**Kito’s Happy Day: Only Tears and Loneliness**
Kito, a small brown dog with soft, floppy ears and a wagging tail, sat by the window of the rescue shelter, his nose pressed against the cold glass. The world outside was alive with movement—people bustling about, children laughing, birds chirping in the trees. But inside the shelter, the only sound was the ticking of a clock on the wall, counting down the minutes of another long, lonely day.
Today was no ordinary day for Kito. Today was his seventh birthday.
For as long as Kito could remember, he had lived at the rescue shelter. He had been brought in as a puppy, a little bundle of energy and joy, full of hope that one day, he would find a family who would take him home. But as the years passed, and as the shelter filled with younger, cuter dogs, Kito was often overlooked. People would walk past his kennel, their eyes never quite meeting his, as they chose puppies with bright eyes and wagging tails.
Kito had watched them all come and go. The lucky ones who found homes and the older ones who, like him, stayed behind, waiting for a day that never seemed to come.
But today was supposed to be different. Kito had woken up that morning with a spark of hope in his heart. Today was his birthday, and he was sure that someone, somewhere, would remember. Maybe one of the volunteers would come by with a special treat, or perhaps the shelter manager would bring him a new toy. He even dared to dream that someone might walk through the door and say, “This is the dog I’ve been looking for!”
But as the hours passed, Kito’s hope began to fade. The volunteers were busy tending to the other dogs, the shelter manager was preoccupied with paperwork, and the door to the outside world remained firmly shut. No one seemed to notice Kito sitting quietly by the window, his big brown eyes filled with longing.
The sun began to set, casting long shadows across the shelter floor. Kito’s tail, which had been wagging ever so slightly with hope, now lay still. He curled up in his bed, a small, lonely figure in the corner of the kennel, and closed his eyes.
Tears welled up in Kito’s eyes, but he blinked them away. He didn’t want to cry on his birthday, the day that was supposed to be filled with joy. But the loneliness in his heart was too much to bear. A single tear slipped down his cheek, followed by another, until Kito was quietly weeping in the dark.
As the shelter grew quiet, with only the soft sounds of sleeping dogs filling the air, Kito’s thoughts drifted to a place far away. He imagined a world where he wasn’t alone, where someone loved him, and where every birthday was celebrated with a cake and candles, just like in the stories he had overheard from the children who sometimes visited the shelter.
In his mind, Kito saw himself running through a field, the wind in his fur, with a family who loved him dearly. They would call his name, “Kito! Kito!” and he would run to them, his heart bursting with happiness. They would scoop him up in their arms, showering him with kisses and belly rubs, and they would never let him feel lonely again.
But when Kito opened his eyes, the dream faded away, leaving only the darkness of the shelter around him. He was still alone, still forgotten, and his birthday had come and gone without so much as a single word of love.
Kito sighed, his heart heavy with sadness. He didn’t understand why no one remembered, why no one seemed to care that today was his special day. He didn’t understand why he had to spend yet another birthday alone, with only his tears and the cold, empty kennel for company.
As the night deepened, Kito curled up tighter in his bed, trying to find comfort in his own warmth. He knew that tomorrow would be just another day, and the hope that had filled his heart that morning was now just a distant memory.
But even in his sadness, Kito held onto a small glimmer of hope. Maybe one day, someone would come for him. Maybe one day, he wouldn’t have to spend his birthday alone.
And as Kito drifted off to sleep, his last thought was a wish—a wish that next year, on his eighth birthday, he wouldn’t be alone. He wished that he would have someone to remember, someone to love him, someone to say, “Happy Birthday, Kito. We’re so glad you’re here.”
Until then, Kito would keep waiting. Because even though today had been filled with tears and loneliness, he still believed that somewhere out there, someone was looking for him too.
