It was the next morning, and it was Saturday, and the kids were so happy it was the weekend.
Inside Chris' room, Mike watched while his son rummaged through his closet. He removed a rubber baseball and his baseball glove.
"Let's play catch, Buster. I hope you like to play catch. I do. My daddy wouldn't play catch with me. He was always tired from working. Then he died while he slept on the couch last year," Chris said while he wore the glove and placed the rubber baseball inside it.
"Oh Chris, my son, I'm not dead. I'm here," Mike quietly said to himself.
Chris walked out of his room, and Mike followed.
Chris walked down the hallway and while they passed by Jenny's bedroom, Mike saw Rascal while he sat on the floor by a small table. Jenny placed a wig on Rascal's head, where they played tea and crumpets.
"I'm so glad you could come over Miss Rascal. How are your children?" Jenny asked with a polite tone.
Rascal glanced out to the hallway and gave Mike a look that he wanted help.
Mike quietly chuckled to himself while he followed Chris down the hallway and into the kitchen.
Then out to the porch through the door.
A little while later, Chris walked Mike to the middle of their backyard.
"Okay, Buster. I throw the ball then you chase it, get the ball with your mouth and bring it back to me," Chris instructed.
I can handle that. Mike thought inside his head.
Chris threw the ball in the yard.
Mike ran after it and caught the ball in the air with his mouth.
He ran the ball back to Chris.
"Good boy," Chris said while he removed the ball from Mike's mouth.
Chris threw the ball in his yard.
Mike ran after the ball and caught it with his mouth after the ball bounced in the air after hitting the ground.
He ran the ball back to Chris and wagged his tail.
"This is kinda fun!" Mike quietly said to himself.
"Hey Chris," the voice of Danny Troy was heard from the house.
Chris and Mike turned and saw Danny, who was a forty-year-old hunk with short brown hair and a tanned, muscular body.
Danny walked over to Chris.
"Who is this little fellow?" Danny said the second he saw Mike.
Mike looked up at Danny, and he instantly got suspicious of the man.
"That's Buster. Uncle Kenny gave him to us," Chris said.
"Hello Buster," Danny replied, then tried to pet.
Mike shied away from Danny's hand.
"I guess he's shy," Danny said then he looked at Chris with his baseball glove. "Why don't I get my glove and we have a catch? It's in the trunk of my car," he asked Chris.
"Sure!" Chris said, excitedly.
Danny walked away and headed to the front of the house.
Chris looked down at Mike. "He's Mister Troy, mommy's friend," Chris said with a smile. "I saw him kissing mommy, but that's okay as he's fun and plays with us," Chris added like he was telling a secret.
Mike looked mad over the fact that another man was kissing his wife then he felt like he was being replaced.
Chris threw the ball in the yard. "Go get it, Buster," he said.
Mike just sat in the grass and looked at the ball while it bounced a few times and stopped in the grass.
"I'll get it, Chris," Danny said while he ran over with his baseball glove.
Danny grabbed the ball and threw back to Chris, who caught it.
Mike watched for five minutes while Chris and Danny had a catch with the ball.
He moped away to the back porch with his head hanging down.
He sat by the porch door and watched while his son had fun with another man.
"Hi, Danny!" Debbie called out from the back porch.
"Hey, sweetie!" Danny replied with a wink.
Mike watched while Debbie opened the porch door and looked down at him. "Do you want to come in Buster?" she asked.
Mike got up and walked into the back porch with Debbie.
They went inside the kitchen.
Debbie stayed in the kitchen, and she unloaded the dishwasher.
Mike walked down the hallway and looked into Jenny's bedroom. He saw that Rascal still wore that wig on his head while Jenny placed a teacup at his mouth to make it look like he was drinking.
Rascal saw Mike standing in the hallway. "Please help me!" he said with the saddest puppy dog eyes.
Jenny heard Rascal bark. "It's not polite to bark at the table Miss Rascal," Jenny scolded him by waving a finger at him.
Mike chuckled while he walked down the hallway.
He walked to his old bedroom and looked inside.
Mike walked inside his room and jumped on the bed.
He sat and stared at the dresser and saw an old picture of Debbie and him as a human. It was taken during their honeymoon to Orlando where they visited Sea World and Disney.
Debbie entered the room and saw Mike staring at the dresser. "What's so interesting, Buster?" she asked while she sat on the bed next to Mike.
Debbie saw the honeymoon picture of her and Mike. She rubbed Mike's head. "That's my ex-husband Mike. He was killed last year by a bolt of lightning that came through the living room window. What a freak accident that was," she told him while she looked sad and wiped away a tear. "I miss him, even though he was too busy with his job to spend time with us. But life goes on, and now I found Danny," Debbie added.
Mike looked ever so sad while he stared at Debbie.
"Danny's a good man and the kids love him, and we're planning on getting married," she said with a warm smile.
Mike's ears perked up. Married? He said in his mind.
Mike lay on his stomach with the saddest puppy dog eyes.
