New Things

• Maxim Lubczyk, Grade 9
• Short Story
• 2014

The tailgate of the minivan swings open and out comes a brand new puppy.The kids jump with joy and Kate lets out a little groan. He promised that Rover would be the last dog that the kids got to have. She knew that even though the kids had promised to actually take care of this one, she would be the one who was forced to feed, clean up and take care of the puppy while the kids weren’t home and even while they were.

If there was one thing that made Kate angry more than anything, it would be her children’s lack of contentment. She had observed that when they got something they really wanted, cheap or expensive, they would always come back with a new thing that they must get. It was something that was not helped by her husbands constant will to help and satisfy others.

She pulled Mike, her husband, into the house while the kids played with the new dog in the backyard and let him have it. This time she was not playing around, she let him know what she was feeling and her thoughts on this new dog and Mike’s behaviour in general. When Mike emerged from the house again, he was a changed man. He was no longer the soft, easy-going, pushover that he used to be but was instead a man on a mission. A mission to regain his wife’s respect and also to prove her wrong about the fact that he was someone who could never say no.

He knew that on his mission he would hurt many people, gain new friends, gain more respect from his old friends and make his wife proud while still showing the kids a good time.

The kids knew something was up. They could tell that something that happened just then had changed their dad forever. They didn’t know how and they really didn’t want to know either.