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George Sandler was a big boy. He was ten years old and he was finally a big boy. He was going to spend the night at a friend’s house. He was going to sleep away from his own home and at somebody else’s. He was going to sleep in some one else’s bedroom. Ole Georgie was a big boy.

School was over and George was in his own room, packing. “Oh, man, what should I take?” he asked himself over and over again. So far he had his dark green sleeping bag, a pillow with his Hoodwinked pillow case, his Shrek pajamas, and a couple Spider-Man comic books. “Oh, man, I’m gonna forget something. I know I will,” George said, sweating with anxiety.

His bedroom door opened and George’s mother, Eleni Sandler, walked in. “Hey, big boy, you all ready?”

“Uhh…uh…I don’t…I don’t know!” George fell into a fit of tears. Eleni rush toward her son and hugged him.

“Hey,” she said, “what’s wrong, gorgeous? Huh, why are you crying?”

“I can’t remember what I’m supposed to pack!”

“Oh, don’t worry, gorgeous. It’s okay.”

“I’m going to Billy’s house and I’m forgetting something!?”

“Well, what did you pack already?”

“My p-pillow…my comics…my sleeping b-bag…my pjs…and…and…and that’s all!” George cried.

Eleni smiled. “How about your toothbrush?”

George’s tears abruptly stopped and a smile of his own formed. “That’s it! My toothbrush!” He leaped off of his bed and skipped toward the bathroom. He chanted, “Toothbrush! Toothbrush! Toothbrush! Oh, what a wonderful thing you are! Toothbrush! Toothbrush! Toothbrush! Oh, where is thy toothbrush? Toothbrush! Toothbrush! Oh, here’s thy toothbrush! The wonderful funny toothbrush!”

George came dancing back into his room with his green; motorize toothbrush and a tube of Cresent toothpaste. He stuffed them both in his book bag and looked at his mother. “I’m all ready to go, mama!”

“Yes you are,” Eleni said. “You’re my special big boy, aren’t you?”

“Yep!”

George arrived at ten year old Billy Dew’s house fifteen minutes later. Eleni walked her son to the front door and rang the bell. RING-DING-DONG-DINNNNG!

A moment passed and then Billy’s mother, Christine, opened the door. “Hey, ‘Leni. Hi, Georgie.”

“Hi, Chrissie,” Eleni said.

“Hi, Mrs. Dew,” George said.

“So, how are you guys?” Christine asked.

“We’re good. But, ya know, I gotta be heading for work. So…bye,” Eleni said. She turned to her son. “Have a good time. I love you, gorgeous.”

Those were the last words Eleni Sandler ever said to her ten year old son.

“So, you ready to have some fun today?” Christine asked George, as she closed the front door.

“Yeah!” George exclaimed.

“You know, I ordered some pizzas.”

“Really?”

“Yep, and I was wondering if you and Billy could walk down to the gas station and get a two litter of pop?”

“Yeah, sure!”

“Well, let’s go get Billy. Shall we?”

“Yeah!”

They went to the bedroom at the end of the hall. Christine opened the door to find Billy sitting Indian style on the carpet, playing a Play Station 2 video game called ‘Destroy All Humans!’. He looked at and saw his friend standing in the doorway, beside his mother.

“Hey, George! What’s up?” Billy asked.

“Nuthin’ much. Your mom wants us to go to the store,” George said.

Billy looked up to his mom. “What?”

“Yeah, could you, Billy? I forgot to order something to drink and we don’t have anything here. Could you and George walk up to the gas station and get a two litter?”

“Yeah, sure.” Billy saved his game and then turned it off. He got his shoes on and then asked his mom, “What kind of pop?”

“Umm…what kind do you like, George?” Christine asked.

“Dr. Pepper!” George answered.

“Okay…Dr. Pepper it is. Here ya go, Billy.” Christine gave her son a five dollar bill. “Now, hurry up you two. The pizza will be here soon. Don’t talk to strangers.”

And with that, George and Billy set out to the gas station.

“So, George, what do you want to do tonight?” Billy asked, as they crossed the street. They were three blocks away from the gas station.

“I don’t know. What are we suppose to do?” George asked.

