Cry, my beloved people

New friends Part 61

The week dragged by, Gregory tried his best to concentrate on his schoolwork, but nothing came easy, except the tears.   He couldn't stand it when his friends were laughing and joking and he started to go to the library at lunchtime, it did not bother anybody if he sat alone in the library.

On Saturday he continued with his garden chores and he enjoyed it.  He bought a small rose-tree with his pocket money.  He planted it in one corner of the garden, where another plant died down.

It was a white rose and the note on it said it flowered abundantly.  Maybe I can take some to mom's grave when it flowers, he thought.

On Sunday he went to church, he didn't want to miss Tracey.  After the service, Jessica surprised him, Clint's mom brought her to the service in the hope that Gregory would be there. "I missed you Geggie, I love you," she said as she hugged him.  It was so nice to feel her soft kisses on his cheeks, her innocent blue eyes looked seriously at him and he brushed her beautiful blonde curls to hide the tears welling up in his eyes.

"I missed you too sweetie, next time I'll take you and Granny for ice cream after church, it won't be next Sunday, but the one after that." He winked at Clint's mom who joined the conversation.

"Promise!  She cried and gave him another hug before her grandma took her and confirmed.

"We will meet you here, Gregory, have a good fortnight."

Tracey was excited to see him, "it's all arranged, you meet me next Sunday morning here at half-past seven. Then we drive out there, Donavan can't join us because he is a paramedic and will be on duty, but you will enjoy it, you'll see."

"I'm looking forward to it." He said truthfully and wondered if Donavan was her boyfriend.

The next week went even slower than the previous one and he noticed that most of his friends were avoiding him, even David talked only when it was necessary.

As they arranged it, he waited for Tracey outside the church, the street was empty and the air was fresh.   It felt strange to be here this early in the morning and he concentrated on taking a few deep breaths before Tracey arrived.   A new kind of freedom raced through his veins.

They drove about fifty kilometers on the main road when Tracey turned off into a smaller road with small houses cramped together on both sides of the road.  She parked outside a big building with smaller cabins and a playground next to it.

"We will meet up with them after the service." She said as she showed him the way.

The Priest talked about the sower and dropping the seed on the hard ground and on the rocks. Then he went to the seed that was sown in the fertile ground and how it changed inside the ground from a seed to a plant that bears fruit.  He said that we have to change like the seed to bear the fruit of the spirit. The words stuck in his mind.

Tracey took him to her friends after the service, they met up in one of the cabins, Gertrude was about two years older than Tracey, she was well built and well dressed and welcomed them with a friendly smile. "Come in," she said, "Lindie has already boiled the kettle and she brought a cake that her friend has made."

Lindie was much younger with a happy and kind face.  She offered him a chair and asked:  "How do you drink your tea?" Her dark brown eyes met his for a moment.

"White with two sugar." He answered while she handed him a plate of cake.  They chat about the orphanage and the nursery school while he ate his cake in silence.

The moment he finished his tea, Lindie offered to show him her garden.  They walked to the back of the building and the moment Gregory saw it he stopped:  "This is amazing, he said, I've never seen something that big.  Look at the pumpkins, how do you get it that big and the beans and tomatoes.  You did that all by yourself?"

"Well, it started like that, but here is Jonathan now and he is helping me a lot.  Jonathan, meet our guest, his name is Gregory."

Jonathan offered him a hand with a friendly smile. "Please to meet you, I heard you love gardening."