As soon as Ellie finished her food, and Diago half of his own,

He had to throw together a few things together.

Lunches, for the three of them, put the plates in the sink, set his Pa’s breakfast out with a quick note, and his lunch in the fridge and got ready to go.

Snatching up his book-bag and car keys, he ushered Ellie into the backseat, buckling her up before he jumped in the front, the engine of the car revving to life.

Diago stared at the house he’d grown up in for a while. Of course not very long in terms of real time, but a good few minutes or so. Thoughts, old memories, smells, sounds, feelings. So many things of him were kept, locked up, inside of that very house.

It wasn’t like the house looked bad, even through their struggles. It was a vibrant yellow color, the siding taking up only half to reveal grey stones. Even after years of wind, rain, snow and whatever have you. The left side was covered in a tangle of vines and blue flowers, along with the entire back of the house

It made Diago sad in a way, though not very much that he didn’t have very many memories of his Ma in that house. A sharp feeling twisted in his chest at the fact, Ellie, had none.

Poor Ellie didn’t even get to meet his Ma or their Ma. Could he really call her that? That ‘woman’ had left them all alone, to struggle, and without two parents. It made him so, he wasn’t sure he could say angry because that didn’t quite hit the mark.

Diago then shut those thoughts down, because he didn’t need her to be happy. Think of what expression his Pa would make because he would think he wasn’t enough when he was.

Pa was the only one who had stayed, he and Ellie could’ve been orphaned. Being the way he was, he refused to let some ‘Mommy Issues’ dictate his life. It would be a cold day in the Sahara before he let that happen, which was hopefully never.

With that being said,

he couldn’t help but think of what he did remember of her.

A soft smile, long blonde hair that seemed almost white, and the prettiest grey eyes. Sad to say, he couldn’t remember her features anymore, nor the real tone of voice, just soft words, and lullabies.

That had kept him up late many a night, not being able to remember what she looked or sounded like. Everyone but him seemed to know it wasn’t his fault, yet it still remained something he regretted, not being able to keep that vivid image. That very house where she had been with he and his Pa until Ellie came into the world. Thinking about it brought that familiar pinprick sensation to his eyes.

Not right now, he had thought.

Those feelings were too much for him to handle in the daylight, and were more of something he faced in the middle of the night, staring at a younger, more naive version of himself.

A quick check of the time told him the harsh reality of 7:40.

It was time to go.

Completing the task of dropping his sister off at elementary school, he was sent on his way to his own torture of demand, not of choice, mind you.

High-school.

Sorry thing was, he had to drop the car off at home and bike to school.

They only had one vehicle and his Pa worked in town, which means it was strictly off limits to use during his Pa’s workdays.

In layman’s terms it meant, Diago was not allowed to drive to school,

or use the car for personal use in any way.

Leg day was every day.

Wheeling it out of the garage brought a sigh to the surface, and he threw his leg over the frame, getting properly seated before checking his watch.

It wasn’t Gucci or anything, but it was a good watch, good enough for a broke kid like him anyway.

It read 7:50 am, basically screaming at Diago, Time to go kid! Your Pa is getting ready to get up and you’re gonna be late!

This is what he gets for almost spilling his guts all over the front seat of their Jeep nearly fifteen minutes ago.

Yet another sigh was heaved, deeper this time as he took off down the road. No time for the pleasantries of pavement, late late late, was all he could think as he steered himself onto the much quicker forest path.

Diago did so not need a tardy on his record,

he needed all the good credit he could get,

it was obvious his parents couldn’t pay for his tuition into a university.

It wasn’t right to be bitter, he scolded himself, over and over and over again. Sometimes you just had to suck it up and play the cards you were dealt, good, bad, or in between. Be a jack of all trades, YahYah had told him after they had stolen his Yo-Gos.

“Be a Jack of All Trades and there’s nothing you’re not prepared for!”

The words rang out from his memories clear as day. Good piece of advice, surprisingly, since YahYah never had any idea what was going on.

Diago scoffed as he steered past trees and rocks. What he wouldn’t give to just hit on and go into a coma. Only for a few days! Just to get some good sleep for once and a break.

Of course, the world was never that kind and he made it to school perfectly fine. If perfectly fine meant being hit by several branches, a stray pinecone, and an acorn he was sure he witnessed a squirrel throw at him.

Stupid thing had hit him square in the forehead.

Walking into school he tripped on the step inside, he could feel the stares and hear the scattered laughs of a few students. Wouldn’t surprise him if he looked up and saw smiles on the faces of several others.

That coma, he thought to himself, just keeps getting more appealing.

That was all pushed aside when YahYah walked up to him, grinning like the big, clueless, absolute idiot they were. He loved them.

“Bad day, huh champ? Saw that door get the best of ya! Well, that and the fact that you look like you had a brawl with a Christmas Tree.”

Annnd there it was, that horrible sense of humor.

To think, Diago was happy to see them! So much for that.

“Oh yeah, thanks, YahYah. That door was really something today and that tree! Wow, it got me! It’s the middle of August you think they’d be hibernating or something right?”

Diago made sure his words were laid on thick with sarcasm, rolling his eyes at his friend who had the audacity to just laugh.

“Hey, at least that tree fight didn’t last too long, you might’ve been late Diago! Late. Y’know, the thing you haven’t done since freshman year? Yeah, that terrible, horrible thing called being tardy. You’re a trip pal, let’s go to class.”

YahYah gave him a pat on the shoulder before wandering back over to their locker to grab the things they needed. Diago hadn’t even picked up they were so near homeroom. Had he been walking this whole time?

Past that...

Oh yeah, sure, he loved YahYah. That teasing was something that happened pretty often. But even though he loved YahYah like he did Ellie, that did nothing to stop the invasive thoughts of shoving them in a trashcan or inducing a coma on himself.

Maybe Diago was into comas or something. Maybe he just wanted to be in one. Have friends! They said. It’ll be fun! They said.

As they sat down, perfectly on time, side by side, YahYah continued to tease him. Again, wasn’t very unusual considering how they became friends was the other had literally shoved Diago out of his chair and stole his favorite snacks. This was never something he meant seriously but thought about almost every time YahYah got on his nerves.

Hint; it’s most of the time.

So, as Mr. Nunez walked in and started class, and he wished so badly for that coma, he decided something. Not in all seriousness of course.

Morale of the morning was to add something new to his To-Do list.

Find a new best friend.