One Last Breath by Tailer Willis

The tremble in her voice made me more anxious than ever. Above me, lit fluorescent lights

rumble throughout my ears. Two rooms down from where I stand on this frigidly, sterile tile…

tick… tick… tick… a clock is counting down every second. The receptionist’s phone rings while

the air is polluted with a sharp scent of disinfectant. A cat in the back violently hisses, whereas

voices shaped like mine echo loudly down the hallway–uncertain, unlike me. Darkness shallows

my vision, yet I can still capture a faint crinkling of what must be a half-filled bag of Milk

Bones—the small ones, of course.

At a fast uncontrollable pace, I sniffle and tremble with ease; longing for a day I’ll be

able to wear my favorite pink zebra collar, just once more. ‘What happened to all of the bubbly,

roomful laughter that filled the backyard when you’d throw the ball for me?’ I ask myself this as

she pets my silky pointed ears, softly whispering, ‘It’ll all be okay’. I don’t understand.. What

will be all okay?

The dimly lit room grew upon me, as I anxiously spun and paced my way around the

room. Rattling at a near distance is a jar of treats. As I licked one off of her hands, I was relieved

to find out they were softly baked treats; my preference personally. Treat after treat, it’s like it’s

my birthday celebration every year. Three gentle hands comfort me, as my favorite lamb chop

toy lays aside my achingly, tired body. My thick plushy coat absorbs every tear fallen from my

family’s delicate cheeks, as an unfamiliar cold hand suddenly reaches for my paw; not like any

hand I can treasure. The faint repeating words of, ‘I love you, forever and always’, slowly drift

away in the shadows above me, as I take my final breath.