John appeared tall and skinny as if he had always been slender. His hair was a sandy blonde, the color of an Italians olive skin. His muscles were shaped strong, especially each of his arms. If you were to look into John’s eyes they were a deep crystal green that glimmered. Through any of John’s roughness, he had a soft appearance. He had a younger brother with him. His name was Chris. He, unlike his older brother happened to be short in stature. His hair was dark brown and he was built like his brother. You see, these bothers, though they were close they were born having two different fathers. This made them feel different from everyone making every feeling, talk, or gesture, an awkward mess.

They were almost alone in Miami. They were homeless and had to panhandle for a slight lunch. They were sunburnt all summer. They had started their daily round during this blinding afternoon. They ventured though the housing looking for friends to leech from. As John and Chris passed kids played and talked and their parents stared. The staring sent vibes that they were trashy crack heads and a hidden warning to stay the hell away. They stopped at the elderly ladies home and drank from the water hose on the side of her light yellow home. She never seemed to mind. To her this was like feeding the neighborhood stray cats. As they walked further, with the taste of the saltwater in their mouths, they could tell they were getting near the beach. This, in one shot, warmed their bodies and cooled their minds.

Walking along the beach they stopped by the light blue beach house. They could remember the fights, the broken glass, the desperate screaming the memories would never subside. The parents had trouble taking care of themselves and their habits. Their kids being out of the question were uncontrollable. As the parents ditched, days went by and little by little the lights, heating, air, & phone were all lost. John being about 13, decided he knew enough about being alone considering his parents were about half past worthless. So, him and his little brother went their own way, knowing they refused to be state-wards and the fact that the cops always screwed over the little bit that made their lives. There wasn’t much of a childhood but he was taught to trust only his own kind.

They walked along the gutter and had seen green. “Are we really seein’ this!” Stopping they pulled out a bag stuffed with twenties. The amount of money was beyond them. “Kinda looks hot wouldn’t ya say?”, Chris asked. Even knowing it was worth keeping they both knew they’d defiantly get a better reward for returning it. By five pm they hit up the police department. With no whip they were really worn out. The man at the front desk made a call. Fifteen minutes later Joe rushed to collect his money. Joe was a multi-millionaire in his late 40’s. He was average looking with black hair. Joe’s heart ached when he seen the condition these boys were in. Joe offered them a place to stay for a while if would get a jump on their live and except help. “Why not, ya know we need it”. They had a fresh start and with time got jobs and an apartment of their own.

The apartment was just the right size to be comfortable, “Cozy”. It was clean and even had colored walls, “Lucky these walls ain’t light blue” John blurted. “No kidding!” Chris answered. In a way even John (18) had moved beyond his past and found himself. They were both permanently changed.

Months after they move in John found the love of his life. She was pregnant and they were getting married. Chris got to keep the apartment and even found a girlfriend of his own. “What just happened”, he asked himself. “ I have my own life worth living”, a single tear dripped down his cheek. He started over and this was just the begging of his life. It was laid out before him and they could have never seen it coming. “Damn!”