Jonathan Campos

That day, I looked at the clear sky of a hot Saturday night, while I drank the vodka from the neck of the bottle, feeling the liquid tearing my throat. I had never noticed how the few stars shone in the sky of the big cities. I even looked like an old drunk who had just lost his wife, killed by smoking, and was lamenting how unfair life seemed. Likewise, I’m not that kind of guy, weak and sentimental, much less am I wanting to notice the stars in the sky, but while I raised my head to drink the last sip that was in the bottle, at that moment I noticed their brightness, and for a few seconds the stars hypnotized me.

“The sky is beautiful today. “ Carol hugged me from behind and buried her face in my broad back. "Are we going to leave here, to a place of our own?”

I jerked her hands away, no time for sentimentality, and walked away, a little dizzy.

“The party hasn’t even started, kitten,” I said and walked into the house.

I am amused by Carol’s stupidity, who has known me for so long and still believes she can win me over. I don’t belong to anyone, but they can all be mine for a night like this. The sound was loud. I entered the room where the party really happened and saw a beautiful brunette on the other side of the room. Certainly the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen in my life. I walked across the room to meet her, who smiled as she held a glass in one hand. I couldn’t make out what a drink it was, but it looked happy and irresistibly seductive. Furthermore, I bumped into a guy or two halfway there. They looked at me with expressions that they didn’t like my presence here. I offered them a smile, and that pissed them off even more. I wondered what fault I had for being the most attractive of the entire party? Two more steps, and I was in front of her. Long, curly hair, black eyes, olive skin, and a low-cut black dress. This is the type of girl I like, daring, beautiful, and seductive. She looked right into my eyes and the smile disappeared.

“Hi.” The loud music in the background nearly drowned out my voice.

“Are you Jonathan Campos? She leaned closer and whispered in my ear. Your hot breath made the hairs on my body stand on end” are you here, crashing?

I laughed. No one throws a party in this city and doesn’t invite me, it goes unpunished.

“Let’s say yes” I brought my body closer to hers and also spoke low in her ear. "Are you accompanied?”

“You’re very brave” she looked at me and took a sip of her drink. " Does Ravi know you’re here?

“Everyone knows I’m here” she smiles, but I can’t decipher whether it’s a funny smile or a mocking one" do you want to go outside, so we can talk better?

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” she says, and immediately her gaze strays to something or someone behind me. His expression changes, letting me know I’m in trouble”.

“What are you doing here?”

I almost didn’t hear what he was saying, but I felt his hand land on one of my shoulders. I knew that voice. Likewise, I turned, and my eyes collided with Ravi’s, who had a furious expression on his face.

“I told you not to come to my party” his hands grabbed my collar, and he pushed me to the wall. "You’re itching to get another spanking, aren’t you, Jonathan?”

“Nobody throws a party in this city and doesn’t invite me” I let out a loud and mocking laugh. “The only one who took a beating here was you. There are even some marks here on your face, check it out”.

He closed his fist, ready to punch me, but the girl stopped him.

“It’s not worth it, Ravi,” she held onto one of his arms.

He still had the annoyed expression on his face. I knew why Ravi hated me so much and that stretched back to high school when he saw me kissing the girl he was in love with, and after that I heard her say that she liked me too. Since then, he has created a stubborn dispute that only existed in his head and nobody else. He was obsessed with proving that he could be better than me at everything.

“Your girlfriend is a hottie,” I joked, just to tease him. "Are you afraid she’ll fall in love with me too, Ravi?”

He warned them not to mess with her.

“Or what? My expression changed. My jaw tightened”.

“I’m not his girlfriend” she got in between us “and I don’t want confusion here either”.

Ravi didn’t say anything. He looked at me as if he were evaluating me, and then he grabbed the brunette’s arm and left, forcing her out of the house. I went back. The girl didn’t resist. She went with him, as if she knew this was the best decision.

“Since she’s not your girlfriend,” I said, and he stopped in the middle of the backyard, still holding the brunette’s arm, “you won’t mind if I stay with her tonight”.

“Not over my dead body” He turned and looked at me.

“It’s not like that,” I approached. “I challenge you to a split. The loser gives up on conquering the brunette”.

“My name is Natalia” she interrupted us “and I’m not a trophy to be disputed by the boys, so forget it”.

“I accept,” Ravi said at once.

“Which is?” Natalia seemed not to believe “by God, you can’t do that, Ravi”.

“See you out there” he completely ignored Natalia, and I realized how tireless he was disputing anything with me.

“I’m going to beat you,” I offered a provocative smile. “You know that, don’t you?”

“We’ll see” He placed a finger on my chest and touched it.

