by
Debbi
live on the 16th floor in an apartment building overlooking a busy street, in south Mumbai. Often I like looking down at the people below, getting on with their lives, unaware of me, but what I love more is running through the streets, following Joey on his bicycle. The wind tries its best to hold me back, pulling me by the ears, but my legs are swift and sure and they eat up the miles in no time. Joey himself is very proud of me, and I have seen him, swelling up with pride, whenever, people have praised me or have looked at me with barely concealed admiration.
Joey and me make a good team, ever since we met when I was but a few months old and he was two. He tells me everything, but even when he doesn't, I know what he feels. I like to see him smile and join in all his adventure games, especially when he is playing at being the Phantom, the comic hero he is so fond of. Joey has a good collection of these comics, and together we have flipped through them many many times, leaving them dog-eared and even frayed around the edges. All the phantom's adventures are very exciting. He fights evil men and takes on the ferocious jungle animals with ease, and he rescues damsels in distress. He wanders through the African jungles, accompanied by Devil, who is a wolf, but most people mistake him for a true blue Alsation. Often Joey and me like to pretend we are on an adventure together. So we follow suspicious looking strangers in the streets, or pretend that we are going on an important treasure hunt. Since the past one month, there has been a lot of activity in the flat next door. For a long while it was empty, but one day, a fine looking gentleman came to speak to Joey's father. They spoke for a long while, and from their conversation, that I overheard as I lay by the television, I gathered that he would be moving into the flat next door. Very soon, Joey and I saw the furniture being shoved in and then the new occupants came. Both Joey and I were very curious, for neighbours were fun, they could be good friends and if they liked you, there would be the occasional biscuit and even chocolates. There were two grown ups, the fine looking gentleman I had seen before as I remarked knowingly to Joey, and his wife. They got out of the car, and it was when they entered through the gates, that we saw her. She looked small, a good deal smaller than Joey, and as we both looked, we saw that she had a mass of curly hair, that even the wind could not straighten, and a wide smile, with some teeth missing, quite like Joey's. Joey and I decided to make friends with her. We both agreed she could fit into the team well, for she did not look as fussy as some other girls, we knew. So the next evening when we saw her in the park, with her mother, we decided to introduce ourselves. Usually, when Joey wishes to make friends quickly or when he wants to merely impress them, he takes me with him. For then people make a fuss over me, looking at me with appreciation and I can see Joey swelling up with pride and importance. But this time, as we approached the little girl, I knew something was wrong. As soon as she saw me, she let out a frightened scream and hit herself in the folds of her mother's sari. I was not used to inspiring such a reaction, but Joey held me back. As she was so afraid of me, we knew Joey's ploy of making friends would not work. Joey tried his best to show her, how friendly and intelligent I was, for though I could not speak as they could, I could follow everything that was said with great ease. But she refused to come within my vicinity and would run for cover as soon as I appeared. I could see Joey was unhappy, but really as there was nothing he could do, we both just looked at each other sourly. Once I pretended to be asleep and even feigned colic pain, so Joey would go to the park by himself, but on both occasions, he saw through me and refused to play a lone hand. He hated to leave me out of his games, and I hated to see him unhappy, but this time, we had to let things be. Wishing to help him, I stood before the mirror, trying to figure out what it was about me that scared her so, I was clueless. But then one evening, not long after, matters forced my hand. That day, there was a nice breeze, and Joey and me made for the park, to join the other boys in their kite flying competition. Though I pointed out to Joey that she was there too, he, rather rudely I thought, merely shrugged his shoulders. Pretty soon, we got involved in our game, and I tried to help Joey any which way I could. Holding his kite, as he unfolded the twine, and then running to fetch it back to him, whenever, it refused to take off and fell limply to the ground. Quite some time must have passed for we were both engrossed in our game, but all of a sudden, we were startled by a loud howl, and then there was the sound of a little girl crying. I knew at once it was the little girl, and even as I looked up, sized the matter up quickly. It was the little girl Joey and I knew, and her doll had been snatched away by the gang of bullies, who sometimes frequented the park, as they enjoyed teasing and tormenting little girls. This time, they had snatched away her doll, and even as she wept and I saw big tears running down her face, were running away with it, threatening to drown her in the duck pond. I do not do anything without first asking Joey, but this time, he let me take the lead. With a loud yell, I rushed off at a furious pace behind those brats. Seeing me give chase, some were frightened and fell away, but one of them who held the doll high in his hand, was already nearing the duck pond. Even as I hurtled towards him, in a last second dash, he had flung it high in the air. I saw the surprised unblinking doll, move high in the air in an arc, and then she plummeted towards the water. Then there was the sound of a loud splash, as she hit the water, but there was an even bigger splash and a fountain of water swung up into the air, as I jumped into the water without any second thoughts. She bobbed to the surface once, but even before she could go down again, I had caught her safely, careful not to cut too deeply into her frilly satin frock. In a few minutes, it was all over. We were soon out of the water, and I put the doll on the grass, glad to realize that she really had not suffered any severe damage. As I shook myself free of the droplets of water, I saw Joey and the girl run up to me together. Joey and me exchanged a quick glance, while the little girl, scooped up her doll, pleased to discover that apart from a plastered hair piece and soaked clothes, she seemed none the worse. Then she did something that pleased me immensely. She looked at me shyly and then extended her hand. Even as I watched her in dumbfounded anticipation, she reached forward. Patting me on the head and she said, "Good dog!" It was her way of thanking me. PS. It has been a year and more now and the three of us are very good friends now. As for those bullies, that's another story altogether.
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