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I shake my head, angry that the option of keeping my nightmares to myself has now been taken from my me. I turn in the opposite direction and jog towards the Lakewood Football Club instead. As I walk out onto the field, I suck in a deep breath as memories of my dad flood my mind.
I kicked my first footy when I was three. Dad introduced me to Australian Rules footy. He’d been a good player back in his day, good enough to make the Victorian Football League, but then he blew his knee in his second game. He wanted to share the love of the game with us, but Sam and Jake hadn’t been interested. Sam wasn’t into sport and Jake was better at basketball. Kicking a football came as natural to me as breathing, so it was our thing. Just ours. I loved that.
I drop to the cool grass, still breathing heavy from my run. The sun already has some kick in it, despite only being just past six in the morning. Closing my eyes, I shield them with my arm.
I miss you so much, Dad!
3
Waking to the sound of buzzing, I rub my swollen eyes and grab my phone from my bedside table, blinking as the screen comes into focus. I groan. Twenty past six! I consider letting it go to voicemail, but it’s Jake. Guilt courses through me as I think about the funeral yesterday and what Oliver and his family must be going through. I swipe the screen.
“Hey Jake.” I unsuccessfully swallow a yawn.
He clears his throat. “Hey. Sorry for calling so early.”
I flop my head back onto my pillow as I cradle the phone between my ear and shoulder. “All good. What’s up?”
“I’m looking for Oli.”
I snort. “It’s not even seven in the morning, why would he be with me?” Silence greets me from the other end of the phone. “Jake? What’s going on?”
“Uh… it’s nothing. He just isn’t in his room, but his phone is still there. I guess I thought he might have gone to see you.”
“He’s probably out for a run,” I suggest.
“Yeah. Probably.”
Why is he so concerned about his brother?“Is there something else? Did something happen?”
“No. Nothing. Everything’s fine. You’re right, I’m sure he just went for a run.”
I groan again. It’s far too early in the morning for me, but if Oliver isn’t out for a run there’s only one other place he’d be. “I think I know where he might be. Do you want me to go see?”
“Would you?” Relief coats his response.
I let out another groan but he just adds, “You’re the best, Han,” and hangs up on me.
I stare at my phone.Well, I guess there’s no more sleep for me.
Yawning again, I drag my butt out of bed. I throw on some sweats, tie my hair into a messy bun, and grab my phone. Mum and Dad are asleep, but my younger brother is already in the living room playing his PlayStation.
“Where are you going so early?” Brad raises his eyebrows. “Why are you even out of bed?”
I sit on the edge of the couch to put on my sneakers. “I’m going for a walk.”
Brad snorts. “Don’t vampires combust in the sunshine?”
I roll my eyes.
The weather’s already warm and I peel my sweater off as I make my way toward the football ground. If Oliver is hiding out, that’s where he’d be. When he was seven, he broke Sam’s favourite special edition model GT. He packed his bag and ran away to the football club. At eleven, when he got into trouble for breaking a window at school playing dice cricket, I found him hiding out in the scoreboard shed. When we decided to wag school to be like the other fifteen-year-old “cool” kids, we spent the day kicking the ball around at the oval.
I find him lying in the centre square, his arms crossed over his face. I send a text to Jake to let him know I’ve found his brother and sit down cross-legged next to my best friend.
“Hey.” I nudge him with my knee. “You okay?”
He raises his arm from his eyes and squints up at me. “What’re you doing here?”
“I was out for a walk.”
