I don't own these characters :(
Can We Keep Him
Melinda sighed quietly and smiled as she sat, blue sundress tucked neatly underneath her, on the couch. To her left, she heard the quiet laughter of her son Aiden floating through the open front door as he played outside on the lawn, and to her right, she heard the sounds of her husband Jim as he created one of his culinary masterpieces in the kitchen. Today had been a rough day, there was a traffic accident and she had four ghosts show up in the basement of her shop. Eli was still tying up the loose ends on that adventure. So now she was relaxing, per Jims instructions, until dinner.
She rested her head against the back of the couch and closed her eyes. That's when she heard it, barking, there was barking coming from the front yard. She strained her ears, listening, just to make sure she wasn't hallucinating. There it was again, so familiar, but it seemed like the last time she heard it was a lifetime ago. Springing from the couch, now eager to see with her own eyes, she raced to the front yard.
Flinging open the front door, she scanned the yard. Aiden stood in front of his swing set, stick in hand, and Homer paced impatiently at his feet. Just as Aiden was about to throw the stick, Melinda squealed in delight earning the attention of both the boy and his new found friend. Aiden dropped the stick as Homer took off towards his mom. He barked enthusiastically and hopped in circles as Melinda knelt down to his level laughing in delight. The next couple of minutes were spent with Melinda wondering aloud where the dog had been and asking him numerous questions she knew she was never going to get answered.
Sometime during all the chaos, Jim had come outside. He sat on the porch steps watching his wife, completely enchanted by the happiness on her face and the pure joy in her eyes. He looked to see Aiden beaming from his spot by the swings, a look of hopefulness on his face. Aiden rushed over to his parents once Melinda seemed to remember where she was and who else was there. Jim knew the boy's question before he even asked it, but he listened anyways as the boy pouted his lips and asked if they could keep the dog.
He saw his wife's pleading glance toward him and nodded his head, how was he supposed to deny something that made his family so happy? She squealed again, leaning over to peck him on the cheek. Jumping up from her kneeling position, she went to get the door ushering her family, including Homer, inside for dinner.