Priya loved walking along Marine Drive in Mumbai with her Papa every evening. The sea breeze, the glittering lights, and the sound of waves made it her favourite place in the world.

One evening, Priya heard a small whimpering sound coming from behind a bench. She bent down and found a tiny brown puppy! It was shivering and looked very scared.

“Papa, look! A puppy! It’s all alone!” said Priya.

The puppy had no collar and no owner in sight. It looked hungry and tired. Its eyes were big and sad.

“Can we take him home? Please, Papa!” begged Priya.

“Priya, having a pet is a big responsibility,” said Papa seriously. “You’ll need to feed him, walk him, clean up after him, and take him to the vet.”

“I promise I will do ALL of that!” said Priya. “Look at his face — he needs us!”

Papa smiled. “Alright. But first, let’s check if he belongs to someone. We should put up notices in the neighbourhood.”

They took the puppy home. Mummy was surprised but couldn’t resist the puppy’s adorable face. Priya named him Biscuit because of his brown colour.

They put up notices: “FOUND: Small brown puppy near Marine Drive. Call if he is yours.” They waited one week. Nobody called.

“I think Biscuit is officially ours now!” said Priya joyfully.

Priya kept her promise. Every morning, she fed Biscuit and filled his water bowl. Every evening, she took him for a walk. She even taught him to sit and shake hands!

One day, Biscuit got sick. Priya was very worried. Papa took them to the vet.

“He just has a small infection,” said the vet. “Give him this medicine for five days. He’ll be fine.”

Priya gave Biscuit his medicine faithfully — even when he tried to spit it out! In a week, Biscuit was bouncing around happily again.

“You’re a wonderful pet parent, Priya,” said Papa proudly. “You took responsibility and you kept your promise.”

Priya hugged Biscuit tight. “He’s not just a pet, Papa. He’s family.”

And every evening, Priya, Papa, AND Biscuit walked along Marine Drive together — the happiest little family in Mumbai.