When I woke up again, I was laying on a couch inside a small but comfortable house. I tried to stand up, but couldn't. When I looked around I saw three people. There was one kid sitting on the floor flipping through a book. Another one who looked a little bit older was doing something in the kitchen, and the third was Dallas, the one who found me on the streets.
"Hey Dally?" said the boy from the kitchen. "Do you know when Steve and Johnny are gonna be here?"
"Nah, they should be comin' soon though." He responded.
"When is that dog gonna wake up?" Said the younger one on the floor.
"It just did, Pony." Dally answered.
He stood up and walked over to me, looking me straight in the eyes. I saw the way he looked at everyone else, with some kind of cold hatred in his eyes. But when he looked at me, it all melted away. He only let the softness creep into his face when nobody was watching him though. Nobody would see Dallas get all nice over a dog. He didn't like the way I made him feel that way, I could tell.
"Dumb dog," he muttered. I just stared up at him with my big brown eyes. He looked at me for a minute more, and then walked off. The older boy from the kitchen sauntered in and smiled at me. I wagged my tail, and he came over and stroked my side.
"Hey there girl, I'm Soda! But what should we call you?" he asked. He had warm brown eyes, that made me want to run around and play. I could tell he was one of those guys who was playful and mischievous.
Dally spoke up, "Well look at her, she's all quiet and her fur is dark, I found her half dead laying in the shadows, I say we name her that."
"What? Name her Half-Dead?" Ponyboy asked with a look of horror.
"No, wiseass! Shadow! Let's name the fuckin thing Shadow."
Both Pony and Soda agreed this was a good name, and I liked it too. I finally managed to stand up and I limped over to Dally. He gave me a disgusted look, and walked away. I was pretty hurt by that, but I could tell that it wasn't completely real. I flopped back down on the ground and Soda scratched me behind the ears.
Then the front door opened with a loud bang.