Tiredly, I raced down the lawn fast, breathing heavily. I could feel my legs weakening from all the running. Still I could not seem to catch up to him. It was as if I was getting farther away instead of catching up to him. The wind was strong and was putting me back.

Suddenly, I fell down hard on the ground, leaving my knees scraped and bloody. It was then when I heard the screeching wheels come to a halt, followed by an agonizing cry. I jerked my head up and saw the most terrifying thing ever, not for me, but for my dog, Ruffo. He was limping toward me with his right side covered in pure bright red blood.

As he got closer, I could see his scared, deep black eyes staring straight at me.

For a second it was weird what I was feeling. It was as if I was feeling his pain, his suffering, his discomfort. Tears ran down my cheeks increasingly. How could this horrifying accident happen? One moment, Ruffo and I were playing catch and rolling around in the wet morning grass, and the next moment he was practically dying.

He didn't deserve this. He was just a puppy. I should have never opened that gate. Now, because of me, my best friend could die. I looked behind me and saw my uncle rushing toward me with an enraged face. With great effort, he elbowed me out of the way to pick up Ruffo. As he left, I painfully got up.

I limped over to the car while my uncle ran inside the house to get the keys. He yelled at me to get in the car. I tried to hurry, but the more I hurried, the more blood gushed down my scraped legs. Finally I reached the car and we rushed to the hospital.

As I left Ruffo later that night, he made a whimpering cry, and I said, "I'll be back for you."