# data[].attributes.body
“Hey james! Come on hurry up we're gonna be late!”

“I'm coming alfred!” They rushed out the door in a hurry to get to the grand opening of alfreds new torturing class. On their way there Alfred recognized a familiar face. “Does he look familiar to you?” Alfred said in a confused tone

“No why?”

“Dont worry about it.”

“OoKk, are you ok? I know that this is a big deal for you, just calm down Alfred it's going to be alright.” “Yea yea,now lets go before we are late!”

“Alright we are her-”

“Alfred!!! Is that you?” James and Alfred turned around to see henry. Alred ran over to him and almost knocked him over with his bear hug.

“ Missed you too bud.” Henry said in an excited tone. They got up and looked over at James

“Is that james?”

“Yes it is! Alfred said.

“Wow he is looking better than ever! Hey James,you done drugs?”

“Yes sir! You can thank the person right next to you.” Henry turned over to Alfred and smiled. “So, why are you here?” James asked as he walked over to alfred. - did n

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Alfred was 25 now. A full grown man with his life ahead of him. His short black hair had always stuck with him since his younger days, and his light, thin grey jacket glided behind him slightly. He was just strolling down the dimly lit street of Harlem, the occasional mutters of other people nearby filling the air with a rather neutral feeling. The sky was clear with a pale white moon that shone and lit up the streets from a single direction, creating a calm ambience. Soon enough, the soothing moment was interrupted by a repeated vibration coming from Alfred’s pocket. It was his phone. As he pulled it out to see who was calling him, a small smile smeared across his face as the word ‘James’ shone on the screen. Without hesitation, he picked it up immediately.

An iconic voice to him spoke up on the other side.

“Hey, Alfred.”

“James? It’s been a while.”

“I know.” He sputtered a chuckle momentarily.

“What’s been going on lately? You sound a lot better from when I last saw you.”

“Well, I finally managed to quit just a few months ago, actually.”

Alfred’s small smile grew to a nearly ginormous grin. Those words were the thing that gave him a warm feeling of comfortability that had sparked up just now. Alfred had remembered when he found James in their old cave with a huge, deep, bleeding cut on his arm that would’ve gotten infected if he hadn’t assisted him. Even during this cold fall night, he felt warm enough to slip his jacket off from those words.

“Well, that’s great to hear. When can I see you again in person?” Alfred asked James.

“Maybe tomorrow afternoon? I gotta work an extra shift for my job.”

“Well, I’m glad you got a job too.”

Alfred had realized that his excitement was getting the best of him, and said his goodbyes before hanging up. He couldn’t believe that James had survived the drug addict ordeal. Hopefully he’ll look better from when I last saw him. James was a mess last time. Alfred thought. When he checked the time, Alfred realized that he needed to get back to his apartment, and ran faster than the wind towards his apartment complex, getting out his ID for the employees working there at the moment, ready to collapse onto his couch when he took his entry.

“ID please, sir.” Spoke one of the main jobholders, waiting for Alfred to schlepp out his identification card.

“One moment, sir.” Alfred fumbled in his pockets for his ID. They always seemed to feel like mini junkyards stuffed into one tiny place all at once, and the textures ranged from soft to smooth, to hard and sharp. He eventually found his ID card a little dirty, but still in phenomenal condition. Alfred handed his card to the staff member, waiting for their scanning eagle eyes of steel to verify it. Their eyes were creepily more aware of what was around them more than he ever was within his 25 year lifespan so far.

“Alright..Alfred Brooks. You may proceed.”

# data[].attributes.body
One week later, Alfred takes a step out of the cab and glances up at a sign that reads Empire State Rehabilitation Center. Alfred has convinced Mr. Epstein to not press charges against James to get him out of jail. The police agreed to release James only if he would check himself into a rehabilitation center to get off drugs.

Alfred walked down the long pathway to the entrance of the building and noticed the beautiful grass field. The blades stood tall at attention like an army would salute their sergeant. The field was arranged in box patterns like a checkerboard, and looked cut and styled by a barber.

Alfred gets greeted by a nurse who demands to know who he is here to see. Alfred says “Mam, I am here to see my best friend James who just checked in.” The nurse replies “Ok, right this way.”

Alfred opens the door to James' room and sees Griffin in bed. He was sweating and could not stay still, constantly twitching and shaking. He looked into the corner for the referee to give a count, but did not find one.  Alfred shakes his head to get rid of his thoughts. James, are you okay. No, I need heroin. Alfred please one last time. I can't handle this. Can you please find a way to get me out of this rehab. No James. It is for your own safety and health, I am not going to let you get hooked back up on that 🤬. Whenever you take it, it's like you enter a whole new world and an alien takes control of you. Alfred I feel like I am being eaten from the inside out.  James you have to understand that the people here are to help you and not to let you take any drugs.  I want to protect you, not kill you. How about we go take a walk around the park while it is still nice out.  Ok fine!

James climbs out of bed and gets dressed. He asks for permission to leave the building and walk in the park in the back. Alfred and James leave from the back of the building and walk down the path to the park, The sun was bleeding orange and beaming waves on their faces. The trees were tall and the leaves were changing colors like a rainbow. The birds chipped in harmony to a peaceful tune. The air was fresh and soothing.

So James, what do you plan on doing when you get out of rehab. Well, I wanted to get a job at a store and work at the cash register. I always wanted to work at the cash register and help with customer service. I know that I made some really bad choices in the past. I want to work on my skill on how to treat people. I think that I would be perfect for this job, and I can even help customers find what they are looking for.

They sat on a bench for hours and talked like they were back in the cave. They both felt safe. Alfred was proud that James was trying to turn things around. James was very grateful for Afred’s help. They were partners.

Well let's start heading back, Alfred said. It is starting to get dark and you have to take your medicine. It is a quarter to seven.  Ok whatever. Let's go James! We should go eat dinner in the cafeteria. Let's get the chicken noodle soup, and see if it is better than Aunt Pearls. Then I have to leave,  and you should go to bed for the night.

Alfred calls a cab and walks down the front pathway. I hope that James really changes. 🤬, he already asked me to get him heroin. What happens if he can not get clean. What happens if he leaves rehab and tries to rob the Epsteins again. I will lose my job. This has to work out, or Aunt Pearl is going to send me to the Reverend. Can't give up now. I have to have faith. James can do it. He is the next contender. Nothing that a steak and a good nap can't fix.

# data[].attributes.body
It was dark and quiet in the small cave. James decided to visit the cave from 2 years ago. James sat down slowly in the corner. He suddenly  remembered what happened 2 years ago in the cave. He thought about all the things that happened and missedall the memories he had with Alfred. James was skeptical of reaching out to Alfred. Out of nowhere James heard footsteps from far away. He sees a shadow coming towards him. The footsteps get louder and louder from a distance. James hid in the corner, frightened.
Alfred climbed in the cave while James was hiding. James said a soft
“Hello? Is anybody there?”
Alfred heasatated and was confused of why someone would be at the cave when no one goes there anymore. A few seconds later Alfred said.ys
“Yes. Where are you?”
James was so scared and he recognized his voice. James stood up and saw a tall man. Maybe 2 feet taller than him. James was shocked.
“Do I know you?” Alfred said. James stood still and was so nervous to see Alfred again after 10 years.
Alfred looked very shabby and looked beat up. James said.
“Do you need any help?”
“Yes, in fact I do. Do you have some money on you?”
James was puzzled. He noticed the scars on his arm. James wasn't so sure why Alfred was beat up. James said
“what are those scars on your arm?”
Alfred stood still and he looked like he was going to say something, but his words didn't come out.
“Well… iI’ve might've gotten beaten up.”
“By who may I ask?” said James.
“Just a few people.”
“Alright then.” said James.
Alfred gave James a tight hug.

Epilogue

# data[].attributes.body
“It's been ten years,” said Mr. Donatelli.

“I know, but it still hurts,.” Alfred said, holding back tears. “I just wish the nurses could save him, and we weren't too late.” Alfred started to remember the ambulances when he tried to save James. It was scary for Alfred to remember that. Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry, Alfred thought to himself.

“I know you miss James, but he will always be with you,” Mr. Donitelli said in a comforting voice.

“Thanks, wait what time is it?” said Alfred.

“Quarter to 12!”

“ Oh! I got to go to a lesson with Eliote” Alfred said, surprised that the time went by so fast.

On the way up to the gym, he saw that the stairs were so much more bent in then they had been when he first started coming to the gym, from so many people coming up to the gym over the years. It brought back some good memories.

After Alfred got back to the gym Eliote  was already there. Alfred was a fantastic  boxing teacher,  and he found great joy in it,  Mr. Donatelli saw it too. He was a little timid to tell Alfred the news, he did not know how Alfred would handle it.

“ Alfred,” Donitelli said reluctantly.

“Yeah,” said Alfred

“I am going to be retiring next week.”

“ WHAT? WHY SO SOON? I WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO WORK HERE AGAIN! NEXT WEEK IS THE WEEK THAT JAMES DIED! I AM ALREADY IN ENOUGH PAIN-”

“You did not let me finnish Alfred,” Donatelli interrupted.

“ You will still work here-

“BUT HOW-”

“Alfred!”

“Sorry, Mr. Donitteli” Alfred said, sounding defeated.

“You will run this gym”

“ WHAT? THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!”

ONE WEEK LATER

Alfred was very good at running the gym,  it almost seemed like he had to run it for  more than just one day. All of the  people  that joined the gym really liked Alfred and thought he was an amazing teacher, just as Mr. Donatelli did.

# data[].attributes.body
It was dark and quietquite in the small cave. James decided to visit the cave from 2 years ago. James sat down slowly in the corner. He suddenly  remembered what happened 2 years ago in the cave. He thought about all the things that happened and missedall the memories he had with Alfred. James was skeptical of reaching out to Alfred. Out of nowhere James heard footsteps from far away. He sees a shadow coming towards him. The footsteps get louder and louder from a distance. James hid in the corner, frightened.

Alfred climbed in the cave while James was hiding. James said a soft

“Hello? Is anybody there?”

Alfred heasatated and was confused of why someone would be at the cave when no one goes there anymore. A few seconds later Alfred said.ys

“Yes. Where are you?”

James was so scared and he recognized his voice. James stood up and saw a tall man. Maybe 2 feet taller than him. James was shocked.

“Do I know you?” Alfred said. James stood still and was so nervous to see Alfred again after 10 years.

Alfred looked very shabby and looked beat up. James said.

“Do you need any help?”

“Yes, in fact I do. Do you have some money on you?”

James was puzzled. He noticed the scars on his arm. James wasn't so sure why Alfred was beat up. James said

“what are those scars on your arm?”

Alfred stood still and he looked like he was going to say something, but his words didn't come out.

“Well… iI’ve might've gotten beaten up.”

“By who may I ask?” said James.

“Just a few people.”

“Alright then.” said James.

Alfred gave James a tight hug.

Epilogue

# data[].attributes.body
Alfred was now 35 and he loved everybody and was the neighborhood joy. He was still teaching kids how to work out and keep their self esteem when bad things happen. In fact he loved it so much he made his own business called Alfred’s boxing and Self esteem gym. His business was blasting off and Mr.Donatelli worked the front desk with a great salary. He would always tell stories to the little kids about how Alfred was a Contender.He loved his job and they had everything you could imagine in this gym.They had weights yoga balls, mats , leg presses , and jumping boxes. Actually so much money that they redesigned the cave to a party place not drugs but after every year of the business being open they host a party but only Alfred and James really remember this place. Alfred was a multi millionaire and James and Mr.Donatelli were also very rich living in huge houses getting new clothes that were bright from top to bottom. Alfred made many donations to the poor community and kids who want to be more than something in boxing. He was a loved one and everybody loved him for his personality not his money.When he walked outside he was seen as a big red heart. Alfred paid for Mr.Donatelli's health care and James’s surgery from doing drugs from 10 years back. Aunt Pearl was also very happy and had a huge house. The clouds as if they had a blurry effect on it really complimented the house. Aunt Pearl was getting old and just relaxed in her $50,000 house visiting Alfred every now and then.
“Now let me tell you a great story about my old pal Alfred,” Mr.Donatelli said to every single kid that walked in the gym.
He was getting tips from parents for telling stories when he just wanted to talk to them. He was getting $50 just from tips when he just was talking. That same month he became an Uncle figure to Spoons kid. Spoon adopted a kid and put his life into his hands. The baby loved Alfred and his dad of course. Every weekend Alfred, Spoon, and James would go out and watch a movie with the baby at the theatres where there was the smell of popcorn and other food that was popular there that made them have a warm , cozy, feeling inside.The baby had a great life and was always happy. He also grew up at the gym and did everything there with the boxers and the boxers loved him.Spoon was an amazing father and raised him well and you could see the baby warm delicate baby had a lot of potential.
Meanwhile, Jelly lost his habits and lost 100 pounds. He stopped eating junk food and started eating healthy foods and plants. Jelly was living a great life and sometimes it was hard for him because the thought of his favorite junk foods kept coming to his mind.He happily jogged down the night streets with amber lights hitting him.Alfred and Jelly met one day at the street. They saw each other and barely could recognize each other.
“Oh my is that  Jelly ,”  Alfred thought
“Hey are you um…. Jelly” Alfred mumbled with an unconfident voice
“Indeed it is Alfred how have you been,” Jelly replied
“I'm doing great and clearly you are too.” answered Alfred
“It’s been a rough journey but I did it and you must have had the same. The other day I saw you on a billboard.” Jelly replied in a complimentary manner
They went on to talk about fitness and about what they have been doing since the last time they saw each other.This went on for about an hour until they each headed off to continue on with their lives until they met again another day.

# data[].attributes.body
The sun was streaming down, reflecting through the windows of the breathtaking New York City skyscrapers. Even the sidewalk was like a stove, boiling the little people walking on it. This did not stop Alfred, no it didn’t. He was running so fast so fast with sweat flowing off his face just like a waterfall. Finally he appeared and saw the big concrete building in the distance. A slight smile inches across his face. He ran full speed ahead, almost breaking down the doors. He walked into the cold bright hallway. His eyes were dashing back and forth searching for something.

“Harder than it used to be, huh Alfred?” Someone yelled from behind.

“James!” Alfred gave a relieved gasp.

“You know you don’t need to be so surprised when you see me. I am not going anywhere,” James told Alfred.

“Sorry I-” Alfred tried to say something but got interrupted.

“Look, are we on for the movies or not?” asked James.

“Of course,” Alfred said happily. It had been 7 months since James got out of the drug rehabilitation center, still Alfred liked to keep an eye on him.

“You bringing the kids?” James said.

“Do I do anything without them, James?” Alfred said jokingly. They both laughed as Alfred headed towards the door straight ahead of him. When he opened it he was greeted by loud music.

“ I am not doing it. Stop get off me,” yelled a stern old voice.

“Hey, Mr. Donatelli. You got them warmed up for me?” asked Alfred

“They want me to dance, Alfred. Dance!” Mr Dontenelli said.

“But Mr. Epstein used to always do dance parties on Friday and-” Alfred started to say.

“I know, I know, I am sorry I’ll start doing it,” said Mr. Donatelli.

“No, it's fine,” Alfred said solemnly.

Alfred hugged Mr. Donatelli and got to work. It has been 7 years since Alfred opened the rec center with the help of Mr. Donatelli and Mr. Epstein. But now the owners are just Alfred and Mr. Donatelli because Mr. Epstein died one year ago. Major, Sunny, and Hollis went one last time to the Epsteins’. This time they saw Mr. Epstein and shot him. Now Alfred wishes he never said anything that time when he went to get James for the movies and spilled the Epsteins’ most valuable information. The information that made Major want to try and get their money again and again. Alfred started to zone out.

“Come on man, you gonna teach me anything. I need to impress the ladies in Ms. Pearl’s music class,” said one of the children.

“Oh, sorry buddy,” said Alfred.

Later that day it was time to go to the movies. Alfred called for his kids to go, “ Abby, Joe” it is time to go. Then they both rushed down the stairs.

“Are we going with Uncle James?” said Abby.

“I am so happy he moved from Queens,”said Joe.

“I thought it was Brooklyn,” argued Abby. Alfred stood there without words. Better think of something fast, Alfred thought to himself.

“It was Brooklyn, and yes we are going with him,” answered Alfred.

“Dang It!” squealed Joe. On the car ride over James was talking about his day and how he went to the bakery and then visited Henry at the gym. He went on about the amazing cookies he had at Daphne's Cake Place. He kept saying “they are not just for cakes like the sign says”. Then he got into what he did after that caught Alfred’s attention.

“Then I finally worked up the courage to go tell Major off in prison,” James said happily. Alfred slammed his foot on the break.

“What?” Alfred gasped

“I know what you are thinking, but it felt so good. I told him if he was not in my life I would have been just fine, and then I cried a little bit,” James said proudly. “Tears of anger of course.”

“But what if he-”

“Alfred I am fine,” James said reassuringly.

When the four of them pulled up to the movie theater, the shining beautiful lights drew them in. The red carpet lobby was beautiful. “This is nothing like the movie theater we went to as kids,” said Jamesin awe. Then they walked to the counter. While Alfred was trying to find his wallet ,James was still checking out the place. Then when James looked back he saw Alfred leaving.

“I forgot my wallet,” Alfred said with his head down.

“It is okay, Alfred. I have money, so I will pay,” squealed James ecstatically as he was tripping over his words.

“Really?” Alfred said grinning.

“Yeah,” said James. They all walked into the theater together, and used James’ credit card for the first time.

The End

# data[].attributes.headline
Lily Boelte                           Alfred & James walked down the quiet hallway, lockers lining the bland yellow walls. Alfred felt his own shoulder brush against Jame’s. Their eyes met at the same time, both brown.. Both showing excitement- they smiled at each other as they reached the large brown door…Alfred’s large hand wrapped around the cold silvery knob- it turned gently with a creek of age as the door opened to a new world. Kids sat in rows, with their hands folded on top of their hard wooden desks. Alfred felt James close behind him, his breath touching the back of his neck. Alfred sat in the chair in front of the entire class, feeling excitement pulse through him- his eyes glances over at Jame’s.. His fingers twitching nervously. “Hello! Welcome to our classroom, class”.. A tall woman said from the back, with a light blue sweater on, and a nice simple grey skirt. The group of students clapped their hands together and smiled sweetly while greeting Alfred & James. James nodded to them before rubbing his hands together and getting started on what to say.James licked his chapped lips, “Hey, guys! I’m James, this is my partner in crime; Alfred. And we’re here to talk to about our life.. And how drugs affected it”. James stood up, pumping himself up for this lesson. “You’ll encounter drugs in so many ways, most likely through your friends. Like me- I used to be an addict myself”. James said, Alfred heard his voice crack a bit at the mention of it. James quickly moved on keeping the kids focused, “But- Alfred was always there for me no matter what. And he got me through those tough times, helping me at the clinic I went to”. Alfred saw Jame’s motion for him to get up, “Alfred, tell us about that”. Alfred put his hands into his deep pockets, before speaking, “Well- I can tell you.. It wasn’t easy. Seeing your best friend in that condition- but we both had to push forward, together”. Alfred said, smiling at James, before Alfred continued speaking. And James making side remarks over everything Alfred said.After a few minutes, a young girl raised her hand, with a colorful band in her hair. James immediately called on her. The young lady nodded and spoke softly, “How do we know if someone is a good influence or not”? James clapped his hands, making a little boom sound, “Well, if they peer pressure you, that might not be a good sign. Or- even off their behavior.” James said, licking his chapped lips once more.Alfred kept his hands together behind his back, ”You just need to be careful, kids. A lot can go wrong if you do drugs and we don’t want that stuff to happen to you guys.” Alfred said, nodding his head as the teacher walked to the front of the classroom. Her heels making clicking sounds as she walked carefully over a broken pencil.The teacher adjusted her glasses before speaking, “Let’s thank these gentlemen for their stories.” She said, clapping and nodding. The class followed along quickly.James spoke while waving, “Thank you for having us!” James exclaimed closing the door behind him. Alfred said softly, “Good kids. Clever.” Alfred smiled, “Just like us!” Alfred started cracking up with James following his laughter.James made a sarcastic cough, “Sure if that’s the word.” smiling at Alfred while he patted him. 

# data[].attributes.subject
Lily Boelte                           Alfred & James walked down the quiet hallway, lockers lining the bland yellow walls. Alfred felt his own shoulder brush against Jame’s. Their eyes met at the same time, both brown.. Both showing excitement- they smiled at each other as they reached the large brown door…Alfred’s large hand wrapped around the cold silvery knob- it turned gently with a creek of age as the door opened to a new world. Kids sat in rows, with their hands folded on top of their hard wooden desks. Alfred felt James close behind him, his breath touching the back of his neck. Alfred sat in the chair in front of the entire class, feeling excitement pulse through him- his eyes glances over at Jame’s.. His fingers twitching nervously. “Hello! Welcome to our classroom, class”.. A tall woman said from the back, with a light blue sweater on, and a nice simple grey skirt. The group of students clapped their hands together and smiled sweetly while greeting Alfred & James. James nodded to them before rubbing his hands together and getting started on what to say.James licked his chapped lips, “Hey, guys! I’m James, this is my partner in crime; Alfred. And we’re here to talk to about our life.. And how drugs affected it”. James stood up, pumping himself up for this lesson. “You’ll encounter drugs in so many ways, most likely through your friends. Like me- I used to be an addict myself”. James said, Alfred heard his voice crack a bit at the mention of it. James quickly moved on keeping the kids focused, “But- Alfred was always there for me no matter what. And he got me through those tough times, helping me at the clinic I went to”. Alfred saw Jame’s motion for him to get up, “Alfred, tell us about that”. Alfred put his hands into his deep pockets, before speaking, “Well- I can tell you.. It wasn’t easy. Seeing your best friend in that condition- but we both had to push forward, together”. Alfred said, smiling at James, before Alfred continued speaking. And James making side remarks over everything Alfred said.After a few minutes, a young girl raised her hand, with a colorful band in her hair. James immediately called on her. The young lady nodded and spoke softly, “How do we know if someone is a good influence or not”? James clapped his hands, making a little boom sound, “Well, if they peer pressure you, that might not be a good sign. Or- even off their behavior.” James said, licking his chapped lips once more.Alfred kept his hands together behind his back, ”You just need to be careful, kids. A lot can go wrong if you do drugs and we don’t want that stuff to happen to you guys.” Alfred said, nodding his head as the teacher walked to the front of the classroom. Her heels making clicking sounds as she walked carefully over a broken pencil.The teacher adjusted her glasses before speaking, “Let’s thank these gentlemen for their stories.” She said, clapping and nodding. The class followed along quickly.James spoke while waving, “Thank you for having us!” James exclaimed closing the door behind him. Alfred said softly, “Good kids. Clever.” Alfred smiled, “Just like us!” Alfred started cracking up with James following his laughter.James made a sarcastic cough, “Sure if that’s the word.” smiling at Alfred while he patted him. 

# data[].attributes.body
As they trudged through the rasping snow, snowflakes filled their faces. Alfred and James made it to the hospital. Doctors and nurses were running through the center of the building. Alfred helped James sit down on the ripped fabric couch.

“Stay here I’ll be right back.” Alfred carefully walked up to the front desk making sure not to bump into anyone across the way. W-what if they arrest both of us? Aunt pearl would be so worried.

“H-h-hi,” said Alfred.

