"Mom, Cleo got into the trash again." Min Jun called from the kitchen when he and his family arrived home from school and work.
"Clean it up." Mi Sun called from another room.
"Hey I'll give you a quarter if you clean up the trash." Min Jun haggled.
"Mommy asked you too." Ji Yeon said holding her nose and walking into the living room.
Min Jun sighed as he began cleaning up the mess Cleo had made.
"How does Cleo keep getting out of her crate?' Min Jun asked sitting on the couch next to his sister.
"We'll have your dad look at it when he gets home. Put Cleo outside and come eat." Mi Sun told them.
"We got a big problem at my house." Min Jun commented the next day at school.
"What's the problem?' Tommy asked.
"Cleo broke her cage and now she tears up stuff when we're gone." Min Jun explained.
"Spifi used to do that too until we put him outside with Spike." Tommy told him.
"Maybe if you get Cleo a doggy friend she won't tear your stuff up no more." Kimi suggested.
"Thanks guys." Min Jun said as class started.
Min Jun decided to ask his parents about getting Cleo a friend as soon as they picked him up from Tommy's house later in the day. He just hoped they would say yes.
"Can we get another dog so Cleo will stop making a mess when we leave?" Min Jun asked when his dad came to pick him up.
"I don't think so." Jin told him as he drove to the pet store.
"But Tommy and Dil and Chuckie and Kimi have two dogs and their stuff doesn't get messed up." Min Jun said as he got out of the car with his dad.
"Just because they have two dogs doesn't mean we need two. We're buying Cleo a new cage." Jin told him taking his hand and leading the way into the store.
Min Jun didn't argue as much as he wanted to. He knew it would only get him in trouble. They bought the cage with a more secure lock on it and left for home.
They arrived home to a clean house thanks to Cleo being outside. Jin set the cage where the old one had been while Min Jun let Cleo in.
Later that night Min Jun woke up with little itchy bumps on his arms. He also noticed Cleo scratching alot making her dog tags on her collar gingle. Min Jun lay there the rest of the night trying to fall back asleep but he was to itchy and Cleo scratching was keeping him awake. He was glad the next day was Saturday so he didn't have to get up early.
"Dad me and Cleo are all itchy." Min Jun complained the next morning when he heard that everyone was awake.
"Looks like Cleo has fleas." Jin commented noticing the little red bumps and Cleo's almost non stop scratching.
"How can we get rid of them?" Min Jun asked scratching his arm.
"We have to get a special shampoo and flea collar." Jin told him.
They put Cleo in her crate hoping this one would hold her and left for the pet store. THey got what they needed from the pet store and came home to find the cage door open and another mess to clean up.
"We need to clean this up before your mom gets home from the store." Jin said. Min Jun sighed and began helping his dad clean up Cleo's mess.
"Maybe she wouldn't make a mess if we got another dog." Min Jun tried again once the mess was all cleaned up and they were sitting on the couch.
"We're not getting another dog." Mi Sun said as she came through the door with bags of groceries."Cleo is more then enough. There's a mess in the laundry room."
"But some of my friends have two dogs and they don't make a mess." Min Jun said following his mother into the kitchen."Cleo is lonely when we leave."
"I think he's right." Jin agreed as he helped put away the groceries.
MI Sun gave Jin a look."I mean about being lonely." Jin explained."She got used to you and Ji Yeon being here all the time and now that you're working again she's lonely and acting out."
"Well we're not getting another so find another way to fix this problem." Mi Sun said.
"She can go to daycare." Ji Yeon suggested running into the ktichen."There's one for dogs. Come see."
JI Yeon lead her family into the living room and rewound the commercial she had seen on tv.
"It's worth a try." Jin said once the commercial was over."We just need to get rid of her fleas first."
"Is that why she's outside?" Mi Sun asked noticing Cleo at the back door wanting inside.
"Yeah. I got a special shampoo. We just need to wash everything she likes to lay on and then give her a bath and that should take care of the fleas."
"I'll get the stuff washed. You wash the dog." Mi Sun told him.
Min Jun lead Cleo to the bathroom where he and Jin gave her a bath. MIn Jun didn't mind getting splashed with water but some of the shampoo got into his eyes when Cleo shook some water off of her and he ran out of the bathroom leaving the door open and allowing Cleo to escape.
Cleo wasn't the biggest fan of baths, so she was happy to be free. She jumped onto the couch where Ji Yeon and Mi Sun were sitting getting soap and water everywhere.
