"Bark~ Bark~ Bark~"
It's cold. He was hungry. How long had he been hiding here with his mother?
Bao Bei was curled up in a narrow, dark, dusty space between rough wooden boards.
"I'm sorry, there's nothing left," his mother said softly as she gently licked his face.
She had tried to nurse him, but only a small amount of thin milk came out. His mother lay beside him, weak and exhausted. She was skinny, worn out and barely able to move.
She hadn't had a proper meal in a long time. Her once-beautiful white fur was now dirty and matted. Her body was covered in cuts and swelling, with blood seeping from some of the wounds. Bao Bei looked at her with sad eyes and gave a soft mew.
He hated humans. But he also afraid of them. When they saw him or his mother, they would threw stones or chased after them, trying to catch them.
His mother had once lived in an old man's house. She had been his pet. But about a month after Bao Bei and his siblings were born, the kind old man passed away. Then some distant relatives, who never visited before, came and took over the house.
Bao Bei's brothers and sisters were caught by one of those men and taken away to somewhere unknown. His mother barely escaped with Bao Bei, the only one she could save. She fled the home she once knew so well.
She carried Bao Bei in her mouth and ran as fast as she could, away from the man who shouted and chased after them. She kept running, again and again, only thinking of getting away.
They hid behind things, they hid in ditches, and finally lost the man.
But even then, they couldn't find a safe place to live.
They were chased by the boss dog who ruled the area. They were barked at by dogs, spotted by humans, and even chased by children.
Each time, Bao Bei's mother picked him up in her mouth and ran for her life.
Finally, she found a gap in an old, broken-down storage shed. She slipped through that crack and got inside. By then, Bao Bei's mother was completely worn out. Carrying a little pup while running didn't let her go far. She couldn't move freely either.
Even so, she never let go of Bao Bei—not once.
"Bark~ Bark~"
I'm sorry, Mama. If I were bigger and stronger, I could protect you. But I'm too small. I'm just a burden to you.
Bao Bei stretched his neck as far as he could and gently licked the blood-stained face of his mother with his tiny tongue.
"It's okay. You're such a sweet boy, Bao Bei. Thank you," his mother whispered. "Now go to sleep. Tomorrow, I'll try to find us some food. If I could catch a steal some meat, that would be good. But... I'm not very good at stealing. I'm sorry, baby. You must be so hungry."