The Dog begged. He showed his gums, stared hopefully with sad eyes, brought his ears back, and began to whimper. The Dog was determined to get a tasty morsel of human food from the dinner table. He whimpered on and on until, finally, Dad snuck him a shred of chicken. Still, Mom caught Dad in the act and smacked Dad’s wrist. He pretended to be in pain while the kids both laughed. Satisfied, The Dog left the kitchen. He entered the family room, leapt onto the couch, and wondered how he ever found such paradise. Dad always gave him food. Mom always brought everyone home. The kids were fun playmates. They tugged The Dog’s ears just the way he liked it, especially his brown ear. His fur was mostly white, so people always loved to mess with that single splotch of color on his face’s left side. Other than that, he seemed to be the simplest dog in the world.
The family room TV was still playing Dad’s alien show. The family always watched his stuff before dinner because it was always on. The show was about pyramids, giants, robots, and a man with crazy hair. Strange things have shaped the world since ancient times. The Dog liked the show because he had a strange story too. It was the story of how he found his family. He knew no one on Earth could believe the story, but he also knew it was completely true. It fit so perfectly with everything on Dad’s show. It just had to be true.
The Dog was not always The Dog. His original name was simply Puppy. Puppy was small but full of energy. He lived with some brothers and sisters in a little swimming pool. It was full of blankets, newspapers, and toys, and it was tucked into the warmest corner of a cozy little house. Puppy was a little tough guy. No one could tug a rope or chase a ball like he could. Every day he loved to play with everyone else. Then, one day, people started coming into the room. They took Puppy’s brothers and sisters away. One by one they were taken until Puppy was the last one left. His only remaining friend was the cat that sometimes snuck into the pool. She was nice, but she never really wanted to run around or anything. So, Puppy resigned himself to sadness. He moped and whimpered waiting for the day someone would come for him. Wherever he went, it would be better than being alone.
Rain was falling along that old house one afternoon. A man in a big coat walked through the door. Puppy ran to the edge of the pool. He saw the man in the coat give a faint grin and bend down to greet him. Puppy wagged his tail so much he shook his whole body. He hoped to be going to a new place with plenty of dogs. Puppy fought past the man’s zipped up collar to try licking his face.
Back on the family room couch, The Dog stretched his legs. His story seemed normal so far. But now came the strange part. This was what no one would believe. The Dog chuckled on the inside as he rubbed his head along a pillow. Anyone could guess the man in the coat would be Dad, but they would be wrong.
The man in the coat renamed Puppy. Now he was Mutt. Mutt’s new owner parked his car by a broken in the middle of a city. The man opened the car doors, and Mutt jumped outside. He ran circles and circles around his new owner’s legs, ready to begin a joyous new life. Then the man growled. He shouted, “Mutt!” alongside some other human gibberish and kicked the poor pup. Mutt was confused. He had to tell himself that his new owner probably just wanted to get home quickly. Mutt carefully tiptoed to the building while his new owner grumbled. Suddenly, Mutt smelled other dogs. His excitement returned. His new owner had to have been rushing him to meet the other dogs. Mutt could smell so many of them too. He would have the biggest pile of playmates a dog could dream of.
The Dog shuddered. He could not believe he was ever so naïve. He took a break from his story to glance at Dad’s show again. The man with the crazy hair was talking about alien abductions. The coincidence made The Dog shudder again.
Mutt entered the broken building. He ran to the scent of his new brothers and sisters. The man in the coat chuckled. He called Mutt a “Good Boy” for the first and last time. Mutt reached a room filled with caged dogs. They had sad eyes, but Mutt could tell these eyes were not for begging. There was no trusting desire for an extra morsel or a scratch behind the ears. There was only emptiness and long-gone hope. Mutt whimpered and lowered his head. He put his tail between his legs and begged his new owner for comfort. The man laughed. He removed his coat to reveal countless scars, scrapes, and claw marks. Mutt had no idea what to do. He looked into his owner’s savage eyes and could not believe this monster was a human. Could not believe this was one of dogs’ best friends. The poor pup did not know what his new owner was.