“Uhh…you want to watch some movies?”

“Which ones do you have?”

“Umm…uhhh…Ghostbusters…Evil Dead…”

“What’s Evil Dead?”

“It’s a scary movie. You never saw it?”

“Nope.”

“Man, we have to watch it when we get back. We can play some video games, too.”

“What games do you have?”

“Oh, man, I have so many! Uhh…Destroy All Humans, Mortal Kombat, Grand Theft Auto--”

“You have Grand Theft Auto?”

“Yeah, why?”

“I’ve always wanted to play that, but my mom won’t let me.”

“Well, you can play it at my house. It’s really fun. You get to steal cars and shoot cops.”

“Shoot cops?”

“Yeah, shoot cops. We’re here.”

They arrived at the entrance of a gas station called Johnny’s. There were two cars at two different gas pumps. Both of the drivers were inside. Most likely paying for gas or buying cigarettes. They went in and walked directly to the frozen section. Billy opened the door and pulled out a two litter of Dr. Pepper (now with twenty-three flavors!). They both walked up to the counter.

“Dollar seventy five,” the cashier said.

Billy handed him the money and received his change. George and Billy exited the gas station and began to walk back to Billy’s house. They had a small conversation. Mostly pointless kid talk. George and Billy were three quarters of the way there when the black hearse creeped up behind them.

The driver’s window squeaked open and a man’s face poked out. He had short blonde hair, green eyes, pale skin, and a long scare across his cheek. “Hey. Hey, you! Hey, kid!”

Both Billy and George turned toward the hearse. “What?” they both asked.

“You.” The pale man pointed to George.

“What?” George asked.

“You need to come with me. Your mother’s hurt.”

“What? Mom?”

“She was in an accident. She’s at the hospital right now. She told me and my wife to come and pick you up.”

“Wife?”

A woman’s face appeared at open window now. Long black hair, hazel eyes, vivid red lipstick, blue eye shadow. “Hey, honey,” she said. “It’s true. Your mom’s hurt. She’s in the hospital. You need to come with us. We’ll take you to your mama.”

George turned to Billy and whispered, “Billy…my mom…”

“I don’t know, George. My dad warned me of people like this. He said that they’ll say your mom or someone close to you is hurt and then when you get in the car they do the Bad Thing to you,” Billy said.

“What’s the Bad Thing?” George asked.

“I don’t know, but it’s bad.”

“Hey!” It was the pale man again. “Are you gonna come with us or are you just going to let your mother die? She’ll die if you don’t come. She needs you.”

George whispered to Billy, “I think they’re telling the truth, Billy. What if she dies? I gotta go with them. You coming with?”

“No way. You shouldn’t go either, George,” Billy warned.

“I’m sorry…but…my mama’s dying.”

“Please don’t.” Those were the last words Billy Dew ever said to George Sandler.

George walked to the hearse and said, “Okay…take me to her.”

“’Bout time, kid. Go ahead and hop in the back seat. We’ll get you to your mother in no time. The door’s at the very back, though. And there’s no seats. So you’re at to sit on the floor. Hurry up,” said the man.

George went to the very back of the hearse and opened one of the doors. He jumped in and saw a big brown box sitting in front of him. He wasn’t sure but he thought they were called coffins. George closed the door and sat down. The hearse sped off down the road and out of eyesight from Billy.

That last memory of George going in the hearse would haunt Billy until his suicide thirty years later.

Ten minutes later the hearse stopped. George hopped they were at the hospital now. He needed to see his mama. Both of the back doors opened and the man (wearing blue jeans and a gray tee-shirt) and woman (wearing tight, short blue jeans and a white V neck tee-shirt) appeared. Without a word the man grabbed George and the woman opened the lid of the big brown box. The man dumped George into the coffin and the lid shut tight above him. “Hey! What’s going on? Let me out of here! Where’s my mama? Help! Help! HEEEEEEELLLP!” The black hearse, once again, sped off.

George Sandler eventually passed out from hypoventilation. When he came to George was out of the coffin and now was laying a couch. He rubbed his eyes and slowly sat up. He was saw wooden walls, a coffee table, a television, a desk, a phone, and a coat rack at the front door. Where was he? What was going on? Where was mama?

