Every day he would visit the little old man, and he knew there would always be a bowl of food waiting for him, and a scratch behind the ears followed by a "that's a good boy". It was his greatest joy of all.
One day, the little dog trotted up the little old man's walkway, but instead of being greeted in the usual way, a strange man walked out of the front door. He'd seen the man before, when the grandchildren had visited. The man looked sad, and carried his hat in his hands. The dog didn't know it, but the little old man had died in his sleep the night before, and the man he was looking at now was his son. The dog walked over to where his food bowl had always been, but it was empty. He picked it up in his mouth, and walked over to the son, dropping the bowl by his feet.
The man's demeanor changed immediately, and he kicked the dog as hard as he could saying "Get out of here you mutt!" One of the man's children suddenly appeared from around the side of the house, and said "Dad, no! It's just Pepper. He won't hurt anybody!" The little boy ran overt to the dog, and the dog met the boy with happy licks and jumps. The father ran to the dog with anger in his eyes, and snarled "Get out of here and don't come back!" The dog tucked his tail between his legs and ran, dodging rocks being hurled at him. One rock struck his back leg so hard he was knocked off his feet, but he managed to get back up and hobble away. He knew he would never be welcome at his home again.
He spent the night not under the carport of the little old man's house that night like usual, but in the woods behind the house, hidden from view. He saw lights on in the house, and he longed for the companionship he once had. That life was gone now, and nothing would bring it back. He decided the next morning he would try another place to see if anyone else would love an old dog like himself.
When the sunrise came, he woke and trotted down the street to another house. This one was smaller, but it was just as full of possibility. He made his way up the walkway, and before he could even cross the threshold of the patio, he heard a child's voice say "Look a dog! Maybe he needs a home!" Three more children followed, and before he was even aware of it, he was happily playing fetch with the four kids.
It seemed like the world would not be so bad after all, when the back door opened. A woman walked out and yelled "What are you doing? Where did that dog come from? He might have fleas! Get away from him!" Then a man appeared behind her with a pellet gun, and aimed it at the dog. The dog had never seen a gun before, but when the first red-hot sting hit his shoulder, he fled the yard with such speed that he never looked back at the children or the mother and father. All he heard was the man yell "Call animal control!"
That night, the dog slept in the same woods he'd used the night before, the world looked quite darker now, and with less promise of a new day tomorrow.
The next few days the dog did not reappear. He was afraid of what he might find, so he stayed hidden away in the grove of trees he's used night after night. He had never learned to find food in the woods, so as the days went by he grew hungrier and hungrier.
One morning, he was in such pain from days of hunger that he felt he must try again. He trotted down the road, scampering into the woods whenever a car would pass by. At a tiny house at the end of the cul-de-sac was a man in his front yard raking leaves. The man saw the dog, and how hungry he looked. He went into his house, found a bowl and some leftover chicken scraps from the day before, and walked back out to where the dog was standing. He held the bowl out to the dog, and the dog slowly walked forward. The dog could smell the chicken, sense the welcome relief from his hunger, and the promise of a new day ahead of him...
But at the last second, he remembered the "crack" of the large rock that had struck his back leg. He remembered anew the boot of the man who had kicked him, and the horrific memory of the bullet that had singed his shoulder days before. Without warning, he growled at the man and backed away. The man put the bowl down on the ground, and knelt down next to it, holding his hand out gently. The dog slowly approached the bowl, and began eating. The man carefully petted the dog's head, but instead of a wagging tail, the dog reacted with a jump, a savage growl, and bared teeth.
The man picked up the bowl, looked down at the dog and said "Crazy animal! What's your problem? I was only trying to feed you!"
The man walked back into the house, and the dog went back into the woods.
The only place where he knew what the score would be.
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