Emily sighed looking at the tied up alaskan klee kai puppy.It had been 25 minutes since she and Stevie tied him to that spot.They had been trying to talk some sense into him but to no avail.Emily whimpered “Tommy..you need to come back..Dogs at school are really worried and your parents..I know you won’t believe me..but they have been looking for you too! They’ve been very depressed since you left!” Tommy tugged at the rope around his neck,refusing to reply.There was a long pause and Stevie barked “Tommy, listen to Emily!” “I’m listening to Emily.” Tommy finally responded then retorted “I think you are trying to say “respond to Emily”, smart one.” Tommy lowered his ears.He didn’t want to be here.He just wanted to get back to Nashira.Emily yipped, stomping her paws on the ground “Tommy, what has gotten into you?! You used to be so nice and now you’re just..Your involved with this gang..and..and I don’t even know what you’re doing! What are you doing?! Are you robbing dogs?! ..Are-…are you hurting dogs? Killing dogs?!” Tommy didn’t respond.He stopped tugging at the rope and simply looked down at his paws.Emily growled in frustration “Tommy, why aren’t you answering me?! I tell you all this stuff and you don’t even bat an eye! Do you care how much distress you have caused back home?” Tommy groaned then stood up “I’m not answering you because you are LYING TO ME!!!” Emily paused “..I’m not lying!” “Either you are lying or you’re just REALLY dumb!” Tommy replied sourly.Stevie yapped “Don’t speak to Emily that way!”

Tommy didn’t listen to Stevie, he kept his eyes locked on Emily “My parents don’t care about me! They aren’t searching for me because they are sad! They are probably just doing it cause…cause I finally stood up for myself before I ran away! They’ll just kill me if I go back!” Emily’s eyes were wide “Thats not true! I could see it in their eyes! Your mother and father-” Tommy interrupted. “AND nobody at school is worried about me! I didn’t have any friends there! Why WOULD anyone worry?! God…HOW COULD YOU BE SO STUPID?! WHAT THE HELL GAVE YOU THAT IMPRESSION IN THE FIRST PLACE…YOU…YOU IDIOT!” Tommy was seething..Emily frowned,shocked by his insults to her..Tommy used to be so kind..Emily felt like she was staring at a completely different dog “…………….Well…..What if I’m worried?..What if Stevie’s worried? Does that matter? Does that count for anything to you?”.Tommy looked to the faces of the two puppies in front of him, both holding incredible sadness in them.Tommy did not answer and he just sat back down, letting what she was saying sink in.Emily looked down “..If I can’t speak for Stevie, I speak for myself..I do miss you..I don’t care if you believe me or not, I DO.In fact you were one of my best friends..I knew I had a lot of friends but you weren’t..fake, like a lot of them..You weren’t..some self-absorbed ball of fur who spoke about themselves all day..You were interested in REAL things, not pointless things.You were different and even if the other dogs at school thought different was bad, it wasn’t and I just wished they could see it..I wished they could see how kind you were and how..good-hearted you were..” Stevie and Tommy were silent.Emily whimpered, tears welling up in her eyes “And..I knew about what was happening at your house…..kinda..and even though I felt bad for you..I was too..weak to try and talk to you about it, I guess..To dumb to try and cheer you up in some way, if there WAS a way..and worst of all, I didn’t say anything to stop it.” Silence. “…I want you to come back..because I don’t want you to get hurt..I don’t want a police dog to find you dead on the street! I don’t know..maybe we can tell the police about your parents abuse and you won’t have to worry about them..And I promise, I will stick up for you more if the bullies still try to bother you! I’ll..I’ll get teachers to freaking..watch every pup just so they won’t bother you if I have to! I really care about you, Tommy..Please come back with us..”

Tommy was dead silent.This..speech rang through his ears..Then he remembered what Nashira said to him {“They don’t give a fuck about you..They don’t care if you live or die.If they did, they wouldn’t resent you.They would stick up for you against those mean little bullies…But I care about you.I can show you a better life.A life away from neglectful parents,fake friends, and jerks who are mean just for the sake of being mean.Trust me.”} Tommy’s eyes shot open. “STOP LYING TO ME!” He leapt at Emily, fangs bared.Emily yelped and fell backwards.Tommy would have bitten her if the rope hadn’t stopped him from moving forward.Stevie quickly ran forward and pulled Emily away from him.Tommy barked and growled in anger,tugging at the rope violently. “IM SO SICK OF YOU TWO! UNTIE ME RIGHT NOW!” Stevie slowly narrowed his eyes in anger. “Emily..it’s no use..This isn’t the Tommy we used to know.” Emily stared at the alaskan klee kai as his movements grew more and more desperate to get off of the rope.She slowly stood up “Y..- You’re…right….Tommy wouldn’t do this….”.Tommy snarled in anger,biting down on the rope harder and finally ripping away from it.Tommy ran forward and sprinted out of the alley that he had been tied inside of.Stevie and Emily simply watched as he ran away.

Tommy was still seething and he began to growl to himself “How could..How could they just lie to me like that?! Nashira was right..They don’t care..” As he walked down the street their final words seemed to bug him though..He muttered “…I’m…I’m still me though…I didn’t change or anything..” As anger faded he became..afraid..As he thought over what just occurred, that rage he just felt..Caused him to have insulted Emily and nearly attack her…He’d NEVER do that to anybody if he wasn’t forced to.. “I…I didn’t change…I’m still me..Aren’t I?” He began to feel incredibly guilty and anxious about his actions as he stared up at the grey sky..
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Young Blood © Alexandra Garcy
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Another Alice & Wonderland quote in the picture.I thought this quote really fit Tommy.Above is the scene in Young Blood where Stevie and Emily try to talk sense into Tommy but Tommy was so convinced by Nashira that they didn’t care, that he nearly attacked Emily.This is one of the first actions that he commits in which he begins to reflect on what he may be turning into.