"Yeah, life must continue," she said while she scratched Mike's back and stared at her honeymoon picture.
Mike closed his eyes while she scratched, as it felt so good and relaxed him.
A few seconds later, Mike got up and licked Debbie's face as his way to tell her how much he loved and missed her.
Debbie chuckled. "You're so sweet Buster,"
She got up off the bed. "I better go do a load of laundry," she said then walked out of the room.
Mike stared at his honeymoon picture and looked determined to become a human again.
A little while later and it was lunchtime and Debbie worked in the kitchen.
Mike walked into the kitchen and sat down at the other end of the room. He watched while Debbie made some peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the kids.
Danny walked into the kitchen and walked up behind Debbie. He placed his arms around her waist and kissed the back of her neck.
The hairs on the back of Mike's neck stood up, and this was the first time, as a dog that Mike wanted to bite the leg of a human. He quietly snarled his teeth at Danny. Then he moped out of the kitchen and walked down the hallway.
He stopped and looked inside his old playroom. He looked sad when he saw that it turned into a computer and game room for the kids.
"My whole life is slowly being erased," Mike said while his eyes welled up.
He walked back to the kitchen and saw Debbie and Danny kissing, and he couldn't stand it any longer.
"Quit kissing my wife!" Mike yelled out.
Debbie and Danny separated and looked at Mike.
"You okay, Buster?" Debbie asked, concerned.
"Dogs shouldn't bark in the house little buddy," Danny scolded.
Mike walked away with his head hanging down.
"I wonder what's wrong with him?" Debbie asked.
"He probably smells your great cooking and realizes he can't have any," Danny replied.
"It's only peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the kids," she said with a smile. "But thank you for the compliment," she added then kissed him on his cheek.
Danny returned a kiss on Debbie's cheek.
Mike entered the living room and saw Danny's sneakers by his lazy boy chair.
He got an evil smirk when he walked over to the shoes. He looked around to make sure anybody could see him while he stood over Danny's shoes. The coast was clear, so he squatted over the left sneaker with an evil smile.
After he was done, he quietly walked out of the living room and went down the hallway.
He walked into his old bedroom and jumped up on the bed. He walked over to the spot where he slept like a human and curled up. He closed his eyes and was soon asleep.
An hour later, Mike woke up in his bed and looked around in a bit of a daze.
"I'll run to the store for you. I have two items I want to get at eighty-four Lumber," Danny called out from the living room.
Then Mike remembered what he previously did, and he jumped off the bed.
He rushed down the hallway and saw Rascal asleep on Jenny's bed while he passed by her bedroom.
Mike poked his head around the archway into the living room. He saw Danny while he sat in the lazy boy chair. He slid a white sock into his right sneaker then tied it. Then Danny slid his other white sock into his left sneaker, and his face cringed with discomfort, as something felt wet inside. Danny looked a little mad, as he knew one of the dogs peed in his shoe. But he knew he better remain cool since this isn't his house.
Mike lightly chuckled while he walked back down the hallway and headed back to his bedroom for another nap.
A little while later, Mike watched while Danny came back from the stores.
He went to the back porch and installed a new screen door that had a doggie door at the bottom.
After that, Danny installed a doggie door in the kitchen door.
Then Danny placed two food dishes and water dishes in the back porch by the kitchen door for Mike and Rascal.
Ten minutes later, Mike sat on top of the couch. He peeked outside and watched while Debbie and Danny wore jogging outfits. They walked down the driveway and stretched in the front yard.
He watched while they both jogged off down the street.
He continued to watch and got upset. Then his eyes widened with an idea when he saw a Beagle at his backyard fence across the street.
He jumped down off the couch.
He ran out of the living room.
He ran through the kitchen and ran through the opened door.
He ran through the porch and used the doggie door for the first time.
Mike ran through the side yard and down his front yard.
He ran across the street and was lucky a car didn't flatten him because he forgot to look for traffic.
He ran through the front yard of the house across the street.
He ran to the fence where the Beagle watched him.
"Hey, my name is Mike, and I live across the street," Mike said.
"Hi Mike, my name is Snicker," the Beagle replied.
"Snicker, do you remember that lady with the big dog that lived next door to me?" Mike asked.
Snicker looked at Louise's old house. "Oh, sure. Boodro was his name, and I'm glad they moved away because he was mean," Snicker responded.
Mike looked disappointed. "Do you know where?"
"Nope and I don't care just as long as he doesn't come back here," Snicker replied.
"Thanks," Mike turned around and moped back to his house.
Then Mike remembered something when his paws hit the street. He ran down the street to the house on the other side of Louise's old house.
He ran to that house, and through the front yard then he ran to the backyard fence. He looked through the fence and saw a black Labrador that relaxed under a shade tree. "Hey, can you help me?" Mike called out.
The Labrador got up and walked over to the fence.
"I'm Mike and do you know where Boodro moved?" he asked with hopeful eyes.
"I'm Buddy and no I don't, and I never want to see that Cajun again! He was the meanest dog I've ever known," Buddy said.
