by Jamie Knight
“We could have worked things out,” he insists. “We still can. There's a lot we need to talk about, and you've just been ignoring me, insulting me, trying to make a big thing about me accidentally sleeping with someone else.”
I raise my eyebrows and then roll my eyes. “Accidentally, oh, that's rich. Tell me, Grady, how do you accidentally meet someone online, talk to them behind my back for months, and slide in and out of her on accident?”
Without answering my question, he leans forward and tries to grab my hand. I pull back out of his reach.
“It was a mistake,” he huffs. “It shouldn’t have happened.”
“I know damn well it shouldn't have happened, but it did.” I cross my arms in front of my chest and glare at him. “And the only way I deal with cheaters is by throwing them to the curb where they belong.”
Grady sits back in his chair. He glowers down at me, picks up his wineglass and swirls it a bit. “You should really be more considerate of the person who can make or break your organization,” he warns me. “Really, I can and will pull funding if you don't hear me out.”
I call his bluff. “You’d really do that to the kids you claimed to care about so much?”
He rolls his eyes. “The kids? Scout, I don't give two shits about the kids. I started donating to get closer to you,” he exclaims.
“Jesus Christ.”
He takes a sip of wine and then leans over the table. His face is hard, angry. “Let's be real. You're just doing this because you have nothing better to do with your life and you have some Mother Teresa complex. Don't act like one organization is going to keep kids from becoming drug dealers or drop outs,” he says strongly. “Not in this city.”
Anger is pouring through my veins. I feel feverish. I want to reach across the table and slam his stupid face into the stupidly expensive table between us.
“How well do you think you're convincing me right now?” I say coldly. “Really, Grady, you think you're some master persuader making me feel like shit and showing your true colors? What kind of person are you?”
“I'm the kind of person that wants something from you,” he says in a calm voice. “And you have every reason to give me what I want.” He raises one eyebrow at me.
“What… what is it you want?”
“Just your time. You and me, alone. Somewhere dimly lit. With a California King sized bed. No clothes—"
Ewww!
“Stop,” I abruptly say, “I was sort of hoping you'd ask me to help you buy a mattress at some dingy warehouse or to walk shoeless through a field of used needles. Christ. You're blackmailing me into fucking you?!”
His face is loose, like he is almost uninterested in this conversation, but I know it’s a mask. “To put it frankly, yes. My hands are tied. You refuse to listen to reason. You can’t really think this is how I want to get you back. But it’s the only way that’ll work,” he says.
“Grady,” I tremble, attempting to contain my rage, “people don’t do this to each other. Sane people with a conscience don’t do this to each other.”
Grady sighs, unhappy with my inability to comply with his insane demands. “Look, I don’t want to go around in circles over this. You’ve heard my piece. You know what I want. I know it’s a big decision, so I’ll give you some time to think on it. But I do expect an answer soon. I’m sure there are other charities that need funding that would be a lot more appreciative of my donations. I don’t want to waste my time any further so if you have an answer for me already, please, let me know.”
Alright, you son of a bitch, here’s my answer.
“No. I’m not putting myself through this. If you’re going to quit funding Children of The Future just because I won’t put your cheating dick back in me, so be it. I won’t stoop so low as being your prostitute,” I tell him. “You find someone else with a charity to harass and I’ll find someone else to back Children of The Future. I’d say it was a pleasure knowing you but we both know that’s a lie.”
He’s clearly shocked by my decision and tries to argue with me about staying a bit longer so he can further explain himself, but at this point, I’ve heard all I need to hear. No amount of convincing is going to change my mind. Grady wasn’t lying when he said it’d be a difficult to make, but I’ve made the right choice.
Grady stumbles and stammers as he watches me get up from the table and walk out of the restaurant. The people seated around us seem to be wildly relieved to not have to listen to our business any longer. I can’t blame them.
Children of The Future may be on its last leg, but on the bright side I won’t have to deal with Grady anymore. There’s something liberating about fucking myself over like this. Though I know I’ve just raised a hell of a lot more problems in saying no to him.
But now he’s showing his true colors and I couldn’t be more repulsed.
I’m glad I was able to tell him off. The look on his face was satisfying enough to make the imminent end of Children of The Future almost worth it.
Almost.
Chapter Four
Bryan
Day 2 of working at Children of The Future.
I arrive at the headquarters again only to be told by the cheerful and giggly receptionist, Roxanne, that Scout and the other volunteers have left an hour before my arrival. Thankfully, she is very helpful in finding out which school they went to. A little heads up would have been nice but I suppose Scout is still bent on getting me to quit or maybe she just enjoys bullying me.
The school Scout and the volunteers are at today is the same one as yesterday’s. Thankfully, Palir is still hanging around the front of the building and is able to drive me there. His excited look hasn’t worn off. He is beaming to see that I am sticking to our plan.
“I told you that I was going to work with you. I don’t know why you’re acting so surprised,” I tell him, rolling my eyes.
“Because,” he shouts over the sound of the car, “you’re actually doing it, Bryan! It’s the very first step back to being in the limelight and being praised by people. Not being ostracized by your teammates and coaches. Things are actually going to be fine!”
