"I don't want to upset him..."

"I think Mal's more worried about upsettin' me..."

Something is wrong. The smaller man is here. He's talking with the woman. The man is gone. The kids are with him. I want to sleep on the couch all day but this seems more important. I can't understand a word they're saying but they look upset.

"He's been handling it so well lately but every now and then it takes over and I'm scared for him."

"He's already mentioned to me what he's thinkin'. An' I jus' want to be sure you think it best too."

It's the man. I know it is. Something happened to him. Is he hurt? Is he sick? What's wrong with my human??? Come on, speak up! Their voices aren't as loud as they used to be. Nobody is here. Why would they be speaking quietly? My ears twitch. 

I can't hear them as well I used to.

Not like I can understand them anyway. But it's disheartening all the same. I can't let them know! I don't want them to worry about me, we've got to worry about my human man! They both look at me.

"Charlie won't want him to go."

"If Charlie knew what was goin' on he'd agree with us."

I think I hear my name among all those words. I wag my tail a bit. The smaller man comes to sit by me on the couch and pets me. I lick my chops. I sniff him. He smells like food. The woman leaves the room. I watch her go. Come back! We're not done talking about the man! What's wrong with him? I'm so worried!

"Mal's havin' a tough time, Charlie. He'll be alright."

Why won't anyone tell me what's going on?

**********

"Kids, why don't you take Charlie outside for a minute?"

"Is Daddy in trouble?"

"No, he's not in trouble, Cara. We just need to talk to him for a minute."

The kids have me on my rope. They lead me outside to the grass. I sniff around a bit and limp. All the holes I dug are gone. Someone filled them up. I don't dig very much anymore. Takes too much energy. But I do like to lie on the grass and roll around a bit. It's sunny today and I help myself to a particularly comfy patch of grass. 

The woman stands by the window. She's watching us. I can see the man! He's inside! I want to see him but they closed the door. Me and the children are stuck outside. The little boy and the little girl are playing with the ball the man kicks around for them. I lie on my side and lick my paws. I keep my eye on the window. The woman keeps an eye on us. 

**********

Finally the door opens. The kids grab my rope and take me back in. Finally! Where's my human? I have to start licking him straight away! He sits on the couch and I back up to jump. My hip stings and I can't do it. I get ready then give up. The man watches before picking me up and setting me next to him. Thank you! Now I can say hello! 

"Hi, Charlie..."

His eyes are cloudy. His eyes have been cloudy for a long time now. He looks at me but I wonder if he can see me. I lick his face only once before settling down on his lap. He pets me with one hand. The other one is holding a bottle. 

"Can Daddy play with us?"

"Not now, dear, your daddy has a lot to think about right now."

The children are sad. I think they know as much as I do about what's going on. "I'm alright, love, I'm never too busy to see my kids."

The little girl and the little boy come up to us. They pet me and the man ruffles their fur. "Are you sick, Daddy?"

"...in a way, my love. I...might be goin' away for a bit..."

I can smell wet salt on the woman's face.