“Hello?” George squeaked.

The door from across from him suddenly swung open and a man and woman came storming through. They had smiles across their faces.

“Hi-o, boy-o!” the man exclaimed. “My name is Kenny, and this is my wife, Sidney. Welcome to our house!”

“Hey, kiddie,” Sidney said. “What’s your name?”

“Uhh…uhhh…where’s my mama? She’s hurt!” George cried out.

“Oh, but I’m your new mama now,” Sidney said. She pointed to Kenny. “And this is your dada.”

“No! You’re not my mother! My dad’s dead! Get away from me! Somebody help! Please help!” George shrieked.

Then, Kenny brusquely backhanded George across the face and he flew off of the sofa and onto the wooden plank floor. “Now, if you’re gonna be livin’ in our house, boy, they’re gonna be some rules. Rule number one; don’t speak unless spoken to. Now, I’m speaking to you. What is your name?”

Snot was running down George’s face and he was crying, (but a sort of silent, hiccup crying.) Kenny kicked George in the stomach and shouted, “What the **** is your name?”

George sniffed up a line of mucus and muttered, “G-G-George.”

“Good,” Kenny said. “Now, rule number two; no tryin’ to escape. You got that, boy? If I ever catch you tryin’ to get away I’ll kill you and your old mother… Got it?”

“Y-yeah.”

“Rule number three; obey the first two rules everything will be okie-dokie. Now that we’re fresh with the rules, let’s say a little about ourselves. Since we’re your new family and all. As for me…I love to hunt. You ever go hunting, Georgie-boy?” Kenny asked.

“N-no.”

“Well, we’ll have to change that, now won’t we?” He turned toward Sidney. “Babe, your turn.”

“Umm…well…I like kids a lot and I love to shop,” Sidney said.

Kenny turned back to George. “What about you, George? Why don’t you say something about yourself?”

George remained silent.

“George? Did you forget rule number one? I’ve spoken to you.”

“Uhh…uh…can I please go home? Please?”

“Home? What the **** did I already tell you? This is your home! We are your parents and you will obey us!” Kenny kicked George in the gut again. “Now…what do you like?”

George couldn’t think of anything to say. Oh, God, his kidneys were in endless, agonizing pain. Fearing that he would be kicked again, George shouted the first word that came to mind. “Animals!”

“Oh? Animals, eh? What kind?” Kenny asked.

“Uh…uh…dogs.”

“Dogs? What kind of dog?”

“I-I don’t know. All kinds,” George answered.

“Oh, well…that’s good. I like dogs, too. I think your mother likes dog also. Isn’t that right, babe?” Kenny asked.

“Yep. Love them,” Sidney answered. Her face was full of joy. She couldn’t take her eyes away from George.

“You hungry, George-o?” Kenny asked.

“Uh…uh…”

“I’ll take that as a ‘yes’. Hey, babe, why don’t you go pick up a bucket of chicken and a six-pack?”

“Yeah, sure.” She got up and put her coat on. The whole time her eyes never left George’s face.

“You like chicken, Georgie?” Kenny asked.

“Uhh…uh…I…yeah.”

“Good. How ‘bout beer?”

“What?”

“Beer. You like it?”

“I don’t know.”

“Well, we’ll know when your mama gets back from the store.”

Sidney left the house (cabin?) and a few moments later the sounds of a car starting happened, and then it was gone. Kenny turned toward George. “You ready to go to bed, Georgie?”

When Sidney returned George was sitting in the corner of the main cabin room, with a thump in his mouth a dried tears crusting on his cheeks. Kenny was sitting on the sofa, watching TV. Sidney was holding two plastic bags. She emptied the bags on the coffee table; a sixteen piece bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken, two six-packs of Budweiser, a bag of sour cream n’ onion chips, and a huge green bottle of Jameson Whiskey.

“Whoa. Where’d you get the money for all of this?” Kenny wondered.

“Well, I decided to stop off at a 7/Eleven. I figured we celebrate for our first child. I made five hundred bucks, Kenny,” Sidney said.

