9780008390662

tough
Boss isn’t anything like I remember. She’s scrawny and flea covered. Her left
ear has a big notch in it. Her fur is dull, her body scarred, her tail cut short.
I’m afraid to ask how that happened.
She’s clearly had it tough, really tough.
“I thought I heard your bark,” I say, “but then it stopped. Figured I was
crazy.”
“I was napping.”
“In this chaos?” I ask.
“I can sleep anywhere. It’s a gift.” Boss nibbles on a toenail. “Funny thing is
I was having a dream about you. Must’ve caught a whiff of you in my sleep.”
I can’t stop staring. Boss. Here. With me.
“What?” she asks when she catches me looking at her.
“I was just wondering,” I say, “about your life. Do you have . . . you know,
anybody?”
“You mean like humans? Nope.” She gives a little flick of her stubby tail.
“Never have. Never will.”
“You’ve been on your own this whole time?” I flash on my cushy bed, my
lovely food bowl, the way everyone knows just how I like my ear scratches.
“Yep.”