Page 3 of All Of My Sundays

“Nah. I’m gonna change and then go see the nurse.”

“I can come if you want?”

“No. I’ll be fine. I’ll catch you and Kelsey in the cafeteria for lunch.”

“Sure. I’ll see you then,” she says, as she waves goodbye. I strip out of my clothes and pull my uniform back on. Lucky for me I hardly worked up a sweat. I make my way across to the other side of the school where the nurse’s office is and knock on the open door.

“Hey, how can I help you?” Miss Torres the nurse greets me.

“I got hit in the head hard with a volleyball. I was hoping you could give me some paracetamol for my headache.”

“Sure thing. I’ll be two ticks,” she says, turning and opening cabinets to find what she’s after. She pops two pills out, hands them to me, and fills a plastic cup with water from the cooler in the corner of the room. I tip the pills into my mouthand wash them down with the water before handing the cup back to her, which she chucks in the bin.

“Do you want to lie down and rest? I can write you a slip for the missed period if you like?” she offers.

“Yeah, that would be great, my head is killing me,” I confess.

“If it's as bad as you say, do you want to go home?” she asks.

“No. Hopefully after a rest I’ll be good to go,” I tell her. Dread fills my body at the thought of going home. I couldn’t think of anything worse than having to call my parents to pick me up for getting hit in the head with a volleyball. It’s not my fault but they would find some way to turn it around on me. Nothing is ever good enough in their eyes.

She pats the bed for me to hop up on. My bag drops to the floor, and I lie down on the hard surface and try to get comfortable. These beds are not designed with comfort in mind. She kindly shuts the lights off as I close my eyes, leaving the door open as her footsteps fade and she leaves me to rest.

My head thumps but I try to ignore it, hoping it will fade soon. Instead, I focus on the nearly black eyes of the new boy named Lorenzo and his hint of a smile.

Chapter Two

Lorenzo

“Hey old man,” I call, as I open the squeaky front door to my house.

“Who are you calling old, boy?” he replies from the couch, where he sits with a jigsaw puzzle splayed out on the coffee table. “How was your first day at the new school?” he asks. I shrug off my bag and it drops to the carpet as I sit down beside him.

“It was okay. School is school,” I tell him, picking up a piece and placing it into the slot next to a border piece where it fits.

“School is not just school. I’m hoping this one will open doors for you. I want better for you Lorenzo,” he tells me again for the hundredth time.

“Yeah, I know Gramps.”

“You gotta want better for yourself too boy. You can’t settle. What have I always told you?”

“You gotta grab life by the horns and go after what you want,” I say.

“Damn straight and don’t you ever forget it.” He twists a piece around trying to make it fit before he drops it and picks up another piece.

“Your advice is ingrained in me, I doubt I could forget it if I tried,” I tell him, laughing.

“Good. Now for the important things. Did you see any pretty girls?” he teases.

“Gramps!”

“What? There’s nothing wrong with that. You know I met your grandma when I was your age,” he starts, and I know I’ve fallen straight into his trap. He just wants a reason to relive memories he has of his one true love, my nana. She passed away when I was nine years old, and Gramps has stayed true to her. Even in death, his love for her lives on.

“There was one girl that caught my eye,” I blurt out, and I don’t know why I’m telling him this because it’s only going to set him off.

“What’s her name?” he asks.

“Sophia,” I confess, as her face comes to my mind.

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