It was another sleepless night for Asam. His old aches and pains acted up more frequently whenever the seasons were transitioning and he took his current discomfort to mean that Spring was on its way. Whether he stayed in bed or not, he would be in pain, so he threw off the covers and climbed out of bed. He made a soft clicking sound with his tongue and in the dark he heard the metallic jingle of the name tags on his dog’s collar.

“Come on, boy,” Asam said.

There was a soft scrabble as Kalil picked himself up from the mat he slept on. He was an old dog and had aches of his own. Neither slept much anymore. Kalil wasn’t a large dog, coming just to Asam’s knee.

Together they walked down the hall to the living room. Asam sat himself down slowly onto the couch and patted the cushion beside him. Kalil took a little while to get up the strength the climb up but he eventually made it.

“I told you I was going to make you a step, didn’t I,” Asam sighed.

Kalil nestled his head into Asam’s lap and Asam began petting and scratching Kalil’s head and neck.

“I don’t think I’ll be getting to it today.”

It felt good to have someone to talk to, even if they couldn’t respond. Living alone was never comfortable for Asam. He was the sort of person who needed other people, needed interaction, but as the years went by he found himself saying more and more good-byes and fewer and fewer hellos.

“It’s too late at night to eat, right?” he asked Kalil.

Kalil lifted his head slightly and let out a soft huff.

“Yes, it’ll probably just give us indigestion,” Asam admitted and Kalil set his head back down.

A faint scratching sound came from his front door. It was metallic in nature and too regular to be some animal or wind-blown debris.

Asam glanced to the light switch he’d neglected to flip when he first came into the living room. He usually left the lights off when he came out here in the night. It was a vain attempt to help him stay sleepy in the hopes that he’d be able to go back to bed. Kalil had noticed the scratching as well and perked up his ears.

“I think we may have some guests tonight,” Asam said uncertainly.

There had been a few burglaries recently in the area. Nothing violent, thank goodness. Just someone breaking in at night and helping themselves to a few valuables here and there. Asam would have thought it laughable to think anyone would believe his home held anything worth stealing, had it not been happening right then.

The scratching continued and he could even see his door lock, glinting in the faint moonlight, turning slightly every so often as whoever it was outside tested to see if it would turn.

Asam was so tired. He hadn’t had a proper night’s sleep in such a long time. His bones ached and his joints throbbed with each pulse of his heart. A burglar was the last thing he wanted to have to deal with.

“Should we just go back to bed and pretend to be asleep?” Asam asked Kalil.

The dog didn’t give him any indication one way or the other but instead kept his attention on the door.

“We’re both too old to fight them off,” Asam said. “Maybe they’ll leave once they see us? Or maybe I should just turn on a light?”

Calling the police wasn’t a possibility. He’d gotten so sick of receiving nothing but telemarketer and scam calls that he got rid of his phone altogether. If he needed to make a phone call he just went down to his local library where they had a free public phone.

“Come on,” Asam said, coming to a decision and wanting to put it into action before either he lost his nerve or the burglar got in.

Kalil was reluctant to follow Asam but he was a loyal dog and didn’t disobey. Together they made their way into the kitchen. Once there, Asam pulled down one of his cutting boards, a decent wooden one that didn’t have too many splits in it, and then opened his fridge. He grabbed a block of cheese, a few peppers, a cucumber, and the leftover grilled chicken strips from a few nights back. Last, he grabbed a small knife and then returned to the living room couch.

“They’re not very good at picking locks,” Asam observed.

He placed the cutting board on the small coffee table in front of the couch and began slicing the vegetables.

“Maybe they’re new to this?” He asked, looking to Kalil as though for confirmation.

Kalil huffed again and resumed his vigil on the door. This time he didn’t bother trying to climb back up onto the couch and instead settled into a protective position, sitting himself between Asam and the door.

Finally, there was a click and Asam heard a muttered celebratory exclamation from outside. The doorknob turned and a sliver of moonlight crept inside, followed by a crouching, skulking shape. The door closed silently and the figure began cautiously prowling around the room, looking closely at the few decorations, pictures, and knickknacks.

“There’s no television,” Asam stated when the figure began to double back the way it had come.

The burglar froze.

“There’s also no jewelry, cash, or antiques,” Asam went on. “I’m afraid there’s not much I can really offer you except a meal.”

When the burglar gave no response, Asam continued, “I don’t even have a phone, so you can relax. There’s no police coming. The light switch is just to you left.” He added finally when the burglar still didn’t respond.

Slowly, the burglar raised their arm and flipped on the light. It took a moment to blink away the brightness of the light but finally Asam was able to clearly see the intruder. They were dressed all in black clothes and a ski mask hid their face.

“I don’t sleep very well,” Asam said after a few moments of them just staring at each other. “I come and sit here with Kalil most nights. Would you like something to eat?”

Asam gestured towards the cutting board and he couldn’t help but notice how his uninvited guest’s eyes lingered on the knife. He groaned internally for having left it there in plain sight.

“Oh, sorry,” Asam said, taking the knife and tossing it gently to the far side of the room where it fell behind his armchair. “Just needed to cut some of the vegetables.”

At last, the other person sat themselves down opposite Asam on the other couch. They took a slice of cheese, cucumber, and strip of chicken and began eating.

“I’m sorry I don’t have any crackers,” Asam apologized and then began to eat some of the food himself.

The awkward silence, broken only by their chewing, lasted for several minutes. Asam didn’t want to eat too much since he already knew it would give him an upset stomach to eat this late at night, and he got the impression that the other person wasn’t very hungry either. Unfortunately for them both, eating was preferable to the uncomfortable alternatives given their strange situation. There were no questions Asam could think of to ask that wouldn’t come off as prying or threatening and he wanted to keep this visit, if it could be called that, as peaceful as possible.

The food was not limitless, however, and it soon ran out and once again Asam found himself in an uncomfortable silence, staring at this stranger in his home.

“This is Kalil,” he said at last with a nod towards his dog.

Kalil hadn’t growled or raised his hackles the entire time which did give Asam some comfort. He always trusted Kalil’s instincts and if Kalil wasn’t worried then he didn’t think he needed to either.

“He’s a good dog, and probably about as old in dog years as I am in people years. I got him when he was just a puppy. You can pet him if you like.”

The other person made no move to pet Kalil although Kalil did at least lay down so that his head would be close enough to do so.

“I know dogs aren’t for everybody,” Asam said for want of anything at all to say. “But I like them. Never had one before Kalil though. Never had the time for pets. Never had the time for a family either, though I don’t mind that. I liked my work and traveled a lot for it. Families and pets don’t seem to go well with that sort of life. At least that’s what it looked like. I never knew many people who managed to make it work. So now it’s just me and Kalil and that’s alright.”

After another brief pause, the other person got up from the couch, walked over to the door, and left. As soon as they were gone Asam became acutely aware of how fast his heart was beating and how much he was sweating. He felt cold and shaky and he had to lie back on the couch for several minutes before he felt well again. Kalil stood by the side of the couch and gave him an occasional lick on the forehead while Asam rested.

Once he had recovered sufficiently, he began cleaning up his dishes. He retrieved the knife from behind his armchair and put both it and the cutting board into the sink. He turned out the lights in the living room, relocked the front door, and went back to bed.

“Maybe now that we’ve had some excitement we can get some sleep,” he sighed.

Kalil turned himself around three times on his mat before settling down and tucking his nose beneath his back paws like he usually did before going to sleep. Asam tucked his pillows in around himself, propping up his various aching joints as best he could, and then pulled his blanket up to his chin.

“Good night, boy,” Asam said and Kalil gave him a soft huff in return.