“Of course, they’re going to be fine. Even if I wasn’t doing this, you’d have thought of something. It’s what you do,” I assure him.
He laughs, thanking me for thinking so highly of his ability to fix near-unfixable situations. This has been as difficult for him as it has been for me. I spent a lot of time isolated and depressed after the whole emcee fiasco, and Palir wasn’t sure I’d be keeping him on as an assistant. I didn’t even know if I’d be able to keep him on as an assistant. I worried that I would lose my sponsors. Would I be kicked off the team? It’s not as if I went on a racist tirade, or sexually harassed someone. I didn’t think it’d be that bad, but the media made everything seem so much worse than it actually was.
“Just keep doing what you’re doing, and I’ll do the same. We’re finally headed in the right direction and I don’t want to steer off-path, alright?”
I nod my head in agreement.
Palir parks outside of the elementary school and catches a glimpse of Scout who is waiting outside for me.
“So that’s her, huh? She was the one givin’ you a hard time even after I’d left?”
I sigh. “Yeah. She’s… something.”
“Hot is one word for it,” Palir mutters.
“Hot, sure. But she’s also… not my biggest fan,” I admit.
“Nonsense! She gave you that shirt you’re wearing. She can’t be too cross with you,” he insists.
But the mere fact that I wasn’t told the time we’d be leaving for the elementary school makes me think otherwise. My mind was leaning towards the idea that Scout and I may be able to work alongside each other as equals, but now, I’m not so sure.
“Bryan, there you are,” she shouts from the sidewalk, “where have you been?”
I step out of the car, patting Palir on the shoulder as a thank you for driving me and shout back at Scout, �
�You said same time as yesterday!”
“Hm,” she pauses and looks thoughtful, “that’s right. Well, at least you’re here, that’s a start.”
As Palir peels out, Scout looks me up and down. She seemed a bit upset, or tired, her eyes aren’t giving off any good vibes. I’ll be honest, for such a petite woman, she is able to scare a man my height with her dagger eyes. Yesterday, she wasn’t being super kind to me, but she at least seemed to be enjoying herself while bullying me. Today, she just seems fed up with the world. But she cracks a smile when she sees me wearing the t-shirt.
“And look at that. You look like part of the gang.”
I try smiling back at her, hopeful that it will help her mood. “So, what’s the game plan for today, Scout?”
She turns around and asks me to follow her into the school. The number of kids outnumbers the number of volunteers which is a lot smaller today than yesterday.
“Where is everyone?” I ask.
She looks down at the floor as we are walking. “People usually come in when there’s a project to be done. They’re not too into the everyday aspect of Children of The Future. But I’d argue that this is the more important aspect. Schools can have all the jungle gyms in the world but what’s really going to help children is having someone to talk to and learn from,” Scout explains. “You’re going to hear this a lot, but we’re not just babysitting kids. We’re keeping them off the streets where they could be susceptible to things like gangs, and drugs, and other terrible things.”
“Kids really get involved with gangs?”
She scoffs. “Of course they do. Gangs try to get members as young as possible so they’re easier to brainwash and thus form a more solid bond. Children trust people who give them things. So, if a gang member offers them money and power, why wouldn’t a child do everything they can to protect said gangbanger.”
“Oh… I see. In that case, what exactly is it that you want me to do today?”
She looks over at me and rolls her eyes. “You’re a football player. These kids have an immeasurable amount of energy. Can you put two and two together for me?”
Coaching kids at football sure beats being a water boy. I promise her I’ll do the best that I can with these kids and head out to a large group of boys and girls gathered around the football field. I wait for the perfect moment to make my entrance; when the football is being thrown around and is then thrown over someone’s head and towards me. I grab the runaway ball, jump over five of the kids and carry the ball into the endzone.
The kids “ooh” and “aah” as I spike the ball into the grass. Part of being a star is knowing that presentation is an important part of your appeal. Having all of the kids’ attention, I start talking to them about playing football, and working is a team.
As I talk to them, I think about how this is the first time in a long stretch that I’ve been able to talk about the sport I love with pure passion. For a moment, I don’t think of football as a career or a job I have to stress over, but just a sport that people play for fun and a sense of teamwork. It’s a welcome change of pace to my life.
Scout is close by playing around the jungle gym with her own batch of children, but I feel her looking over at me every now and again. I find that I like how it feels to have her eyes on me. I want to do a good job and impress her. Maybe make her smile.
When I split the kids into teams of their own, I’m able to turn around and actually catch Scout looking straight at me, though she darts away the second she realizes I spotted her. We’re like two school kids on the playground, catching glances of our crushes whenever we can. Though, I’m sure Scout is just thinking up of ways she can torture me or making sure I don’t do anything around the kids she’d disapprove of.
After an hour or so of watching the kids play their own rule-bending version of football, one of them comes up to me and asks for a selfie. I can’t help but agree. It has been so long since a fan asked me for a picture. Not only that, but I forgot that I had fans that weren’t all caught up in the scandal I was involved in. Only a few of these kids knew who I was, but that was almost better than all of them knowing who I am and possibly being informed of the bullshit I’ve been swimming in.
