Skyline Gang

Chapter 24

Rainbow barked loudly and furiously at Dude's door. He knew that his human friend was in danger, but he can't get in to help. He didn't know how to open doors on his own. He started scratching the door, but nothing. He spun around, wondering why no one was waking up. He was making enough noise to do so. Maybe they were heavy sleepers? He turned to the other door closet to him. He started scratching that door, barking desperately. He needed to wake up this human. He didn't remember who slept in this room, but he didn't care. He kept scratching the door until he pawed at the door handle. He noticed that it went down before springing back up. Then he worked it out. He reached up and started pawing at the door handle again. Whatever Dawn was up to, she's more than likely started it. Dude could be in serious danger.

Rainbow kept trying until finally the handle was pushed down far enough. He buffeted into the door, causing it to open wide. He spotted the occupant in the bed, peacefully still. He barked loudly.

Mimi woke up with a shriek. She pushed her eye mask to her forehead and looked around. Her eyes fell on Rainbow, who was whimpering and barking at the same time. She was originally going to scold the dog for disturbing her fabulous dream, but her words were frozen in her throat. Rainbow started going back to Dude's door, barking loudly once again.

"Rainbow? What's wrong?" Mimi asked groggily, getting out of bed. She slipped on her slippers and wrapped herself in her dressing gown. She crept over to Rainbow as he continued to bark and scratch at Dude's bedroom door.

Mimi's eyes adjusted to the dim lighting in the hallway. The lights were always on, making it safe should anyone need to get out of their rooms during the night. Mimi instantly noticed that something was out of the ordinary. The blue door was closed. That didn't seem right. Dude always kept the door open for Rainbow in case the dog wanted to wonder around somewhere. It could've been an accident that it closed after the dog left for something. However, something didn't feel right. Rainbow wouldn't wake someone up like this unless something was wrong. Mimi started to turn the door handle, her palms sweating. Her heart was beating harshly in her chest. She started to push the door open. There was this horrible chill coming from the room before a scream erupted into the air. Mimi burst through the door, not seeing the black cloud as it faded away. She was more focused on Dude. He was sitting up, hunched over. He was breathing heavily, cold sweat glistening his skin. His eyes were wide, but he wasn't focusing on anything.

"Dude? Are you okay?" Mimi asked cautiously. Dude didn't respond. He continued to breathe erratically. It started to get to the point where he sounded like he was struggling for air. Mimi looked around, starting to panic. Rainbow stood next to her, whining a little. It instantly gave her an idea. "Rainbow, quick! Do what you did with Bud."

Rainbow glanced up at her, his eyes wide. He peered at Dude, who now started to rasp for air. Rainbow immediately understood. He carefully crept over to Dude, trying his best not to startle the human. He whined a little again, before carefully placing his head on Dude's lap. It took a couple of minutes. Dude continued to sit there, hyperventilating. Mimi wondered if she should get the others, when Dude started to move a little. His hand twitched, fingers slowly unclenching the duvet. It shook a bit. It slowly rose up until it reached the top of Rainbow's head. Dude started to slow his breathing down. He stroked the orange dog, his heartbeat slowing down. He blinked several times, glancing down at Rainbow. His body became more relaxed. The air felt less cold, making the room feel safe again. There was no other sign of danger or anything to frighten Dude into a worse state of panic. Mimi breathed a sigh of relief

"Thanks, boy..." Dude sighed, quiet and weak.

"Dude?" Mimi asked softly. At first Dude didn't react. Mimi stayed still as he started to move his eyes toward her direction. It was slow. However, once he saw her, he couldn't make eye contact. He just looked down at Rainbow.