Time Will Tell

Well its another Monday but we are  gonna be lazy today since we had a rough day at work and an appointment to go to in the morning. So today i'm going share another bit of a story I wrote a while back. As customary if you are interested enough just say so in the comments and I will post the rest of the story. On  a side note another reason today is a lazy blog day is cause i'm currently trying to plan an interview segment to cover a major event that is going to be happening here in Jamaica on the 27th of April so you can look forward to that blog-post next week. So please do leave your feedback on this little piece of myself that I wrote called "Time Will Tell"...

It was an ordinary day; most people would be bored with an ordinary day, but not her and definitely not him. It was a sunny, Saturday afternoon; the smell of freshly cut grass remained lingering in the air, as the sound of children playing echoed across the park. Only to be overshadowed by the occasional joyful rejoicing of proud parents watching their children play in the weekly scheduled soccer match. He sat there on his bench staring at her from underneath the rim of his baseball cap; he imagined what it would be like just for one chance. Just to smell the essence of her body, feel the warmth of her skin pressed up against his, to run his fingers through her silky smooth hair; he quickly snapped back to reality.

This was the weekly ritual of Orlando James and Maria Espinoza; a teacher at Mayfield Elementary deep in the heart of American suburbia and a single mom cheering on her child at his weekly soccer match. Orlando was a graduate from Howard State University, with a B.A. in Teaching and a Minor in Sports, while Maria was a single mother with a mysterious allure that needed no explanation. She was respected by few and envied by many, but that was of no consequence to her as her main source of pride and joy was right in front of her playing soccer on the field with his friends.

Orlando had a pretty rough childhood growing up; his parents died in a tragic plane crash over the Pacific Ocean; he was too young to even remember their faces, and only found out many years later while pursuing his degree. He was lucky that his mother’s sister, Susan, took him in and cared for him as her own; somehow Susan felt responsible for what had happened and gave her all for Orlando. Growing up he had all a boy could ever want and much more; she pampered and smothered him with affection and attention. Some would say he even loved her more than he would his own mother; but towards the end of high school he felt like something was still missing, and against Susan’s wishes, decided to become a teacher and dedicate his life to educating and cultivating young minds.

He spent the next four years developing his mind and his body, to begin his journey into defining his own life and becoming the type of man his parents would have wanted him to be. He grew into a handsome young man; fair complexion, light blue eyes, dark brown hair, 5’ 10’, toned athletic body, always neatly shaved and trimmed topped off with a smile that could brighten the gloomiest of days. Orlando was the newest member on staff and in the community, but everyone quickly grew to accept and admire his presence of character. He was the type of man that young or old, you felt a certain sense of admiration for him, from his flawless smile to his piercing blue eyes he was truly a sight to behold.

As Orlando sat there nonchalantly alternating between coaching the Little League soccer match and admiring the woman of his dreams, his stupor is interrupted by the sound of the whistle blowing, signaling the end of the game. Orlando quickly comes out of his daze and goes about his duties; he goes over and shakes the hand of the opposing team’s Coach and gives him a pat on the back for a game well played. He walks away with his trademark smile feeling quite pleased because his team had won four goals to two. He walks over to his team and hoist one particular young lad up on his shoulders, and leads off with the other players a rousing cheer of hip-hip hooray. Orlando turns around to see Maria standing and clapping as he takes Enrique off his shoulders and he runs over to the bleachers and embraces Maria.

He walks over and has a brief word with her.

“Good day Miss Espinoza; quite the little soccer star you have on your hands,” said Orlando as he pat Enrique on his head ruffling up his hair.

“He gets it from his father.” Maria replied modestly whilst brushing back a lock of her raven colored hair. “God rest his soul;” she sighed silently and pulled little Enrique in closer. Maria peered into her son’s eyes and regained her composure seeing his eyes stare back at her, “So another win under your belt, you must be feeling great?” she asked with keen interest.

Orlando’s face begins to turn a bright shade of red, with his hands in his pockets

“Well I would be lying if I said it wasn’t a great feeling but it’s really the kids that do the hard work and put in the effort to make it all happen.” He pauses uncertainly “Speaking of which; I’m having a little victory get together for the parents and kids, I would really appreciate it if you and your son could make it.”

She pauses for a moment and thinks to herself “Hmmm; another night alone with Enrique cooped up in the house alone or a night filled with merriment……?”

“Sure why not” she quickly responds. “Under one condition…..”

“Sure anything you want just name it?” he asked. Orlando’s facial expression betrays him and shows his overjoyed reaction at her response.

“We get some alone time to get to know each other a bit better.” Maria replied.

Orlando stood dumbfounded, as his brain tried to reboot from the bombshell that his ears just received. “Are you serious…?” he stuttered incoherently.

She grins a devilish grin and says “Did I stutter?”

He quickly grabs her hand firmly, but gently in one fell swoop and looks deep into soft hazel colored eyes as he replies “You have yourself a deal; just be sure you are at 453 Warmont Avenue for the party at 3pm.” 

As Maria turns to carry her son home, her hand falls from Orlando’s ever so slowly holding on for every last bit of contact from his skin to hers as they turn around and both go their separate ways. She can feel her pulse and heart racing as she smiles to herself and leaves the park with Enrique, while Orlando walked to his pickup truck with surprising vigor and a smile on his face that made even the sun jealous; he was off to prepare the evening’s festivities.