He looked at me one last time and walked out of the house. Natalia watched everything in disbelief, but didn’t make any gestures, returning straight away to the party. I know that even if I won this race, I probably wouldn’t keep it, but challenging Ravi and beating him one more time would be like I did.

Needed a drink, I believed. I walked back to the party, filled a glass with a shot of vodka mixed with something else, and when I was ready for the fun, I watched as Carol ran after me.

“What’s this about cracking?” She had short black hair.

She was wearing a black dress, but Carol wasn’t as attractive as the other girls at the party.

“News travels” I said, walking back out of the house. “It’s just a car race”.

“Too risky,” she continued.

I took a sip of the drink and found the taste strange.

I watched Ravi, leaning against the car, waiting. Likewise, I took another sip, it was hot, and I didn’t like that mixed with the vodka.

“For what reason?” she asked me, and it took me a while to understand.

“From Reich?” I asked, and I know she won’t like the answer “conquer a brunette”.

A sadness formed on Carol’s face, but I didn’t care. Something fully focused my attention on the drink, but I gave up trying to taste it. I lifted the glass and threw the liquid over my shoulders from behind. Seconds later, I realized I had hit someone behind me.

I turned, and my eyes collided with hers. They were blue and glowed in my direction. She was wearing a turquoise blue dress with puffy sleeves. His hair was long and fair. There was an expression of surprise and hatred on his face.

“Look what you did, you asshole.” Her voice was sweet, but the timbre changed when she retorted it.

“I see,” I let out a low smile, realizing that I made even Ravi smile, “if you want, I’ll help you dry off”.

“Don’t come near me” Her cheeks reddened. There was something about her that bothered me. "Apparently you’re part of this whole mess”.

“Ravi didn’t invite you?” I mocked, and that seemed to make her even more furious.

“I don’t like this kind of party” she tried to dry herself and I continued laughing “and you’re not my type”.

The smile disappeared. Locked My jaw. She looked at me one more time, but I didn’t like what I saw in her eyes. She walked towards me, passed me, her arm brushed mine, her perfume was sweet and seemed to linger on me. Furthermore, she went to Ravi and said,

“I need you to turn down the sound” she had a different posture. She was delicate and daring at the same time. “you know that my father is sick, and he needs to rest”.

“Don’t be annoying, Leticia” Ravi seemed to know her well “It’s not midnight yet”.

“Loud only until ten,” he continued gesticulating. She was also insistent, “​​if you don’t duck, I’ll call the police”.

“All right?” Ravi raised his arms as if he was surrendering and then directed the word at Carol.

“Do me this favor, Carol?”

Carol nodded and went back into the house to do as Ravi asked. Even though there was a rift between him and me, our friends were each other’s friends.

They turned down the sound minutes later.

“Satisfied?” Ravi asked, but Letícia didn’t say anything. "Next time I’ll invite you to the party, to see if that way you’ll stop picking on me”.

“I waive the invitation," he started to walk back to where he came from “your parties, besides being bad, are very poorly attended”.

She turned, looking me over from head to toe. I barely knew her, but I hated her like I did. I know he was talking about me, and my blood boiled.

“You’re really stuck up, huh, girl”.

She smirked, turned, and walked into the next house. Of all the women I’ve met, none provoked that feeling of disgust like the one that Letícia provoked in me. I tried to ignore her and the feeling she ignited in me, making sure I never saw her again.

“Pleasant neighborhood, huh, Ravi!” ionized.

“Better her as a neighbor than you”.

He offered me a smirk and got in the car, waiting for me to do the same. I left the last events behind and focused my attention on what really mattered at that moment.

I got into my dad’s favorite BMW while Ravi drove his Land Rover. Sometimes I envied him for having his own car, but despite not having one of my own, due to the punishment imposed by my father a year ago, the BMW was more powerful. Of that, I was sure.

I would certainly go another year without my own vehicle if my father found out that I took his car without permission.

Ravi made the engine roar. There was no one to authorize our departure. He raised one of his hands and started the countdown: 3

Accelerated, the tire screeched, leaving marks on the road. Ravi took the lead. The deserted streets of Curitiba allowed us to split quickly. We went to the main track at high speed and during almost the entire journey, Ravi was winning. This wasn’t the first time we’d run clandestine races through the city streets. I lost count of how many times I did this with Ravi himself, and how many other times I was the winner. I let him taste victory for a few more kilometers, until I accelerated, making all the vehicle’s power work in my favor, approaching me, meter by meter. The arrival was closer, less than ten kilometers. Overtook him in the following meters. Accelerate Even more. The taste of victory was sweet, and I let out a smile. I took my attention off the track, turning my face back to try to see the expression of fury on his face, but it was almost impossible, I was way ahead of him, when I turned around again, there was no more time to stop. My eyes widened.

