Starving Twins Spend Last Dollars to Feed Pups, Unaware They’re Worth a Fortune — Story of the Day

Orphaned twins Buddy and Charlie were starving when they ran into a litter of lost puppies rummaging through the trash can for food scraps. Their hearts went out to the little creatures, and they spent all their money to feed the pups. Little did they know a life-changing miracle was on its way.

"You broke my brother's leg! I'm calling the cops. You rich people... why do you drive flashy cars if you can't even watch where you're going? Look what you've done! We are homeless and poor...where are we going to find the money to treat my brother?? You're not gonna get away with this. I'm calling the cops! Just wait..." 10-year-old Buddy didn't even have a phone, but he slid his hand into his pocket to threaten the alarmed car owner at the gas station.

The man's eyes grew impossibly wide. He was afraid he would be arrested and immediately took out his wallet, pulling out wads of cash. "Hey, c'mon now. H—His leg's not broken. It must just be slightly bruised. Here, take this... Please don't call the cops! I'll take your brother to the hospital if you want. Please, come, get in my car," he said.

"No, I'll take him myself!" said Buddy as he snatched the few crumpled bills from the man's hand. As soon as the stranger left, Buddy and his twin brother Charlie winked at each other, a wicked smile flickering from ear to ear.

This was how they made money for a living. They took turns falling in front of a car, faking an accident, so the owners would fear an arrest and flee after giving them money for treatment. The boys knew it was wrong, but what choice did fate leave them with? It had only been cruel to them after they lost their parents in a road accident years ago. And even crueler when they were poorly treated in the shelter they absconded from.

And so, at their tender age, the brothers decided to abscond from the shelter, freefalling into the arms of the universe. It had only been a week since then, and it was perhaps the hardest week of their lives. Their hunger had grown from rumbles to growls to pain in their belly—and yet, neither of them complained. At least they were free. At least they had each other.

Orphaned and suffering silently from hunger, Buddy and Charlie shouldered each other and happily walked away from the gas station. Their latest con would cover just enough to buy them their next few meals. But then, Buddy noticed a litter of puppies jumping out from behind a van...

"Hey, you... your puppies are jumping out of your van... Hey...." Buddy shouted at the driver to stop. But by then, the guy sped past the gas station, unaware the puppies had escaped.

The puppies flocked toward the gas station's exit, where an employee was filling fuel into a car. All the pups wagged their tails and hopped toward the guy, except for one.

"He's scared of him," said Charlie as he and Buddy watched the pup tuck his tail between his legs and step away.

A selfless and kind heart builds a permanent home in other hearts.

"Shoo... Shoo... GET OUTTA HERE... Shoo!" the gas station employee scared away the puppies flocking around his legs.

Terrorized by the man's voice, the pups ran away, searching for a safe spot to hide. Concerned for the poor little things, Buddy and Charlie followed them.

The boys' eyes rimmed with tears at seeing the childlike faces and tiny paws rummaging through the garbage scattered around a dumpster. Their hearts immediately went out to the poor little pups scavenging the trash for food scraps.

"Are you sure, Buddy? We have to manage this whole week, and this is all we've got," Charlie clenched his belly and worried when his brother decided to buy food for the pups.

"Yes, Charlie! We had a good meal just the other day. We can take care of ourselves, but these poor things can't! They are so hungry. We can't leave them behind."

"Just look at those jade-green eyes and soft little paws. They are so beautiful and look like pedigree pups. I'm sure their owner must be looking for them. Maybe we can take care of the pups until their person comes for them."

"How are we going to take care of them?" Charlie asked.

"We'll take them to our tent. Nobody should know this, okay? Or the pups will be taken to the shelter, and they might never return to their home again."

The brothers agreed, and soon, Buddy ran to the store while Charlie watched over the pups.

"Hey there, champ!" Mr. Troy, the store clerk, asked Buddy. He knew the boys well as they frequented the store.

