Death of a Dog (Chapter 5)

"We're gonna take dear Crystal off to the pet morgue now," said Madeline's father, picking up the shoe box from the table. "Are you sure you're going to be okay?"
"Yeah," sniffled Madeline. "I have my friends."
Madeline's dad placed his hand on the back of her head then kissed her forehead. They smiled at each other before Madeline's mother gave her a long hug. She let go of her and smiled at her before leaving with her husband and the shoe box out of the yard.
Madeline then looked at her friends. Andrea wiped under Madeline's nose with her thumb quickly. They both giggled; it was the first time Madeline smiled genuinely in almost a week.
"I appreciate the funeral, you guys," Madeline remarked softly. "It was a bit stupid but I loved it."
"Thank Lizzie," said Andrea. "It was her idea."
"Really?" Madeline looked at Lizzie who smiled at her.
"Yeah," she said. "I know you weren't really liking me after the 'thing' happened. So I thought about what you wanted and then it hit me, not physically: you wanted to give Crystal a proper burial. I thought that would be the cure for your heartache. Besides, even though Crystal was a dog, she was your true best friend. She was all of our friends."
"Thank you, Lizzie," Madeline slightly smiled. "I'm sorry I was being cold to you. But you deserved it. You killed my dog."
"I know. It was an accident."
"I know."
"I still can't believe that Skye was crying."
"I wasn't crying!" said Skye. "My eyes were itchy. The wind was blowing like crazy."
"I didn't feel any wind," said Debra.
"That don't mean anything."
"I can't believe you blew up a picture of my Crystal," said Madeline, looking at the portrait by the table. "Ugh, her nose is running. You didn't notice? Remember when you guys are planning my funeral that my photo will be on fleek."
Andrea giggled and put her arm around Madeline's neck. "Don't worry, we will."
"Why would you die before us?" asked Lizzie.
"You're right," Madeline said. "You all will die before I do."
"Why?" asked Debra.
"Because I eat healthier. I mean you eat healthy, too, Debra. But you're probably gonna die before I do. I exercise and you do yoga. And that's not real exercise."
"She's back, you guys," said Skye. "I don't know if that's a good thing."
The girls laughed. Madeline tried to mess up Skye's hairdo by rubbing the top of her head. But Skye moved out the way and laughed it off.  
Andrea looked at the picture of Crystal. Then she sighed. "She was a cute dog."
"I know," cooed Debra.
Andrea closed her eyes and started singing. She wasn't much of a good singer so she sang in a deep voice. But she was still off-key.

How do I say goodbye to what we had?
The good times that made us laugh
Outweigh the bad

The rest of the girls knew the words so they jumped in.

I thought we'd get to see forever
But forever's gone away
It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday
I don't know where this road
Is going to lead
All I know is where we've been
And what we've been through
If we get to see tomorrow
I hope it's worth all the wait
It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday
And I'll take with me the memories
To be my sunshine after the rain
It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday

Madeline began to cry again so her friends hugged her all at once. DeMarcus walked up to the girls and applauded for them. He then offered a five dollar bill.
"That was absolutely the bomb," he commented.
"Thanks but we're not a barbershop quartet," responded Skye.
"Yeah, we don't need your money," said Andrea, taking the dollar away from him. She folded it up then stuck it inside her bra.

Death of a Dog (Chapter 4)

