Live in the Moment - Lashton

Chapter One

Chapter One

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Luke rubbed his eyes as he walked along the upstairs hallway, over to his son's room. When he quietly opened the door he saw that Theo was on his side sleeping peacefully. Luke breathed out a small smile, content that he had the blessing of seeing his son every morning. Without Theo, Luke didn't know where he'd be right now, he wondered if he'd even be alive.

If he had not had got a girl pregnant at seventeen, he would have been studying hard for a university. And if she had not have run off without leaving any contact information, he would have left Theo to her. At the time never understanding what was so exciting about having a child.

Gently he crept towards the black-out curtains and pulled them open, revealing the small rays of the sunrise that cast little lines on the carpet, reflecting off some of the little cars the six-year-old left lying around.

It was half-past five, and Luke would let Theo wake up naturally from the rising of the sun. Generally, the small boy would awaken a little before seven, slowly trudging down the stairs and into his father's arms, Luke would let him play with his toys and watch a little television before giving him some breakfast.

Whilst Luke let Theo sleep, he would tidy up any of the mess that his son had left behind last night. But as Theo fell asleep early last night, he managed to tidy them before he went to bed himself. So he decided that during this free hour he would iron. He never liked to iron his with son around as he remembers vividly touching his mothers iron when he was younger and scolding his fingers, the skin still to this day never healed, leaving it a funny colour and texture.

Grabbing the basket with crumpled up clothes in he placed in on the side, and extended the ironing board, plugging the iron in as he waited for it warm. Luke quickly filled a glass of water and sipped a little before placing it down on the side.

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Luke had put all the ironed clothes away, and dressed for his workday by the time Theo appeared in the living room, where the blonde had sat down for a little rest, catching up on the latest news. Theo hugged his little baby blue blanket close to him and he looked at his father with large eyes. Luke opened his arms out widely for his son to embrace him. Theo climbed up onto his father lap and cuddled his head into his chest.

For a six-year-old, Theo was small. Luke remembered his mother distinctly, she was small, shorter than the average girl in contrast to his six-foot stature. Therefore, when he first saw Theo when he was only a couple of months old, with a small mop of dark brown hair, pale skin and a tiny little body he knew that he was going to be like her. The only feature that he knew was from him was Theo's blue eyes, bright and curious.

But Theo was not just small in height and bone structure, he was also a little light. He didn't have the little bit of baby fat that still clung to most six-year-olds that had yet to grow, his skin was thin and stretched over his bones to reveal them a little too prominently.

It was not his fault though, you would have to blame his father, yet even then you would question the extent it was his fault. Luke wouldn't eat anything that wasn't natural. He would not eat meat or any product from an animal — he was a vegan. Everything he consumed had to be organic, transported from local areas to reduce pollution and so the animals were treated fairly.

Therefore, Theo pretty much lived off vegetables and fruit, bread and cereal. Luke knew his son needed to eat so he was a little less harsh on him. Yet, sometimes the blonde would even doubt eating vegetables as he thought that plants had some type of soul. Aristotle even claimed that plants had a soul, and its soul was the fact it could grow and reproduce, unlike ours which was to reason. Overall Luke had built up the perception that it was only okay to eat certain foods, which often resulted in him eating nothing.

For Luke it was never the need to lose weight, he was content with his body. But one day he hears his friend has become a vegan and that it is the best thing for animals, and the next he hears on the news how unhealthy it is to eat chocolate and drink fizzy drinks, and the next thing you know he is practically starving himself. Sometimes he gets dizzy and has to rest, that's when he gets scared and accidentally eats chocolate. But, Luke never sees how small he and his son really were, unlike everyone else

Being brought up on it, Theo did not mind. But, he had chocolate from a friend before and would like to have it at home sometimes. He didn't understand his fathers eating habits, and didn't realise how wrong they were. Theo just accepted this was the way they lived, and he was content in his fathers loving arms.

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Ashton smiled to himself as he leads his year two class down the halls of the school towards the canteen. The kids were muttering to one another quietly, respecting the rules of the school. The occasional one screaming and Ashton having to remind them to quiet down. Ashton never yelled at them however, he thought that was the incorrect way to go about a situation.

Seeing as it was only the first day, Ashton expected the class to be trouble but they were respectful and excited to have a new teacher. They told him all about their old teacher, and what they had been learning. Some were quieter than others, but that was too be expected.

"Find your name and sit down," Ashton told them all, as they passed by hugging their lunchboxes to their chests or dangling from their hands. Some sat in random places next to a friend, and the elder told them to move to the correct spot much to their annoyance. He told them they could be with them again when they finish and go out into the playground.

The teacher loitered around his class, as they all ate. Observing what they had, most of them having at least crisps or chocolate in their lunches, alongside a sandwich that they would leave the crust behind and crunch it up in their foil or plastic bag.

However, when Ashton came across ones boys lunch he was shocked to see how little he had and how healthy it was. There was a little pot with a couple of nuts in, another with some carrot and cucumber stick and two little square crackers that his father made sure were organic.

Ashton crouched down next to the boy and recalled that his name was Theo. "That's a healthy lunch you've got there Theo!" he remarked impressed.

Theo nodded and held the pot of nuts towards the teacher. "That is what my dad said," he beamed. "Do you want a nut?" he offered.

Ashton chuckled. "No thank you, do you get a special treat of chocolate at the end of the week?" he asked, knowing that was what his parents did when he was a lot younger.

Theo shook his head and pouted. "No, daddy said chocolate is bad." Ashton frowned and looked at the young boy. He was shorter than most of the students, but now he also realised how tiny he was. "I have only ever had chocolate 3 times!" he explained holding up three fingers. "And daddy got angry, and then cried and then told me I was not allowed it."

Ashton frowned again at the actions of the boy's father, he muttered a few words to the boy before standing up and going to check on the other children. He knew some parents liked their children to eat healthily, but this instance seemed strange. He couldn't jump to conclusions just yet, however, and decided that tomorrow he would bring in some chocolate for the class as a reward for how well they treated him on his first day.

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