Autor's Note

English is not my mother tongue, so I appreciate your support for any corrections.

Once there was this kid who
Got into an accident and couldn't come to school
But when he finally came back
His hair had turned from black into bright white
He said that it was from when
The cars had smashed him so hard

FIRST VERSE

Tobias had 14 years when his life change…

He used to sit in the front row of the classroom and always rise is hand to answer the questions, because he loved to learn.

He loved to play with his friends outside; they will ride their bikes to the lake and do cannonballs or if there was rain and if they couldn't play outside, he played in his house with his father scale cars collection, he loved that collection.

Every day after school he use to walk to his mother coffee shop and every day he had seen her busy as hell, but very happy, his coffee shop was the most popular and always had the most interesting clients, because the café has the aura of the world, his father - a photojournalist – took several of the pictures that decorated the walls, so when you enter, you could see the vast of the Serengeti, the beautiful details of the golden temple in Amritsar and the impressive views of the Himalayan mountains, those where is favorites.

His parents love him very much and he felt grateful of having them, even when his father used to travel so much, he always have time for him, and used to love surprises, never tell him the exact date of his comeback so he could surprise him at school or at home, if he came back in a school day, he used to pick him up and take him for ice cream, during their walk is father used to tell him about the trip, the places, the feeling and everything in between, and always promise him to take him some day, when he gets older.

They bought a couple of buckets with ice cream and go to find his mother; she used to scolding them for buying ice cream before dinner but they show her the bucket, and is vanilla with cholate chips, her favorite, so she will laugh and forget all about the cooking and then his father used to kiss his mother and sit side by side in the couch, the vanilla ice cream with them and the strawberry with him on the floor where he is watching TV, Tobias used to look behind him an see his parents looking at each other and looking very happy, once he pick up his father camera and press the shutter, capturing the moment forever, but his parents are so far away, in their world that never ear the shutter…

Their parents were spiritual persons and went to church every Sunday that's when his life change…

A driver fall asleep while driving and lost control of his truck, the cars on the line couldn't avoid it and a relatively quiet day become a nightmare his parents car was hit in both back and front at the point of being wrapped from the pilot side let them trapped, Tobias felt a lot of pain and the last thing he heard before pass out was his mother voice saying his name…

He woke up the next day, and realize that he was in a hospital and felt a presence by the side of his bed, turning he saw his uncle laying in the chair sleep and when he try to move, a little whimper scape his lips and his uncle woke up instantly, he look at him with sorrow and hope, he ask for his parents, his uncle lowering his eyes, took his hand and did what he always did, said the things as they are, "They are gone", that is it, he spends the next hours holding him, let him cry, and repeating to his ear "we'll be ok, they will guard us from above, my baby sister will protect me, her idiot brother, so I can take care of her son" he keep crying, his uncle was holding him has much as he can, without hurting him, he had two broken legs, cracked ribs and a nasty gag in his forehead. That night his uncle move him to a wheelchair for him to go to the bathroom but when he was in the bathroom and sees his reflection, before even realizes, a scream at the top of his lounges left his mouth, his uncle ran to the bathroom and stands between him and the mirror but it was too late, he already had seen his reflection, his hair was bright white and he didn't understand it, the doctor came and explain to him that the shock and fear of the crash turned his air white and his uncle, more like a reassurance than a fact, keep saying to him that he was safe and everything was going to be ok. But Tobias didn't care about being safe, his parents were gone.

The school year was nearly over, so the last tests he did them from home or in the physiotherapist office, his teachers make tests specials for him, so the other kids didn't give him the answers, he pass, he had finish elementary school and will go to high school after the summer, by then he probably will be able to walk.

The summer came and with that, his recovery, his friends spend almost all the time with him in his house, they were only away during his therapy and before dinner, they joke, they play, but they were afraid…

When the summer ends, he is able to walk with a cane, so he does what his parents would wanted, he went to school, but even when his friends went to the same school as him and there was no difference, almost all the persons in the hall look at him with curiosity, after all, he has bright white hair, a nice shortcut but white and walk with a cane.

He didn't sit in the front or raise his hand to answer questions, he just stay in the back where nobody could look at him openly, he was a good student, but didn't enjoy been staring at.

He is not happy and bright, he can't play with his friend anymore or going with them to the lake, now he ate his lunch in the football field, where nobody will look for him, there - he tough - is alone and could ate without disturbances…

After school and knowing that his father won't surprise him at school and going to buy ice cream he walks to his mother coffee shop, avoids the school bus, people keep staring at him, but hey, it was the first day, probably tomorrow they find something else to be distracted…

His uncle runs the coffee shop now; he try to not change a thing but he add two pictures in the booth of the owner, the table where his father use to sit while waiting for her mother and were he sits and do homework, there were two pictures, one of his parents smiling and a gorgeous mountain was behind them and the other were his parents backs to the camera looking an amazing sunrise, after closing, they never go for ice cream, they go home and he didn't sit in the couch, he goes straight to his room and tries to sleep.

Before he realizes a week as pass and he predicted he is old news, so now he can eat in the cafeteria, but he prefers the field and he start to think about the future and goes to the library, looking for a book about photography, the old librarian tell him were the books are, but he can't find what he is looking for a girl with the tag "volunteer librarian" help him to find it, is a nice girl maybe a little odd with is long shelve blouse and turtle neck, but hey, who is him to judge? His hair is white and still uses the cane to walk. He says thank you and leaves, he calls his uncle and tells him that he is going straight home and when he gets there, for the first time since the passing of his parents, he goes down to the his father office in the basement and look through his things, he found the camera he was toying with that last night and finds that there is still one photo left to take before the film is over, his father preferred the old cameras, and reveled the pictures himself, for that, the basement is perfect, so Tobias take the camera, the tripod and put the timer, went to the bench and tries to smile, but he can't so after hear the shutter he retires the roll just like is father show him and put it in his case, the next day after school he goes to the photography store, the guy that runs it was a friend of his father so he reveled the pictures the very next day and for free.

He calls his uncle again about going home after school and there alone, he sits in the couch, put out the pictures and spread them on the low table his eyes were tearful while he watch every single one of the pictures in the table, he was expecting to see is father work, but instead he sees his family, all the pictures were pictures of them, in school, in the yard behind the house, in the park, in the church, all where pictures of him and his mom, happy moments, ordinary moments and finally, he saw he one he took of his parents in that same couch, in a moment when they were happy and in love and finally the las picture was his, a photo of a kid who lost everything and need to find his way to happiness.

At 22, barely out of college he wed his high school girlfriend, in a ceremony where his best friend, the quarterback of the high school team and future NFL player, is the best man and he knows, that it was the happiest day in his life so far, she walk through the aisle her eyes looking to him and only to him, they smile to each other before looking to the priest, they got married in the church of his parents and have a lovely banquet before they left for the honeymoon. As soon as they get back, he look over the accounts of the coffee shop once a month in an effort to help his uncle, but at the same time he is looking for a very particular job…

Now, at 29, he is a photojournalist working for the same magazine his father work and when he is in town, he took his six year old for ice cream after school and bought some for his wife and every time they see each other even when there were only minutes apart they will have the same expression of care and love, and his son loved his hair, because he can be Santa every day of the year.

He lived his life like it was the last day on earth because he knows that death is in every road, in every minute, just waiting to claim him, he cheated her once, but no one can do it twice.