He had a long day at school, and to make his day any worse it had started to rain. Not even a little- no it was pouring out of the sky.

With a sigh he tried to prepare himself for the journey home. It would have been so much better if he had brought an umbrella or even a jacket to keep himself from being soaked. However it was a warm summer's day so Alex wasn't prepared for the sudden rainfall, even though he had been warmed by his mother. But it was his own fault that he didn't listen to her.

In the end he just decided to run for it.

After jumping up and down a few times, he just went for it as he ran. Almost tripping over his own shoelaces when he left. His day wasn't going as he had hoped so it he didn't care anymore. At one point he busted himself on the fact that he was having fun while running in the rain, he was already soaked but the smile on his face couldn't be melted off.

That was until he run into a small little brown fur ball.

"Aw poor thing, what are you doing in the rain" he asked as he crouched in front of the little animal.

The drenched dog looked up to him, surprisingly happy with his tongue hanging out of it's mouth. It was wagging it's tail happy as a soft bark escaped from his mouth.

With a smile on his own face he gently patted the dog, not wanting to scare the creature away.

That's the moment he saw the collar hanging around his neck, "Pebbles" he said softly- to which the dog responded with a conforming bark.

"Hi little guy, so you're Pebbles" he laughed as the dog barked again after hearing his name. "I don't see your owner anywhere, but I can't leave you here either", he tapped his chin before taking off his vest and put it around the small dog before he resumed his journey home, although he did fear of how his mother would react to the dog.

-

He was tapping his foot on the ground as he waited for the owner of Pebbles to pick up his dog, or her dog. 

When he came home with Pebbles, his mom didn't notice it at first. She was too busy drying her son's hair with a towel until she heard a sudden bark coming from within his vest. At first she didn't look happy until she learned that he found the little creature but couldn't find his owner.

So Alex was surprised when his mother just smiled and told him she's proud of him, and then sending him off to the bathroom so he can take a shower. He just obeyed his mother, only to find out that his mom already called the owner for him while he was in the shower.

That's how he ended up in a local park waiting for the mysterious owner of Pebbles.

Of course he had wondered why his mother didn't tell him the name of the owner or even the gender. That's why Alex had put all his trust in the dog, knowing that the creature will figure out who it's owner is.

"Pebbles" he suddenly heard a soft voice call out to the relaxed dog next to him.

When he looked up he saw a girl run towards him- she seems to be his age only a little shorter.

She picked up the jumping dog as she hugged him as if she hasn't seen him in years, while it had only been a few hours, "Pebbles I've missed you so much. Don't ever run away like that again".

Alex looked at how happy the girl was to be reunited with her dog again, he couldn't help but smile. He had no regrets of bringing to dog home with him, he didn't know what could have happened if he left Pebbles out there in the rain- the poor thing being drenched and wet.

A part of him wanted to have a dog of his own now, but he knew that his mom wouldn't approve. 

"Oh I'm sorry,  I'm ___ the owner of Pebbles" the girl said as she held out her hand to Alex, a friendly smile decorating her features. 

He took her smaller hand in his as she smiled back at her, "I'm Alex".

"I hope this little guy didn't cause too much trouble" she said, "you see, my dad was walking him and he forgot to bring the leach and at one point Pebbles took off to chase after a squirrel".

Pebbles let out a soft bark, hearing his name in the conversation and letting them know he's still here.

Alex smiled as he got on his knees to pat the little guy.

"No he wasn't a burden at all" he told her, "he's one of the nicest dogs I've met. It's a shame we have to say goodbye now".

"Well maybe you don't have to, I mean you seem like a nice guy and Pebbles likes you" the girl stuttered softly, her eyes glued to the grass underneath them.

Alex chuckled, "what are you trying to say here?".

"That maybe we could meet again, you know the three of us. I mean your mom did tell me you're a nice guy, she couldn't stop talking about you".

Now it was his turn to feel his cheeks heat up as he looked at the dog.

It hit him, that was the reason why his mom called the owner of Pebbles. She wanted to know about the owner and when she figured out it was a girl around his age- she couldn't be stopped.

"Well if you don't mind, we could do that".

The girl nodded, "well".

"Well want to get some ice cream" he asked her, "I know a good place not far from here".

"Sure, and don't worry. I did bring a leash for Pebbles", out of the back pocket of her jeans she took out a dark blue leash. "This time this little guy isn't going anywhere".

The two of them chuckled before Alex led her towards his favorite ice cream place.