the lawn, hoping someone would be willing to take it. Unfortunately, it still sat there, even after the few weeks the family was gone in Alaska. Dan figured it would happen, because the bike was in really bad shape. The frame’s paint is chipping away in big chunks, one of the handlebars is loose, and the chain is incredibly rusty. Who the heck would want a bike like that? He looked at his new puppy again. He noticed his fur looked a little like rust, like the rust on his old bike chain. Rusty. Out of all the names he thought of on the train, the name Rusty beats them all out. Dan smiled. “Rusty” he said. “You’re name is Rusty.” He wanted to make a final decision early so he wouldn’t change his mind over and over. And Rusty is the perfect name for a dog like him, for a 7 year old boy anyway.

Then, he got up, pulled out one of his drawers on his dresser to reveal a shiny, pink, piggy bank. He pulled the cork from the pig’s belly, and all this change, plus a few bills, slipped out. And landed on the floor.

“Oops. Should have thought that one through.” He turned toward his newly named friend. “I’m gonna go buy you a new collar. That way whenever you get lost, other people can find you and bring you home! I gotta get there quick before the shop closes.” He looked at the clock on his wall. 7:15. He still had time before the store closes at 8. He dashed out the door with the few bills he had, and out the door, riding his new bike as fast as he could.

When Dan walked through the front door of his home, back with a shiny new collar, he was excited as ever to see his puppy awake. It was pretty close to the Nome vet’s deadline for little Rusty, and he was sure that he would have woken up by now.

He ran up the stairs to his room, swung open the door, and shouted. “Rusty!” Only to find that no one answered.

The little puppy was still unmoving on the bed, still breathing very slowly.

Dan sighed and sat down on the bed right next to him. “Oh, I thought you would be awake by now, but that’s okay. You had a big day anyway.” He pet the pup on his head and tried to smile as best he could. But then he remembered the collar. His smile became more real.

“I got this for you, boy. I hope you like it.” He showed a leather, brownish-reddish colored collar with a shiny and thin brass buckle. A circular dog tag hung down from it, having the engraving, “RUSTY” along with the family address and phone number.

He gently lifted Rusty’s head and buckled the new collar in, and he put on his bravest face for him.  Dan was sure that he would wake soon…but hours had passed. Little Rusty did not move an inch.

It was getting to the point where the family had to rely on hope in order to get Rusty to wake up. The sun was setting soon. Dan was then called downstairs because his parents wanted to speak with him about Rusty’s new collar…among other things about him as well.

Dan slowly walked down the steps, one at a time. His parents were sitting in the two chairs in the living room, and a third one was meant for him. He walked patiently to the chair and gradually sat down.

“You wanted to see me?” He asked. Though he had a pretty good idea as to why they did. But his parents told him anyway.

“I saw that you bought the puppy a new collar today.” Jill spoke softly to him.

Dan nodded. “Yep. I named him Rusty, and got him and brand new collar. But don’t worry, I had my own money saved up.”

Jill looked at Nick with worry in her eyes. As much as he didn’t want to admit it, Nick was starting to worry, too.

“Sweetie. How much was that collar?”

Dan thought for a second. “Only two dollars. They’ve had that collar for a while.”

Jill nodded. “Alright.” She passed for a second before asking, “And when do you think ‘Rusty’ is going to wake up?”

“I really don’t know. The vet said he should have been awake by now, but he’s still asleep.”

“Dan, do you still think Rusty will wake up?” Nick asked.

The little boy nodded. “He has to. He’s my new pet.”

“Well…there are lots and lots of dogs here to choose from.” You can tell Nick wanted to choose his words carefully.

“But I don’t care about the other dogs, I care about Rusty.” Dan put his fists to his hips.

Jill put her hand out and rested it on his shoulder. “I know, honey. But…maybe its just best for everyone…if we just give the collar back.”

Dan took her arm off. “What? Why would I do that? I just bought it!”