"Puppy food? You didn't tell me you've got a pup!" Mr. Troy's brows shot up in surprise when Buddy brought a bag of puppy food to the counter and spent all his money on it. "And why do you need so much puppy food, champ?"

"So that they have enough nutrition and energy, Mr. Troy!" Buddy chuckled. He stashed the money on the counter and bolted out of the store, leaving the clerk dazed.

It was already evening by the time Buddy and Charlie gained the trust of the pups. They lured them with treats and returned to their makeshift home between shelters: a shabby tarpaulin tent under a secluded bridge. Upon arriving, Charlie nervously shook his brother, pointing at the entrance of their tent.

"Buddy, what's that outside our tent??"

The boys recoiled in surprise when they found two large bags of groceries there. They stared at each other, shrugging their shoulders as they had no idea who had left so much food for them. However, they were happy about having an abundance of snacks and fruits that could last for two whole weeks.

The boys spent their night watching the stars through the large holes in their tent. The puppies were curled up around them, giving them the warmth of a cozy fleece blanket they had never had. It was such a peaceful night, and Charlie told his brother he wanted to keep the puppies.

"I know, Charlie. Even I love them. They're so cute and have attached to us. But we can't keep them forever... They don't look like stray pups. And they are too many, and we can't afford to feed them every day. We need to find their owner and send them home."

"They deserve better, Charlie. They need to get back home to their family... At least they do!"

The boys sighed heavily and slept as the piercing chirps of crickets shrilled through the night air.

The next morning, Buddy and Charlie fed the pups and decided who would go to the city to look for the owner. Buddy agreed to go since he knew most of the streets and shortcuts in the town that Charlie didn't.

"Keep an eye on them and don't let them on the road, alright?" he reminded Charlie again before leaving for the town.

That whole day, Buddy strolled around the streets, looking for posters or flyers for missing pups. But he found none, and it was almost close to sundown. There was still one last spot left to check. It was the gas station where the puppies actually went missing.

With faint hopes, Buddy marched to the station to know if anybody had come asking for their missing pups. To his shock, he learned that the owner had visited that afternoon looking for the puppies.

"He told me his name was Fred. This is his card. I told him about seeing a litter of pups yesterday afternoon. I gave him the description, and he said those were his pups. He told me to call him if I saw the pups again," the employee informed Buddy.

"Alright, thanks! Can I make a call from your phone? I don't have a cell phone," said Buddy.

He then called Fred and informed him about the pups, and an hour later, a tall, tanned man with a cigar in his mouth arrived at the bridge in the same van.

"Thank you so much, kids! You have no idea what you've done!" Fred said, patting the boys. "My babies! Come here... phwwwwt! Come here...." he whistled, approaching the pups.

Just then, Buddy noticed something strange and slightly pinched Charlie's arm to alert him. "Did you see that?"

One of the pups tucked his tail between his legs and slowly stepped away from Fred, growling and whining as if he was frightened. The boys realized that something was wrong and immediately blocked Fred's way.

"What are their parents' names, Mr. Fred?" Buddy asked.

Fred grew impossibly still and stammered. "Their dad's name is Dyson... no Tyson and mom's name... her name is... yeah... her name is Sky."

Buddy and Charlie sensed something was incredibly fishy about the man.

"Okay, how many male and female pups do we have here??" Charlie interrupted.

"Five male and three female pups," said Fred as he hurriedly threw his arms out to grab the puppies and put them in his van.

"No, you're WRONG! There are four males and four females!" Buddy lashed out.

"YOU ARE NOT THE OWNER! If you were, you would've known your pups better. You're not taking them anywhere... BACK OFF!"

But to their horror, Fred pushed the boys away and forced the pups into the van.

"Buddy, hurry up. He's getting away. Stop him! He's taking the pups!" Charlie yelled.

Buddy rose and bolted to the store to Mr. Troy, but by the time they returned to the spot, they saw the van leaving.