“You held up a place without me?” Kenny said, offended.

“Yeah, well…sorry.”

“You ******’ better be. Now, let’s eat. George, get over here.”

George remained where he was, shaking uncontrollably.

“George…get the **** over here right now!”

George crawled to the coffee table.

“You want a leg, wing, or breast?” Kenny asked.

“I-I’m not hungry.”

“Fine.” Kenny popped open the tab of one of the Budweiser’s and set it in front of George. “But you will have something to drink. Drink!”

George picked up the can of beer and took a sip. It tasted bitter but at the same time quite good. He took a much longer sip.

“There ya go. Drink up,” Kenny said, as he munched away on a leg of crispy chicken.

By the time George was halfway through the beer, he was drunk as a skunk. The only thing he remembered the rest of the night was that everything looked like it was from that movie Sin City. Kenny and Sidney were completely black but the background was bright as light.

The next day he woke up feeling sick. He threw up a lot and he had to go to the bathroom almost constantly. He had a hangover.

A week later George woke up in his corner of the living room (there was now a mattress, pillow, and blanket there.) His eyes opened and the first thing he saw was the face of a dog. It’s snout sniffed and then it’s long limy tongue swept across George’s face. George sat up and looked at the small golden puppy (a German shepherd) sitting beside him. The dog then jumped on top of him and licked his face again and again.

“Hello,” George said to the dog.

The door opened and Sidney came through. “Oh, you’re up. I see you found your new friend. I remember you like dogs, so me and your father got you one. What do you think?”

“I love him!” George exclaimed.

“What are you going to name him?”

“Uhh…uh…Dog!”

“Dog?”

“Yeah, Dog!”

“Well…okay then. Um…I’ll leave you with him. I’m gonna go back to bed.”

Sidney walked back into the other room.

George looked back to his new dog and smiled for the first time in a week. “I love you,” he said. “You’re my best friend.”

As he petted Dog, George thought about the past week. He now knew that ‘going to bed’ and ‘going to sleep were two completely different things. ‘Going to sleep’ meant that you actually lie down and close your eyes and sleep. But ‘going to bed’ was when Kenny did the Bad Thing to him. George was pretty sure it was the Bad Thing. George hated the Bad Thing more than anything. It hurt so badly and he just absolutely hated it. He despised the Bad Thing! The only thing the two had in common was the dreams. When he’s sleeping he dreams and when he ‘goes to bed’ he dreams about being at a different place. He dreams that he was with his mother and they were playing Candyland.

Oh, well…Dog would now help tale away the pain. Dog would now help ease the wanting of his mother. Dog would be his new best friend.

It’d been two more weeks and then an argument formed between Kenny and Sidney.

“I’m ******’ sick of cleaning up all this goddamn dog ****!” Kenny said.

“What are you talking about? I’m the one who does it, but I don’t mind. Dog makes Georgie happy,” Sidney said.

“Yeah, well…I’m sick of the ******’ smell. And what’s with the name? Dog? Man, that kid’s a goddamn genius!”

“Don’t be so hard on him! Maybe he would be better if you didn’t ******* rape him all the time! That’s right; I know what you do to him when I’m gone! What’s the matter, I’m not good enough for you? You gotta do it with a boy? Is that it? You like the boys, huh? You turning gay? You a ******?”

Kenny punched Sidney in the jaw and she went flying against the stove. She fell to the ground and Kenny grabbed a kitchen knife off the counter. “I’m gonna teach you a lesson, you ungrateful ****.” He stabbed the knife into Sidney’s gut and then twisted. She screamed out in pain. Kenny pulled the knife out and stabbed her twenty more times. Sidney died somewhere between the tenth and fifteenth stab.

George watched the whole time from the corner of the living room. Dog laid by his side.

After the death of Sidney, Kenny wasn’t nice one bit. He built a giant metal cage in the back yard and locked George and Dog there. Once a day Kenny would give George a tray of food for dinner. He shared it with Dog. There was another thing; Kenny did the Bad Thing to him a lot more frequently. At least two times a day. Sometimes six. The only thing that kept George from dying was Dog. Dog was George’s life and George was Dog’s life. They were meant for each other.

