Only, my teeth start chattering. I tuck Luanne in close, trying to soak up her baby heat.

Morgan narrows her eyes. “What’s wrong with you. You’ve got goosebumps. Are you really sick?”

“Yes … no. It’s just that when we get there … I can’t go swimming. I had this strange dream.” It’s the easiest way to explain it to her. The way that makes me sound the sanest.

“Don’t eat cookies before you go to bed. I always have bad dreams after chocolate chip.”

“You don’t get it. This one felt like more than a dream. Diesel ran out in front of a car and died. And I drowned. It felt real.”

“So what? You think your dreams predict what will happen? That you have some kind of second sight?”

She makes it sound totally stupid. And yet, a dream that predicts the future sounds way more reasonable than drowning and coming back to life with a lump on my head and a dog’s voice talking inside it. “Anyhow, I can’t watch both Luanne and Diesel at the same time.”

“You can’t control the dog at all!” Morgan laughs at me, like usual. “I’ll walk Diesel. He’ll listen to me. I was the one who trained our old dog, King.”

“You had a dog?” I ask.

“Yup. Told you. Something happened to his innards. We didn’t have the money for the surgery so …”

Our parents are separated; our dogs died.

“I’m sorry, Morgan. I didn’t know.”

“Yeah, you did. Remember that food chain project? That’s when King died. You were just too mad at me to listen.”

“Oh.” I even remember her telling me now.

“Never mind. Just watch this.” She snaps her fingers. “Sit, Diesel!” Then she raises a pointer finger, but it looks as though she clutches something in her palm.

Does she have something delicious in her hand? Diesel sits and keeps his eyes trained on her hand. Food?

“Good dog.” She opens her palm to him.

Pizza smell. Where is it? He licks her hand madly as though it’s covered in mozzarella cheese, his favourite food after toast crust and meat scraps.

“So what’s your news?”

Morgan just smiles. “Tell you at the park. Just get Diesel’s leash.”

I dash into the house, Diesel bounding after me, grab the leash off the hook, and snap it onto his collar. He leads me back outside to Morgan and Luanne.

Morgan holds out her hand for the leash. “Give it to me.”

I squeeze my hand around it. “Diesel chases buses. You have to hold on really tight.”

“No worries. I can control him. I’ve got your back.” There it is, that line again. Morgan is a good two heads taller than I am. Most people are. Does that make her stronger?

She grabs the leash from me. “Want me to do a round in the yard as a test?”

“No, that’s okay. Wait here another minute. I’ll be right back.”

I leave Morgan with Diesel and head inside with Luanne to change her diaper, which really wakes her up all over again. Then I lock up and we set out for the park, Luanne pointing and jabbering about a birdie in the tree.