~ 3:48PM ~
*beep
*beep
*beep
A girl sleeps soundlessly, her back bent over and her head against a desk. A soft breeze whisks in and out of the sunlit room through an open window.
*beep
*beep
*beep
The girl abruptly awakes, thrusting her head upwards. She fumbles around looking for her alarm clock then quickly remembers it's on the other side of her room. The girl looks outside, she notices a large moving truck beeping as it slowly backs up into a tight spot. A buzzing noise comes from the girl's pocket, she quickly reaches toward it and takes out her phone. The screen reads,
Alice don't forget to pick up your brother from after school.
She turns toward her alarm to check the time, it's 3:50PM,
Shit, I'm gonna be late
The girl quickly rushes down the stairs, the door slams shut and the house falls silent.
~ 4:10PM ~
The screams of young children echo around the school gym. One boy faces toward the wall, he sits just a few feet away. He has his legs spread apart so that each time his ball rolls back to him he can easily catch it. The teachers all sit on the bleachers by the entrance while waiting for parents to come pick up their children. One of the older boys notices the boy sitting alone playing with his ball. He walks over, a few other boys follow
"Is that your ball?"
The older boy asks
The younger boy looks up and replies,
"Yes"
"Can we play with it?"
The older boy asks
"Can I play with you?" The younger boy requests, a somewhat hopeful expression brightens his face
The older boy stands still then responds,
"Alright, fine"
The group of older boys pass the ball around, then start a game of soccer. The younger boy tries his best to keep up with the other boys and stay involved, but the older boys just seem to ignore him. Finally the younger boy gives up. He sits down by the sideline plays with his velcro shoes and waits to be picked up.
