Haelee

=
Just a couple of days ago I was playing fetch with my dog Max. He was happy, jumping around, wagging his tail and playing like a healthy dog. He would come back with the ball in his mouth. He dropped it in my hand then licked me. I got the signal of him wanting to play more so I threw it again. After he got tired we went inside and I gave him a treat and some water in his favorite water bowl.======

=
That night my family and I, including Max, sat around the fire while sipping hot cocoa. I got sleepy so I went upstairs to go to bed. Max followed and then we both layed in bed. I whispered goodnight then he licked my hand and we fell asleep.======

Part 2
 * I tossed and turned that night. I had the worse dream possible - Max ran away. I woke up and a tingling sensation crawled down my spine making me shiver at the terrible dream. Max was still there by my side and I pet his soft head. I then layed my head on him hearing his heart beat. I forgot the dream(or at least tried to) then fell back asleep.**


 * “Stop,stop, please a little more sleep”, I said to Max as he licked me and nudged me. I finally woke up and the house smelled of breakfast; buttery eggs, greasy bacon, and some more, buttery toast. Throwing on some school clothes I ran downstairs to eat the fattening breakfast. I stuffed my face with the feast until I was full, then I gulped down a huge glass of orange juice.”Bye mom, bye dad, bye Max!” “Have a good day”, my parents yelled at the same time as I ran out for the school bus.**


 * All through the day I thought about after school. I would walk through the door and Max would come up and greet me. I would tap his head, put my backpack down, grab a ball and a leash, then skip outside with Max ready to take him for a walk. I would put his leash around his neck and we would go to the park ,we did every other day, and play fetch with the old ball. Like before, when Max got tired I would walk him back home, without the leash this time. I never thought he would run away because I always wore him out when we play at the park.

Part 3 Finally it was after school. I put my backpack down and noticed that Max didn't come and welcome me home. I was confused and tried not to worry so I went to the backyard to look for him- he wasn't there. I sat on the couch trying to figure out what had just happened. I don't think my mom would have taken him for a walk. I called my mom just to make sure. "Hello?" my mom said very slowly stretching every syllable. " Hey mom, did you take Max anywhere because I can't find him here?" "Oh! Um, well." She stuttered. "I will be right home to tell you the news." Soon enough my mom was home. She told me that she came home from the gym and she couldn't find Max. She looked every where and finally found him in a corner by the fridge. My mom pet him and felt his skin burning up so she took him to the vet. They said he had passed but they couldn't find out why. They guessed from old age. I felt some of my chest rip open. I felt terrible and didn't know what to do. My mom tried to cheer me up by saying that we could just get a new dog but that just made me cry harder. No other dog could replace Max. He was the best dog and the closest thing to my heart and now he was just, well, gone.

A couple days later we had a funeral. I gave a speech,"We all gather here today for the passing of my dog Max. My dog Max was not just a dog, he was a friend- a best friend anyone could ever have. When I was talking I did't feel like I was talking to a k9, I felt like I was talking to a person. He would listen to me with his loving, caring, loyal, eyes. I think the best part about Max was that he couldn't tell any of my secrets." Everyone laughed. " But really, the best part about Max was that he was always there for me. " I started bawling." I'm sorry."

~In Memory of Max~ You will always be apart of me.**