“Hello young man, how can I help you?” A short large lady sat in a desk chair with a white button up shirt, with a name tag named Martha.

“Umm, I need a room for my friend, he’s severely bleeding.”

“Oh, well where is he?” She said in her southern voice.

“He’s right there.” Alfred pointed behind him, James slouching on the fabric couch.

“Wait a minute,” said Martha, squinting her eyes. “I Recognize him, didn’t he rob that grocery store?”

“Uhh-” Said Alfred.

“There is no way we are taking care of him, I’m calling the police,” she shouted.

“No, no, no, please you can't. I know he robbed that store but believe me he isn’t here to rob anything or harm anyone. Please, he has been my best friend for years and I’m helping him get out of a bad state of mind. He added nervously, just please, I’m begging you. I’ll-I’ll pay extra! Just please don’t call the police.”

“Okay, Okay, fine, what’s your name?” “Alfred Brooks”

“Okay Alfred Brooks fill out this sheet of paper for your friend.”

“Okay, thank you.” As he walked back to James, he felt eyes watching his back.

“W-what did she say, they’re not gonna arrest me right?” James whispered in a frightened voice. “No, they’re not, she almost did but I told her I’d pay extra if she didn’t call the police.”

“Wow, thanks Al.”

As Alfred filled out the paper, James watched over his shoulder.

“Okay done, I’m going to give this to the lady,” said Alfred.

Alfred gave the paper to the lady, as she was smacking on her peice of gum, she said, “Thanks kid, take a seat we will be with you shortly.”

Alfred sat back down on the fabric couch with James. As the two were waiting, Alfred observed the setting of the hospital. There was a janitor sweeping the floors, a phone at the front desk that kept ringing, and children running and playing with toys.

After about 55 minutes of looking around the lady at the front desk said “Umm, Alfred Brooks.”

Alfred looked up quickly, frightened, “The doctor is ready for your friend,” she said.

“Oh okay, thanks.” Alfred got up quickly and tugged James as he lifted him up, they followed a man, with a white doctor’s coat, black hair, and a black beard. He brought them into room 103.

He asked,”So, what’s up?” As he eyed Alfred and James down.

“Umm well,” Alfred said, as his hands began to sweat.

“Hold on, I’ve heard about this fella right here,” pointing at James. “Didn’t he rob that store?”

“Umm y-yeah, but please don’t arrest him, he isn’t here for trouble, I already paid extra if you don’t tell the police.” Alfred said nervously.

“Okay I guess that will work, but what are you here for?”

Alfred said “He’s severely bleeding and isn’t the best because of the drugs he was taking.”

“Okay, hmm let me have a look.” The doctor first examined James’ eyes, then took his blood pressure, and then listened to his heart.

“Yeah the eyes seem to be weary, can we see that cut?” The doctor looked at James’ body as he was still bleeding.

“Okay, first I am going to dab at the blood with this cotton pad,” the doctor said. “Okay good, now hold on, I’m going to grab a bandage.” The doctor searched a cabinet, then pulled out a large bandage. Then the doctor then put the bandage on James’ body where the bleeding was. “Let me go grab a water for you boy so you can feel a bit better, and maybe a snack to refill your system.”

“Ok thanks doc,” said Alfred watching the door close shut. Alfred and James just sat looking at the clock and examining the room.

About 15 minutes later, the doctor came back with a cold bottle of water, and some warm soup. “Here you go fella,” the doctor said as he handed the water and warm soup to James.

“T-thank you sir,” said James, shaking.

# data[].attributes.body
“Hey James” yells Alfred in an excited tone of voice.

James walks over to Alfred, giving him a hug and a high five. “How you been Al?”

“I've been doin’ good, my child really getting on my nerves sometimes.” Alfred sighs and takes a deep breath. “All she does all day and night is cry and sleep man, cry and sleep.”

“Oh you have a child now?” questions James. “I ain’t seen you in that long?? Man I missed you brother.”

“You too man. I was about to go on a run, so see you later!”

James runs off into the distance thinking of how his and James' life has changed. “God, 5 years is a long time!” Alfred thinks. Alfred runs all around the neighborhood, just like he did when he was practicing to be a boxer. He passes the spot where Major, Sonny and Hollis first beat him up. He smiles and laughs, thinking of the good old days.

Alfred passes Mr. Donatelli, and gives him a fist bump. They have a friendly reunion, walking back into Mr. Donatelli’s Gym. They punched the peanut bags, had a friendly, fun spar together, and then split off. Alfred goes back home to his wife and child, while the wind blows in his face.

“Hey honey! Just saw James at the cave again from our childhood. Might go clubbing’ with him later!”

“Alright, just make sure you stay off those drugs and don’t drink too much.” she says.

Later on in the day, when Alfred and James are exiting the clubroom, drunk, Alfred punches James right in the face, but he didn’t want to. James’ head hit the ground like concrete.  It was a symptom of being drunk that triggered the feeling to punch someone, just like he did to Griffin a while back. Alfred realizes that James isn’t following him, so he calls back to James and sees him on the floor not remembering that Alfred was the one that knocked him out. The world around Alfred is still rainbow to him. In his eyes it’s a nebula, but he perseveres and tries his best to text his wife about what happens.

His wife arrives, with a disapproved face. “I thought I told you not to get drunk!” she said angrily. “Where’s James?”

Alfred points towards James laying on the floor mumbling, “bring him too.” He still doesn’t remember that he knocked James out, or if James passed out.

They arrive at the house, and Alfred goes to sleep to waste the effect of the drunkenness on him. James got layed down on the couch in the living room, to see if he wakes up and remembers anything in the morning. Alfred wonders, “What did I do?”

Four hours later, James wakes up. He turns all of the lights on, waking Alfred and his wife up. The wife immediately asks, “Do you remember what happened. Tell me now.”

James rubs his head, trying to remember. “Uhmm, I was drinkin’ with Alfred and we walked out of the club. I think I saw his arm come towards me. I ain’t sure though if it was him. We were both drunk and having a good time.” James then walks over to the fridge at Alfreds, grabbing an apple and some orange juice. “This food is really good, who gave it to you guys? Where’d y’all get it?”

Alfred walks over, and starts to remember. “I really did. I actually did do that. I punched James in the head like I did to Griffin” The sound of Griffin’s jaw slamming the ground makes Alfred make a face of disgust. A face of regret.

# data[].attributes.body
It was dark and quietquite in the small cave. James decided to visit the cave from 2 years ago. James sat down slowly in the corner. He suddenly  remembered what happened 2 years ago in the cave. He thought about all the things that happened and missedall the memories he had with Alfred. James was skeptical of reaching out to Alfred. Out of nowhere James heard footsteps from far away. He sees a shadow coming towards him. The footsteps get louder and louder from a distance. James hid in the corner, frightened.

Alfred climbed in the cave while James was hiding. James said a soft

“Hello? Is anybody there?”

Alfred heasatated and was confused of why someone would be at the cave when no one goes there anymore. A few seconds later Alfred said.ys

“Yes. Where are you?”

James was so scared and he recognized his voice. James stood up and saw a tall man. Maybe 2 feet taller than him. James was shocked.

“Do I know you?” Alfred said. James stood still and was so nervous to see Alfred again after 10 years.

Alfred looked very shabby and looked beat up. James said.

“Do you need any help?”

“Yes, in fact I do. Do you have some money on you?”

James was puzzled. He noticed the scars on his arm. James wasn't so sure why Alfred was beat up. James said

“what are those scars on your arm?”

Alfred stood still and he looked like he was going to say something, but his words didn't come out.

“Well… iI’ve might've gotten beaten up.”

“By who may I ask?” said James.

“Just a few people.”

“Alright then.” said James.

Alfred gave James a tight hug.

# data[].attributes.body
30 Years Later

Alfred Brooks is now 47 years old and has kept on taking care of kids in the after school program. From all that experience of keeping kids away from drugs, Alfred wants to become a professional teacher for addicts trying to become sober. He remembers his old friend James and how it was too late to protect him. He wanted to guide kids and teens into a successful direction. Alfred is still boxing as a hobby and has gained major skill in championships and just working in the gym. He has also won a decent amount of money to be comfortable and  own his own house.

James continued to take drugs until he collapsed when he was 28 years old. He was taken to the emergency room where he was in a coma for 4 days. Alfred was kind enough to pay for his hospital bill. Unfortunately, at 4 am, James’s heart stops. They tried to shock him back to life, but James didn't make it. They had a funeral and Alfred wanted to bury James by the cave as a good memory. Every morning, Alfred would jog through the park and would pass by the burial. He would hear the birds singing a happy tune and always thought to himself that James can’t get hurt anymore. He can’t always risk his life anymore. Of course Alfred wanted the best for James but sometimes the best was to get out of pain and suffering.

Mr. Donatelli is now in a retirement home. Alfred visits Mr. Donatelli on the weekends. Mr. Donatelli is 93 years old but still is much stronger and more aware than the average. His retirement home was joyful and classy and Mr. Donatelli was very happy there. He also had a lot of high end friends.

“Did you bring the Macaroni and Cheese boy?”  Mr. Donatelli says in a rasping voice.

“Why would I forget.” Alfred said. Don’t I always! He thought. But then he remembered how Mr. Donatelli did so much more than give macaroni to Alfred. He remembered wehn Mr. Donatelli was strong and willing to teach Alfred and give him the strength he needed. Aunt Pearl is 70 years old and she fulfilled her dream of being in a choir. She has performed in the Lincoln Center, Barclays Center, King Theatre, etc… Alfred bought her a house and took care of her too. She is thankful everyday for Alfred and she admires him with how he grew. Jelly Belly finally cut down on the food and got incredibly good at cooking salads and chicken. Plus, that is where Alfred gets the Macaroni and Cheese from for Mr. Donatelli from. Major, Sonny, and Hollis have been planning to rob a bank. That specific bank is Wells Fargo. When they thought they were successful in the robbery, the cops caught on to them and they were sentenced to 30 years to life in prison. Spoon is now 63 years old and he has a wife and 3 kids. They are James, Lila, and Cole. They are triplets and are 15 years old. Spoon is a Doctor and he works at New York Presbyterian Lower Manhattan Hospital. When Mr. Donatelli told him to pursue working and learning in school, he went and did about 5 years of medical school and studied to be a surgeon. Alfred looked into James’s family and his history and found out that James had some long lost cousins. He didn’t know how to tell them so he wrote them a letter and also sent a picture of the burial sight. He also gave them the address of the burial so they can visit him.

Cousin 1: “Oh my goodness, I missed him so much and now I can’t see him.”

Cousin 2: “ I can’t believe he went out like that.”

Cousin 3: “We should have never pushed him away like that. That’s probably why it went downhill from there.”

All 3 of them visited the burial and all had their separate speeches. Then at the end, all of them said together “We miss you and will never forget about you”. And to this day, they learned more and more about James and how he grew up.

# data[].attributes.headline
Maya Tal                                “The Harlem City Recreation Center” A beautiful new building with white walls, 4 gymnasiums, a swimming pool and more. “Wow man, still can't believe we're both 20 and run this place, huh?” James said to Alfred.“Yeah man. Speaking of, shouldn't we be working?” Alfred asked.“Oh yeah lets go”Soon after that Alfred and James were parading down to the children's game room laughing and making jokes when they saw Major, Sonny, and Hollis. They all worked there for Alfred and James. “What up man? Major said to Alfred and James.“Nothin’ really, just on our way to the game room” said James. “Wanna Come?“Can’t, We're just heading out,” Hollis squealed. “We on our way to that new restaurant downtown. “Well all right, you have fun now, you hear?”“Yessir, loud and clear” Major spoke.As Alfred and James made their way to the game room, They talked about their plans to go out to a dinner they had planned for about 6 months!“So you're really gonna do it, huh?” James asked AlfredJames was referring to Alfred's plan to propose to his girlfriend of two years, Anna. They met when Anna signed up to work for the Rec Center. She is a skinny girl with shiny black hair, glistening green eyes, and a tall and slim body. “Yep. Im gonna do it. I’ll tell her I need to tell her something and I’ll walk outside and we’ll look at the stars. And when she’s not looking, I'll kneel down” Alfred replied. “What if she says no?” Alfred asked nervously to James.Oh come on man, you know she's gonna accept it.” James chuckled. “Especially with that beautiful ring dude”The ring James is referring to is one that Alfred bought himself. It was A gold ring with a glistening, white pearl.“C’mon man you're giving me the jitters!” Alfred announced.Once they made it to the game room they played some games with the kids for a little while.“So when are you gonna ask Jennie?” Alfred asked. Jennie is James’ Girlfriend.“Al, we've only been dating for 6 months!” He replied. “I don't even know if she's the one.”When Alfred and James got home they both started getting ready for dinner. Just as they were walking out to get the girls, James shouted  “ Don't Forget the ring Al.” Alfred blushed. He ran back to their apartment and got the ring and put it in his suit. While they were getting ready, Alfred looked over at James in his vivid white suit. He thought back to when he found him in the cave. All dirty and sad, thinking he could get clean of drugs but just one more time. He felt terrible the day he sent James to rehab, but he knew he was doing the best thing for James.At the restaurant they ate, drank, laughed and had a good time all together. “Hey Anna, come with me for a sec, let’s get some fresh air. “Omg, what if she says no?. What if she says no and dumps me?” Alfred thought to himself. As they were walking outside, Alfred looked back at James nervously and he winked and smiled at Alfred. When they got out they were talking about their day and Anna started “this dinner was lovely baby, don’t you think?” Alfred respond shakily “Yes so gla-glad you could come”“Alfred what wrong, you sputtering like a jitterbug! Something trou-”“No! Nothing at all!’ Alfred said blissfully. “C’mon let's go for a walk”After a few moments, Alfred stopped and said “Hold up, look how lovely that moon is babe.”Anna turned and looked at the sky saying “Yes it's so bright tonight.”Whie Anna wasn’t looking, Alfred got the ring out and knelt down on one knee.When she turned around she gasped so loudly that James and Jennie both heard. “Anna, will you make me the happiest man alive and Marry me?”…. A deep silence occurred. “YES. YES ALFRID BROOKS I WILL!” she shouted out so loud the whole restaurant could hear her. After they walked back to the table, Anna was showing off her ring to Jennie and James fist bumped Alfred. 

# data[].attributes.subject
Maya Tal                                “The Harlem City Recreation Center” A beautiful new building with white walls, 4 gymnasiums, a swimming pool and more. “Wow man, still can't believe we're both 20 and run this place, huh?” James said to Alfred.“Yeah man. Speaking of, shouldn't we be working?” Alfred asked.“Oh yeah lets go”Soon after that Alfred and James were parading down to the children's game room laughing and making jokes when they saw Major, Sonny, and Hollis. They all worked there for Alfred and James. “What up man? Major said to Alfred and James.“Nothin’ really, just on our way to the game room” said James. “Wanna Come?“Can’t, We're just heading out,” Hollis squealed. “We on our way to that new restaurant downtown. “Well all right, you have fun now, you hear?”“Yessir, loud and clear” Major spoke.As Alfred and James made their way to the game room, They talked about their plans to go out to a dinner they had planned for about 6 months!“So you're really gonna do it, huh?” James asked AlfredJames was referring to Alfred's plan to propose to his girlfriend of two years, Anna. They met when Anna signed up to work for the Rec Center. She is a skinny girl with shiny black hair, glistening green eyes, and a tall and slim body. “Yep. Im gonna do it. I’ll tell her I need to tell her something and I’ll walk outside and we’ll look at the stars. And when she’s not looking, I'll kneel down” Alfred replied. “What if she says no?” Alfred asked nervously to James.Oh come on man, you know she's gonna accept it.” James chuckled. “Especially with that beautiful ring dude”The ring James is referring to is one that Alfred bought himself. It was A gold ring with a glistening, white pearl.“C’mon man you're giving me the jitters!” Alfred announced.Once they made it to the game room they played some games with the kids for a little while.“So when are you gonna ask Jennie?” Alfred asked. Jennie is James’ Girlfriend.“Al, we've only been dating for 6 months!” He replied. “I don't even know if she's the one.”When Alfred and James got home they both started getting ready for dinner. Just as they were walking out to get the girls, James shouted  “ Don't Forget the ring Al.” Alfred blushed. He ran back to their apartment and got the ring and put it in his suit. While they were getting ready, Alfred looked over at James in his vivid white suit. He thought back to when he found him in the cave. All dirty and sad, thinking he could get clean of drugs but just one more time. He felt terrible the day he sent James to rehab, but he knew he was doing the best thing for James.At the restaurant they ate, drank, laughed and had a good time all together. “Hey Anna, come with me for a sec, let’s get some fresh air. “Omg, what if she says no?. What if she says no and dumps me?” Alfred thought to himself. As they were walking outside, Alfred looked back at James nervously and he winked and smiled at Alfred. When they got out they were talking about their day and Anna started “this dinner was lovely baby, don’t you think?” Alfred respond shakily “Yes so gla-glad you could come”“Alfred what wrong, you sputtering like a jitterbug! Something trou-”“No! Nothing at all!’ Alfred said blissfully. “C’mon let's go for a walk”After a few moments, Alfred stopped and said “Hold up, look how lovely that moon is babe.”Anna turned and looked at the sky saying “Yes it's so bright tonight.”Whie Anna wasn’t looking, Alfred got the ring out and knelt down on one knee.When she turned around she gasped so loudly that James and Jennie both heard. “Anna, will you make me the happiest man alive and Marry me?”…. A deep silence occurred. “YES. YES ALFRID BROOKS I WILL!” she shouted out so loud the whole restaurant could hear her. After they walked back to the table, Anna was showing off her ring to Jennie and James fist bumped Alfred. 

# data[].attributes.body
ZZZT! The alarm clock snaps Alfred out of his dreamy haze. Alfred remembers the times when he was training and would wake up early to run. He gets ready and quickly heads out as not to wake Aunt Pearl. He walks down the street, trash everywhere and the smell of urine and beer fills the streets. It’s a Monday, that's for sure. As Aldred heads towards the school he spots James. With a fresh new white T-shirt and some baggy sweatpants. 
“Hey, Uncle Alfred” ,says an excited James. 
“Time for your first day you Nervous?” says Alfred half smiling. They cross paths heading to the school. 
“Yeah, but mostly excited”  We get to the school and see Herald standing there looking at his watch disappointed as if waiting for someone. When Harold sees us his face lights up. 
“Hey Harold, James is gonna be helping us around here now.” says Alfred 
“ That’s great we could really use the extra hands it seems like a thousand kids have joined, and we need the help thanks James.” Announced Harold. James nodded and we headed towards the rec center. 
	As we head over there Alfred can’t help but remember that night. Alfred had dragged James to hospital, they patched him up then the police came. Once he got out of jail. Alfred needed to get him help. He was sent to a drug addiction help center. Every day Alfred  would walk with him there and back, keeping him company, and bringing him to the gym once in a while letting him take his frustration out on the punching bag.. He was really motivated and got better, Alfred could see his change and it made him joyful that he was helping him and they were growing closer together. 
	They make it to the rec center. Alfred whispers to James, “Are you sure you wanna start today, your first day back since-” James interrupts him , “Don’t worry I’ll be fine”  They spent the next couple of hours setting up for when the kids came. Blowing up the basketballs, cleaning the frizbeez, and unloading the new soccer balls. After that Alfred thinks it’s time to talk to Budd and see if he can get a James into the night school.  Aldred told James to follow him James was skeptical at first but then went along, they went to Bud and he sat there at his table waiting there for something. When he saw us he knew what Alfred was there for. Bud stood up and made his way to them. “So Alfred what did you come around here for” ,Bud said. 
Alfred speaks, “Do you think that you could get James into night school?” 
“Yeah, definitely lots of teachers would want an extra student in their class.” 
“ Do you think he could get in this semester” 
Bud's face dimmed like the lights in the beginning of a movie. “I don’t know, he might but it’s a small chance.” 
“Thankyou Bud we must be heading back to the center anyway.” They walk out disappointed but still have hope. They make it back to the rec center. They then spend time watching the kids play remembering when they were that age, running through the park and hiding in that cave. Once all the kids were gone they headed back to their homes splitting up. Before he was just out of sight James shouts, “Thankyou Alfred for everything you’ve done for me.” 
Alfred looks back with a smile on his face and shouts back, “That’s what friends are for”. 

# data[].attributes.body
Buzz buzz. Alfred’s alarm clock rang. It was 5:15.

“Time to get up” Alfred thought.

He rose from the bed, sore. But ready for the day. He was out of the apartment by 5:30. He walked down to the sidewalk, took a deep breath in, and just like that he was off. He ran with pride. For once in Alfred’s life he could say he was happy, genuinely happy! He ran past that memorable park, and the same stitch ran up his side. The police officers were there, but different people. Alfred made it his job to get to know each officer. The Harlem sun started to come up. Dusty red and orange colors gleamed down onto Alfred’s skin. The smell of garbage and gas started rising. It was all almost comforting to Alfred.

It was about 7:00 when Alfred got back to the apartment. He headed up the stairs, unlocked the door, and crept into the kitchen as quietly as he could. He started the kettle, grabbed a pan- started the stove, and grabbed the eggs.

The apartment smelled like perfection, and a just pinch of must. Breakfast was ready. But this time it was a breakfast for two. Alfred walked into the bedroom and handed his fiancee, Ally. The beautifully and deliciously crafted meal.

“Thank you Alfred-” Ally yawned.

The two talked for what seemed like hours. Alfred told Ally that he was heading to the Rec Center, and he was going to meet James. Ally was good for Alfred. Alfred had met Ally one his first day back at school. She was perky, happy, gorgeous, and oh so smart. Alfred fell in love as soon as he laid eyes on her.

“Ok Al, just be back by supper.” Ally whispered.

With a kiss goodbye Alfred was off once again. As he was walking down the stairs a wave of memories hit him. The stairs seemed like the stairs to Mr. Donatelli’s for a split second. He took a deep breath and stopped. Stopped to think. Before he knew it his mind was flooded with  memories.

His first time walking up those tough and steep stairs, his first win, his first KO, his first fight, his first loss, the robe, Bud, Spoon, everyone. A tear came to Alfred’s eye. Without the gym, without Mr. Donatelli. He could’ve ended up like Major, Sonny, and Hollis. Alfred had seen them in the recent news headlines. They had just been arrested for being caught with drugs on them. Alfred always knew someday that would happen. They hadn’t grown up. Stayed teens, and will probably never change. He was lucky to still be there. 10 years later. Still alive and well.

“Wow.” Alfred thought to himself.

After some time, he snapped out of the lucid dream. He checked the time, he was going to be late. Again! He headed out the door once again. Walking with speed through the beautiful and crowded streets of Harlem. He headed right up Ellis Street, took a shortcut through Deluca Drive, and then he was there. The A & J Associations.

After Alfred helped James clean up. They both took an oath to each other. Promised to do nothing but good things for themselves and others. They both started going back to school, well partly. Alfred knew he wanted to do something big with his life. Something that would live even after him. Him and James came to a conclusion that they would start a Rec center. Or something of the sort. A place where “outcasts” could go after school. A safe place for all people. They called it A & J Associations. It was a place where kids could come together after school to do extracurricular activities. Boxing, art n’ crafts, more school, charity events, life skills, and so much more.

People are actually starting to volunteer their own time to the Rec center. Complete strangers. It lit Alfred’s heart up just thinking about it.

