Sweetie (2 page)

Finally, Mom smiled. “Okay, Charles. You and Lizzie have been so responsible with our foster puppies.” She turned to Rick. “We’ll be happy to take care of Sweetie. She’s such a little thing. How much trouble could she be?”

“Yay!” yelled Charles and Lizzie and the Bean. Sweetie’s head popped up and she looked all around.

What’s all the noise about? Is it a party? I love parties!

The pup scrambled out of Charles’s arms and jumped up onto the table.

“Oh, dear,” said Mom. “I don’t think —” But then she burst out laughing as Sweetie danced toward her.

Dad laughed, too. “The little cutie.” He wiped his eyes.

Even Rick cracked a smile. “She’s real smart, this one. Only six months old, and she already knows some tricks. The lady I bought her from taught her.”

“Tricks? Like what?” Lizzie asked.

“Let’s see,” said Rick. “She knows how to sit —”

No sooner was the word out of his mouth than Sweetie sat, perching on the table like a tiny statue of a poodle. She cocked her head at Rick.

That was easy. What’s next?

Everybody laughed and clapped.

“More,” yelled the Bean. “More tricks!”

Rick lifted Sweetie off the table and set her down on the floor. “Roll over, Sweetie,” he said.

Sweetie dropped onto her tummy and — quick as a flash — rolled over and bounced back onto her feet.

“Wow!” Even Lizzie, who had taught lots of puppies lots of tricks, was impressed.

“The lady was starting to teach her how to do a backflip, but I think she’s still a little young for that.” Rick squatted down next to the tiny puppy, looking proud. “She’ll jump up onto anything, though.” He patted his knee. “Sweetie, up!”

Sweetie sprang up onto Rick’s knee. Then he patted the seat of a nearby chair. “Sweetie, up.” Sweetie sailed right up onto the chair. Rick was about to pat the table when Mom cleared her throat and shook her head.

“No more dogs on the kitchen table,” she said. But she smiled. “Sweetie is a very talented puppy.”

“I know,” said Rick. “Karen would have loved her.” Suddenly, his mustache went all droopy again, and the spark left his eyes. “I love dogs. I wish I could keep Sweetie, but even if she were allowed in my apartment, I think having her around would just be a reminder of how much I miss Karen.”

Dad put his hand on Rick’s shoulder. “We’ll take good care of her. And we’ll find her a good home, too. You can count on that.”

Rick sniffed and nodded. “Thanks. You don’t know how much I appreciate it. One thing: When you’re looking for a new owner, make sure that person understands that poodles have to be groomed. The lady I got her from was very clear about that. It’s a real commitment to have a poodle and pay for a shampoo and some clipping every six to ten weeks.”

“I know about that,” said Lizzie. “They have to be groomed because poodles have hair, not fur like other dogs. That’s why some people who are
allergic to dogs can be around poodles without sneezing. Instead of shedding, poodle hair just grows and grows and grows.”

Rick nodded. “That’s right.” He gave Lizzie a weak smile. “I promise I’ll never try to give a puppy as a present again. I’ve learned my lesson.”

The big man scooped up the tiny puppy and nuzzled her ears. “Good-bye, Sweetie. You be a good girl.” Sweetie looked tinier than ever nestled in his big hands. She licked his cheek, and Rick kissed her on the nose. Then he handed Sweetie over to Charles and walked quickly out of the room, without looking back.

Charles kissed Sweetie between the ears. “We’ll take care of you,” he said. He turned to Lizzie. “Where’s Buddy? Let’s see if they get along.”

“I put him in my bedroom until Sweetie got comfortable with all of us,” said Lizzie. She went
to get Buddy while Charles and the Bean took Sweetie into the living room to play. Charles put the puppy down on the rug and watched as she ran around sniffing everything. She tried to pick up one of Buddy’s stuffed toys, but it was almost bigger than she was. She tugged and growled, trying to pull Mr. Duck out of the toy basket.

Just then Lizzie came back downstairs, with Buddy trotting after her.

“Uh-oh,” said Charles. Mr. Duck was one of Buddy’s favorite toys. Maybe he wouldn’t be happy to find another puppy playing with it.

