puppy
8th Jun, 2025
"Sit. Wait. Good girl."
She follows the instructions, her tail wagging against the floor a handful of times at the last two words.
She likes following the instructions. It makes them happy when she does. She can tell, because afterwards she gets affection and nice words and pats.
The footsteps move away. A door opens, then closes.
She sits.
She waits.
She's a good girl.
Some time passes. She gives a big yawn, and watches the door. It'll open again in a minute, right?
Some time passes.
From somewhere else, another puppy appears, trots up, sniffs curiously at her. That puppy has been napping, big eyes still full of sleep.
With a return sniff of greeting, and body language, and the smallest little yip she can manage (because they don't like if she's too loud), the first puppy tries to communicate that they must sit and wait! Be good girls. They will be back soon, and if the puppies sit and wait, they will be happy.
The second puppy sits, but then lays down, curls up, goes back to sleep next to her. That's good enough, she supposes.
She sits.
She waits.
She's a good girl.
Some time passes.
Every now and then, a car goes past outside, or a voice floats in from somewhere distant. When this happens, her tail goes wagwagwag, beating a rhythm against the floor again. Surely they're about to come back!
But the door doesn't open. Nobody is there.
She tilts her head in confusion, and lets out a little whine. They've never been gone this long before...
But she is a good girl. She'll wait. She shuffles her little puppy paws against the floor impatiently, but she doesn't move. She's been told to sit.
Some time passes.
Eventually, it starts to get dark outside. The second puppy has woken occasionally, to sniff at her or reposition, or occasionally trot off somewhere else for a while, but she always returns.
That's okay, she thinks. They only told her to sit. The other puppy can come and go if she likes, as long as she's not causing trouble. The puppies are still good girls.
It's fully dark now. She starts to get sleepy. More and more, her big eyes start to slip closed, and she's full of big puppy yawns.
She's meant to be sitting... but surely it's okay if she just stays here, right? She can lay down for a little? She's still a good girl. She's still waiting. They'll come home soon.
It's dark out, and cold. They always come home soon after that. It won't be long.
She lets her paws slip foward, slumping to the floor. She cuddles up against the second puppy, and lets herself sleep.
A lot of time passes.
She dreams of days past, when she was very small, even smaller than now. She dreams of warm hands and laying her head in their lap, and the comfort of blankets and kind words.
It grows light outside.
A car passes, loud and noisy. It wakes her up.
!!!
In her excitement, she almost forgets that she's meant to be sitting and waiting! She almost runs to the door, or the window, to see who it is! But she catches herself, just in time.
The car passes. There's no more noises. The door hasn't opened while it was dark and cold; nobody has come home. She would have noticed.
She sits. And sits.
She waits. And waits.
She is still a good girl. She's trying so hard to stay a good girl.
The other puppy wakes up too, with a big yawn that ends in a little whine. She snuffles at the first puppy in greeting, then trots off somewhere else.
That's okay. The first puppy doesn't mind being alone. She's a good girl, after all.
She whines in the quiet, but doesn't move.
Some time passes.
She hears voices! Outside! They've come back at last!!
Her tail thumps against the floor, energetic. She shuffles her paws excitedly. She's missed them so much. She's gonna show how much of a good girl she is!
...The voices don't stop. They keep moving. They go past. They don't come inside. The door doesn't open.
She can't stand it. She's not a good girl. She runs to the window (not a good girl), jumps up on the furniture (not a good girl), puts her paws against the glass (not a good girl).
And she barks (not a good girl)
and barks (not a good girl)
and barks (NOT a good girl)
and BARKS (NOT A GOOD GIRL).
The voices don't come back. Nobody is there. But she's so lonely now. She has already broken the rules. She isn't following the instructions. It doesn't matter that she isn't a good girl anymore - she just wants them to come back. Even disappointment is okay, as long as it's something.
So she keeps barking.
The other puppy runs up from somewhere, startled by the noise.
She sits down nearby at the base of the window, and soon the barking is punctuated by her whines and a long, mournful howl. She doesn't understand either. She misses them too.
Some time passes.
Eventually the first puppy gets tired of barking.
The puppies trot over, closer to the door, and curl up together. The sun has started to dim now, not with night time but with thick clouds. It's still cold.
A little rain starts to fall.
The puppy is so worried. Why haven't they come back? She did what she was told. She sat. She waited. She was a good girl. Are they okay, out there without her?
Did she do something wrong after all?
Should she have followed them, instead of sitting?
No,
That's not what she was told. They don't like it when she follows without being told. She was told to wait.
So she waits.
And waits.
The rain is heavy now. The sky is dark.
The door doesn't open.