A few minutes later
Turning the corner, they saw the park come into view. As they neared it, Eric could see some people scrambling in haste. People were shouting at their family members, but from where Eric stood, the shouts translated into muffles. He assumed the same boys who had smashed Adut's windows must have taken off, because people were running out of their houses with machetes. This sparked a thought in his mind: Was his father actually right? Was the government actually planning something? His thoughts were interrupted by the frightening roar of the blackened clouds. His spine shivered, sending a second wave to his shoulders and the back of his neck.
"Is it really going to rain before noon?" Eric said out loud.
"Yes. We have been getting some really unexpected weather since February."
"I completely forgot how bad the weather is here."
"The last time you came here, you were about seven or six."
"I think I was six."
Suddenly Keji's face gradually morphed into a smirk as they walked.
"Are you going mad?" Eric said, with a teasing look on his face.
Keji laughed until he could barely get out what he wanted to say.
"Do you remember when—" A brief pause for laughter. "When you ran outside not wearing any underwear, nothing, and shook your p-p at those little girls?" Keji erupted in laughter.
Eric's face was shallow and unwavering, but under that facade he clenched his teeth as hard as he could. If his skin had been as light as his mother's, his face would have glowed bright red.
He began walking away from Keji with more haste. He had no interest in hearing further mockery and no interest in hearing more embarrassing stories about the past.
Some moments later, they walked into the park as dead leaves floated through the air. The park was massive, and the air was filled with silence; the only sound was the high-pitched notes of the whispering wind. Most of the park was littered with dead leaves, some in ponds, some on the ground, some on the benches, and some scattered across a bridge. They all came from the trees with hanging brown leaves. As Eric passed by, he grabbed one and crushed it into dust.
On their long walk to the park, Keji had finally quieted down, with only occasional chuckles. To shut him up for good, Eric had to find something to talk about.
"They made a bridge."
"Oh, yes. There are some fish in the river. The market sells live fish, and the children buy them and come here to set them free."
As they walked over the surprisingly clear water beneath them, Eric saw some colorful fish swimming up and down the stream.
"I have some fish food in my pocket."
He pulled out a clear plastic bag of brownish substance that appeared almost crushed into powder.
"Here," he said, giving it to Eric.
Staring over the bridge, Eric carefully shook the food out and watched multiple fish swarm, both big and small, eating. He watched their little mouths open and close repeatedly as the bag emptied.
"There is a garbage can up ahead. You can throw the bag in."
"There is the field!" Eric said enthusiastically.
He began running toward the field, quickly dumping the bag in the garbage bin on the way off the bridge. But within ten seconds of running, his body began to fail him, like a heavily used car slowing down in the middle of the road. His breathing was heavy as he tried to catch his breath.
"ERIC!" Keji shouted as he kicked the ball into the air.
Eric began running to receive it. But instead of receiving it, he merely stopped the ball from hopping across the field.
When he looked back, Keji was already on the field, jogging toward him. How could an old man like him be so strong and energetic? he wondered.
"Let's play a one-on-one and then do some free kicks."
Eric nodded slowly, accepting the challenge. But in the back of his mind, he knew there was a good chance he wouldn't be able to win.
"You start," Keji said as he backed up, giving Eric enough room to begin.
He took a deep breath and rushed forward, kicking the ball at a safe distance.
As he neared, Keji got ready to intercept, but Eric glided the ball away from him, planning to shoot at the right flank. Keji wouldn't let that happen. He chased Eric, gliding on the wind. Why is he so— Eric couldn't finish the thought before Keji tried to steal the ball from him. Eric blocked Keji with his arm, and Keji did the same. Desperate, Eric tried to lean his body into him, but that didn't work. So Eric tried his old trick that always threw off his schoolmates. He suddenly stopped, holding the ball in place with a foot. But Keji violently kicked the ball away. Eric was in shock. He had been hoping to throw Keji off and use his momentum against him, to get a brief one-second window to glide past him. In disbelief, Eric tried chasing the ball, trying to close the two-meter gap between them, but it was too late. Keji shot the ball, the collision a shock in the air. As it pierced the air, it curved and made contact at the far right side of the goal. Eric was stunned. Every time he saw people shoot the ball that way, it was like a miracle to him, as if the striker were defying physics itself. He had tried practicing over and over, trying to develop a technique that could grant him the same ability. But no matter how many hours he spent after school attempting it, he never succeeded.