“Hey Al!” James shouted down the street.

Alfred’s head whipped towards him. Suddenly Alfred’s world paused again. He thought about the night he found James, hopeless James. It was a wonder that James made it. He pulled through it all. The withdrawal, the ups and downs. It was a wonder. He looked good too. He wore a smile, fresh clothes, and looked genuine. Alfred’s world came back in a flash when he felt the embrace of James. It felt good to be hugged by him. Even though they saw each other a few week ago, it really was the little things that made Alfred’s day,

The men walked into the center. Seeing all the kids there made James smile more than Alfred himself.

“I’m glad we did the James, I’m glad I did this with you.”  Alfred said blissfully.

“Me too bud, me too.” James said with a grin

The men stayed there until 5. They taught and spent time with the kids. James and Alfred were becoming the Rockstars they were meant to be. As they we’re closing up the center, a hard pound was sent from the backdoor.

“I’ll check what that was.” James exclaimed.

However Alfred could sense the fear in his voice.

“Be careful James!” Alfred said.

“Oh calm down Uncle’ Al.” James said with a smile.

Alfred eyed him, but his smile broke through. Laughing past the lockers, James finally made it to the backdoor. To his doubt, he opened the door to a happy surprise.

“Is that James!” Aunt Pearl gleamed.

Alfred’s head once again whipped, he knew that voice.

“Yes mam.” James yelled happily.

. Alfred flashed over to the backdoor, giving Aunt Pearl the biggest hug of her life.

“Hey.” Alfred said gleaming.

Alfred hadn’t seen Aunt Pearl in a while, mainly because she moved to Manhattan to pursue her own dreams. The three talked and talked for hours, well more like minutes. Alfred was so shocked he forgot the time.

“Oh gosh!” Alfred exclaimed.

“Ally?” James said, grinning at Aunt Pearl.

“How’d you know?” Alfred said.

The three headed up the streets. As Alfred looked at the sun slowly setting, and the stars rising. Alfred loved everything about Harlem. Everything about his life. They walked up to the apartment door. Jame’s knocked ever so aggressively.

“Alfred! You didn’t tell me we had company.” Ally said sarcastically.

The four talked and talked, until the moon smiled down on them. Laughing and telling funny childhood stories all night long. Alfred took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and smiled. He was where he was meant to be.

# data[].attributes.body
Another long night at night school, Alfred packed his books together and walked out the classroom, thanking his teacher for the great lesson. As he walked out, he thought about how hard last year was. He would have never thought of himself going to school again, but here he is. Alfred met a lot of spectacular people along his journey as a boxer and how they helped him go through life as a highschool drop out. If it wasn’t for them, he wouldn’t be where he is now.  Alfred walked out in the parking lot, meeting James at the bus stop. 
  “Yo yo yooo” said James, putting his hand out so Alfred could dab him up. 
    “Hey bro what’s up” Alfred grabbed James' hand and shook it. Alfred and James both go to night school. James had a rough year last year, he is now going to rehab, doing much better than he was. The bus came up to a stop and Alfred and James boarded it, giving the driver a friendly head nod. Alfred throws his bag in his seat. 
   “How’s rehab going?”
    “Oh it’s going. One day at a time.” James says with a sigh, a tired look on his face. 
Alfed looks out the window, seeing lights everywhere, streets filled with cars on the road, little kids getting ready to go inside for dinner. Alfred struggles with night school and with participating with kids in his community who aren’t as fortunate. Having to do night school every night, then getting up early in the morning to help the kids tires Alfred out like a dog chasing his tail for hours. On top of that he has to watch over his little cousins while Aunt Pearl is on vacation with her sister Aunt Dorothy. Alfred sees him getting close to home, he grabs his book bag drained out, and stands up. 
      “Ight bro, I’ll catch up with you tomorrow?” Alfred gives a hard rubbing on James' head. 
       “Owww chilllll. James smacked Alfred’s hand away, laughing. I’ll see you tomorrow definitely” 
Chuckling to himself, Alfred thanks the bus driver and walks out the doors of the bus. Walking up the steps to his apartment, he sees’ people on their porch playing cards and laughing like it’s the best day of their lives. Stepping into his nice, cozy home, he felt relieved to be there and flopped down on the couch, dozing off right as he sat down. 
   Jerking up out of his sleep, he rushes to the phone, remembering that he has to call Aunt Pearl and tell her about how things are going. He dials the number, his eyes halfway open, waiting for the ringing to stop so he can hear her voice through the phone. 
    “Hey baby! How’s everything going up there? Are my babies sleeping?I miss y'all.” Aunt Pearl’s loud voice saying through the phone. 
     “Hey Auntie, I missed you too, everything is going fine and yes the girls are in the room sleeping” Alfred says to the phone, leaning against the wall. 
     “Amazing. Glad to hear things are going good, can’t wait to see you guys soon. Call me tomorrow when you wake up, I love you always baby, goodnight”.
      “Ok Aunt Pearl, I love you too.” Alfred hangs up the phone. He looks up at the clock. It’s only 9:00? I thought it was later than that. Mines well go for a little walk around. Alfred puts his jacket on, grabs the keys off the key hook and heads out the door, locking it behind him. Walking down the street, it seems the streets are quieter than usual. He turns the corner and suddenly bumps into someone pretty hard. 
 “Sorry sir” Alfred says, turning around in the direction the man is walking.
  “No problemo.” The stranger keeps walking, not turning around to face Alfred. Alfred recozinges his voice straight away. 
  “Mr. Donatello?! Hey hey wait up!” Alfred runs after Mr. Donatello, filled with joy but also in shock. Alfred catches up to Mr. Donatello, huffing and puffing, seeing his breath in the air. 
  “I thought you moved? What brings you back up here?
  “Just wanted to see if anything changed. Just as I thought, same old same old.”  Mr. Donatello says with no expression. 
  “I’ve been wanting to talk to you but I have been caught up with everything going on. Things are starting to turn around for me, it’s great.” Alfred says. 
  “That is great to hear Alfred. I knew you had the potential to turn your life around.” Mr. Donatello crosses the street, walking towards what seems to be the gym. 
  “I wanted to thank you for everything you have done for me. Boxing was really something I needed to find myself. You and Spoon and all the other people up there showed me what life is about and sometimes I wonder where I would be now if it wasn’t for meeting you. It’s crazy how just one person can make such an impact on their life.” Alfred says slowing down as he walks, feeling his eyes get just a little watery.
  “It was my pleasure Alfred. You are going to be something big one day Contender.” Mr. Donatello stands in front of the gym.
  “I appreciate that. This gym holds a lot of memories, what are you planning to do with yourself now?” Alfred looks at Mr. Donatello, then back at the gym. No one has brought the space where the gym has been. It’s been a year now since Mr. Donatello closed it. Alfred would have never thought he would close it down, but people can’t do the things they love forever. 
  “I’ve been taking it easy. Focusing on myself mainly. And yes this place holds memories that cannot be replaced. I’m glad I managed to come this far.  I think I'm gonna stick around for a while, I know you missed me.” Mr. Donatello wraps his arm around Alfred, both of them looking at the gym as the street lights go out, the gym lights lighting up the whole block.
  

# data[].attributes.body
The birds were jovially singing in the tall and verdant trees as the enchanting smell of flowers and the morning dew filled Alfred’s nostrils as he ran through the park. Smooth and easy Alfred, pick those feet up. Don’t let that stitch bother you, just keep at it. Calm and cool, Alfred thought as he zoomed past the two policemen waving at him, talking as Alfred passed them.

The first policeman asked, “Did you hear about that fight a few years ago, Al and Hubbard?”

The second policeman responded, “Yeah, real good fight. That Brooks kid had a real heart I heard.”

“Mhm, went two and four in his boxing days.”

As Alfred waved again to the avuncular passing runners, he felt nice. He felt even better when he remembered who was next to him, James. James was trying to keep up with Alfred, but Alfred was just too fast. Alfred slowed down so they could be at the same pace, and after running they arranged to meet at Epstein’s in an hour. Nonetheless, Alfred came home and ate: Juice, two boiled eggs, toast, and tea. He was still wondering why he ate that after he retired from boxing, but he did nothing about it since he was so accustomed to that way. At eight, they met at Epstein’s to start work.

“What in the world are you dressing up for, a red carpet?” Alfred asked as he saw James walk in the Epstein’s store with a midnight black tuxedo, a blue plaid shirt with a blue and white striped tie, and black sun-glasses that gave early shoppers the feeling that James was a part of the FBI.

“I thought there was a dress code, sorry, it’s my first day,” James responded.

“No, it's fine James, just…  start by unloading the trucks, and after that just tell me and I'll tell you the next job; Alfred, take over the cash register,” Lou announced as he walked into the store from the backroom.

They worked on their jobs until noon then had lunch, where they reminisced about old times.

“I can’t believe I tried to burglarise this place ‘cause I was on the junk. I also can’t believe I was let go from jail because someone paid my bail.” James said enigmatically.

“Huh. Whoever paid that bail must be a very nice person.“ Alfred said as he clandestinely smirked because he thought about a load of money gone from the bank account Alfred made when he was boxing.

They got back to work, but James never finished his assigned job since three fully-loaded trucks came to the store for him to unload. Nevertheless, Alfred went from register to sweep to trash to mop to placing new goods. At the end of the shift James changed with dexterity and they quickly drove to the recreation center, which was their second job. They said hello to Harold and Lynn and was assigned a group of kids who wanted to learn how to box. Alfred and James jogged over and sat down.

“Hello kids, I am Alfred and this is James, and I am sorry to tell you that you aren’t going to learn to box, but-”

All the querulous kids started shouting at once yelling, “I wanted to box,” and started chanting,” BOX! BOX! BOX!”

James intervened, “Calm down children, you can’t learn because…  you have to start with exercises. You have to make your core as strong as a body-builder.”

They made the kids do exercises like jumping jacks, sit-ups, deep knee-bends, and other core exercises. When James and Alfred finished the workouts and the children were tired, James gave the children some important advice.

James explained, “Kids, come here, I have to tell you somethin’. In life, while you climbin’ the stairs, nothin’s given to you. You have to try to achieve things, but nothin’s gonna happen ‘till you try. Okay, see y’all on Wednesday.”

Alfred and James dexterously left the recreation center and went to their next stop on their to-do list: Night school. As they walked in, a blast of icy air surrounded them as they now longed for warmth. They sat down on the uncomfortable blue high-school chairs as they looked at the time, which just turned 6:30. The night school teacher was none other than Bill Witherspoon, who gave Alfred/Henry the books/supplies needed for that class. On the first day of Night School, they did a practice test to see what they needed to know, and the other classmates did, too.

By the time they finished the test, the class was over, so they exchanged goodbyes to Spoon and went to Alfred’s house. James’s parents were out of town, and Alfred needed to keep an eye on James because of his drug addiction, so James went to Alfred’s house. They greeted Aunt Pearl and her new husband Uncle Adam and went right to the television. Alfred went past a French-teaching channel and smiled as he changed the channel to a gangster movie. They slowly fell asleep on the couch as their day caught up to them on that joyous night.

# data[].attributes.body
It was a splendid, sunny morning. The birds were chirping and the sun was shining bright. Aunt Pearl was walking down the street in her finest clothes, and stopped in front of a theatre. Jill, a person working there, recently visited the church she went to and heard her beautiful singing, which was just like sweet honey. Aunt Pearl was approached by Jill and was asked to work there. At first, she was stunned, and couldn’t reply. She started to realize her dream might come true. 

She thought to herself, “Is this… Is this my dream coming true? All these years I have waited.” 

She broke the silence by putting her thoughts into words, “Yes!” and was instantly overcome with joy. She wanted to make a good impression, so she straightened out her clothes, stomped the leaves of her shoes, and put on lipstick. She walked in, got interviewed, and was hired on the spot. She started as a backup singer, but improved with coaches hired especially for her, and over time, she became the main singer. Little did she know, this was just the beginning of her very successful career career. 

At that very same moment, James was relaxing on a bench, in the park, thinking to himself. He was grateful to have Alfred and remembered the night in the cave, “For start. Nothing promised you, man, but you ain’t gonna know nothing till you try. Maybe get to build things like you always wanted.” James remembered when he made the decision to go with Alfred. All the good memories he had that him in them persuaded him to go. And it was the best decision he ever made. After Alfred got James out of the cave, he started to lead James somewhere. 

Alfred brought him straight to Mr. Epstein, and told him, “ Mr. Epstien, this is James, the one who robbed your store.”
He replied, “Alfred, why did you bring him here? The police will be here any minute and he robbed my store! He deserves to go to jail!”
“Mr. Epstein, James is my best friend and I would do anything for him. He is hooked on to drugs and didn’t know what was best for him. Please say there is a way for him to make it up for you.”
“Well, if he earns back the money he stole from me plus the cost for the repairs for the window, I guess I can forgive him.”

James had tears in his eyes, and from that day on, he became an honest worker. He quit drugs and started working for Mr. Epstein. Mr. Epstein dropped all the charges against him and James was forever grateful for Alfred and what he did for him. He wore clean clothes and started going back to school. He started to work hard, study engineering, and work towards his dream. 

For Alfred, he was living a good life. He retired from boxing and started to go to school at night time. He was getting a good education and was planning to use that later in his life. He didn’t know what he was going to become, but he wanted a good and honest career. At day, he worked in the grocery store and on days off, worked for the recreation program. He was getting paid, but he enjoyed the kids looking up to him, so that was the real reward. He always admired Rick when he was young, so when the kids admired him, it made him feel really good. He was grateful for what he had, and what he did. He has a good family, good friends, and a good reputation. He even helped James get off drugs and back on his feet. He had a peace of mind and his decisions always left him happy and peaceful. 

# data[].attributes.headline
 Epilogue   thoughtful, logical ending 10dialogue 10characterization (even just 3 10 lines)inner thoughts of character 10 (put in italics)flashback 5 sensory details (setting) 10spelling/grammar/punctuation 10 /capsTOTAL POINTS 70“Wow man, still can't believe we're both 20 and run this place, huh?” James said to Alfred.“Yeah man. Speaking of, shouldn't we be working?” Alfred asked.“Oh yeah lets go”Soon after that Alfred and James were ​parading​ down to the children's game room laughing and making jokes when they saw Major, Sonny, and Hollis. They all worked there for Alfred and James.“What up man? Major said to Alfred and James.“Nothin’ really, just on our way to the game room” said James. “Wanna Come? “Can’t, We're just heading out,” Hollis squealed. “We on our way to that new restaurant downtown.“Well all right, you have fun now, you hear?”“Yessir, loud and clear” Major ​spoke​.As Alfred and James made their way to the game room, They talked about their plans to go out to a dinner they had planned for about 6 months!                               creativity - don’t sound like everybody else, don’t summarize  5               “The Harlem City Recreation Center” A beautiful new building with white walls, 4 gymnasiums, a swimming pool and more.     “So you're really gonna do it, huh?” James asked AlfredJames was referring to Alfred's plan to propose to his girlfriend of two years, Anna.“Yep. Im gonna do it. I’ll tell her I need to tell her something and I’ll walk outside and we’ll look at the stars. And when she’s not looking, I'll kneel down” Alfred replied. “What if she says no?” Alfred asked nervously to James.Oh come on man, you know she's gonna accept it.” James chuckled. “Especially with that beautiful ring dude”The ring James is referring to is one that Alfred bought himself. It was A gold ring with a ​glistening​, white pearl.“C’mon man you're giving me the jitters!” Alfred ​announced​.Once they made it to the game room they played some games with the kids for a little while.“So when are you gonna ask Jennie?” Alfred asked. Jennie is James’ Girlfriend.“Al​, we've only been dating for 6 months!” He replied. “I don't even know if she's the one.”When Alfred and James got home they both started getting ready for dinner. Just as they were walking out to get the girls, James shouted “ Don't Forget the ring Al.” Alfred blushed. He ran back to their apartment and got the ring and put it in his suit. While they were getting ready, vividrehab, but he knew he was doing the best thing for James.At the restaurant they ate, drank, laughed and had a good time all together.“Hey Anna, come with me for a sec, let’s get some fresh air.“Omg, what if she says no?. What if she says no and dumps me?”​ ​Alfred thought to himself. As they were walking outside, Alfred looked back at James nervously and he winked and smiled at Alfred. When they got out they were talking about their day and Anna started “this dinner was lovely baby, don’t you think?”Alfred respond shakily “Yes so gla-glad you could come”“Alfred what wrong, you sputtering like a jitterbug! Something trou-”“No! Nothing at all!’ Alfred said blissfully. “C’mon let's go for a walk”After a few ​moments​, Alfred stopped and said “Hold up, look how lovely that moon is babe.”Anna turned and looked at the sky saying “Yes it's so bright tonight.”Whie Anna wasn’t looking, Alfred got the ring out and knelt down on one knee. When she turned around she gasped so loudly that James and Jennie both heard. “Anna, will you make me the happiest man alive and Marry me?”.... A deep silence occurred. “YES. YES ALFRID BROOKS I WILL!” she shouted out so loud the whole restaurant could hear her. After they walked back to the table, Anna was showing off her ring to Jennie and James fist bumped Alfred.They met when Anna signed up to work for the Rec Center. She is a skinny girl with shiny black hair, glistening green eyes, and a tall and slim body.    ​Alfred looked over at James in his ​thought back to when he found him in the cave. All dirty and sad, thinking he could​ white suit. He   get clean of drugs but just one more time. He felt terrible the day he sent James to Rehab. 

# data[].attributes.subject
 Epilogue   thoughtful, logical ending 10dialogue 10characterization (even just 3 10 lines)inner thoughts of character 10 (put in italics)flashback 5 sensory details (setting) 10spelling/grammar/punctuation 10 /capsTOTAL POINTS 70“Wow man, still can't believe we're both 20 and run this place, huh?” James said to Alfred.“Yeah man. Speaking of, shouldn't we be working?” Alfred asked.“Oh yeah lets go”Soon after that Alfred and James were ​parading​ down to the children's game room laughing and making jokes when they saw Major, Sonny, and Hollis. They all worked there for Alfred and James.“What up man? Major said to Alfred and James.“Nothin’ really, just on our way to the game room” said James. “Wanna Come? “Can’t, We're just heading out,” Hollis squealed. “We on our way to that new restaurant downtown.“Well all right, you have fun now, you hear?”“Yessir, loud and clear” Major ​spoke​.As Alfred and James made their way to the game room, They talked about their plans to go out to a dinner they had planned for about 6 months!                               creativity - don’t sound like everybody else, don’t summarize  5               “The Harlem City Recreation Center” A beautiful new building with white walls, 4 gymnasiums, a swimming pool and more.     “So you're really gonna do it, huh?” James asked AlfredJames was referring to Alfred's plan to propose to his girlfriend of two years, Anna.“Yep. Im gonna do it. I’ll tell her I need to tell her something and I’ll walk outside and we’ll look at the stars. And when she’s not looking, I'll kneel down” Alfred replied. “What if she says no?” Alfred asked nervously to James.Oh come on man, you know she's gonna accept it.” James chuckled. “Especially with that beautiful ring dude”The ring James is referring to is one that Alfred bought himself. It was A gold ring with a ​glistening​, white pearl.“C’mon man you're giving me the jitters!” Alfred ​announced​.Once they made it to the game room they played some games with the kids for a little while.“So when are you gonna ask Jennie?” Alfred asked. Jennie is James’ Girlfriend.“Al​, we've only been dating for 6 months!” He replied. “I don't even know if she's the one.”When Alfred and James got home they both started getting ready for dinner. Just as they were walking out to get the girls, James shouted “ Don't Forget the ring Al.” Alfred blushed. He ran back to their apartment and got the ring and put it in his suit. While they were getting ready, vividrehab, but he knew he was doing the best thing for James.At the restaurant they ate, drank, laughed and had a good time all together.“Hey Anna, come with me for a sec, let’s get some fresh air.“Omg, what if she says no?. What if she says no and dumps me?”​ ​Alfred thought to himself. As they were walking outside, Alfred looked back at James nervously and he winked and smiled at Alfred. When they got out they were talking about their day and Anna started “this dinner was lovely baby, don’t you think?”Alfred respond shakily “Yes so gla-glad you could come”“Alfred what wrong, you sputtering like a jitterbug! Something trou-”“No! Nothing at all!’ Alfred said blissfully. “C’mon let's go for a walk”After a few ​moments​, Alfred stopped and said “Hold up, look how lovely that moon is babe.”Anna turned and looked at the sky saying “Yes it's so bright tonight.”Whie Anna wasn’t looking, Alfred got the ring out and knelt down on one knee. When she turned around she gasped so loudly that James and Jennie both heard. “Anna, will you make me the happiest man alive and Marry me?”.... A deep silence occurred. “YES. YES ALFRID BROOKS I WILL!” she shouted out so loud the whole restaurant could hear her. After they walked back to the table, Anna was showing off her ring to Jennie and James fist bumped Alfred.They met when Anna signed up to work for the Rec Center. She is a skinny girl with shiny black hair, glistening green eyes, and a tall and slim body.    ​Alfred looked over at James in his ​thought back to when he found him in the cave. All dirty and sad, thinking he could​ white suit. He   get clean of drugs but just one more time. He felt terrible the day he sent James to Rehab. 

# data[].attributes.body
Alfred wakes up early pitch black out as he gets ready for his morning run. He gets back, eats his breakfast and gets ready for work. On his way to work he realizes the clocks were set forward but his clock hadn’t updated yet so he gets to work at Donatelli's gym but he was early so he started working out after about 30 min Mr.Donatelli comes in and see’s Alfred working out. “Alfred I’m proud of you”. “Hmm what” .“Nevermind”.  James wakes up and realizes he has to be out of the house in 2 min. He scrambles around not being able to find clothes. He finally puts clothes running to the door and slamming it shut.  “Mr.Donetellis gonna be mad i’d better hurry up.” James seems to be running faster than the flash. He’s thinking about that day in the cave when they walked out after Alfred had convinced him to get help but he’s thinking about what if I didn’t come out. I would've died if I wouldn’t have this job helping Donatelli with the new kids. He stops daydreaming and keeps running. He’s finally made but he’s 10 min late Mr.Donetellis inside waiting for him. “ Why are you late?”  “I’m sorry sir I woke up late and got here as fast as I can.”  “ I understand, just don’t let it happen again.”  The rest of the day goes by normally at night James and Alfred go to rehab and go home and go to bed. Alfred wakes up to major and holis with a knife to his face and they take him out to the kitchen where Alfred sees Aunt Pearl and the twins there stabbed to death. “Nooooooooo!” “You’re gonna do what we say” “Fight me like a man.”  No response. They take him out to the street where Alfred breaks loose and takes down Hollis but Major stabs him and he keeps stabbing him. Alfred wakes up sweating “Just a bad dream.” He tries to go back to bed but he can't, the dream keeps coming back to him. Finally he falls asleep but only for a little cause he had to start getting ready for work. He was dressed and aunt pearl came into the kitchen he sprinted over to her to give her a hug.”I love you” “I love you too Alfred”. He runs out the door for his morning run then too Donatellis. He gets there at about the same time as James and all he wants to do is tell him about the dream he had had. They open up before Alfred has a chance to tell James about the dream. The day goes on normally like any day would before their break Alfred sees Major and Hollis walking outside. He thinks about his dream and almost runs after them but he cools himself. He goes to break with James. “James I had the weirdest dream last night.” Alfred tells James all about the dream.”That’s weird but it was just a dream”. “Yeah you’re right”.  The day goes on normally and they go to rehab then home. Alfred before he goes to bed makes sure he hugs Aunt Pearl and the twins. Then he goes to bed and the dream doesn’t happen again.

