Drake the Dandy

I
f you didn't know
me, you would think I was just a typical dog. I live with an ordinary family, in an ordinary house, in an ordinary neighborhood. But if you didn't know me, you wouldn't know that I have the most important and spectacular job that anyone could ever ask for.

I, Drake the Dandy, have a happy life, just like lots of dogs do. But I have something even more. My life is devoted to one special person. And it's for this one person that I have a job to do.

My person's name is Kinsey, and she is the most wonderful person in the entire world. She is beautiful, with precious brown curls and brown eyes that shine and sparkle all the time, even when she's sad or tired.

Kinsey's true beauty lies on the inside, and that's her heart. She spreads happiness everywhere she goes. There is not a mean bone in her body, and I can tell you that because I know her even better than I know myself. She is the reason I eat, the reason I breathe.

You see, Kinsey has something called epilepsy. That's just a fancy word that means she has seizures. A seizure only lasts about a minute, but it's a scary minute. Her eyes roll back in her head and her body starts shaking. She falls down on the floor and loses control of her arm and leg movements.

No one knows why Kinsey has epilepsy. It started when she was only three. It's not contagious or anything, but it's not really something you can fix, either. Kinsey tried lots of medicines when she was little, but nothing made the seizures go away.

That's when I came along.

B
efore I came
to live with Kinsey, I lived in a training facility. This is where they taught me to do my job. You see, I can actually smell Kinsey's seizures before they happen. And that means I can warn her and help her get to a safe place before she has one.

I had two trainers, David and Lauren. My training was not easy. I went through months of exercises and drills.

I wasn't alone in my training. I had friends in the facility. There was Poe, who was training to be a seeing-eye dog. He was big and frisky and funny, making all of us laugh with his silly jokes. I have to smile when I think of little Bella, who was training to be a hearing dog. At first, Bella could seem a bit snobby. She pranced when she walked and sometimes she ignored those around her, especially Poe when he was feeling particularly playful. But once you got to know her, she was really sweet.

I got to watch both Poe and Bella when they were adopted into their new homes. I was so happy for both of them. But even though I was happy, I couldn't help but be a little jealous. I

d
reamed
every night about the person I would come to protect. I didn't know if that person would be a boy or a girl, young or old, but I just knew it would be wonderful. I didn't know it at the time, but it would be even better than I imagined.

I remember the day I met Kinsey and her parents like it was yesterday. Her mom and dad are both very nice people, but it was Kinsey's face that made me fall in love. When her sparkly eyes met mine, I knew she was
my person
. She smiled shyly at me and my whole body quivered in excitement. She bent down to rub my head and then dropped to her knees to wrap me in a hug. I leaned into her so hard that she almost fell over. I wanted her to know how much I already loved her.

K
insey
and her parents got to stay at the training facility with me for a while. That way we could get to know each other. And that's when I got my nickname, Drake the Dandy.

It happened when she was sitting on the floor, reading a book. I was lapping up some water from my bowl when I smelled it. Something inside her body changed. I raised my head and the hair on my back stood up. Whining, I ran to her and pushed my nose under her arm.

Her parents knew that I was alerting them. They helped her to the floor and talked to her soothingly. Less than two minutes later, her seizure began. Her eyes glazed over and she began to shake. It was terrifying to watch and it seemed to last forever.

When it was over, Kinsey's dad came over and hugged me. “You knew,” he just kept saying over and over. “What a smart boy you are. A dandy protector for our Kinsey. From now on, we will call you Drake the Dandy.”

It's stuck with me ever since.

F
inally
, I got to leave the facility with my new family and go to my new home. The house was cozy and perfect as far as I was concerned. To my surprise, we were greeted by a cat at the door. I was
not
surprised to see that the cat did not look thrilled to see me.

“Drake, this is Chaucer,” Kinsey told me, and I took that as my cue to smell him in greeting. My nose was met immediately by the slap of his paw as he hissed his warning to back away.

“Chaucer!” Kinsey scolded. “Be nice. This is your new brother.”

His low growl told me exactly how he felt about that. He sprinted away into the kitchen, leaving me in the living room with Kinsey. I figured it would be a while before I won Chaucer's affections, but that was okay with me. The only affections I cared about having were Kinsey's.

And Kinsey's affections are exactly what I got. We became best friends. I spend every waking moment with her. At night, I sleep right beside her in the bed.

I know I'm Kinsey's best friend because she tells me secrets before she falls asleep. She tells me things she doesn't tell anyone else, not even her parents.

Lately, the one thing she talks about is going to something called “school”.

“Summer is almost over,” she whispers to me as we lie in bed. “It's almost time to start fourth grade.” She's nervous. I can tell by the way her voice shakes when she talks.

“The schoolwork is going to get harder,” she continues. “I have trouble with my schoolwork sometimes. The medicines I take make it hard for me to concentrate.”

She lets out a big sigh, then adds, “And I don't have any friends. I don't know how to talk to the other kids in my class. They know about my seizures. They probably think I'm weird. No one ever tries to talk to me.”

I wish so much that I could really speak to her. I want to tell her how amazing she is and that she should just be herself. I know the other kids will love her like I do if they just get to know her.

