Every Tomorrow

Chapter 3

The next day, Todd takes me out for lunch at a local market. He picked me up from my apartment and we talked along the cobblestone to it. That's what I adore about Europe. Everything is so close to each other, that it's all walking distance. Needless to say, the air is fresher because of it and the environment is so clean. Not to mention, everyone is so friendly here. Stockholm may be a big city, but there are definitely parts of it that remind me of Bridgewood. I order a spinach and feta omelet with and ice flat white with almond milk. Reyna says its really good, so I thought I would give it a try. It's actually not that bad. As we're eating, I decided to interrogate Todd. I mean, the whole situation is very intriguing.

"Well, it's obvious how I ended up here. So, how did you end up in Stockholm?" I ask.

"Football. After my third year at Indianapolis, my coach contacted his people here and they saw my footage. Next thing I know, I'm moving out here. I've been here ever since."

"Did you ever go back to Bridgewood?"

"Every Christmas or so. I didn't really have time to because of all the training and season going on."

"And you get by pretty easily?" I still just don't understand how this donut made it all the way out here.

"Yeah Ainse, food is good. People are good. What's there not to like?"

"Stop calling me that."

"Calling you what?"

"Ainse. We're not like that anymore."

"C'mon, I know you missed me." He smirks.

I haven't thank you very much. I have been quite occupied the past five or six years. Not to mention everything that has happened with Kaeden recently, I do not need this in my life right now. I don't think I can emotionally handle this.

"You haven't changed, have you?" I scoff.

"I have. I have a dog now, my own apartment. I will admit, I still wear red converse though."

Aww the red converse. They're actually iconic. That was what made Todd him. Yeah, he was that super cocky football jock that all the girls would fawn over, but his little nerdy side stayed with him with those red converse. Him wearing those shoes were what kept him humble.

He paid for lunch and we started walking back. His apartment was actually only one block away from mine, so we decided to go there first so I could meet his dog. He had a golden retriever named Jasper. He was so friendly and loved to play tug-of-war. Playing with him made me miss Oscar. I'm sure him and Jasper would be the best of friends. As we were sitting in his living room, he asks me,

"Did I ever tell you why I wear red converse?"

"You only mentioned it was because of one of your childhood friends, but I don't think you ever told me the story."

"Well, before my family moved to Bridgewood, we lived in Calgary, but in a really sketchy neighbourhood. And I was walking home from school one day with my best friend Issac and a gang stopped us. They started yelling at us and trying to take our money. Then, they started to beat up Issac because they knew his uncle was apart of some drug deal gone bad. He told me to run and go get help. But once I got around the corner, I heard a gunshot. I hid behind the garbage bin long enough until it was safe, then I ran out there. And he was dead. They recognized him because of his red converse he always wore. They were so beat up, and I remember one Christmas I tried to buy him new ones but he refused. He said it would take away the magic in his old ones."

I saw him tearing up as he laughed to try and hide the pain. I only ever saw photos of Issac and he barely told me stories about him when we were together. I felt bad asking because I knew it was a sensitive subject, but I didn't know how deep it really was.

"I'm so sorry Todd."

"It's okay," he sniffles, "that's why I wear red converse all the time. That's why I was number 63, because it was his house number next to mine. It's why I keep playing football because we told each other that one day, we were gonna make the big leagues and do each other proud. We were gonna make history together."

"You did make history. And I'm sure he's been watching over you, protecting you every single step of the way." I give him a long hug, and then we sat there for a moment in silence. A peaceful, comforting silence.