The bell rang in my old elementary school in Orlando Florida it began the worst day of my life. I ran to the bus that takes me home as fast as my chubby seven year old legs could move. As I ran out the main doors of the school, I get disoriented by the sun and get lost trying to find bus number seventeen, I found the bus in the second row third bus back from the front. I bolted up the steps and sat in my normal seat in the middle of the bus. I was more excited than usual to see my dad. Then I became annoyed because the dirtiest fifth grader rode my bus. He was so dirty he was like a living landfill and decided to sit next to me out of all days.

I was thinking to myself “what the heck is wrong with him?”

“everyone knows that i’m a loner”. So I just sat on the inside of the seat and watched the cars pass by while on our way to my bus stop. At every bus stop before mine I would stick my head out the window to feel the breeze on my face and for some reason payed attention to the passing cars.

I remember seeing my dream car that I wanted to build from the frame up with my dad pass me by when I got off the bus. But it was my dads friends 1969 cherry red camaro roaring into the parking lot, where he came to pick me and his son up from the bus stop. As I sat back in the car my stomach started to tighten and the butterflies began to grow as I felt the vibrations from the engine shake the car. When we pulled out of the bus stop the car made a unbelievably loud roar and I was being pushed further and further into the seat. Driving down the streets of town that day was the most fun I had in awhile.

when we pulled into my dads friends driveway I saw Mama my great grandma and my cousin victoria but I always called her aunt victoria because she was like a aunt to me because I would spend most of my days when I was younger at her house with all my older and younger cousins.

Mama said for me to get in the car and help them with my sisters because they aren't listening to her or victoria right then, but I didn't understand her because she only speaks spanish and when she does speak she speaks FAST, so Aunt Victoria translated that for me because I was still learning spanish. I got into her old rusty red minivan and calmed my two little sisters down. After I got them calmed Victoria came and told me to stay in the van because we are leaving to go to Mama’s house.

I said “Ok.”

I didn't want to leave because I wanted to ride in the camaro still. As I put on my seatbelt I see Mama on the phone with someone and Aunt Victoria talking to my dads friend. For some reason the look on their faces really made me uneasy. But me being a seven year old I forgot about their faces and the feeling I had in matter of minutes.

The car ride to Mama’s felt like it took hours but Aunt Victoria put on my favorite radio station to pass the time, but in reality it really took fifteen minutes. When we got out of the van I raced my sisters to the door, I won sense I was older and had longer legs but I barely won. My little sisters were in a lot better shape than I was. Looking back on that I wish i was less fat and in better shape. After that I was too exhausted to play with Jillian, Maddie, and my little cousins so I sat on the couch with my cousins and watched them play Call Of Duty. I loved watching them play, they would always get super excited and hype when they played each other. The sad thing is I wasn’t aloud to play because my mom thought they were too violent for me, but my older cousins would sneak me the extra remote when the parents weren't around. Today was different, instead of me playing with them I play “Monster Hunter Freedom 2” on the PSP with my oldest cousin louis.

We sat on the couch in front of the window waiting for my dad while we played on our PSP’s. My Mom got to Mama’s in middle of mine and louis’s mission on our favorite game. Latter the same night Mom and my coolest cousin Miguel called me to the kitchen table. I was so scared because I thought she found out about me playing Call Of Duty with my cousins, but instead of her Miguel wanted to talk to me. I was extremely scared because as soon as

he said “Papi we need to talk” my mom bursted out in tears that i’ve never seen before.

He said “Popi we need to talk… It’s about your dad… I don’t know how to put this but Ramon won’t be around at all anymore.”

I asked what “do you mean” with a weak and shaky voice. As I said that I thought to myself  he meant my Dad went back to jail but for good this time.

“Papi earlier today about the time you got out of school your dad was killed…” when Miguel said the  word “killed” I knew it was true because I remember seeing Mama’s and Victoria’s faces from earlier.

I said “you are lying, he couldn’t be dead, he my dad he’s the best the strongest dad ever.” then miguel gave me the last drawing he worked on and the hat he was making to surprise me with today when I saw him. I couldn’t take that so I ran to the couch where I cried and looked out the window, like I was waiting for him to walk in at any moment and say this is all just a really bad prank.

But as the night moved on all the memories I had with my dad came flooding in. it made me sad and scared because I remembered the last fight I had with him and I told him “I hated him” like a spoiled little brat. I couldn’t remember what we were fighting over, but I just wanted to tell him one last time that I loved him know that he knew that but it would made me feel a lot better but I knew he was in a better and happier place and he would be waiting for me and my family on the other side. His death made everyone's life a lot harder from that day on.