# data[].attributes.body
It has been five years. The glistening sun glistens on Alfred and James as they slowly walk through the park. Alfred walks casually and straight like a refined gentleman. His eyes looked more concentrated than ever. James was not as strong as Alfred, but he wasn’t lackadaisical anymore. His body had more definition and his bulky hands he obtained from his work stuck out a bit. He had begun taking great care of himself, and he had bronze, smooth skin, just like Alfred.

“How has work been, James,” Alfred asked confidently.

“Ya know, the same as always. Engineering is not as easy as it may seem, ol’ Alfred,” replied James. The dusk was magnificent and stunning, looking into it would make you forget about all of your problems for a moment, you would feel joyful and touched as you watched the sun melt into yellow and pink strands of color, spreading across the sky of Harlem. Burning away the sight of the pollution that streaked the sky day in and day out.

“Look how far we’ve come, James,” said Alfred, “You got a wonderful job as an engineer, and now I own a small little grocery store just down the street.” He was right. Ever since the Epsteins decided to get different jobs, Alfred decided that instead of working at a grocery store again, he would own one.

“I’m sorry about what I did back…” James said.

Alfred cut him off saying, “It’s okay James. That was long ago. Everything worked out in the end. Even though you did have to serve a lot of hours in community service, you got past it, and we moved on. You beat the stuff after months of determination, and you proved to yourself that you have what it takes to beat the stuff. Just like how I proved to myself that I could be a contender.” All the memories are starting to come back to me. What memorable times. James and Alfred kept promenading towards their next destination, Spoon’s house. The wind was docile and lackadaisical, breezing past the two as they slated for Spoon’s place. James was thinking about what happened, how he did those awful drugs. He thought to himself, Oh man, did I mess up back there. I got hooked on that awful stuff. The cure, the clinic, everything, it just feels like it was yesterday. At least it is over now.

“You nervous, uncle Alfred,” James asked.

“Yeah, a little. It’s just been a while.” Alfred quietly replied.

“Well, here we are,” said James. “You ready Alfred?”

“I think so,” said Alfred.

Alfred thought to himself, I’m so nervous. It’s been so long. What do I say, what do I do? I just hope everything goes the way it should.

As the two stood outside Spoon’s dorm, the wind gently softly blew by, biting at Alfred, as his nerves chilled him until an ice ball formed in the pit of his stomach. As Alfred rang the doorbell, Spoon was ready to greet him. Everyone Alfred had been close to or acquainted with in his boxing career had come. Everyone had also changed. Except Mr. Donatelli. He was still the same ol’ trainer everyone knew and loved. Jelly Belly had finally learned to control his nearly unstoppable eating habits, and had lost wait. He had become a better boxer and in his spare time, talked to kids about the dangers of vicious eating patterns and why you should stay fit. The Epsteins had new jobs in finance for large companies, Aunt Pearl got to sing in a choir for a small play, and Betty and Spoon were married, now.

“Hey Alfred, James! How have you guys been,” Spoon said, his voice always welcoming.

“We… we have a lot of catching up to do,” said Alfred, with a trace of timorousness in his voice.

“You don’t have to be apprehensive, ol’ Alfred. I want to hear your stories, boys.”

“We would love to,” said James.

“I’m all ears, James.”

“I bet they ought to be interesting,” Mr. Donatelli replied.

“Mr. Donatelli,” Alfred said softly.

His cold raspy voice was still the same, and he had successfully trained another champion. He still had thin lips, but he was notably a little more muscular than before. He had decided he wanted to train again to rebuild a little more strength, and he did just that. Boxed a few of his trainees, too.

“Nice to see ya, Brooks,” he said.

“Nice to see ya too, Mr. Donatelli.”

“So what happened to y’all?”

“It’s a long story.”

“I can’t wait to hear it, Brooks.”

“Really? Okay, should I go first, or should you…”

“You can go first Alfred.”

“Thanks, James. Always been a good person deep inside. It all started when…”

# data[].attributes.body
It was a rainy Tuesday night as Alfred ate his dinner, meat, green vegetables, and milk. He breathed in, enjoying the nighttime air, and then breathed out, thinking about how far everyone else had come. Alfred thought back to James, when they came out of that cave together. After that James had to go to jail, but at least he was able to get medical treatment. Alfred remembered. But in the end, everything worked out, James no longer was using heroin, and eventually was let out. Alfred couldn’t help but crack a short smile, not a laughing kind of smile, just a smile that warms one’s heart.
Alfred’s nostalgia trip was loudly interrupted by his phone. “RING RING RING” the phone annoyingly yelled at Alfred as he trudged over his hard green carpet to pick it up. “Hello, this is Alfred Brooks.” A serene but excited voice responded, one Alfred knew too well. “Heya Al, how have you been?” Alfred grew a long smile, “I’ve been doing good, what about you?” answered Alfred. What perfect timing, James! Good to talk to you again. James gave a warm laugh on the other end, quickly adding, “Good to hear, I’ve been better than ever, I feel ecstatic!” Alfred asked, “Good, good. Why is that so?” James put a more relaxed tone on his voice, then spoke. 
“You already know that I’ve quit heroin Al, I called you because I don’t think I have thanked you enough for helping do so. Thanks Al, just for being my friend, and trying so hard to help me.” Alfred felt a subtle pride surging in him, knowing that he and James were so important to one another. “Anytime man, I’ll always have your back!” replied Alfred, feeling more pride. James responded, “I’ll always have your back too Al! I’m glad that we’re both thriving, and that we get to spend time together.” “So do I James, so do I.”
Alfred and James spent a couple more minutes chatting, talking about their jobs, accomplishments, hardships, and just life in general. Alfred thought about James. Once a poor heroin addict, now a proper, healthy man, it was a story out of a fairytale. Alfred could easily picture James in his head, tall, slim, wearing a pale gray button-up collared shirt, with polished black matte shoes. Alfred then thought about himself. I’ve come far too, and it was all because of the people who were there for me, Donatelli, Aunt Pearl, Spoon, James, and so many more!
“Welp Al, I’m gonna head off to bed now.” James interrupted, “Have a good night, see you tomorrow!” Alfred quickly responded, “See you tomorrow!” and then James hung up. Alfred was inaudible, and pondered about how many people were there for him, and how he was there for them too. There was Donatelli, with his stern square bulldog face, and Aunt Pearl and her kindhearted, worrisome attitude. James thanked me for helping him quit heroin, maybe I should thank my friends and family for helping me be… a contender. Alfred with a bright smile on his face picked up the telephone and started to dial a number he knew like the back of his hand.

# data[].attributes.body
It's been a year since Alfred last saw James. He heard from other people that he got out of jail a few months ago, but Alfred doesn't know if he is ready to see him. He has heard that James is not completely clean of drugs yet. Alfred has moved out of Aunt Pearls apartment and into his own apartment downtown. He is also still working at the Epstein store and working at the recreation center. In his free time Alfred still goes up to the gym to visit Mr. Donatelli, Jelly Belly, and Spoon. Alfred has also started going to night school to get his high school diploma.

The phone rang and Alfred picked it up and the stunned look on his face told Aunt Pearl that it must have been James who called. The last they have heard about James was a month ago. When Alfred hung up the phone he told Aunt Pearl that it was James and he was clean from drugs and asked if Alfred would help him get a job.

Alfred remembered when, “James was there in the cave three years earlier when Alfred’s mother died of pneumonia in the city hospital. James sat with him all night, whispering, “Gonna be alright, Alfred. I’m gonna stick by you. We’re partners right?” Alfred also remembered all the good times they had in the cave.”

When James came over that week Alfred helped him enroll in night school and got him a job at the recreation center. Later that week Alfred introduced James to Spoon, Jelly Belly and Mr. Donatelli. Alfred still goes up to the gym every once in a while in his free time and still goes for his morning runs. Alfred has noticed that since he is not going to the gym as much anymore that his muscles are not as big as they were and he is not as strong as he was when he was training for boxing.

Neither James or Alfred have talked to Major or Holis since they got caught trying to break into the Epsteins store again last month. Alfred thought, It's probably better off that they are not here when James comes back because now they can't get him hooked on drugs again.

One early bright, sunny morning James and Alfred went for a run in the park. “Why did you quit boxing Alfred?” announced James.

“I did not quit. I retired because I no longer had a passion for boxing. I felt like I had more to give to the community. That's why I love working at the recreation center and helping children realize that there are ways to stay out of trouble and not take the path that you and I have. I am so proud of the both of us. We have both cleaned up our acts, you James have been clean for a year now and I see a bright future for the both of us,” Alfred stated.

# data[].attributes.body
Alfred walked into the after school program. Another day of work. The sky was gray and the moist road made Alfred’s shoes damp. They squeaked on the floor. He wiped them on the welcome mat in the doorway. He walked over to a red table and sat down. He glared at the clock. It was 3:15, and the kids were going to be coming in about 5 minutes. He was looking around, and he sees a door with the sign “storage” on it. He walks over and opens the door, it creaks open and he sees stairs. He gets flashbacks from the gym and slightly smiles. There is a bad smell in the room and he is just about to step up when someone opens the door. “Bye mom!” Work started. Alfred sighs and walks back to the red table “Mornin’”Alfred says to the kid.

“Good Morning!” the little kid Aidan replies.

“You’re quite early today, aren’t you?”

Aidan nods, then pulls an 8 pack of crayola crayons out of his small backpack next to his chair, then carefully opens them and grabs some newspaper on the left side of the table and starts drawing some scribbles with a red crayon. Some more kids come into the place a little after, and Alfred gets everything ready. He sees the storage room door cracked open a little and he walks over to shut it. The kids start coloring,playing, and doing homework and Alfred sits in the back of the room flipping through some magazines and newspapers. He grabs his number book from his bag and flips through and comes across James number. He steps outside for a few minutes and decides to ring him, but James doesn’t pick up. Please pick up. It’s been awhile since they’ve talked and Alfred gets flashbacks of memories with James and the cave, he really misses him. He dials it one more time, but he doesn’t pick up. He sighs and walks back in. He sits down at the blue table with Aidan. He is still coloring and Alfred notices that he is drawing a pair of red boxing gloves. Alfred looks at the paper, then back at him.

“Hey, what are you drawing there?” Alfred asks.

“Boxing gloves!”

Alfred smiles and nods.

“Nice!”

“When I grow up I want to be a boxer!” says Aidan.

Alfred smirks then laughs, looks down at his shoes then back up.

“I could help you a lot with that!” Alfred replies happily.

Aidan laughs then his mom comes to pick him up. Then Alfred goes to the storage closet and up the stairs, the stairs are quite tiring, but he makes it up. He enters the storage room with file cabinets and boxes filled with school supplies, lightbulbs, and other stuff.  He sits on a stool while looking out the window as Aidan drives home. Alfred smiles. He realizes with his new job, he’s gonna enjoy it.

# data[].attributes.body
“You comin’ Uncle Alfred?” James said to Alfred when he was walking at a slower pace than James.

“Yeah just one moment James…” Alfred responded as he stopped to see an open door that led to an empty stairway similar to the one that led to Donatelli’s Gym. Crazy how that was only 2 years ago….

Alfred caught up to James with a couple quick and paced steps. Alfred was feeling the crisp and biting wind on his face and heard the crunch and felt the coldness of snow underneath his overused sneaks when he walked. He remembered playing in the snow with James on days like this, without a care in the world, and cozying up to a steaming cup of hot cocoa afterwards. If only things could be so simple now, so easy to live and not worry about the pay comin’ in so you can pay it back to them in the end.

“So how’s working in the shop been going for you James? Learnin’ everything good?” Alfred knew that James had been working in the car workshop downtown.

“I guess it alright’, gives me a good pay, but I wish I could use my hands to make something ya know? Like not just hand bolts and screws to them but use them in my own hands to build something. But I guess I just gotta keep going right?” James sounded hoarse and  sick when he spoke. Probably from all that gas and fumes he inhaled at the shop, Alfred considered as he saw a young lady in a dark brown fur coat strut down the dirt and oil infused slush on the side of the road.

Alfred continued to walk in silence with James for another block, listening to the distant wails on sirens coming from the city and feeling the soothingly warm air floating out of the shops as he walked past them. Some coughing sound on his right caught him by surprise when he saw James clearing his throat to speak. “So Alfred, how has working in the rec center been for you? Have ya been talking about some of your fighting to them and teaching them some moves?” James seemed like he truly was interested in the topic and not like he was just trying to pass some time, so Alfred thought before speaking.

“I have actually been talking to the kids bout’ my journey to becoming a contender, and even teaching them some of the work out I’ve done to get in shape. Watchin’ them do that is what makes my day James, and I hope you get to feel that way once in your life as well. Have you seen anyone that does that for you?” Alfred was going to tell James that he found this one special lady at the center who always came at 1 each day to teach the little girls how to play different games and help them with their school work when James voiced something.

“I actually haven’t, but I hope you do Alfred, I hope you find a girl that deserves you and you have a family with her. I’ve been so grateful for having you as a friend ever since you pulled me out of that cave and brought me into the light, but I never truly got the chance to truly thank you. I hope you have all of the goodness come to you for doing that.” When Alfred heard that, he remembered that night, that harsh and cold night that seemed similar to this one but yet so different. Alfred remembered the first time he saw James in that cave, all scared and cooped up with that arm drenched in sticky red liquid. He remembered how he looked into Jame’s eyes and he could see all of the hurt and pain in them. But when he looked into Jame’s eyes now, all he could see was gratitude towards Alfred for all that he did for him.

“James, you know I would have never ever left you in that cave, you know that right? Remember when we played as those wrestlers, you were Mosely of the Jungle and I was Bad Brooks? We were partners, just like now, and just like forever.” Alfred could see the swells of water building up in Jame’s eyes and could feel his running down his cheeks. “Let’s get going James, it's almost dark now.” Alfred could only see the last few rays of light until darkness fully blanketed the city. On their way home, Alfred thought about what he said, about how he and James would be friends forever. I’m glad that I pulled James out of that cave, cuz maybe if I didn’t then we would not be here, or maybe he would not even be here. When Alfred reached the door to his apartment, he said his last goodbyes to James, and went inside his apartment. When he was in bed, he thought of how grateful he was of James and all of his family, and went to bed with the thought of tomorrow in his mind.

# data[].attributes.body
The park was filled with kids running around and yelling in joy and the adults were watching their kids play on the nice summer hot day, where the air was pure as water right from the spring. It had been 10 years after Alfred started boxing.
 Alfred and James were walking to the cave that they had dug when they were little.  “Man this brings me back” James thought.  “I remember when we sat inside here to hide from trouble.” Alfred says in a hysterical way. Alfred recalls back to the days where James and himself were not in a good position. Although Alfred had found something productive to do, (boxing) and on the other hand James was struggling. When Alfred saw James at the clubhouse, he didn't look right. Even though it was very nice to see him after a while, he was using drugs. 
Alfred and James walked to Mr. Epstein's store. 
“Long time no see. How is it going Alfred” happily said Mr. Epstein. 
“It's been going great. I got a new job that is at the recreation center with little kids and I started night school.” expressed Alfred. After picking up some morning coffee, they head to the gym to meet with Mr. Donatelli. They arrive at the gym, and when they do. It all comes back. The clubhouse, Major, Hollis. James looks away in total embarrassment. After attempting to rob the Eptien’s store, he does not want to talk and return to anyone that was affiliated with the incident except Alfred. “Let's head upstairs James.” Alfred calmly spoke. Alfred and James walk up the stairs to meet Mr. Donatelli. Alfred and James walk in the gym door. “Hey Alfred, I haven’t seen you in some time. “Who is this with you.” expressed Mr. Donatelli. “This is James, my best friend since we 
were little kids. James this is Mr. Donatelli, he was my boxing coach when I was a boxer 10 years ago.” Alfred walks around to see the hard working people in the gym from about ages 14- 26. Mr. Donatelli had gotten older. He has wrinkly skin, grey hair everywhere, still is formal by still wearing fancy shoes, pants and a shirt. Alfred and James saw this one kid actually beam the bean bag and made it sound like a machine gun. Alfred and James spoke with Mr. Donatelli in his office for about 1 hour. It was a great talk, Alfred and James leave the gym and take a walk down the street and talk about their past mistakes and talk to see what they could have done to prevent those actions. Alfred and James talk about their jobs and what they currently do. Alfred tells James that he works at a recreation center, and James is attending night school with Alfred. James is not working but Alfred is having him stay in his place until James can get a job and stabilize himself to get an apartment. Alfred and James say bye, and they part ways to their job and night school.       

# data[].attributes.body
“The day is finally here,” said Alfred. Alfred has been waiting for night school to start all summer. He got up earlier than usual but layed in bed thinking about the next chapter of his life that he is about to start. After about an hour of dilly dallying he finally got up. He said good morning to Aunt Pearl and made a  cup of coffee.

Aunt Pearl asked, “What are you doing up this early?”

“Just trying to get an early start to things,” exclaimed Alfred. “I have to get all of my supplies for school tonight.”

The day passed and it was time to get James. Alfred gathered all of his things and said goodbye to Aunt Pearl and the girls. He hopped into the car and went on his way. What would I do if I never decided to retire boxing, Alfred reflected. He got to James’ house and bounced out of the car as fast as lightning. James came right out and they left.

“How you been, Al?” James asked.

“I’ve been good. How bout you?” replied Alfred

James sighed, “Hangin in there. I’m just glad I got out of that rough patch in my life.”

They arrived at the school which was not at all what they expected. It was a small building with very little light. Some of the walls had vines growing over them. The grass looked like it hadn’t been cut in over a decade. Alfred and James got out of the car and started walking towards the school. The building was ancient and had dark red brick walls.  When they walked inside they started walking down the hallway. The lights on the popcorn ceilings kept going out. They found their class and there were only 3 other students. Walking back into the classroom reminded Alfred of when he went to school before he dropped out. The teacher was an older woman. She was wearing a striped skirt with stockings underneath, a green button down shirt, and her red reading glasses. She was a very lovely person but also very strict.

It's been 6 months since their first class and James and Alfred had already learned so much. It was almost time for them to graduate. They went back for their last class and thought about their good memories that they have made in the class. They paraded out of the door and headed to the car.

“So what do we do now?” asked James.

“Well i’m going to try to get a job at the recreational center. You should too, we can work with all the kids and help them stay happy.” gushed Alfred.

“Yeah why not, sign me up.” Said James.

A week passed and it was time for Alfred and James' interview. They have been preparing for the last few days. Alfred went first, then James. They waited a few days but they didn’t hear back so they thought that they didn’t get the job. The next day Alfred got the call that they got the job. He was so happy he almost cried. Alfred and James went out to dinner to celebrate. Alfred went to bed thinking about how proud he is of James overcoming his addiction.

# data[].attributes.body
Alfred breathed in the fresh morning air. The dew sticking to his pant legs as he walked through the tall grass. The sun was making its way up the sky, turning it amazing shades of orange, pink, and red. He could stay watching the sunrise over the huge Harlem building until the sun was at its peak. But unfortunately he had things to do, and people to see.  Alfred smiled, remembering the first time that he had taken a morning run in this park. A time before he had chosen to run after school recreation programs for kids. A time when he wanted to be a champion. He sighed. At that moment he remembered something Mr. Donatelli had told him so long ago. “Everybody wants to be a champion. That’s not enough. You have to start by wanting to be a contender, the man coming up, the man who knows there’s a good chance he’ll never get to the top, the man who’s willing to sweat and bleed to get up as high as his legs and his brains and his heart will take him.” It made Alfred smile sadly. He hadn’t been back to Harlem in almost a year, and even longer since he had been to the gym. He was supposed to meet James at the cafe downtown in an hour, but he could spare some time to drop in on some old friends. As he picked up his pace a smile spread across his face. Before he knew it he was running, just like the old days, running for the hell of it, instead of being chased by bullies like Major and his goons. By the time he was at the gym he was out of breath, but it felt so good. It felt good to run. It felt good to be out of breath. And it felt good to know that he was going to see his old friends again. He walked up the stairs, step, by step, by step. Past Dr. Corey’s office. Up the stairs, as he climbed, he remembered how hard it was to climb the stairs, his fear, his doubt, his determination. He had come a long way. He had finally reached the top of the stairs, he was doing great, they might have been rough at times, and hard to climb, but he did it, and he was better for it. He stopped out front of the door labeled, ‘Donatelli’s Gym’. He grinned remembering how he felt the first time that he had pushed the door open to the gym, and the second time, and third, and the fourth. To be perfectly honest the butterflies in his stomach never really left around those days. Just like the first time he had done it, he took a breath and rapped his knuckles against the door 3 times, before pushing it open. Everyone stopped what they were doing, and turned to look at him. “Alfred? Is that really you?”

“‘Course it’s me Henry, who else it’d be?” Henry smiled, limping over to him, “Welcome back Al.” “Good to be back.” “Is that Alfred I hear?” “Sure is Spoon, how you been?” “I’ve been great, I’m a dad now, me and my wife decided to adopt about a year ago.” “That’s great! I’m sure you make a great dad!” “Alright everyone back to work,” Someone snarled, walking into the room to see what the fuss was about. “oh, hello Alfred.” “Nice to see you Bud, it’s been a while.” “It has, if your look’n to see Mr. Donatelli he’s down stairs with Dr. Corey, getting one of the newbie’s fitted with a mouth guard, he goes pro tomorrow, I got a good feelin’ about this one.” “That’s great, I was in town, ‘bout to meet up with James. Just wanted to stop by, say hello.” Alfred smiled. “The gym hasn’ changed much,'' He turned to look at them. “guess neither have you guys, well not a lot anyway.” “Well you sure have, no longer that scared kid who came in the first day.” Bud patted Alfred on the back. “So how you been? Last time we saw you was a bit over two years ago, when you and Jeff left Harlem to try to do more for the program, you guys started.” “I’ve been good… don’t know how to put it though, we’ve been ‘round, trying to help, an’ make a difference wherever we can.” Henry opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by the door to the gym opening. “Mitchell, I’m sure you’ll do great at your fight tomorrow.” “I only wish I could be so sure Dr. Corey.” “Mitchell, just remember it’s not the victory that makes the man, but it’s the fact that you try hard, you might never reach the top, but you're sure as hell gonna try.” “Yeah Mitch, listen to Mr. Donatelli, try hard, and punch harder.” “That’s not what I said, but essentially, yes, you got the killer instinct, and you’ll go far in boxing.” Alfred grinned at the fact that he had found his calling, he might not have had the killer instinct needed for boxing, but he had found what he wanted to do, and above all else he was happy. “Alfred!” Dr. Corey saw him first. “How you been?” “I’ve been ok, how’ve you been?” “Pretty good, business is boomin these days.” Alfred nodded. “How you been Mr. Donatelli?” “Ok I suppose, Mitch here has his first fight tomorrow, and is a bit worried. Told ‘m he’d be fine, but he don’ seem to believe us.” Alfred stepped towards the kid who couldn't have been more than 16. “It’s normal to be scared before a fight. I would be worried if you weren't. Push past the fear, and turn it into power, and adrenaline to help you win.” “It’s just… I feel like I got this huge ice ball in my stomach that no matter what I do won’t go away!” Alfred smirked at the memory of his fear. “I know the feeling, but trust me if you won’t trust these guys,” Alfred gestured to his friends and mentors behind him. “Things will be ok, if you just keep working, and working, and never give up, I promise.” By the time Alfred had finished his speech Mitch was beaming from ear to ear. Alfred looked down at his watch, and frowned slightly. “Oh, look at the time, I have to go meet James, it was nice to see you guys!” Alfred ran out of the gym. As he ran to the restaurant he had agreed to meet James at, he smiled. Though his life might not have turned out like he had thought it would, his life was still great. He was living his best life, and best of all he was happy. Sadly some can’t say that. They can’t say ‘I’m happy with how my life has turned out.’ But Alfred could, and that to him was a beautiful thing.

