Rays of the sun penetrated through the open space of a window and into a dimly lit room where a young teen slept soundly. Jeremy grumbled and muttered incoherently as one of the rays hit him directly in the face, rousing him a bit. Letting out a tired groan, he turned his face to the other side to resume his sleep. Seconds later, he was jolted awake when he felt a weight pressed upon him and his face receiving a tongue bath. He chuckled as he ignored the actions of the intruder. This time he felt the licks more intensely on his face. He opened his eyes to see the brown ones of the intruder. His German Shepherd stared curiously back at him.

“Alright, Shiela. I’m up.” He smiled and sat up as the dog hopped off the bed and stretched.

Jeremy jumped off and stretched as well when he heard a small tapping sound. He looked around his room in confusion trying to detect the sound when he heard it again. Shiela barked and rushed towards the window. Jeremy looked towards it just in time to see a small pebble connect with the glass. Rolling his eyes, he walked towards the window and peered down at the teen who stood by the sidewalk waving back at him. On getting to the living room, Jeremy noticed no one was at home. However, a plate of waffles stood on the table in the kitchen. Obviously made by his mum before she left for work. He opened the door and at the other side with a mischievous grin stood a slim boy around his age with blonde hair and bright blue eyes.

“Really, Kyle?” Jeremy folded his arms. “Throwing pebbles at my window?”

“Hey, it’s the best way to get your sleepy head up.” Kyle shrugged and walked in. He walked towards the fridge and picked out an apple, munching on it.

“I’m guessing your mum isn’t home.” He looked around.

“No.” Jeremy shook his head. “ You really took a big risk. What if you came just in time to see her drive out?”

Kyle didn’t reply. A thoughtful frown appeared on his face. Ever since the boys were little, their mothers never got along and never wanted the boys to be close to each other. Kyle and Jeremy both never knew their fathers with the story that the men died few months after they were born. But the fact that they were never allowed to be seen together by their mums was still a mystery to him.

“Bro, you should get ready.” Kyle said, looking at his watch. “We have about an hour before school starts.”

Jeremy nodded and trotted upstairs. A shower and then a full belly of waffles later, the boys were out of the house.

“Well, its that time of the season again.” Kyle said as they walked along the sidewalk. “I’m going to try out for the football team. What about you?”

Jeremy ran his hand through his thick black hair, his dark blue eyes reflecting indecision. He gave an inspecting glance along his skinny frame.

“I don’t know, Kyle.” He said. “Sports is not really my thing. I think I’m better off just observing from the sidelines.”

“Nonsense, man.” Kyle nudged him with a grin. “Don’t knock it till you try it.”

They passed a R.V in time to spot a man step out. His slightly muscular frame defied his age and no one would believe he was in his late seventies. His brown hair which was thick and had a bit of grey at the sides nearly covered his eyes. His well defined chin was covered with grey stubble. He wore a grey hoodie over similarly colored sweet pants and was holding a rake.

“Hey, boys!” He cheered as soon as he spotted them. “Off to school?”

“Hey, Crazy Johnny!” Kyle piped back. “Yeah, we’re… hold on a second…”

Kyle paused as he spotted the rake in the old man’s hands.

“Crazy Johnny, is that a rake with you?” He tilted his head sideways in confusion.

“Yeah.” Crazy Johnny’s blue eyes glazed over with excitement. “Why?”

“There are no leaves around your R.V.” Jeremy pointed out.

“Nonsense, Jeremiah.” Crazy Johnny chuckled at his direction. “I will wait for them. I know these winds well. Very pesky. They have this habit of sending irritating annoyances towards my surroundings.”

“But..” Kyle protested.

“Come on, you little knuckleheads.” Crazy Johnny shooed them off with a laugh. “Off to school or you’ll be late.”

The two boys shrugged and walked along. Crazy Johnny’s grin faded as soon as they were out of distance. He glanced towards the opposite direction and saw a familiar looking animal strutting towards his R.V.

“Hello, Shiela.” He grinned at the German Shepherd who sat in front of him wagging it’s tail. “It’s been a while.”

The old man and the canine both stared in to the distance to the direction where the boys had walked off. Then a worried look appeared on his face.

“Shiela.” He turned towards the dog. “ You feel it too, don’t you?”