Will Maya get a puppy for her birthday?

Maya's birthday is in two days. The only thing she wants is a puppy. Her parents had promised her one when they moved to the suburbs, but that was almost four months ago and there hasn't been any sign of a puppy yet.

Maya has started asking for puppies every day since then, but her mother keeps telling her that it'll be soon or that they're still looking for the perfect dog. She says that sometimes you need to wait longer than expected before you find something good. But Maya knows better. There are hundreds of dogs just waiting to be adopted at the shelter near their house.

"You know what would make me happy?" Maya asks her mom as they drive home from school on Thursday afternoon. "If you let me go to the shelter and adopt my dog."

Her mother ignores her with sympathy, and she goes into the house hurting and almost close to tears. She hears a weird sound from the living room and walks over to see what it is.

Her father is lying on the floor next to the couch. He's holding his head in his hands and moaning like he's trying to tell her something but doesn't quite manage to say it.

His lips move silently, making little squishy sounds. The expression on his face tells her that whatever it is, it isn't good.

"Daddy," she says softly.

He looks at her.

His eyes are red and watery. They remind her of the day he first told her that the police were going to arrest him.

Maya kneels beside him.

"What's wrong?"

"I'm sorry, baby. I'm so, so sorry," he whispers. "I didn't mean to do this."

Maya covers his hand with hers.

"What is going on, Daddy? Please don't leave me alone here."

He shakes his head.

"No, no, no. Don't do this."

"This is exactly why I said we should leave," Maya's mum walks in to hear her, scream, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"We have nowhere else to go, baby girl. We're stuck here. And I don't want to lose both you and your dad. Not ever. Especially not now."

"But I told you that I wanted a dog! You promised me!", Maya cries out fearing she might never get her puppy is her dad passes away.

"That was six months ago. That was before everything got crazy. Before the financial disaster. This is not the time for you to get a dog."

"I don't care about anything. Or the money. Or anything. I just want a puppy. I've been asking you and begging you for weeks already. I promise I'll take care of it. I already named it Mr. Pickles, after that old cartoon cat. Do you remember that? It was on television when we lived in the city. Remember, Mommy? When we used to watch TV together?"

Her mom sighs.

"Yes. I remember. But that was years ago. And those days are gone forever. I'm sorry, sweetie. Maybe someday..."

"Tomorrow! Tomorrow I can finally pick out my dog and bring it home with me!" Maya throws her arms around her mother's neck.

"But that's not possible now. You have to understand that we're poor. Really, poor. We barely have enough money to survive. Your father doesn't even make that much anymore. At this point he is sick too, he needs medical attention. And he can't get it because we don't have insurance. We can't afford it."

"But..."

"No. No buts. I wish I could do more for you, but there's nothing I can do. It's not meant to be. I'm sorry. I tried. I did. But it wasn't meant to be."

Maya tries to protest, but her mother shushes her.

"We'll be okay, Maya. Believe me, we will. One way or another we always manage to figure it out. Just wait and see."

Maya is about to ask her mother what she means by that when there's a knock on the door. Her heart skips a beat. Is it someone from the shelter? What if they don't have any puppies left?

When she opens the door, her mouth drops open and her eyes widen. A man is standing outside, dressed in a suit. He has a clipboard tucked under his arm and is carrying a suitcase. He looks kind of nervous and seems to be waiting for her to invite him in.

"Hi, I'm Steve. From the animal shelter."

"Um... hi."

Steve smiles nervously.

"Are you Maya?"

"Y-yes."

He holds up the suitcase.

"I brought some stuff for you and your father."

"Like what?"

"We have food, blankets, pillows, towels, laundry detergent, toothbrushes, toothpaste, shampoo, soap, deodorant, toilet paper, cleaning supplies, bottled water, canned tuna fish, granola bars, cereal, rice, beans, instant soup, crackers, bread, peanut butter, pasta, tomato sauce, cooking oil, salt and pepper, sugar, coffee, tea, milk, powdered drink mix, trash bags, bleach, dish soap, sponges, rags, hand sanitizer, paper plates, cups, napkins, plastic silverware.

Everything you might need to cook meals, clean your house, survive, until we find a place for you, get medical help for your dad/husband, and of course a puppy for Maya to celebrate with her ."

Maya's mum looks at Maya with wide eyes.

"You haven't seen the news, have you?"

"No."

"It's all over the internet. The entire world knows about you guys and your predicament. Everyone knows about the earthquake that destroyed everything you had. People are calling in to help. They're donating money, food, furniture, clothes, and even cars! It's insane. A few people offered to adopt Maya, but we turned them down flat. We know you would want to keep her close to you as much as you can.

So far, the donations have surpassed our expectations. We think that you will be able to survive for quite a while. And once you get better, we will work on getting you new housing. Until then, stay strong and focus on staying alive. I don't know if you believe in God or destiny or whatever, but I'm convinced that things happen for a reason. I think that somehow, this is all supposed to happen to you."

Maya nods. She doesn't say anything though. Instead, she stares at the suitcase that Steve is holding. It's hard to comprehend how much stuff he managed to cram into such a small bag.

"You don't have to accept these things," Steve says. "At least not right now. I just came here to drop off the items so that you would have them when you need them."

"Thank you, Steve."

"Here's my card. If you ever need anything, please call me. Okay?"

Maya takes the business card and looks at it.

"I will."

"Good luck. Call me if you need anything."
Maya watches Steve leave. Then she turns to her mother and father and smiles in happiness and anticipation.