A new house. Are we moving? Do we live here now? Who lives here? 

"Hey, Mal, good to see ya'."

"Hi, Cliff. Ya' get a call from management yet?"

"I got one from Angus. He's pissed off, of course." This man has very long fur. My fur is short. It's easy to clean. I lick and I roll around on wet grass and I smell great. "Food's in the kitchen if ya' want it."

"Starvin'." The man takes away my rope and I follow him keeping my tail high. It's grown a bit longer and I want to show it off. I show off my tongue too and leave drops of slobber everywhere I go. Its great fun! 

I smell meat! I smell something fresh and earthy. I smell bread. I smell something sweet...something tantalizing....

"Aw, no, you don't get this, Charlie." My human keeps the food away from me while I sniff. There's food in a bit of paper. It crinkles and folds and I want to search it. My human won't let me. "You don't get my chocolate shake."

"But he wants it, Mal." The other man laughs and smiles at me. 

"Tough shit, Charlie. Here. Have a bite of chicken." The man pulls out a piece of meat and I jump and spin. He tosses it and I catch it and gobble it up. I lick my chops and wait for more. "Good boy, nice catch!" The man takes his food and joins his friend on the couch. There's a box in front of them. I see tiny humans in the box. I tilt my head and watch them. They're the tiniest humans I've ever seen. They run and walk and talk just like any human. But I'm so much bigger than they are. I bet I could chase them. I run to the box and yip. I stand on my hind legs and yip and paw the box. The tiny humans kick something around. It looks like a toy. I love toys! I wanna play! I yip and yelp! Let me play!

"Come here, Charlie!" I hear a whistle. I turn my head and see the men patting the couch. I turn back to the box and wag my tail, my whole rump shaking. I must play with them! They're all so excited! They're running! I must yip!

"Charlie, come here! You'll knock the telly over!" I hear my human's voice and I see him holding out another piece of meat. I drop to all fours and limp to him, taking the piece of meat and gobbling it up. He picks me up and places me between them on the couch. "Here, watch some football. You can bark when Scotland wins." I'm closer to the food than before. I drool and watch my human stuff his face with meat and bread and fresh plant food. The other man eats too. I watch them both. My stomach aches from emptiness. My breakfast isn't enough. I need more. I need human food. I need meat. I whine. I yawn. I watch the people in the box kicking the toy around. I stare and wait for the man to slip me a meal. 

"Always a commercial." The man with the long fur stands up and leaves us alone. I stare at my human and lick my chops. I want him to see how hungry I am. I want to try the sweet drink. 

"You act like I haven't fed ya' in weeks." I blink and stare at the man. There's food on his face but he wipes it away with paper. "Here, have a bit of Cliff's chicken." The man takes some meat from across the couch and hands it to me. I nip his fingers hard enough to take the meat and swallow it whole. I sniff his hands for more. "Naw, that's it for now. You can have your dog food when we go home."

I sit there and stare at him. Surely he'll give me more if I wait patiently. If I don't yip. If I sit still. The other man comes back and finishes his food. I can smell the sweet drink on their breaths. I want to lick their faces. But I must wait. I must wait patiently. Then they'll give me food. 

The tiny box humans yell and scream and I turn my head to watch. They're still playing with their toy and they kick it around. The men on the couch start yelling and clapping and smiling. They're happy! I'm happy! We're excited! Something good happened! I must wag my tail!

The man pets me and strokes my ears. "This could be the first win in a while."

"England won somethin' last year but I wasn't there to watch it."

"You love football, don't ya'?" My human scratches my ribs and I think he is speaking to me. The food is gone but I still wait. Maybe they'll pull some out of nowhere. Humans are tricky. I wait and watch.

**********

After a trip outside the man takes me back to the house where we sleep. I limp inside and sniff around my food bowl. It's empty and I expect to eat whatever the humans ate today. They can't possibly eat that much and not leave any for me. "Hungry?" I stand there and watch my human pull out something metal. It reeks of food. Wet food falls into my bowl and I devour. It sticks to the fur on my face and drips on the floor. "Messy little man, are we?" The human grabs some paper and scoops up the food I've dropped. 

**********

"Ang, calm down, nothin's been decided yet..."

I watch my human pace the floor. He holds something to his ear and speaks like he's with another human. I look around but I don't see anyone else. Something long and curly sticks out of it and touches the floor. I sniff it and chew. 

"Charlie, no! Go on!" I stagger back from him. His voice is loud. "No, Charlie's jus' chewin' on the phone cord..."

I stand and watch. The man sighs and runs a hand through his fur. It's messy now. I sit and chew on my leg. I need to chew. My teeth hurt. I look around for something to chew. I sniff things. I watch the man but stay away from him. I'm scared he'll raise his voice again. 

"Then talk to George about this, not me!" I sniff around the floor and find my toy. I lie down and take it between my paws. I chew. The toy honks and squeaks. The man looks at me. He sighs again. "I know, I know....I'm sorry....we'll talk next time I see ya', alright? Bye." The man sets down whatever he was talking to and sits on the couch. I watch him, chewing at the same time. I want to go to him but maybe I'll upset him. He's upset and I'm upset. My tail lies dead on the floor. I don't dare move it. The man looks at me. He pats his legs. "Come here, boy."

I lift my head and watch him. He holds a hand out and I tilt my head. 

"Come on."

I stand up and stretch and limp to him. He pets me and I lick his fingers. I want to make him happy. I want my human to be happy. I love him. I roll over onto my back and expose my belly. He scratches it and I put my paw on his leg. 

"Jus' some trouble at the office, Charlie. Ang's in a mood." 

I like it when he pets me. His hands are warm and soft. I relax when I feel him relax. 

"An' so am I."

**********

I fall asleep while he plays his music. I love him.