Back For More (Sequel to Just Another Season, Dance Moms Fic)

Chapter 25: Loss for the Ziegler's

The next day at the Ziegler household, Maddie and Mackenzie were watching TV while Melissa was in the bedroom doing some cleaning, then after watching a little bit of TV, Maddie went and put dog food in the bowl of Molly, who was the oldest dog while Maliboo was the youngest.

"Molly, your breakfast is ready!" Maddie called, but the dog didn't respond to the call and they got up to see why she didn't reply and when they got to the kitchen, they saw Molly lying on the ground, trying to get up, but she fell back down.

"Molly, are you ok?" Maddie asked the dog, but she didn't move at all, there were pain in her eyes and her breathing was quick and shallow, which was a sign that something wasn't right at all.

"Mom!" Mackenzie yelled, and seconds later, Melissa came downstairs into the kitchen to see what was wrong.

"What's going on?" Melissa asked her daughters.

"Something's wrong with Molly! She can't stand up!" Maddie said as Molly was laying on her side and whined, but the whine wasn't the typical whine that a dog usually makes, and that's what scared them to death.

"Let's take her to the vet, maybe we can find out what's wrong."

The three arrived at the Animal Doctor and they told them what was wrong, then the doctor took the dog in the examination room, took the vital signs and did some scans to see what was the matter.

A minute later, Abby and Andrew had arrived at the Vet's office after Melissa had called them and told them that something was wrong with their dog, Molly. Then the Vet came out with a grave expression on her face, which meant that something just wasn't right at all.

"I hate to be the bearer of terrible news, but your dog, Molly has a very rare aggressive type of cancer and there's nothing we can do, so at this point, there's only one thing we can do to stop her from suffering."

Maddie and Mackenzie both paled at the sobering news that the vet just gave them as Melissa felt tears sting her eyes because the option that was given to them made them realize what that meant. Abby and Andrew's hearts broke for them.

"That means Molly's gonna die?!" Maddie exclaimed, tears starting to fall from her eyes as Mackenzie began to cry as Abby and Andrew felt very sad for them as she and Andrew walked up to Maddie as the vet nodded sadly.

"What the vet just said about ending Molly's suffering is killing her and we don't want to do that!" Mackenzie said as she wiped her tears.

"Kenzie, Maddie, Molly cannot tell you how much she's suffering from that dreaded disease." Abby replied, tears forming as she put a hand on her young dancer's shoulder.

"But Miss Abby..."

"My mom is right." Andrew said, with tears in his eyes as well. "It's only going to help end her suffering, it's not killing her."

"You might want to see Molly." The vet said, tears rolling down her face, knowing that the clock was ticking for the dog while Maddie and Mackenzie cried.

"Do you want us to come with you?" Andrew asked the Zieglers.

"Y-yes." Mackenzie sobbed as they headed towards the exam room.

In the exam room, Maddie, Mackenzie and Melissa entered the room where Molly was laying, they half-hoped that the dog would be sitting up and awaiting them with happy barks, but they knew that she didn't have much time left as Abby and Andrew entered as well, they both knew what it was like to lose something they love as Molly weakly barked.

"Molly..." Melissa choked as she let a sob out of her throat.

Maddie closed her eyes as more tears ran down her cheeks. She buried her face in Molly's fur and sobbed heavily as Mackenzie hugged her older sister and Melissa rubbed her back to comfort her.

"Maddie, Mackenzie, i'm gonna be honest with you, i have known what it's like to lose something or someone you love very much and it hurts and it feels like someone ripped a hole in your heart but one thing is for sure, the memories will always remain in your heart and soul." Andrew said softly as he comforted Maddie and Mackenzie, then his own tears started falling because he felt so sad for them and the memories of the passings of his grandfather and Broadway Baby were in his mind as let out a few sobs.

"Don't cry, son." Abby said, her voice breaking as she wiped her son's tears and Melissa rubbed his back, he eventually calmed down, but still had an upset look on his face and saw that Maddie was stroking the dog's ears.

"It's gonna be all right, Maddie." Andrew reassured her.

"How is it going to be ok?!" Maddie asked with bitterness in her voice. "Our dog is dying, Andrew! She's not gonna get any better at all!"

"Maddie, even though your dog will be gone physically, but her spirit will live on in your heart, i remember when my grandfather passed away, i bawled like a baby and my mom and grandmother both said to me that even though he was gone physically, he was always there in my heart." Andrew told Maddie.

Maddie nodded as she, Mackenzie and Melissa were continuing to look at their dog for 20 minutes, remembering the good times they had, the walks they took her on, playing with her, being cheered up by Molly whenever they were sad and felt alone and just having a good time and even though they had Maliboo, Molly could never be replaced because she would be in their hearts forever. The three wished that it did not have to end, but now, they had to come to a decision.

"Have you come to a decision yet?" The Vet asked them.

"We don't want her to suffer anymore." Melissa said to the vet, choking on her words as she started to cry again.

"Ok..." The Vet said with a sad look on her face and after Maddie, Mackenzie, Melissa, Abby and Andrew said their goodbyes to the dog, the vet got a needle and placed it in Molly's left foreleg, the plunger was pushed down and Molly's eyes closed for good.

Andrew hugged Maddie and Mackenzie, who both were crying heavily over losing their dog as Abby hugged Melissa, who was very emotional as well because Molly was their very first dog and brought joy to their lives.

"I haven't been this sad since my mom died." Melissa said, crying over losing their dog, that had been a friend and companion for years.

"How about you two spend the night with Andrew?" Melissa suggested through her sobs.

"O-Ok." Maddie sniffed as Melissa handed them a bag with their clothes, dancing clothes and sleeping wear as she and Mackenzie both got in the car

And as Andrew headed upstairs to his room so he could get some sleep, he could still hear the crying from Maddie and Mackenzie the guest room next to his master bedroom and he began to cry silently on his bed, he knew what it was like to lose a pet, but he knew that the pain that the two girls were going through would end.