It was early autumn and the sun was shining down. Richard and David Addison, ages 14 and 11, were playing football on their front lawn. Richie was tall and gangly, with long legs that were good for outrunning his younger brother. David, small and wiry, could outsmart his brother, even if he couldn't outrun him. At this particular time, Richie had the ball, and David was chasing after him. At the sound of a car, they stopped.
David Addison Sr. Pulled into the driveway in his brown '63 Ford, tired from work. He sighed and ran a hand through his thinning hair, and couldn't help but smile at the sight of his sons fighting over the football. When the boys saw their dad, they ran up to him, dropping the ball on the lawn, their fight temporarily forgotten.
"Hi boys," he said with a smile as he got out of the car.
Of course they both had gripes about the other.
"Dad, Richie's cheating, he keeps stealing the ball from me."
"Can I help it if he can't play the game?"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa," said David Sr., held up his hands to stop the boys from arguing. "Hold on a minute. I am going to go inside and say hello to your mother. And as for you two, get it all out of your system now, because once you are at the dinner table, I don't want to see any fighting."
Richie and David exchanged a look. "Sure, Dad," they said, smirking.
"Good," their father said and continued into the house.
Richie immediately lunged for the ball and ran to the other side of the yard, with David at his heels. "Rich!" he whined. "That's it, I quit. I'm going to help Mom."
"Sissy! You're just upset cause I can play better than you."
David looked at his older brother and laughed. "You can't play better than me."
"Yes I can. I just was."
"Oh yeah? Well how about this?" David grabbed the ball from Richie and sprinted to the end of the yard.
"Cheater!" Richie exclaimed and ran after his brother.
Irma Addison smiled and shook her head as she watched her sons from the kitchen window. Her husband snuck up behind her and slid his arms around her waist. Irma smiled as she recognized the familiar feel of his arms.
"Hi," he whispered in her ear.
"Hi," she said, turning around. She kissed him lightly on the lips. "How was business today?"
"Steady," he answered. "Missed you."
"We missed you too," Irma replied. "What are the boys up to?"David Sr. Smiled affectionately. "They think they're playing football, but they're spending more time fighting."
"Don't they always? Maybe they'll grow out of it."
David sr. Breathed in the smells of his wife's cooking. "How long till dinner?""About 40 minutes. Why don't you go change and you can join the game outside. I'll call you in when it's ready."
5 minutes later, the boys' father joined their game. 30 minutes after that, Irma stepped out on the porch. "Dinnertime, boys. Go inside and get cleaned up."
"Aww, Mom, do we have to?" asked David, Sr., who had the ball and was on his way to score."
Irma laughed, as all three of her men looked at her expectantly, the younger two seriously, her husband jokingly. "Go on," she gestured toward the door behind her. She playfully swatted her sons' behinds as they walked past her, and then yelped as her husband did the same to her.
That night, around 11pm, David lay awake in his bed. Richie, sound asleep across the room, was snoring loudly. Suddenly and silently, David got up and pulled on a pair of jeans and grabbed his jacket. He opened the window and carefully climbed down the tree that was conveniently located right outside the window and great for climbing. Upon reaching the bottom, he retrieved his flashlight from under a bush. He often did this, went walking at night. David was a dreamer, but he never let it show. Only at night, he let his thoughts flow and he was free. Free from reputation, free from other's opinions, free from everything. Out here, he wasn't "TC" the coolest 11 year old in town, he was simply himself. On nights like these, he found himself walking to the other side of town, the high class, and wealthy part of town. It was quiet, there was no one around, and he could pretend he belonged there. Tonight, he stared up at one of the mansions, wishing deeply, promising himself. "Someday," he thought to himself. "Someday, I'm going to have a house like this." A window on the top floor was open, and a girl of about 16 leaned on the windowsill, looking up at the sky. Her long blond hair framed her face and brought out her bright blue eyes. David and the girl made eye contact, and time seemed to stand still. He felt a current of electricity pass through him.
Madolyn Hayes, age 16, was leaning on the windowsill, daydreaming. She was on a modeling job in Philadelphia, and luckily her aunt and younger cousin lived there, so she didn't have to stay in yet another hotel. Seemed she was in hotels more than she was at home lately. Maddie sighed loudly, then glanced back in the room at her cousin Annie, hoping she didn't wake her up. Luckily, she was a heavy sleeper, and didn't even budge. Annie was 11, five years younger than Maddie, and she was fun to be with, but sometimes she acted too immature for her cousin's taste. Tonight, Maddie stared out the window, wishing she was walking out there. But she was stuck. Stuck in this proper world. "I wish I were someone else. Just for a day. I wish I didn't have to be so good all the time. I wish—oh, I don't even know what I wish anymore." A lone tear ran down her cheek as she stared blindly into the deserted street. But, tonight, it wasn't totally deserted, there was a boy down there. He looked to be about Annie's age, but there was something about him, something that Maddie couldn't quite put her finger on, but this something sent a shiver up her back.
"Wow," both David and Maddie whispered simultaneously.