Flashback

Today is the 5 yr anniversary of my dad's death. Sad after yesterday our grandparents coming over. I got up this morning and started getting dressed. I ate my breakfast early and left out the door. Before I left tho I noticed mom was there looking at the paper. She seemed tense. Like she always did since dad died. It was like looking at someone who wasn't my mom but at the same time was. she hadn't asked to be a dingle parent. She didn't ask to have 4 imature teenage sons. But that's what happened. Brook called she wanted to hang out but I told her I couldn't today and why. She wanted to come with but I told her no and that if I had time I'd come see her. Today i did what I always do on my Dad's death, go to all tge places that still reminded my of him. I first went to his favorite coffe shop since he was crazy about coffe. I looked in the window and could see my dad there at his favorite seat drinking his coffe ( double cream double sugar) and checking out the sport scores on the TVs. I remember how sometimes he'd take me and/or Kyle with him. I got some coffe and left the shop. Next was where my dad worked. It was an office nothing fancy but I liked to go there cause it was always busy. Since no one else in ourfamily liked it, on every take your son to work day I'd go with him. I walked through the doors and went to the secretary's desk. The lady at the desk saw me and frowned. I knew her. She knew my dad. " Oh is that today???" she knew I came here every year. "yea it is" "there's a meeting up there so don't take long ok? Here's your visitors pass" I took it "thanks I won't" "I'm sorry bout your dad" "that's ok" I left and went up the elevator to floor 5. Ibwent to my dads desk and looked at it. There was new stuff on it cause someone was using it but it was the same desk with the same computer with the same phone with the same chair. I sat in it and twirled around a couple times like I did when I came her with my dad. I then heard someone coming and I ran put and headed tward Brooks house. On the way I stopped at the cemetry to visit my dad. It was short I put his favorite candies there and dug his favorite baseball card in the ground next to his grave. Then headed for Brooks. I thought that maybe she could cheer me up alittle. I went over there and she was really happy I raided their fridge while she was telling me bout something I don't remember cause I wasn't really listening. Then I sat on her porch and she sat with me. She put her head on my shoulder and she started to ask questions about my dad. I didn't want to answer them, I didn't want to tell her about the night I found out. I didn't want to tell her about how he loved baseball and sports. I just didn't want to. I was t in the mood. She started to push it so I got up abd left. She looked at me and said, "where you going?" "I'm late" I said as I left. I walked home for dinner. I imagined dad and celab playing catch in the front lawn like they always did before dinner. We ate dinner in silence. This table was the very table that I got the news my dad was dead. I remember that night I was thinking about the take your son to work day the next day. I got up in the middle of that night because of noises I heard in the kitchen. I got up and there was my mother crying like there was no tommarow. I asked her what was wrong and she told me to sit down. That's when she told me that dad had been mugged and killed in the procsess. I ran I ran to the park I ran away for days. Finally I came home. We moved around alittle bit and since I wasn't taking his death well mom sent me to boarding school for a couple years. I got up and left for the park it was sunset and gonna be dark soon. I sat down next to where I used to sit with my dad. We'd look at the stars and make our own constellations and then map them on a sheet of paper (which I still had) and then we'd find them months later. It wasn't weird it was just what we did together. I looked up at the stars and started making out constelations and mapimg them out just like my dad showed me. Eventuly I fell asleep. When I woke up it was nearly morning. I woke up to someone screaming my name. It was brook and celab. "I'd thought you'd be here" celab said. "you thought right" "austin! " brook hugged me. "I thought the socs got you" "no way! I'm Austin remember?" I got up and we walked home.