The Dog tossed around on the couch. His breath grew heavier and heavier. His family called for him. The Dog heard them and calmed down. This family loved him. They were definitely humans. The Dog looked at the TV again. He remembered what his old owner was. He had to be an alien. It was the only explanation that made sense. Not one of those nice aliens who build pyramids though. This was one of those aliens that kidnaps people and pops out of their stomachs. The Dog knew his alien owner’s human features were probably just stolen. Taken parts carelessly stitched together and hidden under a heavy coat. The Dog could hardly stand imagining what the alien could have really looked like under his disguise.
Mutt only had a few more memories of the alien. Most involved hearing strange sounds or feeling cold metal. None of the other dogs whimpered unless the alien grabbed them for experiments. Then their yelping could be heard throughout the building. The alien was probably trying to turn the dogs against their best friends to prepare for an invasion of some sort. Soon enough, Mutt stopped whimpering too. No light came into the building from outside. They were probably in space by now. The building had to have been the alien’s spaceship. Its constant rattling probably came from the propulsion system. The ordeal seemed like it would never end. Mutt dreaded the day he may be grabbed for an experiment.
Thankfully, everything ended before that day could come.
Sirens were blaring. They had to be the emergency landing gear. All the dogs were back on Earth. The ship must have hit an asteroid or got pulled in by a tractor beam. The alien screamed and cursed. He threw his ship’s computer into a wall, snapping it in two. The humans must have used it to track him. The alien threw open all the cages and commanded everyone to run away. Most just stayed in their cages. They knew the horrible things that happened outside. Mutt was the only one to run away as soon as his cage was opened. He heard footsteps stomping through the entrance. Mutt could not tell if these belonged to friend or foe. Human agents or alien backup. So, Mutt jumped through a broken window for a daring escape. He ran through the streets, howling with joy. Barking and screaming echoed all around him. The alien owner himself stopped screaming after a string of loud noises and a crash. Mutt did not care to go back and look at any of it. He was free. He would keep running until his legs were too tired to carry him any farther. He finally lied down for the night beside some train tracks.
Mutt heard voices and woke up. A little boy kept calling Mutt a “Good Boy.” A little girl said Mutt looked like a hobo tired of riding the rails. The mother grabbed the kids. She did not yet trust Mutt with them. The father walked forward and gave Mutt a new name, Poor Thing. Poor Thing needed help, and the father would make sure he got it.
No one could find Poor Thing’s owner. The alien was probably locked away by now, deep within Area 51. The family took pity on Poor Thing and adopted him. They then gave him his favorite name of all the names he has ever had. Hobo. This special name was the one finally said with love. It came with none of the loneliness of Puppy or hardships of Mutt. Hobo was the name children joyously called when they came home from school. Hobo was the name Mom sighed when a dog set his face on the book she was reading. Hobo was the name Dad declared when he threw a ball in the backyard.
The only time Hobo’s family did not call him Hobo was at the dinner table. There they called him The Dog. Lingering smells of dinner reminded Hobo of one particular example. He remembered it just as he fell asleep.
The Dog begged. He showed his gums, stared hopefully with sad eyes, brought his ears back, and began to whimper. The Dog was determined to get a tasty morsel of human food from the dinner table. He whimpered on and on until, finally, Dad snuck him a shred of chicken. Still, Mom caught Dad in the act and smacked Dad’s wrist. He pretended to be in pain while the kids both laughed. Satisfied, The Dog left the kitchen. He entered the family room, leapt onto the couch, and wondered how he ever found such paradise. Dad always gave him food. Mom always brought everyone home. The kids were fun playmates. They tugged The Dog’s ears just the way he liked it, especially his brown ear. His fur was mostly white, so people always loved to mess with that single splotch of color on his face’s left side. Other than that, he seemed to be the simplest dog in the world.
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This story has a related blog post about its inspiration.
“Hobo” will be one of the tales featured in my upcoming book Five Strange Stories, set to release on February 16. You can pre-order Five Strange Stories as an eBook on Amazon. A paperback version is planned. Five Strange Stories is enrolled in the Kindle Matchbook program, so anyone who buys the paperback can also get the eBook version for free.
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