Russ and the Boy Next Door
Russ sniffed. He raised his head. The new boy next door
was playing outside. Russ sprang to his feet and ran to
the fence. “Hey!” barked Russ. “Will you
play with me? Huh? Will you? Will you?”
“Ahhhh!” the boy screamed. He ran back to his house.
“Don’t go!” barked Russ. He jumped at the fence. “I’m here all alone until dinnertime. Don’t go inside—”
SLAM!
Russ watched the closed door. Maybe it would open again. Maybe the boy would come back. Russ waited. But the boy didn’t come back.
The next day Russ smelled the boy again. He ran to the fence. The boy was playing in his sandbox.
“Hey!” Russ barked. “Will you play with me today? Huh? Will you? Will you?”
“Ahhhh!” the boy screamed. He jumped up and ran to his house.
“I’m not going to hurt you,” Russ barked. “I just want to play.”
SLAM!
How could he make the boy understand? With a big sigh, Russ dropped to his belly. He sniffed his paw, scratched his ear, and went to sleep.
The next day, Russ smelled the boy again. He ran to the fence. The boy was tossing a red ball against a tree.
“I love to play ball!” barked Russ. “Throw it here! Please throw it here!”
“Ahhhh!” the boy screamed.
This time the boy’s mother came outside. “Quiet!” she yelled at Russ.
Russ took a step back. “Quiet?” he thought. “How am I supposed to get him to play if I can’t talk to him?”
“Ben, Mr. Potter told me that his dog barks but he doesn’t bite,” the woman said to the boy. “Just tell him to be quiet.” Then she went back inside.
Ben looked at Russ.
Russ sat. “I’ll be quiet,” he whimpered.
Ben tossed his ball at the tree.
“Hey! Throw it here!” Russ barked.
Ben looked at Russ.
“Sorry.” Russ yipped. He hung his head. “I’ll be quiet.”
Ben tossed his ball again.
“Oh,
please throw it here!” Russ barked. He couldn’t
help it. He loved to play ball more than anything.
Suddenly Russ had an idea. He ran across his yard and grabbed a blue ball. It tasted like rubber bands, but Russ didn’t mind. He dropped the ball near the fence. “Look here,” he barked.
Ben looked. Russ tossed his ball as high into the air as he could. Then he jumped up and caught it in his mouth.
Ben giggled. “Silly dog,” he said. He took two steps toward the fence. “Hey, can you chase a ball?”
“Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!” Russ barked. He jumped at the fence.
Ben tossed his ball over the fence. Russ hurried after it. The ball tasted like jelly, dirt, and boy all at the same time. It was the best-tasting ball in the world!
Russ brought the ball back and dropped it next to the fence, near Ben’s feet.
“Good dog,” Ben said. He carefully held his hand out to Russ.
Russ licked Ben’s hand. Some things didn’t need to be said out loud.
