My Friend Toby

Lily had bright red boots and a backpack shaped like a strawberry. Her dog, Toby, was soft and golden, with ears that flopped like warm pancakes and a tail that painted the air with happy swishes. When Lily went pat-pat down the sidewalk, Toby went pat-pat beside her, staying close like a friendly, furry shadow.

“Ready for the market?” Daddy asked, jingling his keys.

“Ready!” said Lily. Toby gave a little woof and sat proudly. He wore his blue bandana for special trips.

The farmers’ market was busy and bright. Tents fluttered, music twinkled, and the air smelled like warm bread and sweet peaches. Lily waved at the flower lady. Toby sniffed baked pies and nodded hello to a small dog with a polka-dot coat. People smiled at Toby; he walked with such gentle paws and polite eyes.

“Stay with me,” Lily whispered, patting Toby’s back. Toby leaned into her leg. He always did.

Daddy pointed to a table with crunchy carrots and round tomatoes. “We’ll get these,” he said. “Lily, you and Toby can look at the sunflowers right here.” He showed them a big patch of bright yellow flowers, like a row of sunny faces.

Lily took one step to the left. A bubble floated by, shimmering with all the colors of a soap rainbow. She took two steps, then three. The bubble bobbed and danced.

Pop!

Lily blinked. The bubble was gone. She turned around and looked up. The crowd felt tall, like a forest of legs. She couldn’t see Daddy’s blue cap. Her belly did a little flip.

“Toby?” Lily said, very small.

Toby was already there, warm and steady against her side. He sat and looked up at her with calm brown eyes, as if to say, I’m here.

“Let’s find Daddy,” Lily said. Her voice was a tiny bit wobbly.

Toby stood. He sniffed the air with his clever nose, then looked left, then right. He did not pull. He took one careful step and waited. Lily put her hand on his blue bandana and took a brave breath.

Together they moved through the market, slow and sure. Toby made little paths between people, like a boat in a busy pond. He stopped at a puddle so Lily could step around it. He paused at a stack of green apples, then tip-toed so the tower didn’t tumble. He glanced back again and again—Are you with me?—and Lily nodded—Yes, I am.

They passed a lady playing a fiddle. They passed a stand of honey jars shining like tiny suns. Toby’s nose twitched. He looked toward a place where the air smelled like Daddy’s soap and heard a familiar jingle-jingle.

He hurried a little and then stopped, wagging like a small broom. There were Daddy’s shoes—yellow with sunflower laces. Toby gave a happy chuff.

“Lily! Toby!” Daddy knelt and whooshed them into a hug. “There you are!”

Lily pressed her face into Daddy’s shirt. “Toby helped me,” she said. “He stayed.”

Daddy rubbed Toby’s ears. “Good friend,” he said. Toby closed his eyes and leaned into the scratch, pleased from nose to tail.

They finished shopping together. Lily picked out the longest carrot. Toby sniffed it and wagged. A little boy in a green hat walked by, sniffling. “My bunny,” the boy whispered. “I dropped him.”

Toby’s ears perked. He trotted to the grape table, then crouched low. Under the edge, a soft gray ear peeked out. Toby gently took the stuffed bunny and placed it at the boy’s feet.

“My bunny!” the boy laughed. “Thank you, dog!”

Toby wagged once as if to say, You’re welcome.

On a sunny bench, Daddy spread a small picnic. Lily bit into a peach. The juice ran down her chin. Toby rested his head on her knee and blinked slow, happy blinks.

“You’re my friend, Toby,” Lily said. “You stay, and I stay.”

Toby’s tail thumped, soft and sure. That was the best thing about Toby. He did not need many words. He stayed. He listened. He led when Lily felt small and followed when she felt brave.

On the way home, Lily shared little carrot coins with Toby—crunch, crunch. The sidewalk shone warm. Toby trotted close beside her, steady as sunshine. And Lily knew that wherever her day wandered—past bubbles, flowers, and busy, busy people—Toby would be right there, a gentle, golden shadow with a bright blue bandana and a heart that always said, I’m here.