Awareness Story
Little short story I came up with spontaneously. It's supposed to raise awareness of autistic people, people who have difficulties understanding the language or comprehending social situations, etc. I hope to raise a spark of empathy in the readers and even the theme of animal cruelty can be interpreted into this story.
Before I wrote this my starter thought was: "Animals don't know what their name is, they simply know the tune it's said in and can thus know if they're being called."
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It's a cold winter night and you're cuddled up on your cozy blanket in your small cage. You live in an animal shelter and you've gotten used to it over your first few months in this world.
The doors open and the cold winter air dlies inside, hitting you directly in the face and causing you to open your eyes. A lady has walked inside the building. Long dress, mittens and a big winter scarf around her neck. She looks around, observes and talks to one of the workers. You lock eyes with her, you don't know why but her recognition makes your tail wag. The worker opens your cage and the lady takes you into her arms. Her jacket is soft and warm and she can barely hold you up with her big mittens. After a long walk in her purse, she finally sets you down on a warm rug. You look around and all you can see are lights. You may not be used to them but hey're not bright. The lights are warm and welcoming. You look around and for the first time, you can feel the warmth of home.
Morning comes and you're woken up by voices. The voice of the lady, which you already grew familiar with, the voice of an older man and the voice of a child. You stand on the warm rug and hear the lady talk, her attention fully on the child as she gestures to you. You lock eyes with the child and tilt your head slightly. His expression is hard to read and even if not, you're still too young to know all the expressions. The child hesitated and a smile forms on his lips. He utters a word, loud and clear, which causes the man to laugh. You look to the lady and she shakes her head. The child repeats the word, you've already memorized the tune and syllables of it so you can recognize the word. You don't know what it means but you slowly walk over to the child. He laughs again and repeats the word to you. Your little tale starts wagging and you're happy to finally have a playmate.
The child always says that one specific word when he's near you. You've noticed that it could be your name so you have learned to respond to the word. Every time you would happily run over to the child, tail wagging and tongue hanging out, you would notice the man and the child laughing.
A year has passed and you're in your cozy home. Many new people are there to visit, some of them you even recognize. The elderly couple sitting near the chimney have often come over to visit before. There is another child, a little younger than your friend and playmate and two other men who are conversing with your lady. The atmosphere is warm, gentle and relaxing. You close your eyes on the comfortable white couch and try to sleep. Suddenly you hear the familiar voice, the child, calling out that familiar word. You immediately jump off the couch and happily run over to jump at his feet. There is laughter from all sides, the three men, the children and even the elderly couple. Only the lady is quiet. She looks away and shakes her head once more. You look around in confusion and for the first time you notice a shift in atmosphere.
The laughter is mocking. It's demeaning and obnoxious. You lower your ears and look to the lady. She's facing away from the others and looking out of the window. The laughter keeps going and the child keeps saying the word, your name, over and over. The laughter grows louder and for the first time, you don't feel safe in your home.