"Good match. I think the problem is that I'm taller than you," Keji said, extending his arm for a fist bump.
Eric fist-bumped him and sat on the ground, breathing heavily.
"Either that or you're just slow," he said, playfully kicking Eric's arm.
Eric gave Keji a brief smile, then resumed trying to control his breathing. His lungs seemed to be on fire, and with each breath he could feel their soreness. This had always been a problem for Eric, even before he got bigger. He had always had low stamina compared to his peers when they played, and most of the time he was the one always getting a water break. The extra fat just made it worse. Or was it not the fat, but his breathing? Maybe a combination of both, he thought.
"Alright, are you ready to take shots?" Keji said, setting up another goal.
Eric nodded and got up. By the time he retrieved the ball from the goal, he could see some children his age walking down the bridge. They were close enough that Eric could make out their genders: five boys and two girls.
He ran back to Keji with the ball in hand.
"Old man Keji, how did you make the ball curve?"
"To be honest with you, Eric, I just know how to. In my late twenties I practiced every day until I finally knew how to do it. Same with Adut."
"So I just have to keep practicing?"
"Maybe. Maybe there is a technique for it, but I am telling you right now, Eric, I have no clue."
"Alright."
Eric prepared to take a free kick. He breathed in and out, then dashed forward, building momentum, and shot the ball. For a second he thought it was going to sail over the goal, but instead it collided with the top of the net.
"Not ba—"
"MISTER KEJI!"
The loud voice interrupted Keji, and the sound briefly rang in Eric's ears. When he turned to look who it was, it was one of the girls from the group of children. She ran toward Keji and hugged him as the others followed behind her.
"Akeer! What's up? How are you?"
"I'm fine," she replied, looking up at him, smiling.
"Old man Keji, guess what?" a boy said, running up behind her.
"What, Gatluak?"
"They are rioting. Our parents sent us here so they can protect their shops."
"Where are they rioting?" he asked, with a concerned tone.
"Everywhere. At the market, in the communities, everywhere."
The others nodded, confirming what the boy said.
"Eric, sorry, but stay here until I or your father come for you," he said, running off.
Eric stood there, confused about what was going on. Were they talking about the people from before? he wondered.
"Hello," a girl said shyly.
"Hi."
As Eric made eye contact, she quickly looked away.
"Do you want to play football?" one of the boys said.
He was tall, taller than Eric and the whole group, tall enough to look down on Eric.
"Sure," Eric responded.
"What position do you play?" another boy asked.
"Striker."
"Good. So me, you, and Akeer."
Eric looked at her again, but she broke eye contact. Then Eric recognized her: she was one of the girls who had seen him naked. The realization sent a jolt into his heart, and his cheeks stung with embarrassment. He looked away quickly.
"Nyangdeng, do you want to be goalkeeper?" the tallest asked.
"Okay," the other girl responded.
"Alright, so me and you, Arop," he said, tapping the boy's shoulder.
"Eric, let's go. This is our goal," the boy on Eric's team said, pointing toward the opposite goal and jogging.
Eric followed.
"Okay, Akeer, you be goalkeeper."
She nodded.
"YOU READY?" the tallest yelled.
"YES!" Eric's teammate yelled.
"I'm going on the right flank. That's where I'm best," Eric said.
The boy nodded. Eric passed the ball to him.
"Pass it back to me when I'm open," Eric said, running out into the field. His teammate followed.
The opposing team ran out too, positioning themselves.
The tallest was on the right flank, and the other was in the middle of the field, ready to stop the boy.
