Max’s seventeenth birthday present seemed like a piece of roadkill. A rancid stench filled the house as soon as he opened the box. Inside was a fuzzy black ball with matted, dusty fur crusted with blood. Pink intestines and squirming maggots spilled out of its side. Trying not to vomit, Max looked up and saw his parents watching excitedly in the corner.

“Do you like it?” they asked.

“What is it?”

Dad frowned and shook his head. Stepping over, he dumped the reeking carcass on the floor. It unfurled into a flattened spiral with dangling eyes, a limp gray tongue, and a protruding bone-tail. After a kick, the creature sprung to life. Its bark sounded more like a dying wheeze.

“Happy?” Dad asked. “Your mother and I got him from Robert Johnson and his family down the street. The mailman ran him over, but he’s practically brand new.”

Seeing his parents’ expectant faces, Max tentatively reached out and pet the dog, who Dad said was named Gus. He fell over without reacting. Dad propped him up and crossed his arms, gazing down at Max’s bewildered expression.

“You’re going to have to be satisfied, son,” he said. “If this dog was good enough for the neighbors, so is he for you.”

Max didn’t bother arguing that the neighbors had the dog when he was actually alive, and instead nodded obediently. It was better than getting angry. Dad kicked him out of the house for any disagreement. He controlled everything Max did, from college applications to future jobs, down to the breaths he took each day. Since he and Mom gave Max a roof over his head, Dad could give him his dreams, too. Or a zombie dog, for that matter.

Grabbing a leash, Max went outside for a walk. The first thing Gus did was stumble over to a puddle and lap it up. All the water he drank, however, poured out from the hole in his side where his guts still hung. He turned, saw the new pool he made, and went at it again, only stopping when Max dragged him away.

Walking through the suburban streets, past perfectly trimmed lawns and picturesque homes, Max could feel the revolted, perplexed stares. One mom covered her daughter’s eyes, and another bolted inside, peeping through the window. Shame and hatred for his parents boiled inside him as he stared down in embarrassment.

The street curved to the right, and Max could see through the trees before he made it to the end. There was Robert Johnson and his two young boys standing in the cul-de-sac. Beside them was a gorgeous golden retriever, skipping jauntily, its tongue in the air. Yet, the kids stood and watched glumly, eyeing their dad.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“We want Gus back!”

“I told you guys; he ran away.”

“Is he dead?”

“Of course not!”

“Then, why was someone digging in the backyard this morning?”

“What?”

Before Max could react, he felt a tug on the leash, and it slipped through his hand. Gus, suddenly rejuvenated by seeing his old owners, rushed towards them. The boys cried out when they spotted him, but their faces quickly melted into fear.

“What the fuck is that?” Robert shouted, punting Gus through the air. Only when he came down did Mr. Johnson recognize him. Then, he looked up at Max like he was the devil himself. “You did this to my dog?” he asked, his fiery gaze smoldering with wrath.

All that Max could remember next was sprinting to his house without turning back. Robert’s footsteps bounced and rang off the pavement as he chased him. Slamming the door behind him, Max ran straight into his parents.

“Hey!” Mom exclaimed. “Are you all right?”

Out of breath and quivering in the corner, Max only glanced back in terror. Robert’s heavy fist pounded on the door, and Dad emerged from the living room, furious. He opened the door and immediately received a punch in the face that sent a tooth flying. His knees buckled, but he managed to tackle Robert, and the two wrestled until the police arrived.

Both were arrested, and a long case ensued. Dad was charged for stealing Gus, but was let off when it was discovered Gus wasn’t the Johnson’s dog, either. They stole him from another family. It was a scene wild enough that everyone forgot about getting Max another birthday present, but he didn’t mind. He would just wait for next year.