"How many people does it take to give one dog a bath?" Mi Sun asked holding Cleo so she wouldn't run away again.
"All of us I guess." Jin shrugged as Mi Sun drug Cleo outside with Ji Yeon following them.
They filled up the kiddie pool and Mi Sun came back a few minutes later with the shampoo and peanut butter.
"Why do you have peanut butter?" Ji Yeon asked as she watched her mom put some on a spoon.
"Hold this. It's for Cleo so she'll stay still." MI Sun explained handing Ji Yeon the spoon.
Ji Yeon stepped into the pool and Cleo soon followed. The peanut butter worked and Cleo held still until it was time for her to be rinsed off.
"The peanut butter is almost gone." Ji Yeon said noticing the almost clean spoon.
"Get some more, not with the spoon." Mi Sun cried when Ji Yeon was about to dip the slobber covered spoon into the peanut butter jar."We're almost done. Just hold onto her."
Ji Yeon did as she was told and they finished giving Cleo a bath. They dried her off as best they could with a towel.
"Go sit on the patio with Cleo until she's dry." Mi Sun instructed taking the shampoo and peanut butter back inside.
Ji Yeon sat with Cleo in the sun watching her mom work in her small garden.
The next day Cleo was flea free so they decided to take her to doggie daycare hoping this was the solution to their problem.
Cleo knew she was going somewhere when Mi Sun grabbed the leash and was about to put it on her when Min Jun opened the door to go out to the bus. Cleo ran after him while Ji Yeon ran after her. Min Jun got on the bus and Cleo began chasing after it getting hit by a car in the process. Ji Yeon saw the whole thing and was about to run into the slight traffic on the street to get to Cleo when she was stopped by Jin and put into her mother's car. She looked out the window with tears streaming down her face as hse watched her father lift Cleo.
Mi Sun wrapped Cleo in a blanket and Jin put her in the backseat of the car. Ji Yeon watched silently as blodd polled around Cleo staining the once pink blanket. They drove to the vet where Cleo was examined and rushed into surgery.
They waited for what felt like hours before a doctor finally emerged telling them Cleo would be ok.
Meanwhile Min Jun had no idea about Cleo and went about his day as he normally would. He was surprised when school let out and his mom was waitng for him. Mi Sun was thankful that Ji Yeon was asleep when she told Min Jun the news. She had been crying all morning. Luckily Min Jun took the news better since he hadn't seen it happen and knew Cleo was going to be ok.
A few days later Cleo was allowed to go home. As soon as Mi Sun got off work she took Ji Yeon and they went to the vet to get Cleo.
When they arrived Cleo was very excited to see them. She kept going back and forth between MI Sun and Ji Yeon licking their faces as the vet explained instructions on caring for Cleo.
They went home where Cleo went to her bed and fell asleep as the pain meds she had been given before leaving the vet had begun to take affect.
The next morning Min Jun went to let Cleo outside but was stopped by Ji Yeon.
"She can't go outside." Ji Yeon stated blocking the door.
"Why not?" Min Jun asked looking at Cleo who clearly needed to go out and was pawing at the door."She wants out."
"She could get hurt again." Ji Yeon explained looking at Cleo, but not moving out of the way.
"Cleo will be fine." Jin said coming over and picking Ji Yeon up. He opened the door letting Cleo run out.
"What if there's a hole in the fence and she gets hit by a car again?" Ji Yeon asked.
"There's no hole in the fecne, but we'll go look just in case." Jin assured her as he picked her up and carried her outside. They walked the whole yard not finding any holes.
"See. Cleo will be fine out here and it's getting cold so she won't stay out long." Jin said carrying Ji Yeon back inside.
Ji Yeon seemed satisfied with that answer and went to her room to get dressed for the day.
Before anyone left the house they put Cleo in her cage hoping the pain meds she had just been given would keep her in there until they could try an alternate solution.
"Are your parents letting you get another dog?" Phil asked when the kids returned to school the following Monday.
"No." Min Jun replied."We're taking her to doggie daycare when she gets better."
"What happened? Is she sick?" Kimi asked.
"She got hit by a car." Min Jun answered simply.
Later that afternoon Min Jun arrived home with his family to find Cleo still in her cage.
"Finally."Mi Sun sighed in relief collapsing on the couch."Let's see if she stays there while not on pain meds."
Once again Min Jun attempted to let Cleo outside and just as before Ji Yeon blocked him from opening the door.
