Dan’s Hero: Part 2 of 2

Part 2

Dan turned around without thinking and ran for his life. He ran across the grass towards the river and the path that lined it. He was running without thought and almost as if he couldn’t see where he was going. His mum and dad were shouting for him to slow down and Emily was watching in awe. Nobody had expected what came next.

Dan ran straight into a cyclist’s path, causing an almighty crash between himself, the cyclist, a man who was walking along the path, looking out at the lake and a runner.  The cyclist lost control of his bike. The man walking somehow ended up falling on his bum. The girl who was running narrowly missed it all and then turned back to see if everyone was alright. Dan, though, got knocked by the bike and ended up falling right over the edge of the path and into the lake. Everybody nearby heard the splash and saw Dan struggling in the water. Although he could swim, his wet clothes became very heavy and the panic meant that he forgot everything he was taught in his swimming sessions at the local club. As his parents and Emily ran over to the lake, Aero had already made it to the pathway and was pacing around impatiently. He stopped for a moment and watched Dan struggle in the water. When Dan saw Aero standing there, his struggle got worse. Aero suddenly jumped in the water next to Dan, put his nose underneath Dan and pushed him up and towards the edge of the lake. He pushed Dan along in the water until they reached the pathway, before going under and pushing Dan above the water line. Dan’s dad and the cyclist then grabbed Dan off the dog and pulled him out of the water. Aero swam about in the water for a couple of moments, until the runner, with Emily’s help, reached in and helped him out. Everybody fussed over Dan; an elderly couple offered him their blanket and his mum got some water out of their picnic basket for him to drink. As they all rubbed him down, they also smiled and laughed with him.

“What happened there Dan?” his dad asked.
“Aw Dan, look at you, you’re all wet!” his mum cried as she rubbed him down to warm him up. “Here, have some water,” she added, offering him a bottle.
“Is everyone else ok?” Dan’s dad asked the cyclist, the man walking and the runner.
Everyone agreed that they were fine as they huddled around to see if Dan was OK. Suddenly Emily cleared her voice as though she had an announcement, which made everybody turn around to face her.
“Dan, Aero saved your life,” she said loud and clear.
After a moment’s silence, Dan’s mum asked him, “What do you think Dan? I think Emily’s right. Aero saved your life. What do you have to say to Aero?”

The realisation suddenly hit Dan. Aero had saved his life. In fact, Aero had risked his own life to save Dan’s. This dog was never going to hurt him and whilst Dan ran these thoughts through his mind and before he had time to notice, a wet Aero came over slowly and rubbed his nose against Dan’s arm. He didn’t feel afraid. He didn’t even flinch. In fact, he felt strangely comforted by the dog by his side. Aero was Dan’s hero.