ONE YEAR LATER

George was eleven years old and Dog was a big dog. Sure, they lived in a smelly cage together, but at least they were together.

Kenny didn’t know it, but for the last couple days or so, Dog had been digging a hole at the edge of the metal fence. When Dog wasn’t digging, George covered it up with fallen leaves from the trees above. George also noticed that Kenny had been acting stranger than usual. His eyes were always blood shot and he drooled constantly. He always had tiredness look on his face, (if George was older he would have known that Kenny had become an alcoholic and heroin addict.)

One morning, though, George woke up with a surprise. Kenny was standing above him. When George sat up he noticed something else; the hole was uncovered.

“You sneaky son of a *****,” Kenny said, and punched George in the face. He then kicked him three times in the gut and then pounded on his face with his fist. “You ******’ brat. It’s your fault. You killed my Sidney. Now I’m gonna make you pay. It’s time to go to bed, boy. When I get done with you I’m gonna kill that stupid ******’ dog of yours, too. Now…take your ******’ pants off. Now!”

Without hesitation (he was used to this routine) George took his pants off. He was now in his underwear.

“Underwear, too,” Kenny said.

George did what he was told.

“Ready to go to bed, boy?” Kenny unzipped his fly.

Then, as he took a step further, a loud bark filled the forest. Dog suddenly leaped and tackled Kenny to the ground. Dog then ripped out Kenny’s throat. The whole time George watched with bewilderment.

When Dog was done with his meal he walked over to his naked master. Dog licked George’s face. He then grabbed his pants with his teeth and dropped them on George’s lap. Dog licked his face again.

George Sandler got dressed and crawled through the hole. Dog followed. He didn’t know where to go. He didn’t know if he’d survive. That, my friend, I’ll leave up to you. He could make it back to his mother and live happily ever after, or he could get killed by a bear in the forest. Or he could never find his way back home and lives as a bum for the rest of his days. He could return home but soon find out he caught AIDS from Kenny. All these endings are a possibility. You decide which one you feel most comfortable with.

Keyword: DOG

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Comments (16)

