Later that night I told Dad about my brilliant plan and how well it had worked. After half an hour, Merlin had stopped trying to jump up on the fence. He waited patiently by the gate until I came back. I stayed away for a little longer each time, but every time I came back and praised him and gave him a treat. And then at the end we took him to the park and let him run around for a while. We even played his favorite game of chasing him while he kept the ball away from us.

“He did so great!” I said, rubbing Merlin’s head proudly. “So we’ll keep practicing that until he never tries to get out anymore.” Merlin looked up at me, panting and grinning. He was tired from all the playing, but he seemed to know he’d been a good dog that day.

We were out on the back steps, watching Dad grill hamburgers for dinner. I forgot there is one thing he knows how to cook. Hamburgers grilling is probably one of my favorite smells. It was still pretty light out, and I could almost pretend it was still summer.

“Nice work, Parker,” Dad said. “That’s some smart thinking.”

“Thanks,” I said. I patted Merlin for a minute. I had a question, but I wasn’t sure whether to ask it. Finally I just blurted it out. “How come Julianne didn’t stay for dinner tonight?”

Dad looked at me sideways. “Did you want her to?”

“Well,” I said. “I mean, not always, I just — well, since she stayed with Merlin today — I just thought she would.” I shuffled my sneakers in the grass. “You guys aren’t breaking up, are you?”

“Gosh, no,” Dad said, surprised. I was surprised, too — surprised to find out I was glad about that.

“I thought about asking her to stay,” Dad went on, “but I wanted to just hang out with you tonight.” He flipped one of the burgers and winked at me. “Besides, there’s a baseball game on later. We could watch it if you finish your homework.”

“Awesome,” I said. I tried to play it cool. I was kind of glad I didn’t have a tail like Merlin’s, because right then it would probably have been wagging pretty hard.

“Speaking of Julianne,” Dad said, “I think we might have worked out a solution for Merlin, especially now that you’ve started training him so well.” He pointed his spatula at me. “But it comes with some conditions.”

“Uh-oh,” I said.

“First, Mondays,” Dad said. “I’ve arranged it at work so I have a stretch in the middle of the day with no meetings. I can come home and let him out. I wish I could do that for the other days, but it’s too busy.”

“I understand,” I said. “Merlin will be psyched to see you.”

“Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays,” Dad continued, “Julianne says she can either stop by or spend the day with Merlin.”

“Really?” I said. “All of those days? She doesn’t mind?” That wasn’t the kind of thing someone did if they were planning on breaking up with your dad. Right?

“She says Merlin is the greatest dog,” Dad said. Well, I certainly agreed with that. It was hard not to like someone who felt that way about your dog. “She says he’s inspiring, and she could use the exercise.”

“That’s amazing,” I said. Merlin made a quiet snuffling-woofing noise. I realized he’d fallen asleep on my lap and was dreaming. His paws twitched as if he was racing around the park in his dreams. “So that just leaves Wednesdays.”

“This is where the conditions come in,” Dad said. “I talked to your principal.”

“Mrs. Hansberry?” I said.

“Because you have good grades and you’ve always been a good kid, I was able to talk her into a trial period for this plan. On Wednesdays, you can come home during lunch and let him out yourself.”

“What?” I yelped. Merlin shot awake and sat up, blinking. “Are you serious? Dad, are you serious?”

“Quite serious,” he said, his eyes twinkling. “But you must get back to school by the end of the lunch hour. You must still eat lunch, although you can eat it here if you want. And you must keep up your grades. If she thinks this is too much of a distraction or too much responsibility, or if I decide it isn’t working for you, we’ll find something else to do.”

I jumped up and pumped my fists in the air.

“Woof!” Merlin agreed happily, bouncing on his paws. “Woof! Woof!”

“I’ll do it!” I said. “I swear, my grades will be perfect and I’ll be on time all the time. And I’ll keep training him so he’ll learn not to run away anymore. Merlin, did you hear that?”

“Woof!”

This was more perfect than I could have hoped. Now I’d have something to look forward to in the middle of the school week. Even if it was only on Wednesdays, I’d get to escape and see Merlin during the day. This was the best plan I had ever heard in my entire life.

“Julianne thought you’d be happy about that,” Dad said, smiling. “It was her idea. She says that you’ve been working really hard to take care of Merlin and be responsible for him. It’s a lot to ask of an eleven-year-old. I want you to know we’re here to help you.”

I sat down again and thought about all the people who had helped me with Merlin. Troy and Danny and Eric, of course. And Kristal and Skye. Camellia. Dad and Julianne. Alicia and Russell. Even Ella Finegold. If it hadn’t been for her and Danny and Russell on the day of the food fight, Merlin and I would have been totally doomed.

Merlin had to learn to trust that I would always come back for him, so he didn’t have to run away to find me. And I had to learn to trust other people to help me take care of him. Even Dad’s new girlfriend.

Merlin sat down next to me and we leaned into each other. He tilted his head back and licked my ear.

“See, Merlin?” I said to him, burying my hands in his golden fur as I hugged him. “I knew it. You’re not such a bad dog after all.”