HIS KIDS

SIX YEARS EARLIER

LUPES POV

ITS EARLY IN THE MORNING WHEN I GET UP AND TAKE A SHOWER BEFORE GETTING READY TO GO ON MY MORNING RUN LIKE ALWAYS BEFORE SCHOOL, I ALWAYS TAKE THE ROUTE TO THE PARK ABOUT 1 MILE FROM OUR HOUSE AND THEN RUN BACK BEFORE GETTING IN THE SHOWER AND CHANGING, GETTING BREAKFAST BEFORE GOING TO TAKE MY LITTLE SISTER TO SCHOOL THEN GOING TO HIGH SCHOOL OR THE HELL WHOLE HOW I LIKE TO CALL IT IM JUST GLAD THAT IN TWO WEEKS I GRADUATE FROM SCHOOL AND I CAN START TO LOOK FOR A JOB AND HELP MY PARENTS WITH THE BILLS AND THE MORGAGE OF THE HOUSE.

I TAKE MY SISTER TO SCHOOL AND THEN HEAD TO MY LOCKER AND GET MY BOOKS FOR MY FIRST CLASS OF THE DAY, ONCE I GET MY BOOKS I HEAD TO MY MATH CLASS AND TAKE MY SIT. CLASSES GO BY AS ALWAYS ALTHOUGH MOST OF THE TEACHER SAID THAT THERE WAS NO POINT ON TEACHING US ANYTHING SINCE THE SCHOOL YEAR WAS PRACTICLY OVER IN JUST FOUR DAYS. AFTER SCHOOL I GO PUT MY STUFF AWAY IN MY LOCKER AND GRAB MY KEYS TO GO PICK UP MY LITTLE SISTER, I WAS ON MY WAY TO THE CAR WHEN I WAS STOPPED BY ONE OF THE TEACHERS TO TELL ME THAT I WAS TO GRADUATE WITH HONORS WHICH WAS NOTHING THAN I EXPECTED. I MEAN YES A WAS A STRAIGHT A STUDENT BUT I NEVER WANTED ANYTHING MORE IN MY SCHOOL YEAR THAN TO GRADUATE WITH HONORS.

ONCE I GOT MY LITTLE SISTER WE HEADED TO THE HOUSE AND WHILE MARIA WAS WATCHING CARTOONS I WAS COOKING DINNER SO WHEN OUR PARENTS GET HERE AFTER THEY GET OFF WORK, AFTER COOKING FOR ABOUT ONE HOUR THE DINNER WAS DONE AND I WENT AND SAT DOWN NEXT TO MARIA AND STARTED TO WATCH CARTOONS WITH HER. AFTER FINISHING WATCHING THREE MORE CARTOONS WITH MY SISTER I LOOK AT MY WATCH TO SEE THAT IT WAS ALMOST 8 AT NIGHT AND OUR PARENTS ARE STILL NOT HERE, I BRUSHED IT OFF BY THINKING THAT THEY GOT CAUGHT UP WITH WORK OR SOMETHING SO TO MAKE SURE THAT MY SISTER DIDNT NOTICE THE ABSENCE OF MY PARENTS I ASKED HER IF SHE WANTED TO PLAY MONOPOLY, SHE RAN UP TO HER ROOM AND THEN CAME BACK DOWN WITH THE MONOPOLY GAME IN HAND. WHILE SHE SET UP THE GAME I WENT TO THE KITCHEN AND GRABBED US SOMETHING TO DRINK, ONCE I GOT THE DRINKS I WENT BACK TO THE LIVING ROOM AND SAT DOWN ON THE FLOOR WITH MARIA AND WE STARTED TO PLAY.

