A year had passed and Mark's condition seemed to not have changed at all despite the daily chemotherapies, though now he wore a wig of his own hair that had been resembled to look somewhat like his old hair style when he had to go anywhere or record.

Chica had become a grown dog in the time, her playfulness unchanged while her brown eyes remained tinged with the same sadness Mark saw when he adopted her.

It was as if she knew that she and her owner were slowly dying with each passing day.

"C'mon Chica, lets go to the park." Mark told her excitedly as he grabbed her pink leash faded from constant use.

Chica barked in reply and padded over to him obediently, allowing him to clip the leash onto her collar.

Mark grabbed his guitar case and slung it over his back before walking out the door with Chica trotting beside him.

The sky was a beautiful light blue, the morning sun shining its warm rays on the two as they walked along the sidewalk to the park they tended to visit frequently when Mark wasn't recording.

"It's a beautiful day outside." Mark sighed in content as he rubbed Chica's head with a small smile.

Mark found an empty patch of grass and sat down with as legs crossed while Chica curled up in he usual position at his feet.

"Good bub." Mark told her softly as he ran a hand down her back while he got out his guitar and began tuning it.

Once it sounded right, he began playing through the songs he had learned as a cool gentle breeze caressed his bare arms and ruffled Chica's fur.

He closed his eyes as he sang, glad that for just a moment he could block out the cancer and pain so he could focus on feeling happy with Chica.

He never noticed the shadow loom over him while he played.

Chica abruptly snapped her head up and barked, startling Mark out of his trance to see a woman awkwardly standing in front of him.

"Hey, I'm sorry if I'm bothering you, but I just wanted to tell you that you sound amazing." The woman spoke in the rush as he face burned a light red hue in embarrassment.

She had brown eyes that looked like melted pools of chocolate, her long brown hair that barely brushed past her shoulders the same color.

"What's your name?" Mark asked her gently with a smile.

"I-I'm Amy, Amy Nelson." She stuttered, her face burning a brighter red as she shyly extended a have towards him for him to shake.

"I'm Mark Fischbcach, it's nice to meet you." Mark replied cooly as he shook her hand.

Chica, feeling left out, nuzzled her head against Amy's leg with a whine that pleaded for attention.

"Oh my god, they're so cute!" Any gushed as she knelt down and pet Chica.

"That's my dog Chica, she's a good girl." Mark stated, smiling as he watched Chica lick Amy's hand.

"Well, um, it was nice to meet you Mr. Fischbach-"

"Please, just call me Mark" Mark interrupted kindly.

"Sorry, it was nice to meet you Mark, but I should get going so I don't bother you more." Amy replied.

"You're not bothering me, I enjoy your company." Mark interjected hastily as she started walking away.

She froze and turned back to face him with a confused expression.

"Really?" She asked, poorly disguised joy laced in her tone.

"Yeah." Mark assured her as he patted a patch of grass beside him.

Amy sat down beside him and watched as he began singing and playing, his voice deep, yet gentle like the plucking of his guitar strings.

When Mark finished playing, Amy applauded him while he took a mock bow with a wide grin.

"Are you a professional musician?" Amy asked as Mark put his guitar away.

"No, I'm a YouTube let's player." Mark corrected her.

"Wait, where's Chica?" Mark frowned when he realized that she was no longer by him.

"Chica!" He called out as he scanned his surroundings for signs of her golden, furry body bounding towards him.

"Chica!" Amy joined in.

She didn't come.

"Did she run away?" Amy wondered aloud.

"No, she's never ran away before." Mark muttered as he slung his guitar over his back before beginning his search for Chica with Amy's help.

There wasn't many places to look since the park was small and not very crowded, so when they searched through the entire park and didn't find her, Mark started panicking.

"Chica! Please come here!" Mark pleaded desperately to the open air.

"We'll find her." Amy promised him.

"Chica!" Mark shouted again, beginning to lose hope.

Until he heard her bark in the distance.

"This way." Mark instructed as he took off at a run out of the park and across the street to an alley that smelled strongly of rotten food and some other scent he couldn't identify.

But what he could identify was his dog that was being taken away by a figure dressed in all black with a hood covering his face.

"Hey, that's my dog!" Mark barked at the person furiously, feeling his blood boil in rage as he stormed towards him with his hand clenched in fists at his side.

Chica whimpered in reply as she glanced at her owner, a shock collar over her regular collar.

The person whirled around and pointed a gun at Mark threateningly, motioning for him and Amy to stay put as he backed away with Chica's leash still in hand.

"Let her go!" Mark pleaded desperately, tears welling up in his eyes as he watched his dog taken away.

And he could do nothing.

Once he had left the alley and was out of sight, Mark ran after him, refusing to give up without trying to get her back.

As soon as he turned the corner, he felt an unbearable pain in his shoulder before he fell to his knees.

Mark grimaced in pain as he pressed a hand over his shoulder, blood flowing from between his fingers as he fell back onto his back.

"Oh my god!" Amy gasped as she reached him, her eyes wide in shock and fear as she kneeled down by him.

Mark looked up at the bright morning sky as Amy freaked out beside him, her voice sounding far away as she stammered something about calling for help.

The last thing Mark heard before he passed out was an ambulance siren steadily growing louder as it grew closer to him.