The afternoon flies by faster than I could have asked for. Being around children who have their innocence intact and haven’t yet turned into cynics by the world they live in makes me feel like a genuinely good person. These kids have to wait for their parents for hours after the last bell rings, and if it weren’t for programs like these, who knows what sort of sordid past times they’d be a part of.
I can see why Scout cares so much about this program. It’s more important than I gave it credit for. It doesn’t deserve to have its backers drop out just because of me and my stupid actions.
Scout deserves all of the funding she needs to keep this program up and running. I’m starting to realize that the reason she acts so brazen and rough around the edges is because she has to come off that way in order to be taken seriously. She must feel as though having a Disney princess-type of persona might not be the best when you’re the face of an organization and may make her seem like a pushover that doesn’t really care about her own cause.
But she does care. She cares about the cause; she cares about these kids.
Now, I’m trying to steal glances at Scout. Every time I turn and see her, she’s helping kids hang onto the horizontal ladder or catching them at the end of the slides. She stretching her mouth into a gorgeous smile the entire time, until she catches me looking at her, and turns her smile back to a stone faced grimace.
There’s something drawing me to her, but I can’t bring myself to leave the kids and go talk to her. I’ll have to wait until the kids go home and we are alone. Even then, it might not be the best idea to try and form a friendship with Scout. She already hates me and wants nothing to do with me. I don’t think I made the best first impression, and she continues to seem unimpressed by me. We’re going to be working together for the next couple of weeks or even longer, so it’d be in both of our best interests not to get involved.
I’ve got to say, though, the hateful way she’s been treating me is a bit of a turn on. I can’t say I don’t like a challenge and Scout has proven to me that she is just that.
Chapter Five
Bryan
Nearly three hours after my football lessons, the children start being picked up by their parents. It’s only twenty minutes after the first kid is picked up that Scout and I are left alone to clean up the school yard.
“You did a good job today, Bryan,” she says picking up some trash left behind by the kids. “Same time tomorrow?”
“If by same time you actually mean the same time, then yes.” I give her a look. “But just to make sure, can I have your number?”
Scout seems to blush but tries her best to hide it as she digs her hands in her jean pockets looking for her phone. She asks me to give her my number instead so she can call me over whenever I’m needed.
“And that way you don’t have to come on slow days like today. I know you’re a busy person and…,” she clears her throat, “you probably have a lot of dates to go on and stuff.”
I set things straight for her, “Actually, I’m single right now and a bit too busy to be dating at the moment.”
This answer seems to perk her up, but again, she tries to maintain her cold appearance. She changes the subject of my relationship status back to exchanging our phone numbers. After saving my number, she goes back to cleaning the school yard. I follow her and pick up some of the things she’s not noticing, making her turn around in surprise.
“Oh, uh, you can go home. You don’t have to stick around. None of the other volunteers did, they all left as the kids got picked up,” she tells me, her hazel eyes wide.
“That seems a bit unfair. You already do most of the work, and they don’t even stick around to help clean up?”
“It is what it is,” she shrugs.
“Well, I’m not going to leave
you alone. I’m a team player, that’s just part of who I am,” I tell her.
Scout seems to find my nobility a bit humorous but doesn’t deny my company. The two of us end up staying at the elementary school for another half hour while we clean and leave the campus as spotless as it was before the afterschool program started.
“Thanks for the help, Bryan,” Scout offers. “It was good having you around today. You helped today flow smoothly and it was… I’m not going to repeat myself. Just, thank you. Today was good.”
“Today doesn’t have to end just yet,” I remind her.
I’m having an internal battle in the depths of my mind on whether or not I should try to befriend Scout, and my more rational side seems to be losing. I know it’d be best to just go home right now, but I sort of want to get to know her a bit better.
“Want to go grab a bite to eat?” I ask hopefully.
My anxiety spikes when she doesn’t immediately answer and instead looks through her phone. Her rudeness would be a turn-off if she weren’t so physically attractive. I’m baffled by how attracted I am to the sassy way she treats me.
“Yeah, alright,” she finally answers. “I haven’t had lunch and there’s a pretty great taco truck a few streets down at a local park. Are you up for street food, million-dollar man?”
“That sounds perfect right now.”
The sun sets slowly turning the sky into a watercolor painting of pinks and oranges. A beautiful sight no matter how many times you’ve seen it. We walk underneath the cotton candy clouds towards a food truck that has a line over twenty people long.
“Pretty popular for a food truck, isn’t it?”
“It’s the best food truck this side of the country, in my opinion. I wouldn’t call myself a food truck expert, but I know my stuff, that’s for certain,” she claims.
Scout goes on to explain the truck’s Puerto Rican menu, containing items such as loaded tostones, mofongo, and some Puerto Rican desserts I can’t say I’m too familiar with. Everything on the menu looks delicious though. Scout orders herself a Tripleta sandwich while I settle for the more commonly known loaded tostones. The wait for the food takes a while, but during that time Scout finally opens up a bit about herself.