“I am happy about one thing, though. I'm happy that you get to go to school with me,” she says.

I wag my tail to agree because I'm happy to go anywhere with Kinsey. But I've never been to school before. And if Kinsey is scared of it, I can't help but feel scared, too.

If my job is to protect her, I shouldn't be scared of anything. What kind of guardian gets scared anyway? I'm supposed to be a big, tough bodyguard, not a nervous little puppy.

I do know one thing, though. If Kinsey is there with me, it can't be too scary. We are a team. Together, we can do anything.

Even face this scary thing called “school”.

W
hen it is
time for supper, Kinsey always sets out some special food for me. It comes from a can. I look forward to it every day.

Chaucer gets food from a can, too. Our bowls are in the kitchen, right beside each other. Kinsey and her parents take their places at the table in the attached dining room.

I eat much faster than Chaucer. Being a big dog, my mouth is bigger. I can eat every bite of my meal and lick my bowl clean before he is even halfway done with his.

Most nights, after I am finished with mine, I like to tease him a little. I move over right next to him and stare at him so that he thinks I'm going to eat his food. He growls at me in irritation and lifts one paw to show me his sharp claws. As if that will scare me.

But tonight, I am too lost in my thoughts to mess with him. It is the last night of summer vacation. School will begin tomorrow.

Apparently, I am eating slower than usual. Chaucer finishes his own food first, then turns and stares at me as I slowly chew

m
y bite
.

“What's wrong, Dog?” he asks. He always calls me “Dog,” like he can't remember my real name or something.

“Nothing,” I reply.

“Are you sick? You're not inhaling your food in your usual disgusting manner.”

“No,” I say with a glare. “I'm just thinking.”

“You're
thinking
? You mean that tiny brain of yours can do that?” For whatever reason, Chaucer is under the impression that he is much smarter than I am.

I ignore his insult and come out with the truth, even though I'm embarrassed to admit it. “I'm just a little nervous, that's all. School begins tomorrow.”

“So?” Chaucer yawns in boredom. “Why would that make
you
nervous?”

“Because I've never been to school before. Plus, Kinsey is pretty anxious about it herself.”

Chaucer turns to face me. “Wait a minute. Why do you think
you
have to go to school? School is for humans. Animals don't have to go; we get to stay home and relax all day while the kid is away. It gives us a little peace and quiet.”

“Not me,” I tell him, shaking my head. “I get to go with Kinsey. I will spend every day at school with her.”

Chaucer stares at me and then begins to cackle a little. “You must be mistaken, Dog. You can't go to school.”

“No, I'm not,” I argue. “I promise. I've been trained on how to behave there. She has seizures there sometimes, too, remember? My job doesn't end just because she leaves the house.”

“So you really have to go to school?” Chaucer asks with wide eyes.

“Yes, I really have to go to school.”

Chaucer rolls over on his back and howls with laughter.

I scowl at him. “You still don't believe me?”

“No, I believe you,” he says between snorts. “But the very idea of it...it's just so ridiculous! Dogs don't belong in school.”

“Why not?”

“Because school is for
humans
. You will stick out like a Saint Bernard in a pen of toy poodles.”

“I don't care about that. I only care about watching over Kinsey.”

“Oh, wake up, Dog!” he cries, a grin still plastered to his face. “You are going to be miserable there.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Well, first of all, you'll have to deal with a
teacher.
You know about teachers, don't you?”

“Um, well...I had trainers at the facility. They were my teachers and I loved them. They always—”

“No, Dog,” he interrupts. “The classroom teacher is not the same. The classroom teacher will be ugly and mean. All teachers are. They spend all their time thinking of ways to torture kids. And she won't want
you
in there. You will be a distraction for the kids while they're trying to learn so she will be
extra
mean to you. She'll hate you even more than she hates the kids. You're big and hairy and smelly. She'll spend even
more
time thinking of ways to torture you.”

My eyes bulge out of my head. Kinsey has never mentioned how evil the teacher will be.

Chaucer continues right along with his warnings. “And you and I both know that some mean kids get a kick out of being cruel to animals. Especially big, dumb dogs like you.”

“Hey, you can stop calling me names,” I protest weakly.

He ignores me. “The other kids will play tricks on you and tell you how bad you smell. They'll complain if they have to get too close to you.”

I have no idea what to say to any of this. While I've never met a mean kid in person, I have heard about them. And I've never considered the fact that some of the kids in our class may, in fact, be those
mean
kids. Hmm. Is he right? Will the teacher not like me? Will she torture me? Will the other kids treat me bad?

I can't finish the last few bites of my food, no matter how delicious it is. I leave it in the bowl and walk into the dining room, taking my spot under Kinsey's chair. Chaucer watches me go with a satisfied smirk on his face, then finishes off my canned food for me.

Normally, I would never let him touch my food, but tonight I have too many other things on my mind to care.

You have to be brave and strong
, I remind myself.
You're Drake the Dandy.

But right now, I don't feel brave or strong, and I don't feel like a dandy protector.

Because now I'm not sure who is more terrified to face the next day—Kinsey or
me
.