“Daddy, hurry up!” Tommy calls from the front of the house. He is standing with his new friend, Billy, a two‑month‑old Dalmatian puppy they brought home from the pet shop yesterday.

It’s four o’clock, and Tommy wants to play with Billy in the park before it closes. The park is open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Daddy steps out the door wearing a black cap and gently puts a small white cap on Tommy’s head. “We’ll be back by seven,” he tells Mom.

They walk to the park, about twenty minutes from home. Tommy holds a red leash tightly so Billy won’t run away. Billy is full of excitement, his little head turning left and right as he looks at everything around him.

The park is busy today. Billy barks at a balloon floating above an ice‑cream stand, making Tommy laugh. Two boys are playing nearby — one is jumping over the other. They pass a long bench where a little girl is sleeping on her mother’s lap. Billy sniffs the girl before they walk past.

“Stop, Billy!” Tommy shouts. Billy is chasing a squirrel, pulling the leash from Tommy’s hand. Then Billy suddenly stops and walks toward a big tree. “Dad, Billy is making boom,” Tommy says. Dad smiles and teaches him, “You have to pick up Billy’s boom and throw it in the garbage.”

Dad checks his watch. It’s twenty minutes after six. “Time to go home,” he says.

At home, Tommy asks, “Mom, can I keep the light on all night?” “Why?” Mom asks. “I want to play with Billy.”

Billy jumps onto the bed and sits beside him. “You can play with him tomorrow. You don’t have school on Saturday, remember?” Mom says.

“Okay, Mommy.” Tommy gently picks up Billy and places him in his soft little bed next to the desk.

“Night, sweetie,” Mom says, kissing Tommy’s forehead before turning off the light.

“Night, Billy,” Tommy whispers to his two‑month‑old friend.

OathKa, 2012