The light breeze helps cool my flushed skin. When we reach the block that houses the animal shelter, Matthew turns his attention to his left. Across the street is a large park with walking paths, basketball courts, and jungle gyms for kids to play on. Over the years, I’ve witnessed many families partaking in picnics and play dates, friends gathering to shoot hoops, and women walking and talking on the paths. It’s a great place, one of the few in this part of the city.
When he stops, we both watch the activity going on across the street for several minutes. We pay no attention to the people walking around us, their mutters of frustration as we take up a large section of real estate on the sidewalk. Usually, I’d insist on moving, to not block the walkway for others, but for some reason, I stay where I am. I focus on the smiling mom, pushing her young daughter on the swing. At the taunting and teasing of the boys playing basketball on the court. At the couple sitting on a blanket under the tree, feeding each other grapes from a small plastic container. Suddenly, I’m smiling at their jovialness, too. At the little slice of heaven they’ve all created, even for just a short period of time.
“Do you have to go back right away?” Matthew asks, glancing down and meeting my gaze.
“No. I’m not volunteering anymore today.”
The ghost of a smile plays on his lips. “Would you take a walk with me across the street?”
I feel the grin spread across my lips almost immediately. “I’d love to,” I reply, squeezing his hand.
He nods and turns, leading me through the crosswalk when we have the right of way and toward the grassy area before us. I’m not exactly sure why I’m so giddy about walking with Matthew, but all I know is I am. In fact, I’m more content with spending time with him in a park than I’ve ever been.
I’m just not sure how long it will last.
How long until Boardroom Matthew returns, leaving this calmer, more authentic version behind?
I might as well hold on to it while it lasts.
Chapter Seven
Mason
Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve been to a park? Yeah, me neither. When Matthew and I were growing up, we’d go mostly to play basketball or baseball with friends. We’d play until the streetlights came on, which was our cue to get home for dinner.
As I was watching the kids play across the street, the memories came flooding back. That was when Matthew and I still had common interests. When you’re young, you can find mutual ground with Legos and a ball and glove. It was as we got into high school, our differences really started to show. No, not in appearance. We were still as identical as you could get, but in our personalities and interests. Matthew had always been better academically, but I won hand over fist in things like science club and shop class. I thrived in FFA, or Future Farmers of America, while Matthew was better suited at leading the debate team and student council.
By the time high school ended, we knew he was destined for bigger and better things. With his 4.0 grade point average and his stats on the baseball team, Matthew was receiving offers left and right for schools that cost more per year than most cars. Me, I was headed for full-time employment with a local construction company a town over.
My parents always did what they could to be fair between my brother and me, but we all knew that post-high school assistance was going to be limited, especially with Matthew eyeing Ivy League schools. The day I told them I wasn’t going to college and choosing to work full time, I saw the relief in their eyes. Both of my parents worked hard, but in a small town of two thousand in Pennsylvania, there’s only so much they could do. Mom worked at the local laundromat and dry cleaners, while Dad spent all his days pouring concrete for a small outfit in town.
When the weather would turn shitty and he’d get laid off from pouring concrete, Dad helped as a farmhand at a large dairy and beef operation just outside of town. That’s actually how I got the taste for raising animals. I used to beg him to take me with him to work on Saturdays and holidays, preferring the dirt and grit of taking care of animals over gaming consoles like my friends. By that point, Matthew was knee-deep in his studies or one of his many girlfriends and didn’t have time for the breakout basketball games or playing catch in the backyard like he used to.
I wish I could say that was when our relationship changed, but I know that’d be a lie. We had always been able to play off each other’s differences and weaknesses, but by that point in high school, the distance was too far. Our bond was broken, and it was both of our faults. So, we both went our separate ways after we graduated high school, making lives of our own without the brotherhood we always had.
“You’re thinking awfully hard over there,” Kyla says, pulling me from the memories of my past.
I feel her hand give mine a little squeeze as we slowly stroll toward the walking path. “I was just thinking about how my brother and I used to play basketball with friends in a park like this growing up.”
“Mason, right?” When I glance down at her, she gives me a small grin and adds, “You mentioned his name last night.”
“Yeah, Mason. We’re identical twins and used to play ball with friends as much as possible. It was better than being stuck inside