# data[].attributes.body
At the hospital James was being treated and the police were waiting for them to be done so they could arrest him. They decided that they would arrest him for a year after he gets fully treated. Alfred visits him every day and he gets better every week. James did not feel like talking to anyone until now and this was the conversation.

James started with gratitude, “Alfred, thank you for what you did to help me.”

Alfred replied honestly, “Your welcome James, I would have done anything to help.”

James put his head down. “Too bad I’ll be getting arrested after this.”

“But that doesn't matter now, all that matters is that you get better!” Alfred tried

to cheer him up.

“Once again Alfred, thank you for helping me.”

“Your welcome.”

Alfred left an hour later after they talked and said good bye. That winter morning, Alfred walked outside of the hospital with his jacket and hat on, seeing kids everywhere hitting each other with snowballs on the white plain. He was walking home and remembered how James looked before treatment. Scared, nowhere to go, sad. Alfred remembered how James helped him when they were little and he was happy he was getting better.

At home Aunt Pearl asked how James was doing. Alfred said how he was doing way better and that they actually had a conversation for the first time. Aunt Pearl knew how much Alfred cared so she wanted to try to help as much as she could.

Aunt Pearl announced, “Alfred, I am going to see James. You said that he is doing well and I want to check in on him and see for myself how he is doing.”

“Go ahead, I think he would be happy to see you, and i think he wants to know how things are and what is going on while he is gone,” Alfred agreed.

It was like the wind suddenly slammed open the door but it was just Mr. Epstein. Everyone was confused at this sudden entrance. He said how Major and a couple others tried to break in and they were all caught. Now everyone understood why he was so quick to tell them. Alfred didn’t know how to feel about this. He felt the ice ball starting to grow again. He knew he was grateful that they actually got caught but didn’t know how James would react to this news.

He decided to tell Aunt Pearl to tell James and that he didn't feel comfortable telling him. Aunt Pearl left and Alfred talked to Mr. Epstein. They remembered the time when Alfred told him he was gonna be a boxer. Alfred still trains but doesn’t fight anymore. Alfred looked at the clock and he realised that he had to go to school.

He got his bags and everything he needed and left. On the way he looked at all the snow once again. He remembered how he was back then, always trying his best, a contender.

# data[].attributes.body
“Are you okay?” James asked.

“In all honesty, I don’t know?” replied Alfred.

”Since the day Aunt pearl died I haven’t felt cheerful since.” Alfred Said.

“Nor could I find a job since I left the recreation center.” Said, Alfred

“Now I question what's the point of being happy when the person you loved the most is gone?” Alfred said.

You don't need to question your state of happiness when you have Me, Spoon, Jelly, Henry, Mr. Donatelli, and more people by your side.” Replied James.

“You've been there for everyone Alfred in times of struggle, now we want to return the favor.” Said, James.

“Before we help you apply for a job we’re gonna regain the happiness you’ve lost, I’ve also called Spoon, Jelly, and Henry to tag along now let’s go.” Said, James.

The Delightful screams of laughter swayed through the atmosphere. “When was the last time I've been out on a fun day, Alfred thought as he talked to Spoon. “I have an idea, let’s go to the gym”

Said Jelly. Walking up the deep creaky old brown steps, they’re shocked not seeing Mr. Donatelli. Alfred, let’s go a few rounds, Said Spoon. Alright, Said Alfred. They both put on the rigid mouth guard and started boxing. Left, Right, Left, Right as Alfred starts to remember all the matches and moves he’s performed. Spoon Jabbed him on the nose, blood spurting out. Alfred continues to dodge left, right, then hits Spoon with a fierce uppercut that knocks him back, immediately remembering the vicious uppercut he gave to Griffin and his lifeless body thumping on the ground, that makes Alfred Immediately stop the match. “I forfeit the match.” Said, Alfred. Mr. Donnatelli with polished black shoes and a clean tuxedo intrudes saying you still don’t have that killer extinct huh? “Mr. Donatelli.” Everyone Screamed. Walking in the crisp leaves, everyone laughing and recalling all the fun things they’ve done in the past.

“Hey Alfred, We’ll all help you get over your depression.” Said, Spoon. The smell of corn dogs and burgers in the air, everyone laughing with no care in the world. Alfred seemingly forgets all the sadness that was in his heart moments ago. Alfred thanks them for all the moments they’ve shared and how he’ll always cherish them. Alfred goes back home and says with a tearful voice, “I miss you Aunt Pearl, but it’s time for me to move on just like you’d want me to.” “Rest In Peace Aunt pearl.” There are loud knocks on the door Alfred goes to check who it is, to see James, Henry, Spoon, And Jelly with cards, drinks, and food for the night. Singing, laughter, and cheers took place that night. “Thank you guys for giving me an enjoyable life and helping me realize there’s always happiness in this depressing world.” Says Alfred with tears in his eyes. “No problem.” Everyone Said while hugging their dear friend Alfred on the back without a care in the world.

“Now it’s time for you to get a job, Alfred.” Said, James.

“After I left the recreation, I don't know what I can do.” Said, Alfred

“Tell me what you’d like to do or your achievements.” Replied James.

“I'd like to help and serve people just like I did at the recreation center.” Replied Alfred

“You can be a bartender at NoMad Bar serving the people drinks, having fun, and if someone is down you can always cheer them up by talking to them.” Said, James

Alfred immediately applies for the job and lists his attributes and skills in his resume. Two weeks later Alfred gets hired as one of the bartenders, happily, he calls everyone so they can celebrate at his place. “Welcome to the Job Alfred Brooks.” Said Mr. Knight. Thank you for giving me the job, I'll do the best I can.” Replied Alfred while kneeling. You don't have to kneel, just do your best.” Replied Mr. Knight. The first week of the Job Alfred notices a person who wasn’t in their right mind like James used to be. Alfred talked to him saying “Hi, My name is Alfred.” He replied saying his name was Jason. They immediately hit it off laughing and Jason expresses all his feelings telling Alfred how this world can be cruel and lonely for the past week. “Even though this world can be cruel and lonely you have friends to help you like me.” Replied Alfred. “Thank you.” Said Jason. It’s been months since Alfred has gotten the job and he’s made many new friends while staying close to his old ones. Eventually, he became the Vice manager of the NoMad Bar. “I’ve been keeping watch on you Alfred and I never thought you’d be one of my best workers, more and more people come in because of you.” Said Mr. Knight. “You have this skill that lets you

Turn the people around you into friends and lift them from the deepest depression.” Said Mr. Knight.” I’m just Grateful I could have this job.” Replied Alfred in a cheerful voice.

After work Alfred runs straight to James’ Apartment without Stopping. Knocking on the door in a fatigued state.

Is there something wrong?” Said, James

“No, I just wanted to thank you for being my ray of hope.” Replied Alfred

“I also want to thank you for being the light to my darkness.”  Replied James

They hug knowing that they’ll be friends for the rest of their lives.

# data[].attributes.body
It's a cool, breezy day. The sun is peeking through the clouds.  Alfred pops into Mr.Epstein's store. He has the palm of a little girl in his hands. He slaps a pack of gummy bears on the counter.
“ A pack of Marlboro please” 
Alfred pulls out his wallet to get his money.
“ 14.89” 
Alfred looks up from his wallet. 
“James! You working Friday shifts now?”
“ Yeah. Workin 6 days a week now. Gotta keep up with all the flashy stuff the girlfriend wants.” 
“ I hear ya man.”
Alfred observed James’ appearance. James was looking better than ever. He had jeans on with a nice collared shirt. His hair was freshly cut and his beard was shaved. He had a girlfriend and a little boy on the way. Alfred has not seen James since last Christmas.
	James smiled at the little girl. 
“ I like your stuffed animal.”
The skinny tiny girl hid behind Alfred, holding onto his leg. 
“ She's a shy one. She just won her basketball game and I promised to get her a treat.”
“ Ahhh gocha” 
Alfred finished paying and passed the gummy bears to the little girl.
“Alisha go wait in the car with mommy.” Alfred pointed at the car
Alisha skipped to the car while plopping the gummies into her mouth. 
“ So how's moving going? You decided on a house yet?” James asked while sweeping the floor.
“ Pretty good. Decided on a house in a town Utopia,  Couple blocks down from Jeff. Aunt Pearl is gonna live with me to help pay the bills until I pay off my college debt. The house definitely aint the biggest house but better than the apartment I'm in now. 
“Congrats Alfred. Great to hear it.” 
A voice from outside yells
“ Alfred lets go before we are late to dinner!” 
“ Coming Mary! Gotta go James. We still on for the movies tomorrow?”
“ You know it.” 
James goes back behind the counter, waiting for incoming customers. Alfred drives away. Seeing James like that made him think about the old days. It made him remember when James hit rock bottom.Alfred looked out the window and watched the clouds move east. He remembered that cool night he found James in the cave at the park. Shivers crawled up his spine. That night changed the way he thought of life. It made him rethink who he is associated with. Every decision he makes he rethinks what the outcome will be. It made him become more aware of what his life is worth and realized he only gets one chance to make his life the way he wants it to be. Sitting with James in the cave gave him comfort he hasn't experienced before. His mind replayed the image of James' face that night over and over again. The tears that froze while dripping down his cheeks. 
“ Alfred we’re here. Wipe the drool off your face and fix your tie.” 
	Alfred stepped out of the car and stretched his arms. He entered the restaurant with his family. While eating the image of James that night kept appearing in his mind. What would I do without my partner in crime?

# data[].attributes.body
James and Alfred were walking back in the brisk air of the darkness in the night. With the cold black concrete against their feet. Walking past the cave James flashes back to when he was there bleeding. The time when Alfred wasn’t there. James was limping through the alleyways that Major showed him.

“If I get to them trees ain’t no whitey gonna find me.” Then he thought for a second, “If I can reach the cave then maybe Major could pick me up.” Major told me that he would pick me up after. I wonder where he is. Limping through the shadows James looked at his hand covered in red. “All I needed was some money to fix me up from the Whiteys’.” “Major said it was gonna be easy because he disabled the alarm.” “Alfred probably made sure it was on, it is all his fault.” Alfred’s fault he didn’t loan me money.” Now jittering he said “Alfred’s fault.” under his breath. As he enters the cave now sweat coming down his face even though he is freezing. He sits down breathing heavily thinking C’mon Major where are you? He hears the rock move aside and he holds his breath because he thinks it is Major and he wants to act tough. Then he hears Alfred.

“James! You almost walked into those cars are you alright?”

“Yeah yeah I’m fine, sorry I wasn’t paying attention.” James said as he was trying to see clearly again. After the cars passed Alfred and James heard a siren.

“James what is that?” Alfred asked.

“I think it is fine, probably just someone speeding.” James said. As they were crossing the street Major ran up to them. His face was pale, he had sweat dripping down his face, He was wearing a ripped sweater and a blue shirt underneath, He had blue jeans and some dirty shoes.

“Major, are you alright?” Alfred said

“No, No I am not good.” Major stuttered, trying to catch his breath. “You guys gotta help me, we were just trying to get some money from the Whiteys.”

“Who is we?” asked James.

“Sonny, Hollis, and I, we was just trying to get some change, I swear.” Major said panicking and dancing back and forth.

“Where are they now?” questioned Alfred.

“They got caught, they both slipped but I had to go.” Major said, now shivering. “Can you guys loan me some money, I won’t ask again.”

“Major we aren’t gonna give you money, you should come with us we’ll fix you up.” Alfred offered.

“No no I need just a little money.” Major pleaded as he went down to his knees.

“You should come with us Major. We will fix you up I promise.” said James.

“No I need money” he demanded as he put James in a headlock and took out a knife. “Look slaves I didn’t want to do this but I just want a little money then I will be on my way.”

“Wow, wow Major put the knife down and I’ll give you the money” Alfred said cautiously.

“No give it to me in my hand, right here,” said Major now yelling.

“Alright here you go---

“No no don’t give this clown money!” yelled James. “I’ll be fine.”

“No he won’t, I’ll do it Alfred just give me the money!” Major stated strongly.

Alfred handed Major the money, he dropped James and said “If I run into you guys again I will scar you for life.” He ran off into the alleyway with a tear in his eye.

Alfred picked up James and James said “You really shouldn’t have given him money, money won’t help anything.”

“I know but Major is kinda lost, we better just avoid him for now.” Alfred said in relief.

“I remember when I was like that, thanks for fixing me up.” James said.

“No problem partner.” Alfred said. As they walked away Major was against the brick wall facing another brick wall with a metal fence to his right and a streetlight to his left. Those slaves think them Whiteys are gonna put up with them. Tears coming down his cheeks. The Whiteys are just gonna put them down and I am the only one who knows that. Sonny and Hollis got caught because they chose to come back for me. They should’ve just ran off, I would’ve been fine. Major got up. I’m gonna be fine, I am doing the right thing. He walked over to the fence and hopped over it into the darkness. I am doing the right thing he thought.

# data[].attributes.body
Alfred looked out onto the busy Harlem street. Cars trailed exhaust, a bird sang deeply in the distance. The sun shined down mercilessly. Hottest day of the year so far. A yellow shape sped down the road, undoubtedly going way faster than a taxi should be. “TAXI!” The taxi driver looked up from a newspaper laid on the dashboard, fixed the worn glasses on his face, and drove over to the side of the road.
 “Where ya headin son?” His voice was old and dry, but filled with life at the same time. Alfred got into the car.
 “The gym on west street.” He tossed some dollars up to the front of the taxi, and turned to look out the side window.
 “Never heard of no gym on west street, hasn’t been a good gym around this neighborhood since the fire at donatelli’s.” Alfred felt a cold, deep feeling in the pit of his stomach, remembering that cold January day eight months ago. I’ll always remember you Donatelli, I couldn’t have gotten this far without you..
 “Ya okay son? You phased out there for a second.” Alfred shook the bad thoughts off his mind like a dog shaking off fleas, This is a good day, not a bad one.
 “I’m okay.” The old man driving the taxi raised his eyebrows.
 “Well? Where you headin? I ain’t driving to some invisible gym that some crazy guy from the street made up.” Alfred sighed.
 “It’s not made up, it’s that new gym that’s opening today. You see I used to be a boxer..” The old man laughed.
 “And I got a million bucks and Pony, kid I don’t got all day.” Alfred checked his watch. 7:45, dang it.
 “I really have to get somewhere mister, and I’m not a kid, I’m twenty seven,” Alfred corrected impatiently. The old man said something under his breath about people these days. Alfred handed him ten dollars with another sigh.
 “West street, take me there please.” The man eyed the money with a greedy grin.
 “This really for me? Okay, uh.. sir, I’ll be there asap,” The driver mumbled confusedly. The taxi sped off. Alfred looked out the window again, arranged his wallet, and went deep into thought. Eight months ago was the fire.. And now the new gym is finally open. Hopefully the kids I was training come back, or maybe they’ll be too traumatized.. Every thought that crossed Alfred’s mind was filled with worry and nervousness, like a balloon filled with too much water, and it might pop at any moment. His mind cut back to the fire. New boiler for the basement of the building,, overheated.. Why did we ever have to buy it? The boiler had exploded after this overheating, an inferno of flames that swallowed the building. Like a very angry man with steam pouring out of his ears from cartoons, that’s what it had looked like before it exploded.  That day Alfred had been training some people on how to throw a punch correctly, straight stiff ahead don’t look back. Mr. Donatelli, now old but still working at the gym, had come outside his office in the corner when he smelt the smoke. Thick and evil, wanting to choke you. Flames had already started dwindling at the stairs.
 “Alfred, listen to me now. There is a fire outside, get you and everyone here out.
 I am going to save the new dentist downstairs, he’s alone and probably won’t know there is a fire.” Alfred looked at him, unbelieving.
“You won’t get out Mr.Donatelli, here let’s get out the side door downstairs while we still can.” Mr.Donatelli looked at him, his usual emotionless face looking sad.
“Sorry, Alfred.” With that he had run down the stairs and into the smoky depths of the building. Alfred looked after him, not knowing what to do, but he knew he had to help Mr.Donatelli. Alfred leaped over the low railing and down the stairs as quickly as he could. Mr.Donatelli saw him following, and looked up at Alfred.
“I’ll be fine Alfred.” And he meant it, so he wobbled down to the dentist, the flames growing around him. Alfred stood there, not wanting to leave Mr.Donatelli.
“I said go Alfred!” He walked into the even more smoky bottom floor. Alfred forced himself to walk out the side door, down the stairs outside, and called 911 on a nearby payphone across the street. The fire trucks pulled up, but it was too late, and the building collapsed under the flames. Alfred was devastated. He sat on the sidewalk and stared up at the fire for a long time. After a while, a fireman walked up to him.
“Sir, this fire is getting very large, and growing  from the remains of that building. You should move to a safe place.” Alfred nodded. He got up and walked home, not wanting to think about what happened. There was a lot that happened after that, the funeral, meeting the land developers, working with Spoon to raise money. But the most vivid memory was going to the cave. Even 10 years after the last time he’d been there, the cave still rested in the trees. Sat there for a long time that night.
“Hey, you gettin outta my cab or what?” The taxi was parked on the side of West Street. Alfred looked around, noticed where he was and ascended out of the taxi.
“Thanks for the ride.” He tossed the old man a couple quarters. Lot of extra money from the fund raising. Now he saw it, the new gym. And he saw james, smiling at him. He got out of the taxi and walked over.
“This is amazing. Look at how big the gym is. Wow.” People were already walking through, checking it out. Alfred saw some of his boxing students walking in too. And then Alfred saw words carved on the side of the stone near the entrance. He walked up and put his hand over it. Donatelli was etched boldly into the stone.
“Everything’s gonna be alright Alfred.” Alfred looked back to see james walking up to him. “You and donatelli helped me get back on my feet, and I can do the same for you.” Alfred turned to him and smiled.
“Let’s go check out the inside.”

# data[].attributes.body
The arena is filled with crowds of loud people. Shouts, cheering, and booing can be heard from all corners of the room, as the fighters in the back get ready. There's an intense match going on, the best boxer in Brooklyn, Ryan Booker, against John Newly. The bell rang and the fighters went off to their coaches. John Newly is winning against Ryan and the crowd is wild. John is new to the game and this match is a surprise to everyone.

“John come here you gotta breathe, stick and run, jab. Don’t lose yourself now you're doing great-.” said his coach Alfred before getting interrupted.

“Coach he’s the best boxer in Brooklyn and I am only winning by majority choice, right now. I have to do more. I gotta do more. This match determines where I go next with my career.” explained John, determined to win this match.

Alfred worries about  John, “I know, this match is throwing a screwball at us, do what you're used to. What we do at practice. You got it.”

The bell rings, and the match continues, more intense than any other match in history. The crowd is going crazy and John can barely stand up straight. Come on John you got it, listen to coach. Don’t risk it now. Stick to what you know. This little boy can’t hurt you. Look at him.

“Come on Johnny Boy don’t give up now, you know you got it. Stay in there kid.” Alfred yells from his corner as the match gets even more insane.

All of the sudden Alfred has a memory from when he was in the ring, hearing Donatelli and Henry screaming from the side. It was his first match against Rivera, Donatelli screaming “stick and run” from the side. The crowd was booing telling him to get in there and fight, calling him a coward and saying to fight. The round was over and he had to work smart, Donatelli told him to ignore the crowd while they continued to say, “Get in there and fight black boy.”

Alfred will never forget this day and that crowd. He will always have boxing in his heart and hopes he can get John farther than he ever could. John has good potential and unlike Alfred he has that killer instinct to be a great boxer. Alfred knows that John will work hard for what he wants. They met at work with the young ones in the community. Alfred knew from the beginning that John was a good fit for boxing, and from day one John has worked all day and everyday for this and wants to succeed. John’s family isn’t the richest which is why he and Alfred are close. John knows this is his chance for a better life and is willing to work for it.

The last bell rings and John has his opponent on the ground while the referee is counting. John won and is now the star of Harlem. He beat the best boxer in Brooklyn and now he's going to have a great career, as long as he keeps up his work and trains everyday. This is his chance at a new life and will hopefully become a successful boxer. Maybe even after a few years he will retire and have his own boxing facility. With Alfred’s superior training and John’s skills and strong work ethic this dream will become a reality.

# data[].attributes.body
Dylan Marshall

It was a cool, crisp autumn evening, the gray sky and the buildings blending with each other as Alfred walked with James and Henry through the park, memories of when he used to train here flooded his brain. James had just finished his time in the rehabilitation center, and they were celebrating by going to a steakhouse. Laughter and good vibes filled the air around them, but Alfred still felt gloomy. He looked down at his old, worn down shoes, dragging his foot against the ground as he walked, wondering what would happen next. He wondered if his friendship with Henry, James, and everybody else had reached its end. He had stopped boxing, he finished school, he doesn’t have to keep supporting and helping James anymore. What now? he thought.

They reached the restaurant and found a table with Bud, Spoon, Jelly, and Mr. Donatelli already there waiting. “There they are!” yelled Spoon, “Congratulations James, we’re all so proud of you for doing this, and we got you something.”

He pulled out a small box, opened it, and inside was a golden watch, with the words “I Won” carved in the back. James accepted the gift, and Alfred could almost see a tear come to James’s eye. “Thank you,” James responded, getting choked up. He thought about how everyone at that table supported him no matter what he did, and helped him through this and helped him win. “This really means a lot.”

The food came to the table after what felt like hours to Alfred, and once again he was taken back to his memories of eating steak at Spoon’s house before a fight. He knew deep in his heart that he wanted to box again, so that he can get to do more with the people that he loves so much, so they can do more things together. If not boxing, he at least wanted to train again. So he decided that he would tell Mr. Donatelli about this tomorrow.

After everyone said their goodbyes and their congratulations to James, Alfred paced home in the crisp, cool air of the night. The atmosphere of the place was so different at this hour. There were barely any cars, and it was so peaceful and quiet that you could hear your own footsteps. He came to the house, and walked in. It was quiet and dark; you couldn’t hear a thing. He watched some television and walked over to Aunt Pearl’s bedroom, seeing her sleeping like a baby. He smiled lightly, blew her a kiss, and he fell asleep before he even hit the pillow.

He woke up at noon from the honking cars outside. He tiredly came out of bed, and he wanted to tell Mr. Donatelli about boxing again.

Aunt Pearl was sitting at the kitchen table “Morning, Alfred,”

“Good morning Aunt Pearl,” replied Alfred, putting on his jacket.

“Where are you going Alfred, you just woke up. Come have some breakfast”

“I’m afraid I can’t Aunt Pearl, I’m going to meet Donatelli about boxing again.”

