As a young boy in junior secondary school, I loved playing a lot and I was adventurous. I can't say I was very stubborn, but I barely listened to advice nor adhered to instructions.
One fateful day, I went to school as usual. It was a normal day. I eagerly watched the clock as I waited for dismissal time. Our dismissal time was always 3:30pm. On this particular day, I just wished time would move faster. Eventually, the bell rang, signifying it was dismissal time. With so much joy, I picked up my bag and looked for my good friend Daniel, so we could go home together.
I knew Daniel's place was closer to school than mine, but I had never been there. We had agreed earlier that I would go to his place, and I was excited about it.
"Hey man, school has dismissed already. Let's get going" I said to Daniel.
"I'm looking for my pen. It must have dropped around here. Oh, there it is" Daniel said as he picked up his pen.
"Great, now let's get going" I replied.
We began our walk to his house. I got there, and his mum was really welcoming. She served me a delicious meal and I finished it in minutes. They were good hosts. I had a fun time watching movies with Daniel until it was eventually time for me to go.
As I stepped out of their gate, I noticed a house on the opposite side. There was a huge, mean-looking dog behind the gate of that house. It was one of the scariest dogs I had ever seen.
"Daniel, do you see that dog" I asked
"Yeah, that's a very dangerous dog. You can see from its face. I know what's going on in your head. Don't try to piss off that dog. Goodbye" He said to me as he walked back inside.
I was about to start my journey home, but then I had a second thought.
"Why not tease the dog a little? Besides, it's behind the gate. It can't attack you" I thought to myself.
Next thing, I made my way to the gate. I picked up a few stones and threw them at it. The dog barked so violently. It got mad the more I threw stones at it. It shook the gate, hoping that it would miraculously open, so it could come after me. I knew there was nothing it could do, or so I thought.
I poked a stick at it, in an effort to continue teasing the dog. Its rage went off the radar. Then I decided it was enough, and I began my walk back home.
As I was walking, I suddenly decided to look back, only to see the shock of my life. It was the mean dog running towards me. It turns out there was a little opening underneath the gate that wasn't so obvious. The dog had escaped from there. I stood there, frozen, as I watched the dog run towards me. At that moment, I faced a dilemma. I could stand and face the dog, or I could run.
It only took me seconds to make a decision as I started running, hoping to outrun the dog to safety. I knew the dog would probably overpower and harm me if I stood my ground. I didn't want to take that risk. Running looked like the smartest option. I ran the fastest I had ever run in my life. I felt so much energy and fear at the same time. As I ran, the dog seemed to be getting closer to me. Its teeth were out and it had a fierce look.
My feet were barely touching the floor as I stretched the farthest I could while running. At one point, I lost my footing and I fell, but I didn't even have the time to remain on the floor. Within a split second, I was up and running. The dog got so close to me, and I kept hoping that something or someone would intervene. Eventually, before the dog could pounce, an adult who was walking by intervened. He chased the dog back to where it came from. My heart was beating so fast, both from fear and from exhaustion.
As soon as the dog was chased back, I felt so much relief. I just stood there panting, trying to catch my breath.
When I got home, I made the decision to never try such a thing again. Daniel warned me but I didn't listen, and I narrowly escaped the consequences.