1 The Weird Man

Bouncing the tennis ball on the court I scanned the other side while thinking about how I should end this match.

'Hmm. let's do this.' 

My lip curled into a smirk as I threw the ball up in the air 

BANG.

The sound of my racket hitting the ball echoed in the air as I smacked the ball toward the other side of the court.

Before the guy on the other side could even respond, the ball had already hit the court, bounced off, and hit the gate behind him.

'That look on his face. It never gets old'

I smiled as I watched the guy staring at me in disbelief.

"I won again," I said again with no expression on my face this time as I walked towards the guy with my hand out "Pay up, you said 500 if I managed to beat you 2 games in a row"

The guy looked completely annoyed and started gritting his teeth.

The guy put the money in my hand and walked away angry.

'This scene will never get old to me. But still, he shouldn't be getting mad at anyone but himself. No one told him to waste 500 dollars on a game he couldn't win.'

I sighed and walked to where the ball landed and picked it up and started heading to where my things were. After packing up my racket and the ball I picked up my bag and started heading home.

"Hey, kid!" A relatively older man who seemed to be in his late 20s was yelling behind me.

I looked at him confused and skeptical as I had never seen him before. The man looked like he didn't belong here. Off of one glance, you can tell he had money.

I scanned him skeptically as he stood right in front of me. He was at least 6'3 with blond hair and light brown eyes, with an athletic body, and the most expensive brands you could buy.

"Kid who taught you how to play tennis like that." The man asked ignoring my skepticism and wariness.

'Who is this man?' I asked myself but still replied, " No one did, I watch people play around here a lot and picked up some of the things they did."

After I said that the man looked at me excitedly.

'Weird. This man is Weird.'

" Do you like playing Tennis?" He asked.

"It's fun and calming, I like seeing my opponent try and receive or return the ball, their expressions every time make it fun." As soon as I said that the man started laughing with no break at all.

'Ah, now it all makes sense, he's a weirdo, how lucky of me to run into a weirdo while walking home.'

Before I could walk away he stepped in front of me again. "Kid instead of staying here why not come with me, you can play as much tennis as you can."

I looked up at the man in disbelief and became even more wary.

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Walking inside my shabby one-story broken-down apartment, I closed the door, placed my bag on the side, and walked to the small kitchen riddled with mold and cracks. Opening the fridge door which was filled with nothing but a plate of peanut butter and jam, I sighed and closed it, and started heading to my room.

'Guess we're not eating today.' I sighed and pulled the money I had gotten from the match. My eyebrows furrowed for a while as I started thinking of whether I should save or spend it.

the conversation with the weird old man came to mind and I decided to give in and buy some food at a store.

After finally eating I headed to the small room which only had a broken bed and decided to sleep, still thinking about the conversation.

******************************************************************

After hearing the knocks at the door I reluctantly got out of the bed and went towards the door and opened it. Standing in front of me was the weird old man I had talked to the other day.

I found out his name was Sean Ryans, and apparently, he was a well-known but now-retired Coach. Don't know why he retired when he looked so fit but I didn't bother asking.

With a huge smile on his face and without caring about the fact that I looked as if I had just woken up, he walked inside.

My once neutral expression turned into one of annoyance as the weird man walked inside 'This guy has no manners, I didn't even give him my address or invite him inside and here he is acting without a care in the world.'

He looked around the shabby place and then looked at me with a look of pity.

"You know, it's not nice to barge into other people's homes like this," I said with no emotion

"I'm going to be teaching you from now on so it's fine," He said excitedly but then looked at me confused.

"Erin, where are your parents" He asked with a pitiful and confused expression.

"Don't know, they left one and never came back," I responded with no emotion as it didn't bother me anymore.

"You don't need to pity me, they left when I was 5, it been 6 years since then and I've been f-" Before I could finish what I was going to say he took my hand and walked out of the shabby apartment with me.

"Sean, what are you doing?" I asked, confused as to what was happening.

He paused and knelt down to my eye level, his expression serious yet gentle. "I'm changing the deal we had. Instead of just teaching you how to play tennis, you will live with me," he said, smiling as he gently patted my head.

I was taken aback by his sudden proposal. "You don't need to do that for me," I replied. "I'm fine with how things are right now. I've lived here for over five years."

"It's not fine with me," he insisted, his tone firm yet compassionate. "I can't let a child live alone in those conditions, especially if I'm going to be teaching you as well."

His words struck a chord within me, leaving me at a loss for words. I couldn't bring myself to meet his gaze as some emotions stirred within me. After a moment, he stood up and began walking, still holding my hand.