I slammed on the brakes; the vehicle skidded down the road, losing speed little by little. 100, 80, 60 kilometers per hour until impact, but there was no time to avoid the accident. I just listened to the noise, with my eyes closed, and the body of a man being thrown across the track. A bicycle in front of me, almost destroyed. He broke the bumper and dented the front part. I had a deep cut on my eyebrow. My body ached, my head throbbed. I, still dizzy, unbuckled off the car, and almost collapsed when I realized what I had just done. Ravi parked his car a few meters away, but it didn’t take long. He reversed and immediately took off, leaving me alone to take all the blame.

“Cowardly son of a bitch”

What more could I expect from a guy who hated me?

I walked towards the man and checked his heartbeat.

“Please God, don’t let this man die. I don’t want to be arrested”

This idea of ​​prison almost paralyzed my ability to think. The man was still alive. I could just run away from there, but fear neutralized me. In my mind, if I stayed, maybe I could get away with it without having to go to jail.

Took my cell phone out of my pocket and 911.

“I ran over a man, please come quickly”

I showered a truckload of trouble on me. That man lying on the ground. Someone damaged my father's car. Disobedience, traffic violation. Drunk driving. How many years would I be in jail? Ten, twenty years? Maybe less or nothing if my dad posted bail? Could I answer freely? My head was buzzing with all the possibilities of the crime I had just committed. At least I was being brave enough to stand there and take the punishment I deserved.

The ambulance arrived, along with the police, in less than ten minutes. I still hoped the man was alive. Paramedics immobilized him and placed him on a stretcher. My heart eased. I know it’s a miracle that the man is alive, and despite the braking, the impact was hard, or maybe I braked enough not to kill him.

A police officer approached, identifying himself, and started asking me several questions. A Breathalyzer test was done. I’m fucked. The police officer ordered my arrest right away. He told my rights while handcuffing me. I closed my eyes. It was a nightmare, I’m going to wake up at any moment, but when I realized I was already inside the car, I was being directed to the police station.

Leticia Albuquerque

It was about midnight and the sound of the house next door was so loud that I could feel my bed shaking. I got up, highly irritated. João couldn’t sleep. The man didn't feel pain anymore. He didn’t complain either. He mumbled something when I left the house, perhaps to avoid the trouble I would cause. But their efforts were in vain. When I found myself, I was already there.

When I returned, he was still awake, now sitting on the bed.

“Are you okay?” he asked me, intrigued, and I took a while to answer the question.

“I am,” I replied, but I knew there was a huge frown line on my forehead.

“You don’t have to go there every time they decide to have a party” João was so concerned about not bothering others that he allowed others to take away even his peace. "They are good neighbors”.

“There is nothing good about disrupting the tranquility of the entire neighborhood." My voice came out harsh. ”Ravi is so lazy, and he has some horrible friends”.

“What was happening out there?"

João was already a gentleman of more than sixty years of age and, due to experience and coexistence, he knew me better than anyone else. Between his question and my answer, there was a silence, as I was still trying to understand the turmoil of feelings that were taking over me.

“Nothing to worry about. “I shrugged when I remembered that boastful boy. “I hope I never meet that man again in my life”.

“Who are you talking about?”

“Father” I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself down, throwing all the memories of that meeting to the back of my memory “it’s a pastime for you to be sleeping. I don’t want to receive complaints from Maria tomorrow, telling me that you slept all day”.

“Maria has nothing to complain about,” he snorted. He seemed irritated just by remembering her “are you sure you’re okay?”

”Better now.” I offered him a calming smile. "Tomorrow we’ll talk more about it”.

But we didn’t talk. I didn’t want to talk more about the events of that night, or remember Ravi’s parties or his annoying friends. I turned off the light and said my prayer one more time.

Daylight was already showing outside when I woke up before the alarm clock. I got up, watching my dad sleep, what felt like a heavy sleep. The snoring coming out of his lungs told me he wouldn’t be waking up anytime soon. I ran into the bathroom to take my shower and get ready for work. I intended to be ready before Maria arrived. Furthermore, I went into the kitchen and was making coffee when the front door opened with its rancher. Hurried footsteps came towards me as Maria’s crinkly, loving eyes met mine.

“Sorry I’m late,” she said, as she hung her worn-out bag on the jamb attached to the entrance wall.

I looked at the clock and found Maria’s perception of the time strange. It wasn’t even twenty minutes past her normal arrival time.