"Charlie, why did you let him go? He's taken all the pups. He's not the owner," Buddy panted.

"Don't worry, Buddy! That moron will not go far... I punctured two of his van tires. Just watch. It's going to stop any minute!"

Meanwhile, Mr. Troy took his phone and rang 911.

"Yes, officer, the man was charging at the boys. His license plate number is...." Mr. Troy had lied to the cops because he was worried the police would ignore him if he said the guy was stealing pups.

Minutes later, a cop siren beamed across the stretch of the deserted road where Fred was stranded with the puppies in his van.

"You could've told us it's about pups getting dognapped! Law is equal for all!" the sheriff told Mr. Troy as he handcuffed Fred. "You need to come to the station to file a formal report."

The guy was arrested, and the cops took the pups away, but still, one thing baffled the boys.

"Why would he steal the puppies? Who is the real owner, then?" they wondered. "And who left the groceries at our tent yesterday?"

On their drive to the station, Mr. Troy revealed that he was the one who'd left the grocery bags at their tent as he was worried they would starve after spending all the money to feed the pups.

"That was really kind of you, Mr. Troy! Thank you!" the boys hugged the clerk.

"But we don't understand why Fred was after the pups."

The boys got their answers as soon as they arrived at the police station.

"My babies! My darlings! Mama was so sad... where did you go leaving mama... come here... come here...." a woman ran and dropped to her knees, flocked around by the pups. They jumped on her, showering her with licks and paws and endless wagging and whining.

"I really don't know how to thank you, boys! Thank you so much!" she hugged Buddy and Charlie. As it turned out, she was Mrs. Davis, the wife of a wealthy businessman in the city. They owned a dog shelter with some of the most expensive breeds of show and guard dogs. And each of their dogs, including these pups, was worth a fortune!

Fred was none other than the former employee at the shelter who her husband fired for stealing a pup long ago. This time, he'd stolen a whole litter to sell them in the black market. Mrs. Davis had filed a missing report in the station in the city nearby, but the search attempts turned futile.

When the cops found the pups, they suspected they could be the pups in the missing report faxed to the station in the town that afternoon. After arresting Fred, they'd called Mrs. Davis, asking her to visit the station and check if the pups were hers.

Fred was put behind bars, and Mrs. Davis was thrilled to reunite with her lost puppies. Moreover, her sunken eyes were lit with more joy at seeing the two orphaned boys.

Mrs. Davis and her husband had no children and had planned to adopt a child. Seeing Buddy and Charlie fluttered her heart like a feather swaying in the air. They seemed to be the children she'd asked God for, and she instantly knew they were the ones when Mr. Troy told her the boys were orphans. So she decided to adopt them.

"You boys love dogs and are so kind! I'm sure my furry friends will appreciate your company! And I'm sure you'd love to call me mom and go home with me!" she chuckled, hugging the twins.

Buddy and Charlie were hesitant, but a wave of comfort lit their eyes after seeing Mr. Troy raising his hands in blessing, gesturing for them to agree and go with her. The boys drove away with Mrs. Davis and the pups toward something they'd always wanted but never had... Home!

What can we learn from this story?

• A selfless and kind heart builds a permanent home in another heart. Despite not having enough money to buy food, Buddy and Charlie spent all their money to feed the puppies. Their kindness spiraled back tenfold when Mr. Troy anonymously left bags of groceries outside their tent. And ultimately, the boys also found a loving home when the pups' owner, Mrs. Davis, decided to adopt them.
• When God shuts one door, He always opens an even better one for you. Believe and hope for miracles because hard times are not everlasting! Buddy and Charlie were orphaned brothers who lived in a shabby tarp tent after absconding from the shelter. They wanted a loving home but never found one until crossing paths with the pups and Mrs. Davis.

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A janitor gives his burger to a starving orphan who hasn't eaten for two days. A year later, his life turns around when the boy calls him 'dad.' Click here to read the full story.

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