But Buddy ran right over to Sweetie, wagging his tail. He pulled Mr. Duck out of the basket and laid him down in front of Sweetie.

Here you go.

Buddy bowed down, his front paws stretched way out.

Want to play?

Sweetie bowed back — and they were off, racing around the room. After a few laps, Buddy rolled over and let Sweetie climb on him. He must have looked like a mountain to the tiny golden brown pup.

“Wow,” said Charles. “Everybody loves Sweetie.”

“Evvybody love Sweetie,” echoed the Bean. He laughed his googly laugh. “The Bean love Sweetie, Charles love Sweetie, Lizzie love Sweetie, Buddy love Sweetie! Dada and Mama love Sweetie!”

Sweetie looked up, one minuscule foot planted on Buddy’s chest, and cocked her head.

Of course! And I love you all, too.

Charles laughed. Sweetie was so cute. “Up, Sweetie!” He patted his knee. Sweetie scampered
over and jumped, sailing through the air like a little ball of fluff. She landed perfectly on Charles’s lap. “Good girl.” He gave her a big kiss on the top of her head.

That was when Buddy started to bark.

“What’s the matter, Buddy?” Charles asked.

Buddy planted both front feet on the carpet and faced Charles, barking like a maniac.

Why does she get to be on your lap? What about me? What about me? What about me?

“I think somebody’s jealous.” Lizzie raised her eyebrows and pointed at Buddy. “That’s never happened before.” She went over to pat Buddy. “It’s okay, honey. We love you just as much as always.”

But Buddy barked until Charles put Sweetie back down on the floor. After that, he played nicely with Sweetie — as long as she stayed away
from his people. Every time Sweetie trotted over to Lizzie or tried to kiss the Bean or even
looked
at Charles, Buddy started to bark.

“What’s going on in here?” Mom stood in the doorway, her arms across her chest. “I’ve never heard Buddy bark so much.”

“It’s Sweetie,” Charles told her. “Buddy’s jealous. He doesn’t understand that we will always love him best.”

“Hmm.” Mom frowned. “That’s not so good. It’s important for them to get along if we’re going to foster Sweetie.”

“But Buddy’s not being mean to her,” Charles said quickly. He wouldn’t be able to stand it if they had to give up on fostering the tiny poodle. He loved to watch her scamper around. “I think he just needs some time to get to know Sweetie.”

Mom nodded. “You’re probably right. Anyway, it’s time for dinner. Let’s put Sweetie into the puppy crate for now and let her settle in a bit.
Maybe by tomorrow Buddy will get used to having her around.”

Charles and Lizzie and the Bean tried to give Buddy lots of attention that night. They fed him special treats and patted him constantly, and Charles even read to him from Buddy’s favorite book,
Three Stories You Can Read to Your Dog.
But tonight Buddy did not seem to be paying attention. Instead, he kept one eye on Sweetie as she wandered around the living room. And he barked every time she went near one of the Petersons. Finally, Sweetie curled up on a pillow near the fireplace and fell asleep, and only then did Buddy relax on Charles’s lap.

Buddy slept in Lizzie’s room that night, and Dad put Sweetie’s crate into Charles’s room so she wouldn’t be too lonely. Once they were alone in his room, Charles gave Sweetie all the kisses and hugs he could not give her in front of Buddy. “I’m sure everything will be fine in the morning,” he told her.

But he was wrong.

A good night’s sleep did not change anything, as far as Buddy was concerned. In the morning, he still thought it was just plain wrong for any of his people to play with Sweetie — and he let it be known.

After breakfast, Charles and Lizzie were in the living room with the puppies. Charles had Sweetie on his lap. He was teaching her to give him a kiss whenever he said, “Kisses!” She was such a quick learner.

At first Buddy whined and barked. “Poor Buddy!” Lizzie said. For a while she distracted him with a rubber tug toy, but soon he gave up on playing with that. Now he lay with his head on his paws and watched Charles and Sweetie with a sad look on his face.

