Speedy was. I’m going to win the turtle race for sure. I named him Usain Bolt and I’m going to paint a bolt of lightning on his shell.”

“Just keep your dad and his lawnmower at a safe distance,” Tom said, laughing.

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Written for these daily prompts: E.M.’s Random Word Prompt (turtle), Your Daily Word Prompt (dingy), My Vivid Blog (outlines), Fandango’s One-Word Challenge (tragedy), Word of the Day Challenge (forgetful), The Daily Spur (peak), and Ragtag Daily Prompt (doppelgänger).