In his mind, Eric cursed, knowing he would have a tough time against the oldest of them. As the opposing midfielder attempted to steal the ball, Eric's teammate passed it to him. But the accuracy was a bit off. He sped up, feeling the cold wind pass his face, and successfully caught the ball before it could be passed to the enemy. But before Eric could figure out what to do next, his opponent, who seemed one with the air, was already in front of him, trying to steal the ball. Eric was just half a second faster and pulled the ball out of his reach. He sprinted toward the goal, his lungs on fire and his abdomen aching. Not yet. The goal is right in front of me, he thought. He was about to take the shot, but the midfielder was now playing defense. He slid across the ground, trying to knock the ball away to his partner. Eric saw this coming. He immediately pulled the ball back and kicked it away to the side, stylishly, with his heel. Farther ahead, Eric could see his teammate signaling for the pass. The goal was wide open, left unguarded; all that was left to deal with was the goalkeeper. But out of nowhere the tallest of them barreled into him, blocking Eric and kicking the ball away. He almost tumbled to the ground but managed to get his footing. As soon as the tallest had possession, he kicked the ball a quarter of the way down the field, and his teammate was already running toward Eric's goal and received it. Now his own goal was wide open. Eric and his teammate ran back, trying somehow, by some miracle, to reach it in time to block him. But Eric knew deep down that it was futile; he was way too far away to reach it in time. Besides, Eric's vision was darkening. He knew that if he continued to run, he would go blind. It had happened before, and it had cost him his match. But with a little water and a minute of rest, he would be fine.
Eric began to slow down as his lungs burned like a raging inferno. As he did, he saw the ball collide with the net as the girl jumped in the air to block it, to no avail.
Eric and his teammate stopped running and collapsed onto the grassy field, breathing in and out. He could feel thick saliva piling up in his mouth as his lungs filled with air.
"You are good," the tallest of them said, extending a hand.
Eric took it, and the boy helped him up.
"Thanks," Eric said, quickly refilling his lungs.
"Are you traveling with your family?" he asked.
Eric nodded, too busy trying to catch his breath.
"Have you ever been to Juba? How was it?"
"It was nice. It had some really tall buildings, and the streets were really clean."
"Was the food good?" the tallest asked.
"It was okay. How about you? Have you ever been to Juba?"
"No, but I'm going to ask my parents if we can go."
A brief silence hung between them before Eric asked.
"What's your name?"
"Thon. And his name is Atem," he said, pointing toward Eric's exhausted teammate. "The person I was playing with is named Arop. The girl is named Nyangdeng, and the pretty one is named Akeer."
Eric glanced back. He must be talking about her, he thought.
"My name is Eric."
Suddenly the dark clouds erupted in a loud thunderclap, sending shivers down both their spines.
"THON!" Nyangdeng shouted from across the field.
Beside her, Arop was tying his shoelaces.
"WE HAVE TO GO HOME!"
"OKAY!" he shouted back.
They ran off the field, and a couple of seconds later, they disappeared behind the trees.
"It's going to rain," Atem said, walking toward them.
"AKEER! COME! WE'RE DONE PLAYING!" he yelled, waving her over.
"We had better leave too, before the rain starts falling. Are both of you coming?"
Thon nodded, but Eric shook his head.
"I can't go. The old man told me I have to stay right here until he comes back."
"Yes, but he didn't know it was going to rain," Thon said.
"But what about the riot? It's not safe."
"He will understand. Don't worry. The old man is really cool. Besides, it's just some people protesting, and some acting like animals, throwing glass bottles at houses," Atem said.
Eric took a moment to ponder. Should he disobey Keji and potentially feel the pain of a flying glass bottle shattering on his head, or should he stay there, get completely soaked, and wait for Keji to come back and ask why he hadn't gone back to Adut's house? Eric came to a decision. He was going to go with them.
"Alright," he said to them.
But little did Eric know, this decision was nothing but the calm before the storm, the calamity quickly approaching.