Posted by tarhead 2007-12-24 12:03:47 interesting in a scary sort of way i think that was your longest story yet... covered a lot of space quickly, and i wonder if it slowed the detail down a little? it was a good story. + Report this comment
Posted by Willowtree123 2007-12-31 20:22:10 My ending I think George walked around until he was picked up by a kind hearted old woman and taken home. He got home to find his mother a broken alcoholic but as soon as she saw him she vowed to never drink again and ran to embrace him. He grew up and wrote a book about his childhood (which became a best seller) and everything was all right! Oh, and he saw Billy again and in the end stopped him from commiting suicide. Yes, I know. I like happy endings. Good story! + Report this comment
Posted by Yanu 2008-01-16 09:55:50 Eek! Well, it was definitely a good read. Enjoyable dialog. Sexual abuse always makes a story enthralling, right? While reading further into the story I felt uncomfortable, and that's a good thing, I think. I also definitely like HAPPY endings. Tragedies make me extremely sad, even after I've finished reading or watching one (and especially if I found the character(s) likable... Dog was very likable BTW). Very good! + Report this comment
Posted by lorislittlesecret 2008-01-16 10:20:26 .... OMG...that's was one of the saddest stories I have ever read. No child ever deserves that. I can't imagine how I would ever feel if my son disappeared. It would be nice if he could make it home to his mommy, but we all know that in the real world it doesn't always work that way. + Report this comment
Posted by Yanu 2008-01-16 10:50:34 My Ending. I don't think Kenny's house is in the middle of the forest, but it must be a good distance away from the city (because he locked George and Dog in a metal cage in the backyard and killed his wife/girlfriend w/no iterruptions ... if the house were in a heavily populated area, someone would of seen or heard something), so maybe, in a small town, where the houses are a mile or two apart from each other(?). So, George and Dog would have to walk quite a bit to find help, but it's not like they'll forever travel in a circle. Here it is: Handy Dog sniffs his way to the nearest gas station, and George follows. The cashier recognizes him from the 'missing children' picture and description he saw on an envelope he received in the mail, so he phones the cops, and they take George and Dog home. + Report this comment
Posted by Yanu 2008-01-16 10:53:23 Continuation of My Ending. Mom is a teary mess as she embraces her long lost child. George and Dog get physical exams. Both suffer of malnutrition, and mom finds out that George was sexually abused. Parenting is a lot more difficult for her, but she manages to pull through in the end. Dog finds a mate and they have puppies; one is given to Yahaira. Thankfully George's sexual orientation is normal; he likes girls and his mannerisms are in no way feminine. He keeps to himself most of the time but does fall in love, and marries the nice girl he meets at work. He's a veterinarian's assistant. He has no children because he fears for their safety, luckily his wife feels the same way and they love, live and die together. The End + Report this comment
Posted by Yanu 2008-01-16 11:02:23 Oh! Almost forgot. Dog lives to be 21 years old which is what? 147 in dog years? And Billy and George remained best friends for a a couple of years, until Billy had to move. The reason Billy commits suicide is because he is bipolar... so it was totally impulsive. When George finds out, he is sad for some time, but figures he must continue living, and living in sadness is no life. + Report this comment
Posted by Yanu 2008-01-16 11:04:32 Hmm... I think I got carried away... but you see, that means your story had an affect on me even after I finished reading it. So that means you did a great job! + Report this comment
Posted by Zombie Punk 2008-06-26 00:03:12 .... Thank you Yanu for taking such an interest in my story! Yeah, that seems like a pretty happy ending you seemed to have put a lot of thought into it. and thanks also goes to lorislittlesecret, willowtree123, and tarhead. This story was a little difficult for me to write with all the sexual abuse, i got really uncomfortable with it and had to stop for a couple days, but this story means alot to me and i would want to thank you all again! + Report this comment
Posted by Dirkin 2008-06-27 01:19:01 .... Man that pretty dam good. I liked the fact that you didnt get graphic in describing the abuse, merely hinting at the 'bad thing'. I found the character of sidney to be a little flat... Maybe its because a psycho pervert guy is easier to believe than a girl. Maybe she could be so in love with Kenny and afraid of him, thats why she went along with the abduction? The dialogue was natural and well written. I'm not sure about the ending, but overall a good story + Report this comment
Posted by Behind_the_Mask 2008-06-27 13:08:15 ... This was one of the first stories I read on this site, I liked how you didn’t go into details about the abuse, and the ending is up to you part was something new, but wasn’t so out there that it was just wonko. Yes I used wonko. Great story. That I forgot to comment on when I became a member. + Report this comment
Posted by philneale1952 2008-06-27 13:19:51 .... I think you dealt with a very dark subject in as detached a way as it could possibly be done, and we had a pair like these two over here in the 1960's - Ian Brady & Myra Hindley. The use of dialogue in with the prose kept the story moving very fast, and overall I think it was well written. However........(there's always one isn't there?)......your use of profanities (yeah I know it sounds old fashioned) detracts from the way you dealt with the subject. You clearly have talent to deal with something like this (I wouldn't know where to begin) and you don't need to write like that. This is the first of your stories that I've managed to read the whole way through more than once. It was a gripper. Phil + Report this comment
Posted by brandon_scott 2008-06-28 21:28:23 .... I, too, thought that you dealt with his abuse in a mature manner by not going into graphic details. However, parts of the story were choppy and hard to follow. All in all, though, it was fairly good. + Report this comment
Posted by Something Indecent 2008-06-29 01:06:30 .... I liked the set up for this at the beginning. As demented as I am I actually wanted the two kids to have a fun sleep over. I think you could've gone into the trauma a bit more (not the bad thing) as georgie gets broken down from living with these psychos. But yes I thought you did a good job on this. For how long it is you manage to keep the attention of the reader throughout the story. Here's a thought. What if Georgie grew up to be like Kenny? That'd be a nature vs. nurture arguement for ya! This story made me hungry for chicken. + Report this comment
Posted by fevilleg 2008-07-01 14:23:00 ... the story is there but it is a little rambling. There is much you can cut from it without losing the overall story. The open end is a little anticlimactic. + Report this comment
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