For a couple days, Madeline continued to miss school so she could grieve and weep in her house over the death of her dog, Crystal. One day, around 5 O'clock P.M., Madeline decided to get out of her comfortable bed and get something to drink. She went downstairs in her silky nightgown and plodded to the kitchen. She opened the refrigerator to check if her smoothie was still in there. She laid her eyes on the pitcher and took it out. As she set it down on the table, she noticed something strange in the corner of her eye. She looked at her window and saw people walking in the backyard. She traveled through the house to enter her dad's office. In the office was a door to the yard so she opened it and stepped outside. Before her eyes was an internment: there were chairs filled with Madeline's best friends, boyfriend and parents dressed in black in front of a table with a big shoe box on top and lit candles. Next to the table was a canvas holding a blown-up picture of Crystal. And by the picture was a podium. When she walked further into the yard, Debra spotted her and smiled.
"Oh, Madeline," she said. "You made it just in time."
"What is this?" Madeline asked.
"It's a funeral for your dog, Crystal. We thought that Crystal should have the proper burial in order for you to have some closure. Please sit and take my sweater."
Debra took off her black oversized cardigan and put it over Madeline's shoulders. She then led Madeline to the chairs and directed her to the open seat next to Homer. Madeline sat down, looking confused and totally drained.
"Hey, baby," Homer said, putting his arm around her. "How was your morning?"
"I slept all day," answered Madeline, "so I don't know how my morning was. I had no idea about this."
"I had no idea about your dog dying. I'm sorry, baby."
"Excuse me if I don't look hot right now."
"Hey, you're always hot."
Madeline's father cleared his throat loudly, staring at Homer, who was sitting next to him.
"I mean you look alright."
Lizzie walked up behind the podium as the girls took a seat. "Hello, fellow mourners," she declared. "We are gathered here today to honor the lovely dog of Madeline King who happened to die tragically in an accident and the person who caused the accident did not mean to do it on purpose. Crystal Priscilla Aguilera Kardashian King was born in April 2006. Madeline adopted her in August 2006. Madeline's parents were so proud of their daughter's academic achievements that they decided to take Madeline to the pet store and pick out whichever animal she wanted. It was love at first sight. Madeline dreamed of the day to get a dog so she and the dog could resemble Paris Hilton and her dog. I'm gonna let Skye come up and sing us a song dedicated to Crystal King."
As Skye stood up from her seat, Madeline looked at her and asked, "Is my dog in that shoe box?"
"Shush," Skye ordered without looking at her friend.
"How did you get her in the shoe box?"
"Shut up."
Skye made her way towards Lizzie and stood in front of the podium, facing the visitors. Loudly and beautifully, she began to sing.

Amazing grace
How sweet the sound
That saved a wrench like me
I once was lost
But now I'm found
Was blind
But now I see

The visitors applauded Skye. Madeline didn't applaud. Not that she didn't want to; because she was still flustered. Skye bowed before going back to her seat.
"I'm gonna let my steady, DeMarcus Jones, come up and say a few words," Lizzie announced.
While Lizzie walked to an open chair, DeMarcus got up and smiled at her. He walked up to the front of the crowd and stood behind the podium.
"Hey, mourners," he said with his deep voice. "I never really spoke at a funeral before. I've been to a few but never spoke. So I'm gonna try to speak from the heart. Personally, I never knew Crystal. She sounds like a good dog. I love dogs. I have one myself so I kinda understand how you feel, Madeline. If I lost my Hercules, everything would go down. So I'm sorry that you lost your dog. I don't know why Lizzie is going out killing dogs like that. I would've never dated her if I knew she did that. Sorry to put you in the hot seat, babe, but what you did was wrong. Uh, I hope Crystal is in dog heaven, chasing her tail and being happy and whatnot. But if you have a hard time being without her, Madeline, don't worry. I'm gonna make enough money to get you another dog."
"She doesn't want a dog," shouted Andrea.
"Oh, for real? Alright, then a cat. I don't know if there are fluffy cats that look like your dog but I'll do my best."
"Thank you, DeMarcus," Madeline said flatly.
"Okay. Thank you, everybody!"
DeMarcus walked over to his seat while Lizzie made her way to go back to the podium.
"Thank you for that speech, DeMarcus," said Lizzie. "That was kind and generous of you. And I do not go out killing dogs! Alright, so our next speaker is Debra Lincoln, who is one of Madeline's best friends. Plus, she's a Lincoln so she knows how to make a speech."
Lizzie made her way to her seat when Debra stood up. She walked around the crowd and traveled to the back of the podium.
"Thank you, Lizzie," said Debra. "I'm not actually related to Abraham Lincoln. Salvete omnes. That's Latin for 'Greetings to all'. I've known Crystal as long as I've known Madeline. She was a cute dog. So energetic and wise. Anyone would've been lucky to have her. I loved her. Not as much as Madeline did but there was love. Actually, there was a point in my life where I didn't like Crystal that much. I thought she was racist. Every time she would see me, she would always bark. And when she would see Lizzie, she didn't bark. And I didn't get it at the time. So I sort of hated that dog, only because Andrea would play with me and make me think that Crystal didn't like me. She thought it was funny and it wasn't. And later, I learned to love Crystal so it was okay. I don't think she was racist. Um, a wise woman that I never heard of but respect once said, 'Grief is like the ocean: it comes in waves, ebbing and flowing. Sometimes the water is calm and sometimes it is overwhelming. All we can do is learn to swim.' I think you're doing a good job swimming, Madeline. I don't ever want you to drown but I know you're not. You're too strong to let yourself drown. But if you ever feel like giving up, I know Crystal is going to be right there to help you keep moving. So swim for her, Maddie. Swim for Crystal. Namaste."
Debra walked directly back to her seat which was behind Madeline's mother's seat. She turned around to face Debra who just sat down.
"Hey, that was lovely," Madeline's mother whispered. "But bear with me when I ask this: are you on drugs?"
Debra dropped her smile into a frown. Madeline's mother decided to not hear the answer so she turned back around. Debra pursed her lips and slid her tongue over her front teeth with her mouth closed while staring at the back of the middle-aged woman's head.
Lizzie went back to the podium to speak to the visitors once more. "Before we draw this burial to a close, there's one last person who has to speak and that's Madeline. Come on up, Maddie. I know you would like to say a few words."
Madeline looked around before getting herself up. Lizzie smiled at Madeline before she took a seat. Madeline slowly walked up to the podium and stood behind it, looking puffy and still drained.
"Hi," she exhaled. "Um, I didn't expect that. Heck, I didn't expect this funeral." She nervously giggled then put on a straight face. "Um, where do I start? Well, Crystal meant a lot to me obviously. She was like a baby to me. Except I would leave her alone sometimes since there was always a lot of water and food in her bowls. Sometimes I kept her in a cage but I didn't like that. I felt like that was restraining her. And of course, my herbivore friend, Debra, would say to me, 'Don't put her in a cage. Animals deserve freedom. So on and so forth.' But yeah, she was like a child to me. I would feed her, dress her, play with her and take care of her. So to have your baby go..." Madeline began to get choked up. Her eyes began to water. "... i-it's hard. It's really hard, you know." She wiped the bottom of her left eye while looking up. "She was so young. I mean she was seventy in dog years but ten in real life is young. And I feel like I wasn't there enough. I know I had to go to school but sometimes I just wanted to take her with me." Madeline sniffled, letting the tears run down her face. "And I just felt so guilty. I feel like her passing was my fault and I didn't even kill her. But maybe I did. Maybe if I kept a better eye on her, she wouldn't have left. It's not entirely my fault but it is my fault. And it's so-- Skye, are you crying?"
Skye dropped her hand from her face. "Hmm?" she looked up at Madeline with reddened eyes.
"Were you just crying right now?"
"Uh, no."
"Yeah, you were," Madeline's voice croaked. "You were just crying."
"Uh, I believe that was you. You were crying if you happened to forgot." Skye sniffled and quickly wiped the corner of her eye with her thumb. "Yeah, that was you."
"Oh, my God, Skye. I never seen you cry before."
"I wasn't crying. And I'm not. So... finish your speech and stop bullying me."

