Dog Eat Dog World

6

Mathias woke up all alone. It was warm. The sun stood right over his head. He wished he could look at it, but he was forced to find comfort in its presence rather than the sight. The sound of a heavy blunt object hitting against the grassy hill is heard as Mathias tumbles down the hill. He's still getting used to his leg. His steps felt like they had a lot more weight added to them. He tumbled down the hill and almost hit his face flat on the pavement because of his wavering balance. Thankfully, his hands grasped onto a metal fence to catch his fall. He wondered where Peanut was. Wait, why did he care? He asked himself. What a stupid thought. Mathias was hungry, and his buddy was nowhere to be found. He was so hungry. He could eat a human if it meant he'd stop feeling so hungry. Everything around him looked appetizing. Mathias clutched his stomach.

He proceeded to walk down the street before feeling the pressure of tough, calloused hands shoving him to the ground from behind. This time, Mathias did fall flat onto the floor. His face was practically burst open, blood was running down a huge gash that scaled his entire forehead. This was it, Mathias thought. He turned to see who was pushing him around like that. It was the gang from before. Oh boy, now he was really in for it. His stomach growled as the gang members laughed in his face. He's really hungry.

Suddenly, he didn't feel so weak. He just felt hungry and the desire to fulfill his hunger. Mathias was so lightheaded and starved that he couldn't recall what happened after that. He snapped out of this unconscious state and found himself grappling onto one of the gang members, He was lanky and short; an easy target. There were bite marks and a chunk of his skin was ripped off his pale, nimble body. Mathias didn't feel hungry anymore. He felt surprisingly energized. The dots connected and Mathias, in terror, stood up and ran away from the scene as fast as he could. What he was feeling was unexplainable to even him. Did he feel bad for the boy he ate? Was he running away in guilt or in fear he'd be caught? How would Peanut react? He cried the entire way there. He ran until he couldn't run any longer. His knees scraped against the concrete, as he lost his balance and any energy to keep going. Tears streamed down his face. He was shaking. He hated himself. He hated that he did that. He hated Peanut for not being there. He hated the gang members. He hated the floor. He hated his blood. He hated the sky; the moonlight that shone down his little scared body.

He heard a mumble of a voice from behind him. He was shaking in fear. Not that he wasn't before, just a little more now. He peeked over his shoulder to look at the voice, but his teary eyes blurred his view. He recognized that silhouette. Mathias grimace.

"Go away, Peanut! I told ya ye should've left me alone. I'm no good."

"No! I'm not gonna leave you here like this. I already told you."

Mathias heard and felt his stomping getting closer as Obadiah inched toward him. Obadiah knew if he got too close he risked getting hurt, but he was determined to help. He placed a hand onto his shoulder and forced him to turn around.

Mathias watched as the light in Obadiah's gorgeous orange eyes dimmed. He felt disgusting. He wished Peanut would just screw off somewhere. Tears began to well up in his eyes heavier than before. He hated that Peanut was staring at him.

"Get away from me! I hate ya, Peanut!" Mathias hissed.

Peanut removed his hands from him, "What happened? Ya got this huge scar on yer head," His gaze moved down to his mouth. It was bloody all around the rim.

"Did ya hurt someone?" Peanut reached for Mathias. His hands ran through his matted brown hair. Mathias had never noticed how soft and gentle his hands were despite how many scars and bite marks were on them. Mathias cried into him. His hands were gripping Peanut's dirty tank-top and rubbing his tears onto them.

"Canine..." Peanut sighed, "Are you alright? Did you get hurt?"

Canine's bottom lip quivered, "I- I didn't mean to... I was just so hungry," He whimpered.

"Hungry?"

"I- I ate someone, Peanut!" Canine blurted out. He felt so defeated and tired. He wished he'd wake up and this would all be a dream.

Peanut looked startled, but his eyes softened to try not to make him worried, "Who?"

"That- Those gang guys... I ate him." He tilted his face up to look at Peanut, "He was short 'n' skinny... I didn't know... I'm a terrible monster, Peanut. Ye should've left me there to die instead of savin' me. Ya probably think I'm crazy."

Peanut hushed Canine and wrapped his arms around him. "...You're not a monster, buddy. I don't think yer crazy at all. Don't say that about yerself. Hell, those gang members probably deserved it. They keep pickin' on us."

Canine began to calm down. He sniffled and rubbed the rest of his tears onto his bandana.

"It'll be okay. Those crooks are cowards." Peanut said with a grin.

Canine felt his face form a smirk. It felt natural to do in this situation, "Yeah," He gave a soft chuckle.