“Buddy, come on.” Lizzie dangled Mr. Duck in front of him. Usually Buddy loved to grab the fuzzy stuffed toy and dash around the room with it, shaking it madly. But today he only glanced at
Mr. Duck, then sighed and dropped his head back to his paws.

“Poor Buddy,” said Charles. “Maybe I should take Sweetie away for a while. Sammy and I were supposed to go over to David’s today anyway. Maybe I can take her with me.”

David sounded unsure when Charles called to ask if Sweetie could come over. “I don’t know. I can’t wait to meet your new foster puppy. But what about Slinky? I’ll call you back,” he said.

Slinky was David’s cat. She was so shy that, so far, Charles and Sammy had never even seen her. David said Slinky mostly hid under the couch when company was around. Sammy thought Slinky might be David’s imaginary pet. But Charles believed in her. He had seen a picture of Slinky on David’s bulletin board. She was really pretty, with brown and black coloring. Tortoiseshell, David called it.

A few minutes later, David phoned back to say it was okay to bring Sweetie over. “But Mom says we have to kind of smuggle her into the basement, so Slinky doesn’t know there’s a puppy in the house.”

“That’ll be easy,” said Charles. “Sweetie is so small I could practically put her in my pocket.”

Charles’s dad drove the boys over to David’s. Sweetie rode in her crate in the back of the van, but when they arrived, Charles tucked her into his backpack. At first she wriggled and whined, but when Charles petted her, she settled down. She looked so cute with her curly head poking out and her bright eyes shining.

David met them at the front door with his finger over his lips. “Shh,” he said. “Slinky’s in the living room.” The boys tiptoed to the basement door and slipped downstairs. Only then did Charles let Sweetie out of his backpack. She leapt out, light as a feather, and shook herself
just like Buddy always did after a bath. She blinked at the boys.

Well, hello. A new audience for my tricks!

“She’s tiny!” said David.

“Tiny? She’s minuscule.” Sammy bent down to pet her. “Hi there, Sweetie.”

“Wait’ll you see this.” Charles sat on the bottom step and patted his knee. “Up, Sweetie!” She bounded over and leapt onto his knee. “Kisses!” he said. He lowered his head so she could lick his cheek.

“Wow!” David sat down on the weight bench. “Will she jump onto my lap?”

“Try it,” Charles said.

“Up, Sweetie!” David patted his lap. In a flash, Sweetie was sitting there, her ears perked up and her tail wagging. “Man!” said David. “If I could jump like that, I would be in the Olympics!”

Then Sammy had to try. Sweetie jumped into his lap, too.

“This dog should be in the circus,” said Sammy.

David came over to pet Sweetie. “This dog
could
be in the circus,” he said. “If my cousin adopted her!”

“What are you talking about?” Sammy asked.

“My cousin Ducky. He’s in the circus, and he’ll be here in two weeks!” David’s eyes sparkled. “His circus is doing a show in the city, and he’s staying with us for three whole days.”

Sammy looked over at Charles, eyebrows raised. Charles knew what that meant. Sammy thought this was another of David’s wild stories. “The circus, huh?” Sammy asked. “What, is he an acrobat or something? A lion tamer?”

David shook his head. “Ducky’s a juggler.”

“Really?” asked Charles. He had always wanted to learn to juggle. His dad could juggle three oranges. He made it look easy, but when Charles tried, he always dropped the oranges so that they
rolled all over the kitchen floor and got mushy, which didn’t make Mom too happy. Dad had tried to teach Charles, but so far Charles just didn’t get it. “That’s cool.”

“I know,” said David. “Ducky
is
cool. You should see what he can do. Once I saw him juggle seven golf balls. Or sometimes he juggles whatever is near him, like a hammer, a coffee mug, and a pillow. And he can palm a basketball in each hand, and do magic tricks, and eat fire!”

Charles noticed that Sammy’s eyebrows shot up a little higher each time David said something about Ducky. So what if Sammy didn’t believe David? Charles couldn’t wait to hear more.

“He’s amazing,” David finished. “And he’s really nice, too. He loves animals, and they love him. Even Slinky will sit in his lap to get petted.”