I LOOK AT MY WATCH FOR THE TENTH TIME IN LESS THAN AN HOUR, I AM STARTING TO GET WORRIED ABOUT MY PARENTS THEY ARE NEVER THIS LATE TO COME HOME. I DIDNT WANT TO WORRY MY SISTER SO I TOLD HER TO GO UPSTAIRS WHILE I TRIED TO GET AHOLD OF MY PARENTS AND SEE WHY THEY WERENT HOME YET, WHEN I CALLED THEM NEITHER ONE OF THEM ANSWERED THEIR PHONES WHICH WORRIED ME EVEN MORE. I FED MARIA AND MADE SURE SHE WAS IN BED AFTER HER BED TIME RUTIN, I WENT BACK DOWN STAIRS AND STARTED TO PUT EVERYTHING AWAY AND WENT TO SIT DOWN ON THE SOFA TO WAIT FOR THEM TO COME HOME.

SOMETIME DURING THE TIME I WAS READING TO THE TIME I WOKE UP IT WAS ONLY BECAUSE THE HOUSE PHONE RANG, AS I PICKED IT UP I HEARD A MANS VOICE ON THE OTHER SIDE SAYING IF I KNEW MICHELLE AND MARCUS SANCHEZ TO WHICH I SAID YES AND AS SOON AS I SAID THAT THEY TOLD ME THAT THEY HAD BEEN IN AN ACCIDENT AND THAT THEY DIDNT MAKE IT. I DROPPED THE PHONE AND STARTED TO CRY, I WALKED UP TO MY SISTERS ROOM AND WATCHED HER AS SHE SLEPT, IN THE MORNING I TOOK HER TO SCHOOL AND HEADED TO THE POLICE STATION WHERE I WAS TOLD EVERYHTING ABOUT THE ACCIDENT AND HOW MY PARENTS DIED INSTANTLY WITHOUT ANY PAIN OR SUFFERING. THEY ALSO SAID THAT BECAUSE I WAS ALREADY 18 SO I COULD TAKE CUSTODY OF MY SISTER OR I COULD SIGN HER OVER TO THE STATE AND THEY WOULD PLACE HER IN A FOSTER HOME, AT THE SOUND OF FOSTER HOME I RIGHT AWAY ASKED WHERE I NEEDED TO SIGN TO BE ABLE TO HAVE CUSTODY OF MY SISTER WHICH THEY GAVE ME ALL THE DOCUMENTS THAT I NEEDED TO SIGN AND I SIGNED THEM GETTING FULL CUSTODY OF HER.

WHEN I GOT HOME THERE WAS A CAR PARKED IN THE DRIVE WAY WHICH I RECOGNIZED AS MY PARENTS LAWYERS CAR, I PULLED IN NEXT TO HIM AND INVITED HIM IN TO THE HOUSE, ONCE INSIDE THE HOUSE MY PARENTS LAWYER TOLD ME THAT MY PARENTS HAD LEFT US A GOOD AMOUNT OF MONEY IN OUR SAVINGS ACCOUNT. THEY ALSO LEFT ANOTHER ACCOUNT WTH MONEY FOR US INCASE SOMETHING HAPPEND TO THEM AND NOW THAT THEY WERE DEAD I COULD ACCESS THE MONEY AT ANY MOMENT, THE ONLY THING I WANTED HIM TO HELP ME WITH WAS MY PARENTS FUNERAL TO WHICH HE GLADLY AGREED TO DO FOR ME BEFORE HE LEFT TO START THE ARRANGEMENTS FOR MY PARENTS FUNERAL AND I WHEN TO GO GET MY SISTER FROM SCHOOL. WHEN I GOT MY SISTER I TOOK HER TO EAT AT MCDONALDS AND THEN TOOK HER HOME AND TOLD HER ABOUT OUR PARENTS DEATH WHICH SHE CRIED IN MY ARMS WHILE I ROCKED HER UNTIL SHE FELL ASLEEP, I PLACED HER ON THE SOFA AND PLACED A BLANKET OVER HER WHILE I WENT AND MADE SOMETHING FOR US TO EAT AND DRINK WHEN SHE WOKE UP.