“Oh no Alfred, I don’t think you should get yourself involved in that again, didn’t Donatelli want you to retire?”

“He did, but I think I might be able to change his mind about some things, and anyway, I just want to start training again”

“Well alright I guess, whatever makes you happy is the right decision. But promise me you won’t put yourself in any kind of danger.” Alfred was already out the door.

He reached the building and immediately turned straight towards the stairs. He had gone up these many times, it was like a sixth sense. He walked through the doors. It was empty, except for Donatelli and some kids that Alfred has never seen before training in the ring. He nodded hello at them and went to the back. When he saw Mr. Donatelli, he also saw someone he didn’t expect.

“James? What’re you doing here?”

“Oh hey Alfred, I decided that I’m gonna start doing boxing, just like you! Why are you here?”

Alfred went through thousands of thoughts in his head at the speed of light, and he decided that it would be better not to tell him about boxing again. “Oh that doesn’t seem important anymore,” he looked at Mr. Donatelli. “So Mr. Donatelli, do you think that I can be his assistant trainer?”

“Sounds fine with me.”

James would be a great fighter. He is already in good shape, he has the killer instinct, and he has anger to fuel him. After several weeks of training with him, he began to think that it wasn’t the best thing that he could get angry easily. After seeing him fight in the gym, he obviously just hit as hard as he could, completely disregarding how accurate he was, or what disadvantage it puts him at. Both Mr. Donatelli and Alfred knew this, but they didn’t want to break it to James, because they knew it was important to him and it was good for him.

After a few more weeks, they told him that he doesn’t have what it takes to be a professional boxer. James didn’t take it well. He stormed out and slammed the door. Alfred ran after him

Alfred finally caught up to him. “James! Listen, I-”

“Let go of me! You said you always believed in me, and you won’t even let me try to be a boxer. I guess it was all a lie,” James shouted angrily

“James, it's gonna be ok. Here, James, what do you say we go off and get some dinner, and we can talk about this.”

James reluctantly agreed. They went back to the steakhouse that they went to to celebrate James’s recovery. The restaurant was loud and crowded, but it still felt like they were sitting in complete silence, until their food arrived.

Alfred broke the silence. “So, I just wanna apologize for everything, I truly am, it’s just that-”

“I don’t want to hear it.”

Alfred thought about what Jeff had said all those months ago. “How about we just give up on all of this boxing stuff, and we go work at the recreational center.”

“Ok. But get this straight, I’m doing this because I need a job, NOT because I have forgiven you.” James couldn’t keep a smile from appearing on his face.

Alfred smiled. “Sure James, sure.”

# data[].attributes.body
Slowly, Alfred’s eyes opened, he felt his heartbeat pounding throughout his body. His body ached as he looked up into the bright grey Harlem sky. His hands were warm and wet, and the paper bag in his hand soaked with amber brown liquid. The other men on the street looked at him with pity and disgust. How did I get here, Alfred thought, and took pity on himself. Everything was hazy, and he picked himself up and slowly dragged himself around the kids playing wall ball. His beard had grown out, and his handsome structure had been diminished. His new slacks were ripped at the knees, and his freshly shined shoes were not so shiny any more.

A whitey approached Alfred with a gentle look on his face, one that expressed sorrow and deep pity. He could tell this man meant well, but Alfred swung out his fists and shattered the empty bottle of whiskey in the man’s face. Alfred’s knuckles, once the tools of his trade, were now swollen and bloody. He got scared, ran, and remembered how he got there.

“Hey Al, you got some o’ dat stuff?”

“Yo, hush it, I hear some coppas.”

The alley they were in was deserted, except for them, and the security guards, protecting the client. Alfred opened his suitcase and implored for the client to do the same. The dark sun shined and disguised the stars behind it, making the alley no lighter than before. The maroon brick apartments provide an ideal place to deal out the “stuff.”

“Fine, 300 grams for 10,000 big ones. That good, Uncie Al”

“Deal, just tell me who you givin’ this to?”

“Sorry to conclude business like this, bye-bye Uncie Al.”

The guards pulled out their revolvers, but Alfred ran before they fired. He heard a shot, and then he felt a sharp pain in his left tricep. The second shot missed, along with the rest of the rounds they fired. Alfred, now falling into a basement stairwell, realized that he couldn’t keep going on like this. He set out to find Henry, his old pal from his childhood. Before he left Harlem for lower Manhattan, he took a detour into the bar. He bought some negronis (A drink, that is), and set off for Henry’s place, passing out on the sidewalk.

Even with the now bloody knuckles, he ran from Harlem citizens, and made for a taxi. He arrived at Henry’s place, lucky to have made it, he knocked, Henry ain’t gonna talk to me, Alfred thought. Henry, now 36, yawned as he unlocked the heavily bolted door. His leg was no longer withered and he was wearing a silky lavender housecoat. His face was worn, weary, his loafers, black and large, made Alfred suspect that he just woke Henry up.

“Al, is that you?” Henry asked.

“Hey Henry, when we were kids, was I a true contender?”

Henry vividly remembered what Donatelli had told him at his parent’s funeral.

“Alfred had the courage to be a contender, but his heart already was one.”

“Alfred, after you left for college, my parents passed away. Mr. Donatelli came to their funeral and told me how you-Oh Alfred, whas’ that white stuff on your shirt? Alfred! You been dealing! You just as bad as James was.”

“Man, if you could see what happened, you would understand why I came to you. I don’t want to be an addict, I don’t want to be a dealer, it’s just how I felt after Aunt Pearl passed. Hey, uh, you got a washroom in here?”

“Yeah… three doors down the hall and to the right.”

Alfred made for the washroom, he then locked the door and took out a little bag of white.

“Alfred, hey Al’, you still in there?” Henry asked.

He knocked again.

“Alfred! Let me in!” Henry demanded.

Henry rapped on the door, hard, but it didn’t open. He hit the door as hard as he could, and tore it right off the hinges.

“Alfred!”

Alfred laid there, on the floor, incapacitated, dead.

# data[].attributes.body
The room was filled with half naked bodies.  It had a nasty, and sweaty odor.  It had a nice blue ceiling around, 20 feet from the ground.  There were punching bags all over the place.

Alfred and James had actually started their own gym with hundreds of students.

Alfred thought about how he and James were nearly surviving with no education, no ambition for success, and nothing.  Via heroin and 🤬, he chose to alleviate the desperation.  Yet that concurred by him. He thinks about how successful they have become together as a duo.  He also talks of how James went from being a no-life 🤬 to a handsome guy wearing denim and shiny boots now.

James on the other hand, was thinking about how he could help the kids get faster and stronger at boxing.

Alfred would always say, “Look at James man, so inspirational.”  just to tease him and to tick him off.  He will simply often use this expression just to teach his students that with hard work and ample commitment, anyone could turn their lives around.

He remembered how he told Mr. Donatelli that he wanted to be a champion.  “Everyone wants to be a champion but you need to become a contender first.”  He told him.  Speaking of which Alfred had an idea.

He thinks “What if we call Donatelli to help us run this gym.  After all, he was my teacher.”  “He could probably help my students out a lot.”  After thinking about his plan Alfred said to James, “Ayo James.  We still got Donatelli’s numba?”

James says, “Yeah I think so.  Why you need it tho?”

“He could probably help us run this gym,” describes Alfred.

“Good idea Al! He probably can help us.” exclaimed James.

Both of them called Donatelli and talked to him.

“Yo hello is this Mr. Donatelli speaking?” states Alfred.

“Alfred is that actually you son?!”  cried Donatelli.

“Yeah. Remember me?” Alfred asked.

Donatelli shouts “Of course I do son!”

We was just wondering if you wanted to help us with our new gym we made for boxing? asks Alfred.

“Oh yeah, I’ve heard about it.  Can you pick me up? I will be more than happy to help.” asserted Donatelli.

Alfred declares “Sure, I’ll pick you up.  3 O’clock sharp tomorrow.

The next day, Alfred and James hop in his new Mercedes. It was pretty sunny, the birds were chirping, the air was as sweet as a cake for dessert, and best of all, there was no traffic.  Once they arrive at his apartment, they honk as a signal for Donatelli to come out.

Alfred whispers “There he is.”  with a wide smirk on his face.  “Lookin more handsome than ever.” He says.

Donatelli was wearing some nice, new, and polished shoes, with a wonderful black coat on.

Is that actually him!?  Questions James.

Yes it is him.  “blurted Alfred.”

(Door opens, and slams shut.)

“Hey Al, what's going on.” chuckled Donatelli.

Alfred without even talking, thinks about how Donatelli looks and sounds exactly the same.

They talk throughout the entire car ride.  They talk about how Alfred was just a scrawny little kid who went to being pretty tall now.

They finally arrive back and introduce Donatelli to all of his students.

Alfred whispers with a wide smile on his face, “You guys don’t know what you're in for.”

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“Al, I really got to thank you for what you did for me that night.”

Alfred knew the night he was talking about immediately. It was the night that he had his final fight. It was the night James ended his addiction. It was the night him and James became friends again.

“It’s just what friends do. We always have each other's backs. By the way it’s the next left.” says Alfred

They were on their way to their new jobs in a new car James bought after college. On the way there Alfred stared out the window and watched kids playing with each other and having fun. He then thinks back to when he and James said that one day they would go to the park and pull out any kids in their old cave and buy them whatever they wanted. He thinks about how they could actually do that now.

“We’re here”

They pulled up to an office building. The building was made of bricks and              was very tall. James got his dream job of becoming an engineer and Alfred became a technician at the building. This is their first day on the job and they were very excited about it. After the day they met up at the car because they worked at different parts of the building.

“My day was amazing, how was yours?” James asked.

“It was really good there were ups and downs but otherwise it was great.”

“What was a down?”

“Well I worked with this one guy that was really obnoxious and loud. He was not fun to work with.”

They got into the car and started talking about everything they did for work that day. Alfred was thinking about telling James about how in the back of his head all the time was his times boxing and how he missed hanging out with all the friends he made when boxing. But he decided against it because it would probably lead to James and his addiction and he did not want to replay that in his mind.

“Are you alright Alfred?” asked James

“Yeah I’m fine. It’s just that I miss boxing. I mean I don’t miss fighting people but I miss the experiences like hanging out with them.”

“Well why don’t you just go and say hello. Here I will go drop you off there. You think they are still there?”

“Yeah probably and thanks James.”

“For what I didn’t do anything I am just driving a car.”

“You know what I mean.”

“Yeah man no problem.”

Alfred was quiet on the way there. He hasn’t seen them in years and is wondering what might be different about them. The ride felt quicker than it was. He got out of the car and stared up at the building. It looked just how he remembered it old and weathered. He walked up to the door and walked inside. In his mind he thought Glad to see they did not fix the stairs. He walked up them and went to the gym door. When he walked in he felt a sense of happiness. He smelled the familiar odor and could not wait to catch up with them.

# data[].attributes.body
The Contender Epilogue

Brooke Todd

The car ride there was a trip down memory lane. Alfred sat in a car with Henry while thinking over Alfreds old boxing days. The sun was shining and there was not a cloud in the sky when Alfred looked out the window of the rundown car.

“Al, do you remember when you were in your last match and you got hugged for being so tough even though you lost?” said the deep voice of Henry.

Alfred replied, “Oh yeah, that was the day.”

“What day?” questioned Henry.

“The day I retired.” Alfred whispered, “I remember that like it was yesterday.”

Henry whispered, “Me too.”

After about an hour of being in the car the two boys arrived at where they were going. They were both in black button down shirts, black jeans, and sharp white shoes.

Henry said to Alfred, “Are you ready?”

Alfred replied, “I think so.” while a tear dripped down his face.

After walking down a small pathway the two were greeted by an old and tall man. He did not speak but pointed in the direction that the two had to go in. Without hesitation the boys walked in and sat down by Bud and Spoon.

A light wind picked up and a flower vase dropped at Alfreds feet. It was a lovely blue flower just like the one at the gym. It smelled sweet so Alfred put it in his shirt pocket. Soon after that Mr. Epstein showed up and sat next to Henry right on the end. The setting was beautiful with flowers everywhere and many people around. An older man with a robe walked down the aisle with his hands together and his head down. You could see the white box which was huge right in front of where the old man was standing.

“This is the worst day of my life.” Alfred exclaimed.

“It will all be okay Alfred.” said Henry while giving him a hug.

Alfred then smelt his flower and felt better about the situation. Then, all the boys held hands and looked down. They were all devastated about what is happening right now.

“Hello everyone.” the old man continued, “Thank you for coming to the funeral of...” he paused. “Mr. Donatelli.”

A tear went down Alfred's face onto the flower and it started to turn gold where the tear landed.

“Guys, Mr. Donatelli is here with us. Just look at my flower.” The boys smiled and looked back at the old man.

“It is truly sad to share the death of Mr. Donatelli with all of you here today. He was a great man and a legendary boxing coach. I know that some of his boys are here today. Please stand if Mr. Donatelli was your coach and we will take remembrance of you.” said the old man.

Soon after all five boys stood up. The crowd looked and smiled.

After the funeral the boys prayed for a very long time. They then had to leave but they wanted to visit the gym. It was empty, dusty and dirty.

Alfred thought of an idea, What if we clean up this place and be boxing managers to make Donatelli proud.

It was almost like he was thinking out loud because seconds after Henry says the same thing.

After about an hour or two the gym is finished and all five of them are so happy. They will open soon, and will always remember Mr. Donatelli and so should others.

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There were fumes of pleasant smells coming from the kitchen and Alfred had just gotten home from the Kids to Fight Against Drugs Administration (KFAD) an organization he started 20 years ago. He was preparing the dinner table for Thanksgiving.

“How's it going, Diana?” He asked

“Almost done,” she answered. The doorbell rang, James was at the door with his wife, dressed in a fine obsidian black suit with a fine navy blue coat and was holding a red velvet cake in the shape of a turkey.

“You look mighty fine, James.” Alfred teased

“As do you, Alfred,”  James replied laughing. They waited for the other guests to arrive and prepped the table. 5 minutes later Spoon, Betty, Henry, and cousin Jeff all came in. Alfred greeted everyone and welcomed them to his brand new house that he and Diana had just bought. It was 10,000 square feet and had 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. When he went to great Spoon he noticed that his checkered shirt was dirty and had lots of winckls in it, then it hit him that was the shirt that spoon wore to Alfred’s first boxing match.

The speed and agility of Rivera and how it felt do good to finally box someone, the good old days were.  He thought

“That is the same shirt you wore to my first boxing match,” Alfred told Spoon

“It was Betty’s Idea” Spoon responded

They all laughed and talked about how things were going, James had gotten a promotion at the restaurant he worked at, Spoon had just become the vice principal at the school he worked at, and Dianna announced that she had gotten promoted to chief editor for the New York Times newspapers. James’s wife had just gotten her job at the daycare center down the road and Betty shared stories about the time she had to be the substitute for the Spanish teacher.

“If aunt your Pearl were here she would be so pleased of you Alfred, I am editing a story about how the KFAD had impacted so many kids in New York. You are making such a difference” Congratulated  Betty

“May she rest in peace” said Alfred  The rest of the party went smoothly and everyone ended up having a lot of fun. They all played games together like matching the cards with boxing cards, Marko Polo in the living room without the water, and they even played some of the classic board games. The next morning when Alfred woke up he wasn’t supposed to go to work that day but 3 people had called in sick. From what he heard the flu was going around the building. Alfred had to rush into work to run some of the programs scheduled that day.  For one of the cases, it reminded him of James. Harold, the boy who was attending the class at the KFAD had discontinued school because he was following what his friend did, didn’t work, and hung out with a bad crowd. He got hooked on drugs while everyone else was doing it. One day he got caught stealing at the local supermarket because his friends had forced him to do it and the judge had him sentenced to 2 days in Jail and 3 class sessions at the KFAD. He had to have a personal guard keep watch of him at all times. Alfred had a feeling that he was going to be the main person to work on this case.

“Hello, my name is Alfred Brook what’s yours?” Alfred asked.

“Harrold Donatelli” He responded

“Donatelli...”Questioned Alfred

“Ye got a problem with that or somethin”

Alfred remembered the tough and rock voice of Mr. Donnatellie when he used to yell; Time! When Alfred was going machine gun on the peanut bag.

“No, everything is just fine,” Alfred responded

# data[].attributes.body
ADV Epilogue - The Contender

	Alfred quietly yawned as he thrust the key into the lock of Epstein’s store. He finished closing up the store and pondered the thought about how he started as just a worker and is now a manager for Mr. Epstein. Alfred began to remember the day he was promoted. “Hey, Alfred come to my office I have to tell you something,” Mr. Epstein exclaimed. “ I know you have been working hard so I want to tell you something, you're promoted! You're a manager now.”  Alfred then remembered how he was at a loss for words. I've come a long way Alfred told himself, a long way indeed. He slipped the keys into his pocket and began walking back to his Aunt Pearl’s apartment. Alfred smiled remembering James is going to be there. James, at thanksgiving! Alfred smiled even brighter.
“It'll be nice to see everyone,” Alfred whispered then under his breath. He reached out for the old slightly rusty doorknob and entered the room. He was greeted by many smiling faces
“Ohhhhh, come here Alfred,” Aunt Pearl exclaimed with glee. Alfred stepped forward smiling profusely and gave his aunt a gentle, but loving hug. 
 “It's nice to see you, Aunt Pearl. Where's James, is he here yet?” Alfred then glanced around the corner and saw someone’s shadow getting closer to the old dusty wood floor.  “James?” Alfred projected to the unknown person walking around the corner.
 “It's nice to see you, Uncle Al!” James then responded. James, Aunt Pearl, Alfred, and his three cousins all gathered around the table saying what they are thankful for this year. Once it came to James’s turn he said, “ this year I'm thankful for Alfred. I am thankful for how Alfred when I was out my lowest point was still there to help me. He helped to take me off drugs, he got me to go back to school, and he was there for me when it got rough. Now, look at me! I have a job and a high school degree!”  Alfred's eyes then began to tear. 
“I was only doing what I thought was right, and it is always right to help someone in need,” Alfred said sniffling.
“But you didn't need to, you didn't owe me anything but you were still there for me, a low-life on heroin who has no job,”  Everyone began to tear and the room fell silent. 
	“Don’t say that. All of that is behind us,” Alfred stated.
	“I guess so,'' James replied. Everybody ate and made small talk for a majority of the night but when it came time for Alfred to leave James suddenly stood up and hugged him. “You were always like a brother to me, you let me lean on you when I wouldn’t do the same for you,” James said in tears.
	Alfred responded with only two words, “I know.” They both cried and left the apartment as the sun merged with the horizon. A lot of things have changed, but one thing hasn’t. Alfred is still Alfred, Aunt Pearl is still Aunt Pearl, and James is still James. 

# data[].attributes.body
Alfred opened his eyes. He felt wet with sweat all over his body. The sun was not up yet. What time is it? He looked over to his night stand in his brand new apartment and the clock flashed 4:22. He still had about 5 hours until he was going to meet James, Spoon, Henry, and Mr. Donatelli at the diner for breakfast. Time faded and the next time he woke up it was 8:30. I better hurry or I'm gonna be late, he thought. He quickly grabbed his outfit he layed out next to his bed the night before. It was a pair of light washed jeans, a nice flannel shirt, and the white pair of shoes his Aunt Pearl had gotten him for his birthday a few weeks ago.  He then rushed to get ready, brushed his teeth, neatly pulled up the covers on his bed, and ran out the door and down one flight of steps to see Spoon pulling up to his small appartment he had recently invested in. “Nice place you got there!”

“Thanks. It’s really been doing me good to have a place of my own.”

Alfred hopped into the leather front seat next to him.“We’re gonna meet the rest of them there.”

Alfred smiled at Spoon and then stared out the window. What a beautiful autumn day. There were many trees with orange, bright red, brown, and yellow leaves falling off the branches. The cool air from the cracked window brushed his face as he turned the corner onto the main road. Alfred lived fairly close to the town shops where the diner was. As they pulled up and walked to the entrance with a red sign that read “Diner” on it. It’s color was fading and you could tell it was pretty old. Alfred and Spoon  saw Donetelli park his small white car and him and James and Henry got out and began walking twords them. They ate breakfast outside since it was mid - October and it was still warm enough. The waiter that took their orders was very tall. He had dark brown hair and a beard. His legs were long and he had big feet. The man was wearing black shoes that looked old and worn, black pants, a white shirt and a black vest over his shirt. He greeted them and took their order. Alfred ordered a milkshake and waffles. Their table was barely big enough to hold all of their food. It was their non - dieting excuse since they all had a cheat day together. When they finished their meal Mr. Donatelli, Henry, and Spoon went home to continue on with the rest of their plans for the day, but Alfred and James caught a cab home and went back to Alfred’s appartment to hang out. As soon as they got back home to Alfred’s place they went straight into the kitchen. “Would ya like anything to drink? I have pop, tea, coffee, water-”

“I’ll just have a bottle of water.” announced James as he sat down in a tall chair at the kitchen island dividing the kitchen and living room. Alfred threw him the bottle of water. “Catch!”  Alfred grabbed a small can of soda and popped it open. Alfred and James sat there for hours talking about almost anything you could think of. It reminded them of the good old days when they would play all day at the park or really anywhere they were. They would talk and play childish games. He remembered one time after school in 2nd grade him and James were playing hide and seek in the park. It was a sunny day and Alfred spent over an hour looking for James. Turns out he was hiding in the cave. That was the day they found out about it and it was their new secret hideout. Alfred was really happy to spend time with James because he brought him joy. James walked across the room and grabbed the remote off the side table next to a small couch. He sat down on the couch and crossed his right legover the left. “Want to watch the game?”

“Sure. I was just thinking about that.” James switched on the television and pushed down on the numbers of a channel on the remote and there was a football game playing on the T.V. Alfred walked over and sat on the couch next to James. Later on that day after James had left his home phone rang. Alfred closed his book and answered the phone. “Hello?” questioned Alfred

“Hi Alfred, it’s Aunt Pearl. I was wondering if you wanted to spend the night tonight. The girls are home and we miss you. I was thinking maybe we could have a game night.”

“Sure that sounds fun!”

“Would you like to come at around 7:00?”

Alfred looked up at the clock on the wall. It was almost 6:30. “Okay, I’ll be there in about 30 minutes.”

“Sounds like a plan Al!” exclaimed Aunt Pearl.

“See you soon!” Alfred pronounced happily. He hung up the phone and went to his bedroom.He quickly grabbed a few essentials from his overnight bag and sat in the living room in front of the television until it was time to go. Alfred was very excited since he hadn’t seen her or his little cousins in a while.