Death of a Dog (Chapter 3)

    The day after, the girls noticed that Madeline didn't come to school that day, which was very rare for her. So they decided to come over Madeline's house right after school. When they got there, nobody opened the front door for them. Madeline's parents weren't home and Madeline was upstairs, refusing to leave her bedroom. So the girls tried the back door which was luckily unlocked. They let themselves in and went upstairs to Madeline's open bedroom. Madeline was in her bed, still in pajamas, facing the opposite direction, sniveling into her pillow. The girls walked towards her bed and just stood by.
    "Madeline, why didn't you come to school today?" asked Andrea. "You went yesterday."
    "How did you get into my house?" Madeline queried.
    "Your door was open," answered Skye.
    "Well, then, I didn't feel like going to school. I couldn't stop crying since this morning."
    "Oh, Maddie..."
    "Do you want some tea?" offered Debra. "Maybe some tissues?"
    "No thank you," Madeline responded. "I just feel like crying my eyes out until I dry up."
    "Come on, Madeline," said Andrea. "If you keep crying, you'll turn to stone like that god. What was his name? Nibeus, Nivea, Nigahiga or something."
    "I know what will make you feel better," said Lizzie. "What if we get you another dog? A dog that looks just like Crystal?"
    "And replace the only thing that brought me joy in the world?" inquired Madeline. "Yeah, right, that'll make me better, you dog murderer!"
    "Okay, how come every time I say something, you lash out at me?"
    "'Cause you're a dog murderer!"
    "Now, Maddie, don't be so hard on Lizzie," said Debra.
    "Why not? She murdered my dog!"
    "Well, that's true."
    "Madeline, if there's anything that will make you feel better," started Skye, "tell us. Just tell us what you want."
    "I want my Crystal back!" Madeline cried.
    "Well, that's not gonna happen. Um, is there something else you want?"
    "I want to die."
    "Okay, that's realistic. That's a realistic goal so that's good. But we're not going to let that happen so do you just want to cry some more?"
    "Yes."
    "Alright. So we'll let you do that."
    The girls slowly backed up, not really wanting to leave.
    "Get well, Maddie," wished Lizzie.
    "Drop dead!" Madeline ordered.
    "You're crying; that's good."

