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***
But as I thought, I was sad at night. I thought about writing to Terry, but it was kind of uncomfortable, for I myself had asked to be left alone. I couldn't believe the support from Milhouse. I even had a funny thought of calling Jessica.... That's a sign that I need help.
- Thinking of you. - I ended up texting my one and only.
- Are you doing this on purpose? Are you trying to give me nightmares? - to a classmate I'm in touch with, Isabela Gutierrez.
After receiving this gentle message, my heart wasn't quite at peace. So I decided to wander round the house for a while. In fact, I decided to go to the kitchen.
- D-d-do. Finish it. Cheese. - where a dying Homer was eating slices of cheese.
There was no one on the ceiling, so I exhaled quietly. I grabbed a bottle of orange soda, chips, jerky, and carrots. What?! After losing weight, crisps and jerky are too rich in flavour for me, I'll need something to break them up!
- Eighty-nine... Hmm! - Wishing Homer luck in his struggle to myself, I went back to my room.
Opening the window, nostalgia kicked in. It's been a long time since I've been up on the roof. Although I climb into windows quite often, especially my girlfriend's window, but there I am interested in a different process than admiring the view from a height.
From the roof of my house, surprisingly, Springfield was in the palm of my hand. You could see both the lights of the city and the stars over the rural part of town. You could make out both the elementary and middle schools. And in the distance, tyres lit up like a pack of fireflies.
I opened a packet of crisps and munched on them, enjoying the barely perceptible breeze that barely ruffled my fringes.
I felt a strange peace. Like running a marathon. Now I could exhale in peace. I lay on the roof, watching the lights of the city merge with the lights of the night sky. For about half an hour I just breathed, occasionally grabbing some chips, jerky or carrots, and drinking lemonade. For the first time in days I felt nice and calm, until....
- What are you doing? - Zubrila didn't come up to the roof. I'm surprised she had the courage. She's not eight years old enough to do something without thinking first.
- I'm lying down. - I answered honestly.
- On the roof? Don't you have anywhere else to do it? - Lisa hovered over me. She's wearing pretty cute pink pyjamas with flowers on them. I expected her to sleep covered in liberal slogans.
- Either join in or stay out of the way.
- Okay. - Lisa sat next to me. Considering she's wearing a sweatshirt over her pyjamas, that's what she'd originally planned. - Are you worried about getting hurt today?
- I am! - Oh, man, I almost killed that guy. I don't know, should I at least send flowers to the hospital?
- I guess my hunch was wrong. - With a blank, somewhat judgemental look, Zubrila spoke up.
- Ha, Liz - it's wrestling, a contact sport. Injuries are commonplace in it. After all, I've had one myself recently, and I don't hold a grudge against Ricksteiner. - but I do want to kick some arse!
- And you like it? - With a kind of melancholy in her voice asked Lisa, somehow knocked out of me the spirit to joke, or answer without thinking.
- Mm-hmm. I guess I do. - third year already? Maybe I just can't imagine myself anywhere else, having given so many years to wrestling. Almost one-sixth of my life.
- So what are your plans? For the future? A career? - From melancholy to hard questions, that's the reason why you don't have any friends, Liz. - Don't tell me you're going to be a gym teacher?
- I hate kids. - I was honest with Lisa.
- What are you guys doing? - as the head of the third resident of the east side of the Simpson house appeared out the window. Well, maybe the west side. Or south or north, I don't have my compass with me!
As much as I was worried about Maggie, who had no one to learn how to climb up on the roof with, I climbed up and helped her. That's how we ended up on the roof, all three of us. It's kind of weird.
- Haa... You've got a lot of learning to do. - I poked Maggie in the forehead, which made her pout. - When you go up on the roof, it's best to bring warm clothes.
For today, I gave her my jacket. Which, because of its size, was almost as big as her coat. The sight of Maggie made Lisa and me laugh. The younger Simpson, of course, pouted even more.
- Bart, I don't love you anymore! - shouting at me, Maggie sat down next to Lisa. who laughingly hugged her little sister.
- Well, not anymore, that's about as cool as I can get. - and I got a little joke out of me.
- What your girlfriend didn't tell you that? - Lisa raised an eyebrow in interest.
- Bart has a girlfriend?! How could he?! - Maggie jumped in her seat, looking up at me and down at Lisa.
- I don't think so, do you? - You didn't, did you?
- Ha, are you two even in a relationship? - Zubrila grinned. - Don't worry, Maggie, Bart doesn't have a girlfriend.
- I've got everything, we're even engaged-- - During my protest, my gaze fell on Maggie, who, like Lisa, was staring at me with a glazed look. So I froze with my mouth open, realising I shouldn't finish my sentence.
- Not in front of Maggie, Bart! - Lisa blushed and jumped angrily.
- Can you date without love? - Maggie was interested in a question that was no less complicated than the one Lisa had asked about the future.