“Do you really think he would adopt Sweetie? A circus would be the perfect place for her.” Charles could just picture Sweetie in
the spotlight, in the middle of a three-ring circus under a colorful tent. She would wear a shiny crown and maybe a sparkly costume, and she would jump through hoops, do tricks, maybe even ride bareback on a horse. Smart little Sweetie could probably learn to do anything. And the audience would clap and cheer and throw flowers to the newest star. Charles patted his knee. “Up, Sweetie!” The tiny dog ran over and jumped onto his lap. “What do you think?” he asked her. “Want to join the circus?”

Sweetie looked up at him with bright, shiny eyes.

Whatever you’re asking, the answer is yes, yes, yes!

She wriggled and squirmed and nibbled on Charles’s chin.

Charles giggled. “I think that’s a yes,” he said.

Sammy rolled his eyes. “Whatever.” He grabbed the boodja and the blat. “How about some base-boodja?”

Charles could tell that Sammy wanted to change the subject. He obviously did not believe that David had a cousin who was in the circus. And he did not like it when David got all the attention with one of his wild stories.

“I have an even better idea.” David jumped up onto the weight bench and began to inch along it like a tightrope walker, holding his arms out for balance. “Let’s play circus!”

Charles glanced at Sammy. Sammy was frowning, and Charles knew why. Sammy liked to be the one who had great ideas. But circus sounded like a blast. “Okay!” said Charles. “I get to be the animal trainer. Come on, Salami. It’ll be fun.”

“I’m a juggler and an acrobat.” David jumped down off the weight bench.

“And I’m the ringmaster!” Sammy finally gave
in. “That means I do all the announcing, plus I’ll be in all the acts.” He held up a pretend microphone to his mouth. “Ladeeez and gentleworms,” he shouted. “Preeesenting, for the first time anywhere, Sweetie! The world’s most talented puppy!” He turned to Sweetie. “Give her a big hand, folks.”

David and Charles clapped and whooped. Then Charles grabbed a hula hoop that was leaning against the treadmill. He held it up in front of Sweetie. “And now, for her first trick, Sweetie will jump through this hoop —”

Almost before he had finished his sentence, Sweetie leapt right through the hoop.

For a second, all three boys were speechless.

“Whoa,” Sammy said finally. “That was awesome.”

“Let’s do it again.” Charles held up the hoop. Sweetie jumped through it as if she’d been doing it every day of her life. He couldn’t believe it.

“Now let’s have her land on my back.” David dropped to his hands and knees in front of the hula hoop. “Up, Sweetie!” he said.

“Wait —” said Charles. He wasn’t sure that was such a good idea. But before he could stop her, Sweetie sailed from her spot on the floor right through the hoop, landing perfectly on David’s back.

Charles and Sammy burst into cheers and applause.

Sweetie stood there with her head cocked.

Thank you, thank you!

Then she jumped off David’s back and ran back to Charles. He scooped her up in his arms. “You’re amazing, Sweetie.” He gave her a big kiss.

“That was so cool.” David jumped to his feet.

“I can’t believe she did that.” Sammy shook his head.

David and Sammy clustered around Charles, reaching out to pat Sweetie.

“Think she can do it again?” Sammy stepped back and pretended to speak into the microphone. “Once more, watch the Stupendous Sweetie jump through the hoop of flames!”

David ran back to his position and kneeled on the floor. Charles put Sweetie down and held up the hoop. “Up, Sweetie!” called David, and she did it again.

Maybe Sweetie really
was
the most talented puppy in the world.

For the rest of the afternoon, the boys tried every trick they could think of. They did somersaults while Sweetie jumped over them. They stood in a line, front to back with their legs apart, and Sweetie ran through the tunnel they made. They taught her to sit up pretty on her hind legs, and Charles was sure that with a little more work she would be able to take a few steps on her hind feet.

Charles had a feeling that if David really did have a cousin in the circus, he would adopt Sweetie in a minute. And if David’s cousin didn’t exist, even Sammy still had to agree: Circus with Sweetie was the best game ever — maybe even better than base-boodja.