A Kind Young Man

Ranger continued to follow the scent of his trail. The rock hanging from his mouth did a great deal to muffle his smell, and Ranger was having trouble smelling. The sun had begun nearing the horizon, something Ranger had seen a thousand times before, and wasn't phased by. He didn't care, Ranger's interest laid in finding his family to show the strongly scented rock he had found on the beach. But Ranger couldn't hold his focus for long when someone called out.

"Aww, what a cute dog!" shouted a male voice from a distance; Ranger continued moving. That was until the voice reached him in the form of a friendly young man, who stopped Ranger to try and pet him. The young man faced Ranger with very kind eyes, but Ranger had more important matters to get back to. As Ranger tried to move past the young man, he began to be pet.

Ranger was not raised as a rude dog, and had to pay attention when pet. And the young man who was petting him was doing a very good job of so. "What's this necklace you've got in your mouth?" the young man said, and tried to take the rock from Ranger. Ranger did not want to release, but the young man had too strong a pull. But instead of stealing the rock from hanger, the young man hung it next to Ranger's collar. Much like the smell of the rock before, the feeling of the rock was very odd, but also very pleasing and enticing.

Ranger felt grateful for what the young man had done. From the petting, to putting the rock on his collar, Ranger decided to spare a moment from finding his family to repay the young man's kindness with a few kisses. The young man did not resist lick much of Ranger's family often does, and pet Ranger in response! And as Ranger continued to show his gratitude, the feeling of the rock next to his collar began to strengthen.

The smell, too, increased, many times more so than when Ranger had found the rock. Now, it was the only thing Ranger could sense. Everything else had gone away, and only the scent of the rock, the young man, and now a green light, remained. Ranger stayed very close to the young man, and felt them both fall asleep.

Many mornings, Ranger is awoken by the smell of food in the kitchen. This time, Ranger was awoken by a bright light poking through his eyelids, and the sounds of waves crashing down upon the shore.

The young man from before was gone, but Ranger still wore his collar and necklace around his neck. So, without further extending his break, Ranger continued to retrace his footsteps back to the car.

The sunset was a very beautiful orange that evening.