"What are you doing?" Min Jun asked."Cleo has to go outside and you already know she's safe out there."
"It's raining." Ji Yeon said looking up to the glass window of the door. She knew Cleo would be fine, but after seeing what she saw she didn't want to take any chances and the storm was intensifying.
"Fine, but if she goes in the house, you're cleaning it up." Min Jun said walking over to a cabinet and pulling something blue and and white out."You might need this."
Ji Yeon knew what Min Jun gave her was for Cleo to go potty on. That gave her a brilliant idea. She went over to the cabinet and grabbed all the puppy training pads out and spread them out all over the house. Now Cleo would be safe and never have to go outside again. Her plan worked for awhile until all the pads got used.
It was Friday night and as usaul Phil was spending the night with Min Jun. Tommy decided to join them on this particular night. The boys were playing one of Phil's board games he's brought over. They're game was interupted by Cleo whining to go out.
They ignored for as long as they could until Phil said."What's up with Cleo?"
"She wants out, but Ji Yeon won't let her. She's afraid something bad will happen to her so she locked her in her room." Min Jun explained taking his turn.
"But dogs like being outside." Tommy protested stopping the game as Cleo continued to whine.
"Cleo likes inside more, but knows to go potty outside." Min Jun explained getting up and walking down the hallway.
"We just got to show Ji Yeon that." Tommy told Min Jun following him to Ji Yeon's door.
"My parents tried. She won't listen. Luckily my dad comes home at lunch and lets her outside so our house doesn't stink." Min Jun said opening the door allowing Cleo to run out of the room. The boys chased her to the back door and let her out.
"Can we finish the game now?" Phil asked."I'm about to win."
"Where's Cleo?" Ji Yeon asked coming into the room with wet hair and pajamas on.
"Outside where dogs like to be." Min Jun answered as Phil won the game.
Ji Yeon ran to the door and stood on her tiptoes opening the door and running out into the dark.
"Should we go after her?" Phil asked as a flash of lightning lit up the sky.
"Probably." Min Jun answered getting up and running outside before his cousin, who was babysitting noticed.
The backyard was a completely different world at night, and a little scary with the empening storm approaching, but Ji Yeon was determined to find Cleo. She made her way along the fence using it to help her see. Suddenly she heard a strange noise like somthing out of a scary movie and something pounced on top of her trapping her against the fence. She screamed as whatever had her dug it's claws into her leg.
The boys heard the scream in the far side of the yard and tentatively picked their way through the yard using the occasional lightning as a flashlight. They saw Ji Yeon pinned against the fence.
The boys ran to try and help, but stopped when Phil cried out and fell to the ground."I'm done for. Just go on without me."
Ji Yeon struggled against the thing holding her captive. She stopped struggleing when she heard familiar barking. The mysterious creature let go of her leg and hissed as it jumped back on top of the fence.
"Ninja! Toy scared me." Ji Yeon asked as she looked up to the see the black cat staring down at her. She then turned to Cleo and gave her a hug."Cleo! You saved me."
The boys helped Phil up, but didn't get very far as all three of them stepped in something squishy.
"Uh oh." Tommy said.
"Please tell me this is mud." Min Jun groaned.
"I don't think so. It didn't rain yet." Phil pointed out and lifted his foot as close to his nose as possible."Nope not mud."
"What are you guys doing out here?" Ji Yeon asked coming up to the boys with Cleo by her side.
"Looking for you." Min Jun answered."Let's go inside before it starts raining."
They made their way inside, the boys dragging their feet in the grass to get the dog poop off.
"You're bleeding." Min Jun noted looking down at Ji Yeon's leg.
"Ninja got me, but Cleo saved me." Ji Yeon explained as Cleo licked the blood from her leg.
"Now do you see that Cleo can take care of herself?" Min Jun asked as they all sat on the floor to start another of Phil's games.
Ji Yeon nodded as Cleo continued to clean her cut making the bleeding stop.
The following Monday Min Jun was about to catch the bus. He opened the door a crack but stopped when he noticed Cleo standign inches from the door. He walked over to her crate and called her in. She listened and went inside allowing Min Jun to leave for the day.
Unfortunatly he forgot to lock the crate since he was running late and once again Cleo made a mess in the house. The next morning Mi Sun and Ji Yeon left before Min Jun taking Cleo with them and dropping her off at doggie daycare hoping this would help their problem.
From then on they had no further accidents when leaving Cleo at home by herself as long as she was in the crate and it wasn't for to long.
The End