Changless

It was so similar to every other day. It was winter and the cold always took a toll on him. The trek was the same, as he cut thru the park in route to the bus and off to school. As he braced himself for the cold he also had to prepare himself for the inevitable encounter. His nemesis was Chris. The person that felt it his personal responsibility to torture and tease him ad nauseum, making his life a living hell. He had just recently found a way around the normal daily events. In just switching up his daily routine by thirty minutes, he had been able to avoid the wrath of his chastier. He had stumbled on this completely by accident. Just one day he had been awoke by the noise that normally fades into the background of his neighborhood. The yelling, the screaming, the cars playing music loud all of it that normally had no bearing on himself had woke up that morning. So he decided to start his day earlier and that thirty minutes had made all the difference in his world.

He had made it to school and everything seemed the same. But the normal pattern that he was use to had changed and thrown off his tormentor Chris. For whatever reason he had faded into the background. Chris was completely distracted and it was if he did not exist. For whatever reason the attacks had stopped and he was able to enjoy school for once. So this morning was no different. He had kept to the same schedule and he was on his way to the bus. As he continued thru the park he saw a leather messenger bag that was hanging onto the side of the park bench. It looked expensive and it was way too nice to be unattended to in his neighborhood. He approached the bag slowly, looking around to see if there was anyone moving towards him or the bag at that moment. There had to be an owner, but where? He reached for and opened the bag looking for some form of identification. And as he opened the bag he saw a black leather notebook and a smaller brown grocery bag. He opened the notebook and saw that it was some sort of planner. He looked at today's date and was shocked to see his mother's name listed along with an amount of money listed. Shocked, he opened the brown paper bag and started to count the money. It was a series of twenties, fifties and one hundred dollar bills. In total, it was twenty thousand dollars which matched the dollar amount beside his mother's name. He had never seen so much money in his life! He looked around again pensively, not knowing who was watching him or who might be coming back to collect the bag. He lifted the bag and placed it on his shoulder, trying to look nonchalant as he walked back home.

He slowly walked from the park back to his home. School would not be attended today. His mom had long since left and was at work and it would give him time to think about what to do with the information in this bag. He doubled timed it back home, making sure that his nosey neighbor Ms. Jones did not see him sneak back into his unit. The eased back into the small two bedroom. It was dark and he was not use to seeing it in the dim light of the morning. It was tidy and meticulous, as required by his mother. With it being just she and him, he had become proficient and making sure the place was immaculate. He knew better than to arouse the anger of his mother by not keeping the home to her liking. His mother's Puerto-Rican and African American heritage equalled fire for him if he found himself out line. But now, in this space, he had time to process his thoughts and to think what he needed to do. He opened the bag and counted the money again. What in the world? Whose money is this? And why was his mother's name in this leather notebook? Never would he believe that he would be holding this much money at one time. To say that he and his mother lived modestly was an understatement. Poor would be a better descriptor of their life together. They had never had a lot, just the two of them really. His mother worked at a hotel as a maid. And while stable, it did just enough to pay the bills, but never provided a substantial padding. And now in his hand was more money than he had ever seen and a notebook that indicated that the dollar amount was for his mother. He thumbed thru the rest of the leather notebook. There were other names, some of which he knew and lived in his building. Along with each name was a red check and the word 'paid' next to the name of each person in the notebook. In looking at the book, the check and the confirmation of payment had not yet been written next to his mother's name.

Now what he needed to do was unravel this mysterious. Starting with why is mother's name was in this book? And then, figuring out the reason the money found in the leather bag was earmarked for his mother? So many questions that needed answering. He would begin with the first piece of the puzzle, trying to figure out the initial embossed on the notebook - J.M.S.