# data[].attributes.body
It almost felt like yesterday, pulling James out of that dark cave into the cold snowy air biting at our faces as they walked towards the light of the avenue. It has been almost 6 months now since that happened. James has been here at the medical center getting off the drugs. He is almost clear of that junk and he seems to be happier now. Spoon helped pitch in for the bills for James. He will be leaving soon and we are going to help him get his job so he can get back up on his feet. Spoon offered him to stay at his place and James took the opportunity to have a place to stay. 
	I have been working at the childrens after school program for 5 months now and everyone seems to enjoy it when I tell them about my boxing stories. I have asked James if he wants to come and join me and he said yes. I’m glad me and James are partners again. 
	Knock Knock
	“Hey! Alfred we goin’ miss first class!” yelled a muffled voice.
	“I’m coming, I'll be right there.” 
James and I have been going back to school and he seems to be really looking forward to finishing. He even has been coming earlier to get there faster. I feel very good for James that he is enjoying school. We’ve been working at the after school program during the day and been doing night school.
~~~
It has been almost 3 and a half years since James got fully cleared. We both have gotten high job positions in the after school program and everyone seems to enjoy us there. Tomorrow we will be finishing graduating from high school. I can't wait for James to be happy and safe completely and not have to worry about things. 
Every step of the way towards the stage felt like a pounding drum smashing over and over. It was going to be the best day ever. James and I headed towards the stage to stand there for graduation. I saw Mr. Donatelli sitting in the front row with a very faint smile and his neatly pressed gray slacks and his shiny black toed shoes. I saw Spoon and Henery there too, sitting there with big old smiles. After the graduation Mr. Donatelli came up to me and whispered something into my ear. 
“This is how you become the contender.” he spoke in that raspy voice of his.
I nodded as he walked out of the door and down the street towards the gym with its worn down steps. 
I realized what he really meant this time, to become a contender you have to work hard and you don’t quit. You need to keep going when something stops you and achieve your goal of becoming the contender. 

# data[].attributes.body
Alfred woke up that morning with a good feeling about the day. He jumped out of bed and threw open the closet doors. He picked out a pair of brand new grey joggers and a white cotton t-shirt. He quickly scrambled to get on his clothes, and when he opened his shades a blast of color hit the room and brightened the apartment. The top of the sun was barely over the horizon, yet the sky was filled with bright, vibrant orange, yellow, and hints of red. Alfred made his way into the kitchen and thought to himself, I am really lucky to be able to live here at such a low rent.

Alfred had just been able to afford his very own apartment away from Aunt Pearl, when he got a raise at the grocery store. He thought that he had bothered her enough over the years, so as soon as he was able to rent the apartment, he did. Just wait till I get to college. Alfred thought while he was putting a piece of toast in the toaster. As soon as he started to open the fridge, he heard a knock on the door. Alfred ran over to the door and opened it with a great jolt.

It was Henry, ¨Morning Alfred! Mr. Donatelli wants to see you in the gym early this morning. Don't ask me why, but he does.¨

¨I will be there in about twenty minutes,” stated Alfred with a smile from ear to ear.

¨Okay! See ya!¨ Henry said as he was making his way down the hallway. Alfred rushed back into the kitchen and ripped the toast out of the toaster. He ate it within ten seconds, and then he grabbed his gym bag. He opened his door into a corridor in his apartment building. The corridor was covered with absurd green floral wallpaper, that Alfred didn't even glance at this morning. Alfred speed walked down the steps so fast it looked like he was jogging.

Alfred waved hello to the woman at the front desk and burst out the front door. He walked past the deli that was two blocks away from his apartment building, and he heard the customers ordering their breakfasts. He saw a woman in a tight red dress and her hair cut as short as her shoulders ordering her breakfast.

¨I would like a bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich. When will that be ready? I need to get to a meeting in thirty,¨ spat a woman.

¨It will take around five minutes ma´am,¨ said the man at the register.

¨Good,¨ mumbled the woman.

How rude, Alfred thought. Before he knew it, he was four blocks away from the gym. He passed by the old club house. Alfred gave it a quick glance, before wiping the memories away again. The gym looked the same as it did when he first saw it. He had been going there four days a week for two years. Weird Alfred thought. Alfred walked up the old creaky stairs once again.

¨There he is!¨exclaimed Mr. Donatelli.

¨Hi Mr. Donatelli! What did you need me for?¨ asked Alfred.

Mr Donatelli looked at Alfred with a smile on his face,¨Since you won't be able to go to college for a bit, I decided to give you a little project. There is this new boxer that came up to me last night. He was alone, you see, and he wants to become a boxer. I said that I would accept him, and I gave the same training program everyone gets. I was hoping you could be a little friendly to him, and maybe stop by the gym later to start his training.¨

¨You want me to train a boxer?¨ uttered Alfred with a puzzled look on his face.

¨You know what it feels like to be in a ring, and you have seen people training here for the past 2 years. You know as much as almost anybody here, except for Bud, Henry, and I of course. I think this would be really good for you, while you are saving up for college,¨ stated Mr. Donatelli.

¨I think that's mighty fine idea Mr. Donatelli. When do you need me here later?¨ Alfred said with a proud look on his face.

¨Around 4 pm is when I told him to be here.¨

¨Okay see ya!¨ Alfred said on his way to the door.

Alfred started to make his way down the stairs and thought to himself After two years, why set me up with someone to train? Why me? Does he really think I know that much to be able to train someone?

At the bottom, he saw that Henry was sitting there waiting for him,¨Hey Alfred! What did Mr. D want you for?¨

¨He wants me to train a boxer,¨ said Alfred with a proud look on his face.

¨Ooo! Why do you think he wants you to do that?¨

¨I have no clue, I was just wondering the same thing,¨ said Alfred.

¨Well anyways, see ya later!¨ said Henry as he waved goodbye.

Alfred looked back on the steps, and he suddenly remembered the first time he had walked up them. Mr. Donatelli was a stranger to him then, and he hadn't made all the friends he had in the gym. He was such a wimp, Alfred thought. He continued walking home, but he stopped at the entrance to his apartment building. You know, I don't really think I want to go back up to my apartment and just sit there until it's time to go to the gym. I kinda want to go for a run, haven't gone for one of those in a couple of weeks Alfred thought to himself. He ran up the steps to his apartment, grabbed his running shoes, and struggled to put them on as he was closing his apartment door. He burst out, and he started running right off the bat. He ran and ran throughout the streets around his house. It was the middle of the morning, so the sun was high up on the sky, and it shined through the building, making it look like angel rays. He saw this one girl wearing a loose red cotton polo shirt, knee length plaid skirt, and her hair up in a high ponytail. What's she doing here? She looks like one of them private school kids Alfred thought to himself. He passed by his Aunt´s house. He began thinking about all the memories he had in that house, like the time he closed the door on Major, or after the first  boxing match he had ever been to. He kept on running and running until he was back at his apartment.

¨Hi´a Alfred!¨ James said as he walked by.

¨Hey James! You up for the movies on Friday?¨ asked Alfred.

¨As always, I gotta go, or I will be late to my job interview! Bye Alfred!¨ yelled James.

¨See ya James and good luck!¨ screamed Alfred as James made his way down the filled street.

Alfred bounced up the steps back to his apartment, and as soon as he reached the living room, he flopped on the couch. His eyes began to feel like cannon balls, and he steadily fell into a deep sleep.

He suddenly woke up with a start, he looked around with a rush of panic that it was past 4:00. He saw the clock, and as soon as he saw the time, he jumped up, grabbed his gym bag, and raced down the stairs. It was 3:50.  He was sprinting down the streets without slowing down until he reached the gym. He jumped up the stairs, and when he got into the gym it was exactly 4:01.
¨Hey there Alfred! Heard Mr. Donatelli wanted you to train somebody, that true?¨ said Bud as he was closely watching a boxer doing pushups in the corner.

¨Yeah, he here yet?¨ Alfred said as he looked around the gym to see if there was anyone new. Bud pointed to the boxer that he was watching before.

¨That's him, came up last night. Donatelli said that he looked like he had been in a fight. He´s a scrawny one, but I'm sure you can muscle him up.¨ said Bud.

¨I´ll try my hardest!¨ Alfred said as he started to make his way to the locker rooms. He suddenly thought, How am I supposed to train a boxer if I don't know what his life story is, and how he works? How do I know that I will work hard for this kid if he is just going to end up quitting on me in the end? You sound like a nervous wreck, get yourself together.

He made his way out to the gym and over to the boxer in the corner. ¨Hey, what's your name?¨ Alfred said, trying to seem confident.

¨Names Micheal Evens, what's it to you?¨ the boxer stated as if Alfred had hurt him in some way.

¨Woah there bud, no need to get hostile. You go to school?¨ asked Alfred with a surprised look on his face.

¨Nah, quit two years ago,¨ the boxer named Evens said with an irritable look on his face.

¨I see, you gotta job?¨ Afred asked.

¨Yeah, work at the nearby dollar store. Do you wanna hear my life story or something?¨ Evens retorted with a stern look on his face as he stopped doing pushups.

¨That would be nice, wanna go get something to eat?¨ asked Alfred.

¨That a be okay, but aren't I supposed to be training or somethin?¨Evens said.

¨You excused today, but only today. Got me, now let's go get something to eat.¨

Alfred and Evens left the third floor gym, to begin a new challenge and friendship, both will leave contenders, but only one will leave a champion.

# data[].attributes.body
25 years, it’s been 25 years but he still remembers. He still gets taken back to those old times whenever he sees his son up there. He remembers the punches and the wins. “In and out Alfred!” He could still hear Donatelli screaming. It makes him happy and he starts to miss boxing. He knows how his son feels and what to say. “ Matthew takes the lead as his opponent is knocked out!” says the ring announcer. 
“Yeah!” Alfred and James scream in unison. 
“He did it Alfred, he won,” said James.
“He did! He won, Maria would be so happy,” Alfred replied, his voice slightly cracking. 
“She would Alfred, but you need to move on from her. It was not your fault she passed,” James commented.
“I know I know, you’re right,” Alfred admitted.
“I did it Dad! I won, I won!” hollered Matthew.
“You did it son. Mom would be proud of you,” replied Alfred.
“You really think so, I don’t think she would approve of something like this,” Matthew said jokingly.
Alfred laughed. “Why don’t we go home and celebrate?”
“Sure,” both James and Mattew.

They were out at an ice cream shop when someone walked up to them. He was in a nice suit and he wore slightly scuffed black shoes. Last time Alfred had seen him, he looked like he had been fighting three times a day, wearing ripped clothes and worn out shoes. Now he looked nice and put together. He looked like he had never fought a day in his life.  Who is this? Alfred had questions. He started to congratulate Matthew when James started to go angry. Just from that he knew who he was. He looked a lot less intimidating than when he last saw him. And he looked, well, like a businessman. “I know this might be weird,” Major said, “but I did want to congratulate Matthew if that is okay with you.”
“I guess that is okay Major,” Alfred responded.
“Thanks and congrats Matthew. You did great,” stated Major.
“Thank you!” Said Matthew. 
“You can go now,” snapped James.
“Okay, I will…”
“You can stay Major. It’s ok,” interrupted Alfred.
“No, it’s ok, really,” replied Major
“Ok, hope you have a great night,” said Alfred.
“You guys too. Have a great night,” responded Major

	“How could you be nice to him!” snapped James.
	“Cause James, he changed. He is a lawyer now and he quit doin drugs,” commented Alfred.
	“Yeah, sure. How can someone change like that?” roared James in response.
	“You did James. You changed like that and now you are an engineer now,” Alfred pointed out.
	“That was different! I had help, who would want to help Major?”  yelled James.
	“ Sometimes people just do nice things for no reason James! Quit doubting him, is that how you want people to think of you?” stated Alfred angrily. 
	“No,” James mumbled.
	“So then give him a chance,” Alfred responded.
	“So we good? We can keep celebrating?” Asked Mathew.
	“Yes, we are good,” joked Alfred.

	They were strolling home on the sidewalk by the Clubroom. It smelled musky, foggy, and rainy. Then they saw two more people that looked familiar. They laughed about it being Hollis and Sonny but they grew silent as they came closer. It couldn’t be them could it?  When Alfred and James were in front of them, they were sure that it was them. Sonny and Hollis started staring at them, but didn't say a word. They just stared and then walked away. They thought it was weird until they got home. They got a call from Major, James answered. “Hey James,” Major said.
	“Major. What do you want?” James responded.
	“I know it is weird to call, even to ask for a favor but I need help.” 
	“What with? A businessman can’t help himself?”
	“I know I did you wrong in the past but you recovered and I recovered and I want to help Sonny and Hollis overcome drugs. They are still doin drugs and I want to help them and I know that Alfred helped you and you are helping people so please, can you help?” Major begged.
James didn't see Alfred come in but he knew that Alfred would want to help them. “Yes,” said James, “We will help, why don’t you come over tomorrow so we can figure out how?”
“Sure, see you tomorrow.” Major said. The phone hung up and James could hear Alfred walking toward him. 
“Helping people feels good, doesn’t it?” Alfred asked, jokingly.
“I guess,” said James, “but I still don’t trust him.”
“That’s okay. As long as you are not letting it get in the way of helping others.”
“I won’t Alfred, and you taught me that. You taught me to help others no matter the circumstances and I will never forget that. You’ve done so much for me and I could never repay you. Thank you Alfred, for everything.”
“I would do it all again for you, we are partners after all.”

# data[].attributes.body
All the seats, it’s amazing. I am graduating, I can’t think of anything to describe this. I wonder if Mr. Donatelli got my letter to come… and I will never forget this day. A new chapter in my life.

“Wow. I can’t believe this is happening James,” Alfred muttered over to James.

He agrees, “We did it. Thank you Alfred.”

“For what?” Alfred knows why already. Alfred was the one that helped James overcome his addiction. All Alfred’s bad memories come flooding back to him. He’s reminded about the times with James a few years ago before they got their life straight, just a few years ago. Alfred remembers being at the clubroom to see James. He was there to see how James was doing since the burglar alarm. He remembers seeing James’ yellow teeth, stuttering his words, the white powder, and the swaying room. As the memory starts to fade Alfred hears Aunt Pearl approaching towards him in the misty cool air outside the graduation room. He knows this look, she is going to congratulate him. “Congratulations Alfred! I'm so proud of you, you've really turned into a man. You better get on goin’ inside or we'll miss the ceremony.”

Alfred nodes and replies, “Okay let's go..” Alfred hesitates to go inside.

“What's wrong?”

“I'm nervous.”

“Your big speech?”

“That's the one.”

“You can do this Alfred, and the speech is later so don't get too nervous yet!” Aunt Pearl giggles.

As they make their way back inside. Alfred stops, feels the cold air and gets the chills. He is nervous, he takes a deep breath, and makes his way inside. As he goes to sit down, he sees all of them.

Bud, Spoon, his wife, Henry, and all of his new friends he has made in school, and of course James.

“You guys came,”

Henry exclaimed, “I would never miss this big of a moment in Alfred Brooks' life!”

“What are you talking about, owner of Johnson’s Gym!”

“Come on, stop it.”

“I am really happy for you. You did it!”

About an hour later it is time for Alfred to get up and make his speech.

Alfred slowly moves towards the front and he suddenly gets a wave of anxiety.

He gets to the podium. This is the moment he has been waiting for.

He begins his speech.

As Alfred begins his speech he starts off by telling the graduating class what it took for him to get there and how much confidence he has going into the future. In the corner of his eye, Alfred sees a shadow. A long, narrow shadow in the back of the room. As the shadow gets smaller and shorter, Alfred realizes who it is. He came. Mr. Donatelli came and had seen him up here. At the graduation making the speech.

Mr. Donatelli sits down in a nearby seat within the crowded audience. Of course he knew it's him because he is short, with white hair that looks like wheat, (looked like he was growing a beard too) his bushy eyebrows and his pale, crackly face. His clothes neatly pressed, as per-usual, but he was wearing nice clothes, and when Alfred saw that, he knew that maybe Donatelli actually wanted to be there.

While Alfred was making his speech, he might have stuttered when he saw him. He was startled to see him there because he hasn't seen him in years, ever since he started night school. It's nice to see that Mr. Donatelli wanted to be there, and when Alfred finished his speech, everyone clapped, Donatelli too, and he had confidence and a feeling of pride because everyone looked proud of him.

As his speech ended he walked towards where Mr. Donatelli was sitting.

“Alfred, “ Mr. Donatelli said in a sharp voice.

Alfred spoke up a little and said, “ I can’t believe you came.”

“I am proud of you, you have come a long way’’ he commented.

“I can’t believe you actually wanted to be here, thank you.”

“Congratulations for graduating high school, and I hope you stop by the gym soon.”

“I will… and once again, thank you for coming,”

“It was a pleasure Alfred.”

As Alfred walks away, he walks towards all of his friends. He can see James’ diploma sticking out of his pocket and a big proud smile on his face. Alfred reaches into his own pocket and feels his diploma. He can not believe it. He has graduated!  As they were leaving they got into the car, everyone looked so proud of him and James. Before he gets into his car he says “I am so happy I have you guys.” Alfred then drives off with a faint smile on his face.

# data[].attributes.body
Alfred slowly paraded up the nice, paved sidewalk of the school grounds with James. The sky was blue without a single cloud in sight. The nice, paved sidewalk felt smooth on his feet. Alfred heard other high-schoolers chattering excitedly. He smelled the delicious scent of food in the air.  Today was their high school graduation day. James turned to Alfred and articulated, “I’m proud of you, Al.”

“I’m also proud of you, James.” Just 5 years ago, their lives had gone to lows.Alfred and James had no education, hopeless, had no desire, and didn’t feel like doing anything positive. James went to jail for breaking into Mr. Epstein’s store, Alfred’s old boss. James took heroin, and started hanging out with the wrong group of people. James now wore clean pants with a green button-down shirt. His brown rimmed glasses brought out his big, brown eyes.  After all we’ve gone through, we’re here together, thought Alfred as he looked at James. What a big inspiration. They walked into the school together, seeing the familiar white floor and red lockers. A couple hours later, the graduation ceremony started. James and Alfred looked at each other, both of them were wearing a dark blue graduation hat that symbolized their graduation and their journey. Alfred thought about the cave, and how much the cave meant to them as they would go there every other day in their younger lives. “Alfred Brooks.” said the principal, calling for him to grab his diploma. The voice sounded distant to Alfred, and  his eyes were a little glassy. He walked up to his teacher, seeing Aunt Pearl’s, Spoon’s and Henry’s joyful faces in the crowd of people clapping. After some of their classmates got called and more people clapped, finally the principal said, “James Mosely.” James’s eyes looked glassy, mainly from hearing the clapping after his name and the fact of hearing his name in the first place. Aunt Pearl and Spoon and Henry were clapping the loudest, knowing what he had been through with the police and drugs, and yet still graduating from high school with all B’s and A’s. After the graduation ceremony, they got dismissed from school because it was a half day of school. Alfred and James walked together to Aunt Pearl, Spoon, and Henry. Aunt Pearl said, “I’m so proud of you guys.”

“I’m as proud of you guys as any of my students graduating.” said Spoon,

“Yeah, I knew you guys could do it,” Henry told them as James turned to Alfred. “We’ve always been partners and we always will be,”

“Thanks for everything that you have done for me, with helping me get healthy, and helping me get clean.” said James.

“No problem, we’ll always stick near each other.” The car ride home was filled with a joyous feel. Alfred was joking with James, and James made imitations of their principal, like he did when they were younger. The car soon skidded to a halt as the car stopped at James’s apartment. “Thanks for driving me home.” James said to Aunt Pearl.

“No problem James.”

James then looked at Alfred and said, “Bye Al, I can’t thank you enough for all the help.”

“Bye, that’s what friends are for, aren’t they?”

“Yeah.” James said as he swaggered to his apartment door and he stepped inside of it. As the car skidded to a stop at his apartment, he walked into it with Aunt Pearl. Aunt Pearl’s three daughters soon came home on the bus after, each telling Alfred, “Congratulations on graduating, we’re all proud of you.”

“Thanks.” “Aunt Pearl, thanks for treating me like your own and giving me a roof over my head.” Alfred said.

“No problem honey, you’re the best son I could ever wish for.”  said Aunt Pearl’s sweet voice.

# data[].attributes.body
As Alfred finishes his day at work and the program, he decides to go see James at the rehab center before going to night school.  When he strolls over, he remembers the day, exactly one year ago, that he brought James out of the cave and carried him to the hospital.  He remembers that day like it was yesterday.  He even remembers the things that were around him, the new snow, the bushes and rocks that seemed like they were obstacles.  He felt cold on the outside, but warm on the inside.  He was happy to see James agreeing to get better.

He is so glad that James had agreed to come out of the cave and let Alfred help him.  He remembers that James was high and so hurt.  James was refusing to come out of the cave and Alfred started to leave.  James finally agreed to getting out of the cave and getting help.  Alfred just thinks about how he wanted James to get better, and how he is getting better.

When Alfred arrives at the rehab center, he sees that James is excited to see him.  James was walking up to Alfred proudly.  “Hi,” said Alfred.

“Hey,” said James with a smile on his face.  As James was sitting down, Alfred realized something was off with James, he seemed happy.  “I get to come out of this place and into the world next week!”  Alfred had a huge smile on his face, he was so thrilled for James.

“I knew you could do it.  Congratulations!”

James thanked him.  “Can you...?”

“What?”

“Sorry, can you sign me out?”

“Sure,” said Alfred.

“I just can’t believe it.  It’s been a year and they are finally letting me go!  I am already packed up,” exclaimed James.

Alfred and James continued their conversation about what James was going to do when he got out.  After thirty minutes of chatting, Alfred had to go because he had planned to go to the gym before he goes to school.

When Alfred was entering the gym, he saw Mr. Donatelli training his boxer he has had for about a year.  “Hi Mr. Donatelli,” said Alfred.

“Hi Alfred.  How are you?”

“I’m good.  How’s Ja-?”

“Jake is doing good, he’s going to Madison Square Garden next week.  Are you coming?”

“No, my friend James is getting out of rehab.”  Alfred starts his workout by doing 20 push ups and 20 sit-ups again and again.  Alfred works out for about fifteen minutes when Spoon arrives.  “Hey Spoon!”

“Hi Alfred!”

“How are you?” Alfred asked.

“I’m good, I switched to teaching 7th grade English.  I like it,” mentioned Spoon.

“Cool, how’s the new school?”

“The new school is good, but I miss my old students.”

As Alfred and Spoon talk they take turns using the peanut bag.  Although Alfred is talking to Spoon, he can’t stop thinking about seeing James out of the rehab center.  He is glad that the rehab center helped James but he is ecstatic that James was better and getting out.  I can’t wait for James to go home! thought Alfred.  Alfred said goodbye to Mr. Donatelli and Spoon and started walking to night school.  He is finishing his first year!  Only a half of a year left thought Alfred.

# data[].attributes.body
As Alfred and James walked down the dark, sketchy alley, Alfred brought up the topic of boxing. Alfred said that he “wanted to train harder than ever before and wanted to become the best in his league”. James wanted to help, so he insisted on learning everything he possibly can from reading books. James would then be Alfred’s assistant trainer. They were finishing walking down the dark alley when a annomoynis mugger jumped them, Alfred and James were mugged off their wallets and James’ phone. The mugger ran away and James spoken, “Lets get outta here!”

They made their way back to Alfred’s house. Alfred forenamed, “At least we didn't die, wait, I think I might have some boxing books in my bedroom.”  Alfred goes and gets the books that he had in his bedroom. Alfred walked back to his living room to give James the books. James picked up the books and announced “Thanks, can I keep them to read?” 
“Yes, keep them as long as you need them,” Alfred replies. 
James looks through all three of the books. One was on the rules of boxing. One was on the strategies of boxing. And the other was on boxing's history.