Of course, to explain about what sex is and how on its basis can arise a relationship - I did not. And not because Lisa's eyes were glittering with a willingness to kill. Instead, I came at the question from a different angle:
- Well love is a strong word in itself. It's pretty hard to know whether you're in love with a person, or whether you just enjoy her company.
- How hard is that? - Maggie was genuinely surprised by my answer. - I can easily figure out that I love Mum, Dad, Lisa, and.... - Meggie looked at me with resentment. - Snow.
- Love is different, Meggie... - Nibbler came to my rescue with a heavy sigh. - You can love family, you can love friends, but it's not the same as love between a boy and a girl.
- What's the best kind?
At Maggie's question, Lisa and I looked at each other, not knowing what to say. I guess there's no right answer. But I think there is one, even if it's different for everyone. It depends on the character of a person. After all, family gives comfort, friends give understanding, and romance pleasure. Of course, ideally, they give everything all at once, but the cornerstones are just that. It seems to me.
- There is no right answer to this question. All love is important. - Lisa answered. Apparently, she thinks differently than I do. Well, she's smarter, she knows better. - Although friendship is overrated....
Oh, does someone seem to be expressing their grievances? Don't you know, Lisa, that when raising a child, you shouldn't impose your views on it?
- Ha! - as soon as a laugh escaped my lips, Lisa immediately gave me an understanding look of judge and executioner in one person. So I refrained from commenting.
The three of us spent about an hour on the roof, talking about school and friends (in this case, it was not a conversation, but a dialogue between the two), Maggie remembered the past, which made Lisa and me smile and laugh at what was once there. I was able to ask them about the trip. And with that, we said our goodbyes. I picked up Maggie, went downstairs with her to my room, from which she had already gone to her own. I was finally able to get some sleep.
- Are you alive in there? - even though I got a text from Isabella before that.
.....
- Whoo! - In the morning, it turned out that I had left a snack on the roof, which was now on the lawn.
Having brought the soda with me, the rest had already managed to attract wildlife. The carrots attracted rabbits, the jerky attracted stray dogs and the crisps attracted fat children. The latter.
- No, the life-giving source. - reacted like vampires to a blood bag when I picked up the bottle.
Frightened by the spherical horde, I pressed on the pedals and hurried away, though I should have turned around after ten metres.
- Haaaa... Haaaaah. - The little thing sat on all fours, clutching at his heart and breathing heavily.
- Is this how the next generations are disappointed? - Having grown up a bit, I pedalled up again, heading out for a workout.
.....
My win at the competition guaranteed me a return to Category-A. When I heard about the upcoming tournament, I immediately went online to check the list of competitors. Bron Ricksteiner was on it, which doubled my energy in training.
- What are you doing here? - as usual, after school, I stopped by to pick up Jessica. Who was annoyed.
- Well, you still have dirt on me, so I have to do my job. - I wonder if I believe what I'm saying.
- Well, it's good that you've got it all figured out. - I could tell by the smile, the playful eyes, and the chuckle that Jessica didn't believe them.
So I started walking Jessica again. A couple of times someone did follow her, but I quickly scared away the innocent victims of her devious scheming.... Am I on the wrong side of the force? Then I'd go to training.
On weekends, I spent time with either Milhouse or Terry. Of course, the time with Terry was more enjoyable, but I tried not to forget about my friend. The only problem was Sherry, with whom it was still dangerous for me to be alone. But I did learn that her favourite fruit was banana.
Things were back to normal with the family. Which meant we hardly saw each other. Except Maggie looked me up a couple of times to play something. I tried to agree, but I didn't always have the time, or the energy. Anyway, I comforted myself with the fact that I had sacrificed a girl and spielie-wagging a few times for a game of tea party with my sister. Doesn't that make me a good brother!!! Cam, I'm seventeen!
Then came the competitions. Not without problems, for the level of the guys from the top category was much higher, but I managed to reach the final, where Bron Ricksteiner was waiting for me. The bull that injured me, you could say, my main opponent.
- With a time of six minutes and thirty-nine seconds, the winner was Bart Simpson.
Taking revenge on him after a two-game losing streak, we evened the score. What Bron realised, I realised, was that this wasn't our last meeting of the year. And frankly, it made me happy. I wanted to clash with him at the national finals and at the qualifiers for the Olympics.
And naturally, I expect to win both times!
-Half a year later-
- You worried, kid? - Coach Engle spoke to me in the locker room. TV, and the qualifiers will be shown all over the country...
Without saying anything, I took a sip of water from the bottle, adjusting my tights. I'd grown broader in the shoulders lately.
- And then, as luck would have it, my first opponent is the bloody Ricksteiner. - at the mention of my Nemesis, a smile spreads across my lips.
- Three-three? To put a point in front of the cameras, and for the whole country? - The idea of defeating the guy responsible for three of my four defeats had never looked so tempting.