"Thanks," Mike said, then walked away disappointed.
Mike moped back down the street to his yard.
Later that afternoon, Mike sat on the top of the couch.
Rascal also napped on the top of the couch at the other end.
Mike peeked out the window and watched while Danny loaded Chris, in his Little League uniform, and Jenny into Debbie's mini-van.
Then Danny held the passenger door opened for Debbie while she got inside. That's something Mike never did, and Debbie loved being treated like a lady.
Danny got behind the wheel, and they soon drove off down the street.
Mike jumped down to the cushions and lay on the pillow by the arm of the couch. He looked so sad.
Later that evening, Debbie, Danny, Chris, Jenny, and Kenny all ate spaghetti with meatballs.
Mike and Rascal watched from the back porch while he heard his family laughing and talking while they ate dinner. Mike felt left out, and his eyes watered.
Then later that night, Mike and Rascal lay on the floor while Debbie, Chris, and Jenny were a family on the couch and they watched the Toy Story DVD.
Danny was out on the back porch. He had an urgent business call on his cell phone.
A few minutes later, Danny came back into the living room from the porch. He looked happy while she sat down next to Debbie on the couch.
"Is everything okay?" Debbie asked him.
"Yeah, we'll talk about it later," Danny said then returned to watching the movie.
Mike looked ever so sad when he saw Danny place his arm around Debbie's shoulder, and she snuggled up next to him.
Mike looked at Danny's sneakers, and he got a smirk remembering the second present he left in the other sneaker.
Later that night, Danny was at the door kissing Debbie goodnight.
Mike watched from the hallway archway.
"I'm sorry one of the dogs used your shoes, as a bathroom again."
"It happens. Anyway, I can't wait until we get married!" he said, then paused. "My call earlier was from my boss. They're promoting me, and I'm being transferred to Seattle with a thirty percent raise," Danny told Debbie.
Debbie did not look too enthused with moving to Seattle.
"You're going to love living in Seattle," he said with a loving smile to make her feel better.
Debbie was not too sure but knew having all that extra money would be nice.
Mike's ears perk up. "I can't live there. It's always raining in Seattle," Mike quietly said.
"So, why don't I spend the night?" Danny offered with a kiss on her neck.
"Now, now, our honeymoon will be in three days so that you can wait," she replied and gave him a quick kiss on his lips. "The kids are going to love Disney World," she added.
"And it's nice of Kenny to watch the dogs. Speaking of which, we only have room for one dog at the condo my company's providing in Seattle. We'll keep Rascal, as I don't think Buster likes me," Danny said.
Debbie thought about his comment for a second. "I'll talk with Kenny. He might take him," she said.
Then Danny's eyes lit up. "Oh, I forgot to give Jenny a goodnight kiss," he said.
"You're so sweet. Mike would never do that to her," she said.
"I don't know why, she's such a doll," he replied, then rushed away.
Mike followed him while he walked into Jenny's bedroom and gave her a goodnight kiss.
"I love you," Jenny replied.
"I love you too," Danny replied, then walked out of her room.
Mike followed Danny while he walked into Chris' bedroom.
"Goodnight buddy," he said to Chris.
"Goodnight," Chris replied while he played with his Wii game.
Mike followed Danny back down the hallway and watched while he and Debbie kissed one last time for the night.
Debbie let him out of the house then she walked through the living room and didn't pay any attention to Mike because she had Danny on her mind.
Mike watched while Debbie walked down the hallway to their bedroom.
"I can't let him steal my family away from me!" Mike quietly said and looked determined.
It was 2:00 a.m., and Mike paced around the living room in the dark while he pondered his dilemma.
He rushed out of the living room and went down the hallway.
He rushed into Jenny's bedroom and saw Rascal asleep at the foot of her bed.
"Rascal. Wake up," Mike quietly said an inch from Rascal's ear.
Rascal slowly opened his eyes and saw Mike staring at him. "What?"
"We need to talk in the living room now!" Mike said, then rushed out of Jenny's room.
Rascal got off the floor and slowly walked out of the bedroom.
Mike paced around the living room while Rascal entered. Rascal sat down on the floor and yawned.
Mike paced around the room.
"What's so important to interrupt a good dream of me in a field of rawhide chew bones?" Rascal said then yawned again.
"I can't stand watching Danny take my place as the man of the house. I need to find a way to become human again," Mike said.
"I don't have a clue on how to do that," Rascal replied, then yawned.
"I do. First, we find out where that Voodoo lady moved. She must have a spell to reverse everything. I hope she didn't move to another state," Mike said.
"I don't want her turning me into a frog if she catches us. I remember her, and she was spooky!" Rascal said and looked worried.
"Rascal, I know it's strange for me to say this, but I can't do it without you. I only have three days. So please help me!" Mike pleaded.
Rascal thought for a second. "Okay, I can't leave a friend that needs help," he said.
"Thanks, buddy. We'll start first thing in the morning," Mike said and looked determined. "Now go get some sleep," he added then he looked saw that Rascal was already on the floor sound asleep.