CHAPTER 1 My nose worked through the weeds wildflowers and tall grasses along the fence Of all my favorite spots on the campus of North Branch University the wide lawn the cafeteria dumpsters the porch on Old Main the beanbags outside the library the welcome fountain the alley behind our house this path along the river is my favorite After all this is the place where I could play my favorite game Guess That Animal Smell It’s a simple game Try it sometime Rules go like this Sniff the dirt a bush a tree a stump or the 1
fence Then you match the smell with the ugly mugs of all the animals you know Then you guess Sniff sniff Match match Guess guess Badger No raccoon Wait Otter Could it be Yes otter Since it’s a game you play by yourself you decide who wins And guess what I always win I’m great at sniffing out the creatures that live along the river that runs through campus and the city that we’re in But I also love this spot because of the trees and tree stumps that line the river The students come here to wander through the trees and to sit on the stumps and chill out as Andrea 2
calls it She says they need to breathe some woodland air in the middle of the city as they experience nature and relax That may be but when I bump into the students which is every time I’m out here I know they come here to see me Because every time they see me the students smile and shout my name Noodle And though they talk to Andrea they kneel down and scrub their fingers into my hair and tell me all their troubles worries hopes and about how much they miss their dogs back home I listen to them They pet me It’s a win-win And today proved to be no different Noodle I jerked my head up from the base of the pine tree I was sniffing I was this-close to guessing squirrel Stubby the Squirrel to be exact But that would have to wait A student was calling me I looked toward the voice 3
Nate He was one of the best students here at North Branch University I strained at the end of my leash to get to him further up the path Easy Noodle Andrea said I slowed down at least until Nate said my name again This time Nathan said it nice and slowly like I liked it In fact Nathan kept the Noooooooodddddllllle going as he knelt down with lips stuck out in a kiss to greet me I loved that Hey Nate Andrea said A little chilly out here today huh Nah Nate said Feels good Soccer practice was rough Coach Colbert ran us hard Well you have a big match on Saturday Andrea said Folks coming Nah he said Dad’s not doing great Mom is worried about driving too far from his doctors 4