“Look, Daniel, I know you love that puppy a lot. But…you need to understand. There are some things in this world that you can’t make happen, even if you screamed it to the heavens.”

“I don’t understand…”

“In other words, just because you think Rusty will wake up…doesn’t mean it’s really going to happen.”

“Mom…what are you saying?!” Dan’s eyes were beginning to fill up with tears.

“I’m saying this in the nicest way possible, sweetie. I’m just not sure if Rusty is going to make it.”

“But…he IS gonna make it. He’s just a little late, that’s all!” Dan screamed.

“We need to face the facts, Daniel. And you’re going to have to give me the collar so I can return it" She held out her hand.

“NO!” Dan shouted at her. “I won’t let you!” He turned toward his father, who has said little in this conversation. “C’mon, Dad! You know Rusty’s gonna make it. You believe me, don’t you?” He looked at Nick with tears in his eyes, and heartbreak in his voice. It almost made Nick want to cry along with him. But he had to face the facts as well. Rusty has made no progress since they found him. Maybe this was it for the little guy.

“Dan, I know how much you want him to wake up. I want him to wake up too. But he should have been out and about right now, and he’s not. And…I don’t think he’s going to get any better. I’m sorry, son.”

Dan backed away slowly while shaking his head in a vibrate manner.

“No…” was the only word that could escape his mouth. He ran up the stairs to his room and slammed the door.

Both parents sighed. They might as well let Dan have one more day with Rusty, to prove to him that he needs to let him go.

“Nick, this is getting ridiculous. I don’t know why you talked me into keeping that dog in the first place. Now, Dan is going to be so upset. This would have been prevented if he just let nature take its course in the shelter.”

“Dan would have been upset either way. But you’re right. We can’t keep a dead dog. I just thought that maybe he would wake up, too. I guess I was just wrong.”

“Yes, you were. And now we’re going to have to deal with Dan being so upset over a dead dog that YOU wanted to keep.”

“Well, YOU agreed with me. It’s not like I never told you about him. You knew exactly what was going to happen and you didn’t do anything!”

Jill threw her hands in the air. “What was I supposed to do?! Just rip the puppy from Dan’s arms and throw him back in the gutter?!”

“No, but you could have just done away with him while we were still in Nome, and that way Dan wouldn’t be as upset.”

“So this is AAAALLLL my fault isn’t it? Of course, only you would want to blame me for everything.”

Nick grabbed his head and screamed in agony, ready to tear his hair out. He always hated getting caught up in these arguments.

“Look. What’s done is done. We’re going to the town vet tomorrow and we’re going to put him down. Then we’ll get Dan another dog if he wants one. Okay?”

Jill crossed her arms. “Fine.” And went upstairs to go to bed.

Dan lie awake under his covers, listening to every word of his parents’ argument. A tear began to flow from his eye as he clutched little Rusty to his heart. That faint little beat was still there…still moving steadily.

“I’m never gonna let them take you away from me. I’ll find a way…somehow.” The tag on Rusty’s new collar shone in the moonlight as Dan drifted off to sleep, dreaming of one day, playing fetch with his new best friend.

Morning came as quickly as day had vanished yesterday. The sun’s rays burst through the window and into Dan’s closed eyes, now opening because of the brightness. He groaned softly and lifted up his head. There lay Rusty, asleep as always.

Now Dan was getting frustrated. It was one day past the vet’s deadline. All that Rusty was capable of was keeping that heart beating, slowly but surely.

“Please get up, Rusty. I want to show Mom and Dad that they’re wrong about you. You can make it. I know you can.” He got out of bed, stood next to it, and continued staring at the pup.

When minutes passed and not a thing changed, Dan got very upset. He built so much tension in himself, and he couldn’t take it anymore. He grabbed his pillow from the bed and flung it toward the wall.

“WHY WON’T YOU WAKE UP?!” He screamed at him. “Why are you doing this to me?! Please, Rusty, PLEASE!!”

After