Dog Heaven (13 page)

My head felt as if it was about to explode.

“You’re back,” someone said.

I whipped around. It was Ben, the guy we’d talked to before. A small wiener dog was tucked under his arm. Ben held it up. “Meet Olivine. She just came in.”

I was frantic. “Where’s Streak?”

“Who?”

“Streak … the dog I … the dog …”

I choked. It was all slipping away.

“Ohhh, you mean Ruby.”

“That’s the one,” Ledward said.

Ben shook his head. “A lady just adopted her.” He glanced back through the crowd. “Maybe she’s still here. I don’t know.”

There was a big stir over by the offices. The crowd surged, people scrambling to see what
was going on. Someone shouted, “Come back! Here, doggie, doggie, doggie, here, doggie!”

“Loose dog.” Ben set Olivine the wiener dog in Streak’s vacant kennel and hurried off.

Who cared?

I hooked my fingers in the chain-link fence. The wiener dog looked up at me. She had long ears and a pointy nose. She was trembling.

Ledward tapped my shoulder. “Look.”

I shook him off.

“Look.”

L
edward lifted his chin toward the dog everyone was trying to catch. It was black and white, and fast.

“Streak!”

I promise, that crazy dog was laughing. She was having a party. Nobody could touch her.

“Streak!” I shouted again.

Streak heard me. She tried to stop. Her paws slid on the concrete and she barreled into a wall.

I started running.

In an instant she was leaping at my feet, a dog-size flea. I picked her up and hugged her. Streak licked my face.

The crowd cheered, everyone laughing and clapping.

Mom’s mouth hung open.

Not one person could catch that dog and there she was licking my face.

“Ho!” Ben said, running up. “How’d you
do
that?”

A lady stumbled up behind him, gasping. “Oh, thank you, thank you!” She gulped, catching her breath. “Ruby, you naughty dog.”

I turned so the lady couldn’t touch her. “Her name is Streak.”

“Calvin,” Mom said, gently.

“She’s mine, Mom.”

The lady blinked.

Mom moved closer. “I’m sorry. He doesn’t mean that. He was just here a couple of days ago and played with this dog, that’s all.”

Mom pried Streak out of my arms. She stroked her once and handed her to the lady. Streak wiggled and whined. The lady struggled to hang on to her.

“Good heavens!”

The lady dumped Streak into Ben’s arms. “I think this one might be a little too much for me to handle.”

My spirits soared. “Uh … there’s a nice wiener dog in that kennel over there.” I turned and pointed. “It just came in.”

“He’s right,” Ben said. “I’ll show you.”

The lady sighed and nodded. “Is it calmer?”

“Oh, yes. Her name is Olivine, and she’s a sweetheart.” Ben handed Streak to me and winked.

Streak tickled my face with her wet nose. Darci reached up and Streak licked her hand.

Mom blinked. “I don’t believe any of this.”

“Can I get her, Mom, can I? Look, she loves me.”

Mom wagged her finger at Ledward. “You.” Ledward gave her his best innocent face. “Me?”

“You knew I wouldn’t be able to resist, didn’t you?”

Ledward opened his hands.

Mom broke into a grin. “Oh, all right, you boys win. I guess one dog won’t hurt.” Then she wagged her finger at me. “But you keep her outside and away from Stella.”

“Thanks, Mom! Thanks! I’ll take good care of her, I promise.”

“I know you’ll try, honey. But really, you’re
going to have to keep that dog outside. Or in your room. Away from Stella.”

“I know, she might be allergic.”

Mom gave Ledward a shove. “You, on the other hand, are in deep, deep trouble.”

Ledward looked at me and flicked his eyebrows.

A
t school the next day I sat at my desk thinking about Streak. The night before, I’d moved down to the lower bunk so she could sleep curled up by my feet, just like Chewy used to. I smiled. Then I frowned, remembering I’d left Streak fenced in the backyard before heading to school. I hoped she wasn’t too lonely.

Mr. Purdy walked by and tapped my desk, which meant get to work and stop daydreaming.

We were supposed to be wrapping up our paragraphs. Mr. Purdy was going to tape them on the wall for everyone to read.

Someone sneezed.

A pencil fell to the floor.

The clock ticked.

Mr. Purdy paced. “Two minutes. Wrap it up.”

I glanced around the room. Rubin was writing furiously, head low to the table. Julio sat with his arms crossed, looking out the door. Maya was scowling at her paper. Willy was nodding slowly, as if he was listening to music in his head. Shayla sat with her hands clasped, smiling at me.

I turned away.

My paragraph was done. I guessed. Probably. I liked what I’d written. It got me a dog, right? It must be okay.

“Time’s up!”

Out on the playground I sat with Julio, Rubin, Maya, and Willy on top of the jungle gym. No one said much. Writing took a lot out of you. We were beat.

Julio pointed his chin. “Check it out.”

I turned to look.