“It’s absurdly cold outside” she was still in a hurry to speak “and there was a horrible accident with my neighbor’s husband last night”.

“How did it happen?” I strained the coffee, and the smell was always wonderful.

“He was run over,” she seemed worried as said, “he was returning from his delivery work, when a car hit him. Miraculously, that man did not die”.

Maria walked towards me and filled a cup with coffee, not waiting for me to pour it into the carafe.

“Was it really that bad?”

“Extremely serious.” he took a sip. "He underwent surgery last night and is in a coma”.

“I’m sorry, Maria,” I looked at her, forgetting to drink my coffee. “Was the driver arrested?”

“He gave himself up” he took another drink. "He was driving drunk”.

I looked at her, really scared and thoughtful about the accident.

“How absurd,” my eyes bugged out. “I wish your neighbor a good recovery and that this driver is stuck for a long time”.

“I hope so.” He took the last sip of his coffee. He put the glass down in the sink and seemed to return to his own reality. “And how is João doing?”

”Asleep” that was when I remembered that I needed to drink my coffee before going to work “and due to the events of last night, he won’t wake up so early”.

“Another party?”

“It wouldn’t be news” I took a long sip and looked at her. "Don’t let him go hours without eating”.

“I’ll try to accomplish this impossible mission,” he said, “but don’t worry”.

“Thanks, Maria” I put on my coat and grabbed my purse. "See you tonight”.

I heard her say, “go with God” as I walked through the door. An icy wind hit my face, and I shivered. I hurried down the street when I saw Ravi at the door of his house with two other boys. None of them looked like the man from the night before. I sighed in relief. But Ravi looked worried. He didn’t notice me passing by, but he’ll soon hear from me when I knock again on his door, to let his parents know he’s been having a good time while they’re away.

I turned my attention to the path I was walking and twenty minutes later; I saw the big house from afar. The orphanage looked like those old medieval castles. Abandoned house, with haunted appearance. With huge imperial windows and walls built with brown bricks. It was located on a street isolated from the others on the west side of Curitiba. But that environment was familiar to me. I took the keys from my purse and crossed the extensive garden in front of the residence. I spotted Sister Adelina in the window above, watching me. Not only that, but I smiled at her before heading to the front door and stepping inside. Gustavo didn’t even give me time to lay my coat on one of the chairs at the entrance. He hugged me tight, like he did every morning.

“Good morning, champion.” I ran my hands over his back, while I bent down to be at his height. "Did you sleep well?”

“Like every night,” he smiled, and they mostly made his teeth of milk. “She had small eyes and her hair was straight”.

“Do you have your breakfast yet? I asked”.

“I was waiting for you”.

Gustavo was an orphan. His parents had died in a car accident when he was just two years old. No close relative wanted to stay with him. Now, at the age of six, the Mother Teresa Orphanage was the home he had, and I was the family he knew.

“I need to go say my prayers,” he reminded him, “and only then will I have coffee with you. Can you wait?”

“Of course I did. I stood up, still looking into his eyes”.

“Wait for me in the cafeteria and in twenty minutes I’ll be there”.

He nodded and hurried off towards the other room of the house. I went downstairs to the basement and into the chapel. The orphanage was an old empire farm. Built in 1859, it was a successful Baron’s home. The chapel has remained intact since its construction. Of all the rooms in that house, this one was my favorite. I was not a Catholic, but a Protestant heretic, as Sister Adelina referred to me. But I liked going to that place and getting down on my knees, even if it wasn’t in front of the images. I thanked God for that day and for everything else.

On one of those days, weeks after the party at Ravi’s house, while I was praying in the chapel, the sister entered the room with hurried steps. Standing next to me, with the grumpy air she always had, she brought me news that made me very uncomfortable.

“We received a court order” I stood up, looking at her with wide eyes. "A condemned boy will come to the orphanage to perform community service here”.

“And you accepted?”

“The big house belongs to the government,” ​​she remained with a not very pleasant expression. "We only maintain the orphanage because of donations from public bodies. We cannot deny it. Nor should we”.

“A criminal inside the orphanage?”

Sister Adelina said nothing about my comment.

“You will be responsible for supervising the boy,” he informed me. "He arrives on Monday”.

“I can’t…” I stammered, finding that an affront. “I already take care of the children, I won’t have time for that”.

“It will continue to take care of it,” he said. "It will only have one more member”.

“But…”

“No complaints.” She held up her hand in a stop sign. “You’re well paid to work. So work”.

I watched as the sister turned her back and hurried out of the chapel as quickly as she came. I collapsed onto the bench behind me and wondered what God’s purpose in my life was for all of this.