When it came time to say goodbye to his first dog, Fang. Kwang Soo kept his promise to him. He promised him long ago that he would be by his side on his final journey.

Fang had lived with us for the last 10 years. And 2 years ago, our little Hyo Joo had gotten her first dog, a black Labrador she named, Shadow. The bond her dog and mine had formed was a beautiful one, and the decision to let them stay together was a quick and easy one. But I did, and always will, consider Fang as my dog. My first dog. And I said goodbye to my dog today.

The time was too soon, and the reason unjust. But I would keep the promise I made to him long ago. That my voice would be the last thing he heard, and my loving smile would be the last sight he saw. Just as it was when our journey began, only the two of us, so it ended in the same way.

All I can say is, cancer . More so when the one who has it can't tell you where or how much it hurts. It appeared out of nowhere. A small bump at the bridge of his nose and it kept getting bigger; fast. At the vet's, we found that there would be no chance for a miracle remission. No amount of surgery, radiation, medicine or prayer would cure it. However, we made a decision to undergo surgery and remove the lump. It was not an attempt to cure him; merely to extend his life long enough to shower him with the affection and gratitude for all of the love he had shown us over the years. It was the best money I ever spent, and being able to share a little more quality time with him was priceless in the end.

Ji Hyo, my sweet Ji Hyo, spent the next couple of months spoiling Fang with toys and treats of every variety. Pepperoni pizza from Hell's pizza, steaks, vanilla ice cream from the ice cream shop in town – definitely one of his favourites. And whenever Hyo Joo came home from University on the weekends, the endless bag of dog treats she brought with her all helped to add at least 5 kilogrammes to his frame. The steroids and painkillers that he was on probably added some thickness and puffiness to him. But to me, he still looked like the little puppy I had brought home from the side of the road and adopted all those years ago.

Today, Ji Hyo called to let me know that Fang wasn't himself today. “I think it's time.” was all I remember from the conversation. The new lump under Fang's left eye had been steadily growing; the tumour returned quickly, and daily evaluation of his health was the prevailing topic of several calls each day. She told me that if I was busy with work that she would take him down to the vet, but that was not how I wanted things to end for us.

Once I disconnected from Ji Hyo, I called ahead to the vet's to make an appointment. I then sent a text message to Ji Hyo, to inform her that I would be home in 20 minutes so that she and Hyo Joo could have some time alone to say goodbye however they needed to. I then stopped by the clinic to take care of all the formalities and paperwork before I brought Fang down. That is when the real emotion of what I had to do started to exude itself. I was putting my dog to sleep.

The interaction at home was brief. My girls gave me a hug, and I gave the dogs one last moment together, neither of them realised it would be their last. When I finally called for Fang, Shadow followed after him, intent