{"id":3404,"date":"2025-07-02T09:45:41","date_gmt":"2025-07-02T08:45:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/time.amazingstory.blog\/?p=3404"},"modified":"2025-07-02T09:45:43","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T08:45:43","slug":"poor-boy-hears-dog-barking-in-neighbors-house-for-two-days-and-decides-to-check-inside-story-of-the-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/time.amazingstory.blog\/?p=3404","title":{"rendered":"Poor Boy Hears Dog Barking in Neighbor\u2019s House for Two Days and Decides to Check Inside \u2014 Story of the Day"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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A lonely boy from a poor home becomes an unlikely hero when he decides to find out why his neighbor\u2019s dog won\u2019t stop barking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ethan Hough was a 13-year-old boy who was being raised by his impoverished parents. They made sure he was well-fed, but the family lived from hand to mouth for the most part. It was one of the reasons they took family planning very seriously \u2014 they could never afford to have another mouth to feed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was the only life Ethan knew, but he hoped that one day, things might change for them. They lived in a three-bedroom bungalow that they had used as collateral when they took out a bank loan several months before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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They spent the loan on Ethan\u2019s mother, who fell victim to the novel coronavirus back when the virus first started its rampage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was a lot of money, but his mom had survived the ordeal, to the relief of both males. When she finally returned home from the hospital, Ethan\u2019s father, John, threw a small celebration within the family to welcome her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the joy had not lasted past that night because they received mail from the bank asking them to pay up their loan or lose the house the following day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

John tried to come up with the money, but there was only so much he could do except beg for a loan extension. They got a couple of additional months, but that was all they would have. The couple tried to keep their financial woes away from their son, but Ethan was a very clever boy. He knew but kept quiet about it while praying things got sorted out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ethan was not only clever, but he was also kind and lonely. His parents didn\u2019t permit him to leave home at all because they feared he would be bullied because of their financial status.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cKids can be so mean,\u201d they would tell each other when in truth, they were simply ashamed of themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ethan had no friends, didn\u2019t go in for sports, and was always the first to head home as soon as the last bell rang for the day. His classmates saw him as a weird geek and often avoided him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Little did they know he was only obeying his parents\u2019 instructions. \u201cYou have to study very well so you can become a rich man and support this family,\u201d his mom would always tell him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cMy boy will secure us a rich retirement,\u201d his dad would say.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That was a very egoistic position, but his parents did not see things like that. They believed it was their right to demand such a thing from their boy. They believed he would change their lives \u2014 if only they knew how right they were.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the summer holiday one year, Ethan started to hear barking coming from his neighbor\u2019s house. An old woman lived alone in the house. She was known as Carla, and she had no family to speak of.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like Ethan, people in the neighborhood avoided communicating with her because they thought her insensitive. Her only companion was a big dog named Rocky, and Carla spent all her time with him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Ethan noticed that the dog kept barking for two days straight, he approached his dad to tell him. \u201cDad, have you noticed the dog barking this whole time? I think we should find out why,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOh, Ethan. What could be wrong with her? The crazy old lady must be playing with her ragged dog and that\u2019s it. I just wished the dog wouldn\u2019t make so much noise.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ethan was unsatisfied, but he let the conversation die down. While his father was in the garage, he decided to slip out from their home and check what was happening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe dog sounds frantic,\u201d thought Ethan. He came to Carla\u2019s house and knocked on the door, but no one answered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead, the dog\u2019s bark intensified, piquing Ethan\u2019s curiosity even more. Knowing his parents could summon him at any time, he quickly circled the house to the backyard and peeped through the window.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The vantage point let him see into the living room, where he saw the woman lying motionless on the sofa while her dog ran circles around her nervously while barking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sensing something was really wrong, the boy took a rock from the ground and broke the window to reach the doorknob and unlock it. The dog heard the intrusion but would not leave the woman\u2019s side, confirming Ethan\u2019s suspicion \u2014 something was wrong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHelp me, please,\u201d he heard the woman whispering as he stepped inside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It appeared that the woman had lost use of her legs and had been lying on the sofa for a while without moving and eating. Luckily she had a bottle of water near her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ethan quickly called 911 on his cell phone and described what happened. In a few minutes, the sirens were hooting in Carla\u2019s driveway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When she was being transferred to the ambulance, she thanked Ethan for saving her life. \u201cThank you, boy\u2026 It is the first time in the last 20 years that someone has worried about me except for my dog\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A few days later, Ethan learned that Carla died in the hospital. The doctor who treated her visited him at home to deliver the news personally \u2014 \u201cCarla\u2019s last wish,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cShe told me that she left her house to you and your family as thanks for what you did,\u201d the doctor revealed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The news shocked Ethan, but his parents were happy. They would have a new home to live in after they lost their old one to the bank. At the same time, they tried to keep a lid on their excitement because they knew the price was Carla\u2019s life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The incident helped them understand that money was not the only thing that could save a person; kindness could too. Several days later, while his parents were preparing to move to Carla\u2019s house, Ethan sat on the porch, still upset because of her death.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Suddenly he heard rustling, and he immediately raised his head to see Rocky coming towards him. When the big dog reached him, he put his head on the boy\u2019s shoulder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was so spontaneous, and it made Ethan hug him and cry. From that moment, they were always together, and Ethan\u2019s parents stopped treating him like a means to an end and started raising him in the way all parents do it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What did we gain from this story?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n