In the days that followed, Jamie and Nibbles became utterly inseparable. Every morning, Jamie woke to find Nibbles already waiting at the foot of his bed, tail thumping against the sheets. They played, napped, and learned each other’s habits with a kind of quiet devotion only children and animals seem to understand.
One afternoon, Jamie sat cross-legged on the living room floor with Nibbles asleep in his lap. He looked up at his dad, who was sorting bills at the table, and asked, “Do you think I could take him to the zoo?”