Death of a Dog (Chapter 2)

                 The next day, the sun shined for all the students at Laguna Beach High but a cloud was over Madeline's head the whole time. Before the afternoon came, lunch started for the students and the girls, except for Madeline, were already at their table. They waited for Madeline to come for an unusual eight minutes.

                "Hey, where's Madeline?" asked Skye. "She's usually never this late."

                "Yeah, is she here today?" asked Debra.

                "Yeah, but she was kinda late," answered Lizzie.

                "That's shocking," commented Andrea. "How is Ms.Never-Been-Late all of a sudden late today?"

                "She's a bit depressed."

                "Why?" questioned Debra. "What happened?"

                "Well, yesterday, her dog died."

                Hearing that was like a sting in the girls' ears. Their eyes were wide open and their jaws just dropped.

                "Oh, my gosh," said Debra. "Why? How did this happen?"

                "It's kind of a long story," responded Lizzie, playing her soda can of Coca-Cola on the table.

                "Then shorten it," Andrea politely demanded.

                Lizzie opened the can. After she did so, she unwrapped the straw that also on the table in front of her. "Well... I sorta... ran over her dog with my car." She stuck the straw in the can and quickly wraps her lips around it to drink the soda.

                The girls just stared at Lizzie, almost frozen... even though it wasn't much of a surprise to them.

                "Why did you do that?" asked Andrea slowly.

                "It wasn't on purpose!" responded Lizzie.

                Skye counted on her fingers while uttering a list. "You ran over trash cans, you ran over your grandmother, you ran over Maddie's dog. What else are you gonna run over?"

                "Us," said Andrea in a low voice. "We're next."

                "No, you're not next," said Lizzie.

                "Lizzie, as long as we're your friends," started Skye, "you can no longer drive."

                "I can't just not drive my car. It's an important aspect of my adulthood."

                "Well, adults don't run over their friend's dog."

                "It was an accident."

                "I can't believe you killed Crystal," said Debra.

                "It was an accident."

                "So? She's dead. You killed Madeline's baby. Whether it was an accident or not, you still did it. It's just not right."

                "You don't got to make me feel bad."

                "You should feel bad. You killed your best friend's dog. You know how bad it would be if you didn't feel bad?"

                "Shh," uttered Andrea. "Madeline's coming."

                The girls sat silent as Madeline entered the cafeteria with the saddest look on her face. She slumped down into her seat and didn't bother to make eye contact with her friends.

                "Hey, Madeline," Skye said quietly. "How are you holding up?"

                "I just don't feel good today," Madeline whimpered.

                "I heard the news," admitted Debra. "I'm sorry."

                "It's okay, Debra. Maybe it was a sign or something."

                "Well, do you want some M&M's?" Lizzie queried. "I bought a huge bag a few days ago and brought them with me."

                "No thanks. Besides, why would I take M&M's from a dog murderer?!"

                "So Skittles?"

                Madeline huffed while looking at Lizzie angrily. She clambered out of her seat and stomped from the table, leaving the cafeteria to go to the bathroom.

                "They make you taste the rainbow!" Lizzie hollered.

                "How are you gonna offer her candy?" asked Skye.

                "I was trying to be nice. And candy makes you feel better, don't it?"

                "Madeline rarely eats sugar," noted Andrea.

                "Oops. Now she hates me."

                "Madeline doesn't hate you," said Debra. "I mean, yeah, she does hate you. But that will only be temporary. Just until she gets over Crystal's death."

                "When do you think that will be?"

                "About... two to ten years."

Death of a Dog (Chapter 1)

*Viewer discretion is advised.

