The sound of rubber soles skidding against the concrete was quiet as the black haired boy made his way to the park. He dragged his feet a bit, never fully picking them up. The boy's high-waisted white shorts didn't provide any warmth while the wind gently blew. It was early November, so obviously it was a cold Ohio day.
He came to this specific park very often, not minding the weather some days. There could be a storm and there he stood, soaking wet but not complaining. Usually, he wore more covering clothes, he would see what the weather looked to be but he had forgotten today. The cold boy felt as if he was going to freeze to death.
Joshua ran his fingers through his soft, curly hair. He glanced down at the crack in the sidewalk that stuck upwards, causing him to trip more than once in the past. He stepped to the side and over it, doing a little hop. His hair caught in the wind, blowing around. The boy twirled around for fun, not watching where he was going. He feared to fall flat on his face so he slowed his pace a bit.
Joshua squinted up at the dim sun, looking just in time to see the clouds cover it. Josh wished his tall friend was with him today, laughing as they ran down the streets. The older man had somewhere to be though, leaving him to walk alone.
Josh ran his hand across the scratched up tree that started the park. The old sign was barely hanging on, previous storms had ripped it off. Someone did a poor job at stapling it back up.
The ten-minute walk didn't nearly feel like that, it felt shorter. He took a deep breath and smiled. The fresh air was always soothing. Kids ran around, parents watching. Dogs played fetch with their owners. Oh, how he loved the friendly environment.
Josh looked into the clouded sky again, admiring the way the sun came through small cracks in the clouds. A high-pitched shriek came from Josh's mouth when someone ran into him, sending him to the ground. The force felt as if someone had thrown themself into Joshua. The boy looked up almost immediately, seeing a stranger standing there.
Josh's eyes widened in shock as he saw the stranger stood in front of him was wearing shorts and a tank-top... in this cold weather? No thank you. His shock, though, dispersed when he noticed the man was probably out for a jog. That explains why such a force knocked him down, more force than a person walking at a normal speed.
"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" The stranger exclaimed in a rush, obvious frightened features. A hand gets held out for the black-haired boy to grab, and he hesitantly does. "You're fine." The boy shyly replies with.
"You okay?" The man asked, seeing the boys white shorts all muddy. Most people would've been angry but Josh just brushed it off as not being anyone's fault. Perhaps he was in the man's way.
"Yeah..." He slowly responds. Josh looked down when he noticed the taller man just staring at him. He was still holding his wrist.
"I'm just gonna..." Joshua doesn't finish his almost unheard statement, pointing backwards with his thumb as to signify he's heading off.
"Wait... "He trailed off, smiling.
"While I have you here, take this." The stranger reaches into his back pocket, shoving a small black card into Josh's small hands.
The two boys stood there, Josh trying to figure out what the card was for.
Josh glanced at the business card. It was crisp and clean, not a single mark on its new smooth surface. The matte black paper soaked up all the sunshine like a hungry void, allowing Josh to take a better look at it. Usually, business cards were slick and shiny, hard to read since the light keeps bouncing off the paper. Josh didn't like forced advertisement, he would usually throw any kind of flyer or a card away but not this one. The small piece of black paper caught the boy's attention with its modern simplicity.
Simple bold letters contrasting with the dark background was a delight to look at. Josh kept reading the business card over and over again, feeling a sudden urge to call this company. If they put so much detail and creativity into their advertisement then their service has to be at least half as good.
Josh sighed knowing that there wasn't a single thing in his house that needed repairing. Josh glanced at the car one last time before shoving it into the pocket never to see the light of day again.
Joseph Brothers Repair & Restoration (988) 013-0770
"A repair company?" Josh's eyes showed confusion as he held the wrinkled card back out as if he was returning it.
"I don't need it." Josh shifted feeling uncomfortable, shaking his wrist from the guy's grip. He didn't like being touched by people, especially if he didn't know them.
"Please, keep it." Josh dropped the card in his bag, returning his glace to the man.
"I have to promote the company in some way, right?" he chuckled.
The boy's eyes changed focus down to his shoes as the stranger turned and walked in the opposite direction.
Josh dug through his bag and yanked his expensive camera out. His heart dropped when he turned it over, eyes tracing the large crack down the side. He pressed the button near the top, frowning as nothing happened. He even tried turning the batteries around but there was no use as his camera was broken. Damn stranger for pushing him over.
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