"Do you want anything to drink?" asked Madeline, opening the large refrigerator in her kitchen.
"Sure," answered Lizzie. "What do you got?"
"Oh, I got a little something-something." Madeline smirked at Lizzie while taking out a glass pitcher filled with an orange smoothie.
"What is that?"
Madeline set the pitcher on the marble table in the center of the kitchen. "My new concoction. I'm thinking about going on a juice cleanse. So I made myself a smoothie that will last two weeks." She opened the top cabinets behind her and took two glasses with intricate designs. She set them down on the table and said, "I mixed ice, plain yogurt, strawberries, oranges, mandarin oranges, cantaloupe, pineapples, peaches, lemon juice and mint. Lemon juice helps you lose weight, oranges improve your eyesight, and peaches prevent cancer. Pineapples also do something to you but I don't want to tell you."
"Interesting. I didn't know you could put mint in a smoothie."
"You can put a lot in a smoothie, Lizzie." Madeline began to pour the pitcher in the glasses.
"Can you put ham in a smoothie?"
"No, Lizzie." Madeline pushed one of the glasses across the table towards Lizzie. "Try it."
Lizzie picked up the glass and took a sip of the cold, thick drink. Shortly, she hiccuped and covered her mouth after swallowing it. "Uh, I think it needs sugar," she suggested, putting her glass down.
"Ha. Add sugar and destroy the purposes of all this fruit? I don't think so."
"Then it doesn't need sugar. What time is it?"
Madeline slipped her cell phone out of the front pocket of her straight-leg light-washed jeans. She turned it on and read the time. "Four nineteen."
"Oh, I gotta go. I told mom I would help give Dallas a bath."
Lizzie hoisted her red, polka-dotted backpack up and threw the straps over her shoulders. She began to walk out of the kitchen with Madeline following her.
"Don't you want to finish your smoothie?" asked Madeline.
"Oh, no, no."
"It will give you a nice glow."
"I don't glow?"
"I mean you do glow. I'm just saying you can have a glowier glow."
Lizzie opened the front door then turned around to face her friend. "I do love to glow. But no thanks."
"So are you gonna take your nails off to wash Dallas?"
"What's wrong with my nails?" Lizzie looked down at her hands which were manicured into talons with tiny plastic flowers and leaves glued on them.
"They're pointy. You can stab your brother in the eye."
Lizzie gasped. "I don't want to do that. Dallas needs both of his eyes. I need to find the fingernail clipper."
"No, you need scissors, my sister."
"Will safety scissors work?"
"I'm kidding, Liz'."
"Oh, okay. Well, see ya."
"Bye, girl."
Madeline closed the door as Lizzie began to leave and get to her car. Madeline turned around and began whistling while walking through the small hall.
"Crystal!" she called. "Crystal, where are you? You want a biscuit? Listen, you're gonna be hungry if you don't eat your food. I know they make you gain weight but guess what? That's life." She quickly checked the living room then walked towards the kitchen. "Crystal! You're not gonna make me eat a biscuit so you can eat a biscuit. I'm on a juice cleanse."
Madeline stopped and got startled after hearing a distant shriek. The shriek sounded familiar so she ran towards the door and opened it. She sprinted towards Lizzie who was beside her car. Lizzie almost seemed suspicious when Madeline approached her.
"Lizzie, did you scream?" she asked.
"What? No," Lizzie replied, leaning against her car.
"Then what was that?"
"Uh, nothing."
Madeline tried to walk around Lizzie but she blocked her.
"What are you doing?" Lizzie asked frantically.
"I'm checking out your car."
"Oh, my car's fine."
"Then let me see."
Madeline tried to walk towards the back of Lizzie's car while Lizzie resumed to block her. Every step Madeline made, Lizzie made steps back, looking at Madeline straight in the face. When they reached the back, Madeline noticed something unusual on the ground by the back right tire of the car.
"What is that?" questioned Madeline, trying to look.
"A purse," Lizzie responded. "Someone's furry purse. I was afraid that I ran over someone's loose change. Maybe they have pictures of their children in there."
Madeline gripped Lizzie by the arms and pushed her out of the way. Madeline got a better look at the unusual thing. She screamed when she realized that it was her shih tzu, Crystal, laying on the ground all stiff. Her eyes were wide open, a tire track went across her whole belly and her white fur was covered in blood. Madeline dropped to her knees and hovered over her dog.
"Crystal!" she burst into tears.
"Oh, man..." muttered Lizzie.
"How could you do this?"
"It was an accident."
"My poor baby!" Madeline picked the dog up and cradled it in her arms.
"Don't hug the-- Okay."
"Crystal, speak to me!"
"Maybe she's playing dead."
"She doesn't know how to play dead."
"Maybe someone else taught her."
"Oh, Crystal!" Madeline held Crystal close to her and pressed her cheek on the dog's head.
"I'm sorry."
"Why?! Why?"
"Maybe I need more of that smoothie, huh? You know, because the oranges improve eyesight? No? Okay."