After a night of talking and having fun playing games and watching TV, James walked home in the darkest of nights. He clutched the books in his hands while walking back. James said to himself, “I hope nobody comes to steal my books.” James finally made it to the abandoned clubhouse. That night before James went to sleep he read through every book, then he fell asleep. He woke up and spent the entire morning and some of the afternoon reading the rest of the books. He had a thought “these books were very informative”

James walked back over to Alfreds. They wanted to go to the gym for some training. James was nervous, as he didnt know if he would be good at training Alfred or not. They got passes for the day and went to the boxing area of the gym. James started to get ready, and changed into his gym outfit he had brought, and so did Alfred. James Spoken, “Alright let's get this thing started.”  
       Alfred announced, “YEs!!!!!!!!!!!”. They started to do some punches, 
       “Upper punch”, “lower punch” “jab”, yelled James. They continued to keep on practicing and practicing, They didn't want to stop,

After a day of work at the gym, Alfred Explained “You're very good at being a trainer.” They went home and had a nice batch of fresh homemade cookies, because Alfred’s Aunt made them. They counted the cookies as a victory celebration of James' first day at training Alfred to be a better boxer. After that day, they could go to the gym and practice harder and harder. The more practice James gave Alfred, the better their relationship got as friends.


2 Years later, Alfred is now in a professional boxing league, with James as his coach. They “never believed they would get this far”, Fornamed by both Alfred and James. They were asked how they became such a success. James replied “It all started with 3 books I read to be a coach” Alfred said “years of practice, never give up”

# data[].attributes.body
A few years later Alfred and James were reminiscing about how when James went back to the Epstein's store to try again and about how Alfred carried him to the hospital. They didn’t have enough money to pay for James hospital bill “Hey do you remember how long it took us to pay that hospital bill” James Inquired.
“No, but I do remember that it was a while,” declared Alfred.
“To make it even worse you got arrested as soon as they were paid” disclosed Alfred.
“At least for now we don’t have to worry about you getting arrested anymore because it's been 5 years” announced James.
“Now you have gone clean and we got some nice clothes and pretty good jobs” exclaimed Alfred.
They were both in their car heading home from work as they had this conversation. They live together in a nice apartment. With two rooms, one bathroom and one kitchen , one living room and two windows in almost every room.
“I wonder what everyone is doing right now” thought Alfred.
“I think I should call spoon and see how he's doing” thought Alfred.
Alfred went over to the phone to call spoon and see how he is doing but when Alfred calls spoon, he doesn't pick up because it was late at night. Alfred noticed the time and decided that he should go to bed because he has work in the morning. It's the next morning and Alfred is getting on his blue jeans with his brown shirt and black sunglasses, as he was getting ready he heard a knock at the door and when he opened it it was James looking like he had one to many cups of caffeine.
“Hey Al you see what time it is” said James.
“No Why”
“Because if you don't hurry you will be late” said James.
“Ooooohhhhhh dang” exclaimed Alfred.
If they were late again they would be fired so they both rushed to get ready to eat and get to the car so they would not be late. While they were racing they owned the street trying not to get caught. Then they got a text from Henry saying that,“If your not here soon both of  you will be so dead especially Alfred because this is his last straw before he’s outta here if you not hear soon the boss is going to  blow”
When Alfred and James saw this text they both thought about calling their loved ones and telling them they were gonna die (Not actually though) but then they thought “Oh wait don’t forget we have a shortcut that we can use.”
With going down the shortcut they were now only five minutes away with some traffic and they had to be there in seven minutes so they thought that they wouldn't make it in time. Then traffic started to lighten up and they made it just in time to work. When they arrived to work everyone jumped out and said surprise! It was really James' birthday party and he was being promoted.

# data[].attributes.body
It had been 10 years since the events of the boxing match. Aunt Pearl had sadly died from cancer and Alfred had been living on his own. He had not much money or food at the time, so he decided to take a walk to the food store. On his way to the food store he passed the park he and James went to when they were kids.
“Isn’t this the park with the cave?” Alfred said in his head, “I should go look around for old time sake.”
He drifted away from the path he took to the food store and decided to explore the rocky and muddy cave again. He reached the entrance and saw a man sitting there in complete paranoia and going through withdrawals. He was shaking and jittering uneasily, he looked familiar, but Alfred couldn’t put his finger on who it was. Then it came back to him.
“James?!” Alfred exclaimed, “Is that you?!”
“K-Keep it d-d-d-down. They m-m-might f-f-f-find me.” James quietly explained.
“Who is going to find you? What did you do?” Alfred asked.
“Ever since two months ago, I had been hunted by the police for selling drugs on the streets. I can't get over the addiction Alfred! I’ve tried and tried again, but I just can’t seem to get over it!”
Alfred sat down with his past friend, “We tried to do this 10 years ago, you said you had given it up! Why did you get back into drugs?”
“I was depressed and I wanted to feel good again, so my friend offered me drugs again.” James sadly explained. Alfred put his arm around James, “Don’t worry, you’ll be okay. We will get you through it again. I will help you get over it yet again.” Alfred told him. James looked back at him, with tears in his eyes, and nodded. He turned back around and sat quietly to himself.

“Alfred?” James asked.

“Yeah, what is it?” Alfred responded.

“I think I know who to quit my addiction.” James added. “Boxing.”

“What?” Alfred asked.

“Maybe a sport can take my mind off of drugs and my addiction. I mean, it could work right?” James said.

Alfred added on, “Yeah, but why boxing?”

James told him that Alfred could be his trainer and can encourage him to get away from drugs while training. James asked Alfred, “Would you do it? Would you help me?”

“Totally.” Alfred exclaimed. “Let’s do this.”

They walked out of the cave and headed back to the city, the sun was starting to fall. They walked back to Alfed’s Apartment.

When they went back to Alfred’s apartment room, Alfred took James’ height and weight.

“Alright, so I took your height and weight so we can find out the size of your boxing clothes, now let’s get to training.”

Alfred gave James a big bag of sand and told him to give it his “best bashes and beatings” on it. James took a few jabs and punches on the sandbag, but nothing too special.

“What are those punches James? I have seen babies hit sandbags harder!” Alfred shouted to James.

“You better straighten up or you’ll get your 🤬 kicked out there!”

James tried to hit it harder but he didn’t hit it hard enough. He was hitting it, but ironically, it didn’t have enough punch to it.

“How did you do it Alfred? How did you get that strength in you?” Alfred asked him.

“I might need to get you onto your next phase of training, shifting your schedule. I am going to have to put you on the schedule I had when I was training.” Alfred said. “We shall start it tomorrow.”

James accepted and stayed overnight at his place. The next day James started his training. “I know you’ll be the next contender.” Alfred said as he watched James’ training and guided him through it.

# data[].attributes.body
Alfred jumps in, pitter pattering against his face! The new person at the gym is good, but Alfred is better. Brooks notices the opportunity he puts in a jab, then an uppercut! Major falls to the ground, flopping at Alfred’s wicked right punch. Henry calls this sparring session over, Alfred won. He briskly came over and helped Major up again. “Lucky shot Brooks,” sneered Major in a joking way. “Not so fast Major, I still won,” they both had a good little laugh. Smash! Alfred’s head spun to the source of the sound, the noise filled the room, and as suddenly as it came, it was gone. “Sorry,” James was in the corner with the punching bag. “I think I hit it a little too hard.” Alfred smurked, “Yeah, you alright ‘ere.” James exhaled, seeming almost relieved. “Hey wait, where you goin partner?” But James was already out the door, bolting down the street. Alfred peered through the window, watching as Epstein's grocery store door was thrown open, and James disappeared inside. 
	“If I can’t have it, nobody can!” The antagonist of the movie was fuming at his sudden defeat. Alfred and James’ eyes were glued to the screen, the movie just kept getting better and better! 2 hours later, their eyes are glued to the dinner plate in front of them. After hard work and dedication, they’re both doing well out in the world. “This stuff is best in New York, ain’t it James?” James slowly looked up, “Sure is, partner.” They ate fast, rich expensive food filling them to the brim, until there wasn’t enough room for a second dessert. They both stood, dressed all fancy, Alfred with his perfectly blended outfit, his white coat blending nicely with his black slacks, and shades blending into his eyes til it just looks like a whirlpool of clean colors. As James stood, with his finest clothes, a white coat, white slacks, and black shined shoes. “You look like an expensive highlighter there partner,” Alfred said mindlessly. Why did James pick such uncomfortable looking clothes? Hmm, perhaps James wanted to show off his expensive stuff? No, that’s just not James. Alfred’s train of thought was abruptly thrown off the tracks, his head shot up from the floor, “We’re here lookin good, ain’t we? Might as well feel good too.” James slapped the receipt on the table, “Sure partner…” Alfred exclaimed, whilst still appearing confused at James’ comment.
	The dim light shines through, the engine purred, and the wheels spun against the rough pavement. Alfred and James could feel the soft vibrating of the car bobbing against the icy pavement. “Yawn…” softly, Alfred stretched his arms out. The car came to a halting stop, the tires’ rubber burning against the ground, giving off a burning rubber scent. Alfred popped the door open, and gave it a shove. “Seeya ‘round partner.” Alfred gave a wave, “Ya, see ya ‘round.” The door closed, and the tires spun. Within seconds the car was out of view. It was a frosty day in Harlem, the dark blue sky stopping before entering the clouds, almost as if they were frozen. Snow lightly fell, they crunched under Alfred’s feet as he walked, Crunch, Crunch, Crunch, Crunch. The elevator doors opened, Alfred stepped in. He almost fell when the elevator jerked up, clearly Alfred was dozing already. “Yawn…” This one was extenuated, so long Alfred almost got hit by the doors closing upon exiting the elevator. He walked down the hallway, there were scenic designs on the wall, the cleaning women gave a smile as she passed Alfred with a cart. Click, the lock to the door was unstiffened by the key, and his door swung open. Alfred’s feet felt heavy, walking with blurred vision. Everything felt like a dream. He kicked off his shoes, and settled in for the night.
	The night was cold, but the penthouse was warm, the bed was warm, Alfred was warm... 		A warm and relaxing sleep session at last. Alfred’s dream of James was accurate, in fact it actually happened, James turned his life around, and now thanks to his example on TV, people around the world are doing the same. “Night ol’ partner,” Alfred’s eyes drifted shut, and at least he was at rest for the night.

# data[].attributes.body
Alfred went out with James as they cheered in glee. They were in a wave of despair long ago as they sat in their hopeless devoured lives. They had to work for the top through all of the bloodshed and tears. People didn’t think of them poorly when they walked the streets. People don’t think that they couldn’t do it from the way they looked. With their slim bodies and rough clothes. Their jagged smiles and their button down waist.  They decided to break away from all of that despair and 🤬. They actually cherish their lives now. When they look back at it they can think of all the great memories they had. All the things they made for the future. 
“So where do you want to go?” James said.
“Em, what about that big hill over there.”
They walked over to the hill, gazing over it at its bright green grass as it swayed in the wind. They started walking up this giant hill.
“Geez, this thing has to be like twenty eight feet tall.” James said as he chuckled.
“I don't know. Looks pretty small to me.” Alfred jokingly said with a smile on his face.
“Oh, shut up.”
When they had finally gotten to the top and looked up there was a dark alluring sky. It was filled with all sorts of colors and beauties. The stars sparked in the midst of the narrow sky. The wind blowing through the trees as the leaves fell down to the silk grass. The air smelled fresher than ever. They stood there and stared at the narrowed down sky as they took in all of its beauty.
	“Did you know that all of those stars up there represent the people who passed through the years.” Alfred said as he looked at James.

# data[].attributes.body
Alfred went out with James as they cheered in glee. They were in a wave of despair long ago as they sat in their hopeless devoured lives. They had to work for the top through all of the bloodshed and tears. People didn’t think of them poorly when they walked the streets. People don’t think that they couldn’t do it from the way they looked. With their slim bodies and rough clothes. Their jagged smiles and their button down waist.  They decided to break away from all of that despair and 🤬. They actually cherish their lives now. When they look back at it they can think of all the great memories they had. All the things they made for the future. 
“So where do you want to go?” James said.
“Em, what about that big hill over there.”
They walked over to the hill, gazing over it at its bright green grass as it swayed in the wind. They started walking up this giant hill.
“Geez, this thing has to be like twenty eight feet tall.” James said as he chuckled.
“I don't know. Looks pretty small to me.” Alfred jokingly said with a smile on his face.
“Oh, shut up.”
When they had finally gotten to the top and looked up there was a dark alluring sky. It was filled with all sorts of colors and beauties. The stars sparked in the midst of the narrow sky. The wind blowing through the trees as the leaves fell down to the silk grass. The air smelled fresher than ever. They stood there and stared at the narrowed down sky as they took in all of its beauty.
	“Did you know that all of those stars up there represent the people who passed through the years.” Alfred said as he looked at James.

# data[].attributes.body
Alfred sprints down main street with James on his back. There were loud cars zooming by, all you could smell was foul gasoline. My legs started to cramp, it almost felt like someone was squeezing my legs and would let go..( I felt James warm blood on my back, James was bleeding so much, it was soaking through his shirt. I looked back to see if the police were following us. I could see James blood trickling on the sidewalk as I ran. I didn't see anyone, so we are clear.)
 ¨James¨ Alfred said loudly.
¨ Ya¨ James said softly
¨ Are you okay back there¨ Alfred breatheed
¨ Ya, but it really hurts man¨ James grunted
¨ We are almost there, hang tight¨”Alfred said nervously
Heads turn while James and Alfred run down the street. They finally made it to the hospital, little did they know what was waiting for them.
¨POLICE¨ James shouted
James fell off Alfred trying to run. Pulling himself up the side walk in pain the police handcuff him and take him away. Alfred was pushed against a cop car and told to calm down. Alfred was completely calm and cooperating. They shoved him harder into the cop car. Yelling and him to cooperate. Alfred was doing nothing.
Alfred yelled ¨stop shoving me i'm doing everything you ask¨
After the cop shouts on more time ¨stop¨
Suddenly two other cops jumped on Alfred pinning him to the ground. Aunt pearl and Mr Doniteli come running up the street. 
Aunt pearl screams”Get of my baby¨
Mr Doniteli steps in and says¨ Sir, Sir please he was just trying to help his friend¨
One of the cops let him off, he tells the others to just put him in the car.
As they put Alfred in the car you can see a tear running down Aunt Pearl's face.
On the way to the police station Alfred can help but wonder if James is okay. 
He asked the cop ¨ Is James okay, where is he¨
¨We are taking care of it¨ says the annoyed
After a few days he was let out, He wanted to go see James.
¨Where is James¨ Alfred said
The cop says ¨ I think he is in the hospital but when he get out of the hospital he's coming with us.¨
When he walks out the door, after the steps he sprints down to main street he is heading to the hospital. When Alfred gets to the hospital he gets to the front desk.
Out of breath he asked the woman working there ¨ Is there a boy named James Mosley here, is 17, darker skinned¨
¨Ya he in this room over there¨ says the woman
Alfred walks over to James, as he peeks his head in, you see James sitting up,eyes open and he looks great. Alfred runs over to James and gives him a hug.
¨Ow, hey take it easy¨ Says james jokingly
¨ Im glad your ok james, i was really worried about you¨ said alfred
¨ when will you be out of here¨ alfred asks
¨ In a few days¨ says james
¨The cops are going to take you in when you get out james, i don't know how long you be in for, just corporate.¨ Alfred whispered
After a few days James was released from  the hospital and then taken into custody they said he would be in for 2 years because of attempted robbery, Having illegal drugs and being intoxicated while driving.
 

# data[].attributes.body
Alfred took James to a private building.
“James drugs are bad for you, you gotta stop!” Alfred stated
	Alfred taught James the bad sides of drugs. James listened to Alfred and started taking less drugs. The next day James goes to Alfred.  “Alfred, I'm doing great, I actually stopped taking drugs!”
	Alfred remembers part of the past while talking to James. “James you were a part of the robbery right?”  Alfred claimed
“Yeah but we won't ever do it again.”
	Alfred and James go back to the after school progam to teach some more.
“Ok kids how are we doing today?”
	“Great!” one kid shouted.
Alfred and James start off by teaching about boxing. Both agreed they should start with the basics
	“When you punch you wanna make sure your arms are straight and have much power in them.” Said James
	Class ended for the day, James and Alfred went to the gym to practice boxing. The gym was empty. Alfred and James both were stretching and James pulled a muscle.
“James you ok?”
	“Yeah let me sit out for today, it hurts badly I might’ve pulled it bad.” 
James was ok, he got up and worked out. Alfred left the gym he had to get home for the night. James went to the cave to relax, he had a lot on his mind after Alfred left without saying anything. The next morning Alfred met up with Donatelli. Don wasn’t feeling too well, Alfred took him to the hospital. He was diagnosed with cancer out of the blue. 
	“Alfred if I die, take over the gym. That night the doctors had some bad news
	“Hey Al Donatelli died.”
Al didnt know how to break the news to James so he told him with a straight face
	“I'm gonna take over the gym.” 
	“What are you talking about?”
	“Donatelli died last night.”
	“He did”
James cried and cried, he remembered the times he spent with Donatelli. Alfred tried to comfort him.
	“Thanks Al, you're a great person.” 
Alfred then took James to the ice cream shop in Harlem. The bright sky widened as the clouds moved away. Alfred got chocholate and James got strawberry. They took their ice cream to their cave and just talked about life.
	“Alfred how's life goin?”
	“Fine I guess, I need to start boxing again.”
	“Ok bet wanna go to the gym?”
	“Sure, I found out that I was pretty rusty after trying to box again.” 
Alfred and James went to the gym. At the gym they met this kid named Russell.
	“Hey kid, how are you doing?”
	“I'm doing great!” Russell exclaimed
	“That sounds amazing!” Alfred shouted with joy
	“Hey Russel, could we teach you some things?”
	“Sure, that sounds fun.” Russell exclaimed
Alfred started off by teaching Russell how to punch better.
	“Russell you should keep your arm straight when you punch.”
	Ok, is this a bit better?” Russell said
	“I guess so.” Alfred replied
Alfred then left the gym. He forgot about James, so he went back to get him.
When Alfred went back into the gym he saw Russell, but this time James was teaching him.
	“Hi James, what are you teaching Russell?” Alfred asked
	“I'm teaching him how to box like you were.” James replied
Alfred then took James on a little trip around Harlem. The sky was cloudy, with the sun. Alfred told James to dress a little bit, so he gave James some clothes. Alfred was wearing some really black Jeans. He was looking a little dark. James was given some white clothes with a jean jacket. He looked like a group of clouds with rain. On the walk, Alfred remembered Russell from the gym and thought to himself. “Russell has loads of potential man”
Alfred told his opinion to James, James actually agreed with him. After the walk, Alfred and James both went to the cave. They sat and relaxed. Alfred was able to make a fire with a few sticks and rocks so they had warmth. 10 years passed and both Alfred and James became professional boxers. Both of them went on to become the most famous boxers to live. Both lived a great life. Even James. James didn’t have a home, so Alfred invited James to come live with him. Unfortunately many years later Alfred and James both died at 78. Russell became a professional just like Alfred. He went on to become a boxer. They all lived very happy and different lives. Even Russell....

# data[].attributes.body
“Hello?”

“Hey It’s James!:

“Oh my gosh James? I haven't heard from you in 15 years how ya been?”

Alfred sat there with a smile, telling his wife who he heard from. James was talking on and on about how his life has been, He’s a lawyer, a pretty good one at that. He learned that doing the wrong thing is not going to help you in life and he needed to do something with his life.  He went back to school.

“I've been really good actually. Ya see after I left town, I went back to school, for criminal law as a matter of fact. My professor said that I would do well because I had experience with law and  I know what it's like to be in that position. I've been getting all As ever since. I'm now at college getting my masters degree. Enough about me what's going on in your life?”

“I've been amazing, ya know James I started to work at the gym.” Alfred announced with the most joyful smile.

His dark brown hair turning grey stood up in excitement.

“Oh really?

I thought he would be some type of MMA fighter, ya know like a pro boxer, I don't know maybe like KSI.”James thought to himself

“Well I've been teaching a program, I teach little kids almost everything that I know. I love them gosh darn kiddos. They really mean the world to me.”

James smiled, he realized that even though he's not the biggest and best fighter that he believed that he could be, he’s loving what he's doing. James smiled again.

“Alfred I remember when we were just kids, you know when you were working at that glacier store and I was stealing and on my road to Juvey.  We were so little and clueless. We didn't know our lefts from our rights.”

They both burst into laughter.

“Thank you for everything, without your faith in me, I wouldn't be where I am today, I just really wanted to say Thank you for everything. You helped me get to where I am and I'm really appreciative that I can call you my friend,” James said with a happy voice.

“Thank me? I should  be thanking you because you helped me to learn that boxing was my passion.”

“Well Thank you Alfred, you know what, We should add Major to this . See what he’s up to. I also haven't heard from him since I left town,” James said happily.

“Yeah we should.” said Alfred.

“Hey don't do that, i'm on the phone”, James said in a whisper.

“Huh, Wacha say James?” Alfred asked in confusion.

“Oh I was talking to my kids,” said James, “I forgot to mention I have a little boy, his name is Thomas. He’s turning 3 in November.”

“Oh that's nice. Tell him I said hi and he's lucky to have you as a father.” said Alfred..

James says with a grin on his face, “Thank you so much. I really appreciate it.”

“All right, Let's add Major.”

*Alfred adds Major, Major’s phone rings*

“Hello? Uh who is this?” Major asks.

“Hey Major, it's Alfred and James, Remember us?”

“Oh hey guys it's been a while what's up with you guys, how ya guys been?”

“Oh well I'm a lawyer,” James says.
“James, a lawyer? You guys sure I'm talking to the right people? Is this James McAdems and Alfred  Brooks?

“You bet it is. It's been so long. Wait, what's that noise? It sounds like cheering?”

“Oh, um sorry about that. I’m at a football game. Ya see after I left I went back to school ya know, hitting the books. I've gone back to learn in the medical field. I know something nobody has ever thought of me, Major Wallas ever doing.”

“Ya i would have never believed  that! Good for you Major!”  Alfred said in joy.

“So where ya going to school Major?” Inquired James

“Well I've been going to Harvard Medical school. It was almost impossible to get accepted but I did it.”

“So what is it like there,”  Asked Alfred.

“Well it's amazing, It's so perfenial. In every room, every classroom each row of seats has there on everything. The school size is very big. It's kinda shaped like a cake,” Major announced trying to hold in his laughter. And the football field, dont get me started. Its soo big,nthe bright green 100 yard field its amazing.

“Well that's amazing,” James and Alfred said.

“Well guys, I have to go, Thomas is ready for his nap time soon.” James said

“Okay see ya James talk another time,” Alfred said.

“Ya me too Alfred the games almost over and it's getting to nearly the end of halftime so ill call you another time.”

“Ya, yeah for sure. I’ll talk to you guys later, have a good rest of your day.” Alfred murmerd with a grin.

“Bye” they all said to each other, with the biggest smiling ever seen.

# data[].attributes.body
Alfred helps James with the drug addiction.  James doesn't completely stop but he slowly by slowly stops doing drugs.  Alfred also gives boxing lessons from what he has learned and from the experience he had.  He assists many kids who want to grow up to be a contender. Alfred encourages his students to push harder like how Alfred did. “ I can’t do it, “ responds some of his students.  Alfred informs them “ Yes you can if you really want to be a contender bad enough.”

Alfred also goes back to school with James.  They get a good education from school.  They also convince Major and Sonny to stop doing bad things and they help them too.  All 4 of them go back to school. But Hollis on the other hand, refused to go back and continued to do bad stuff.  But Major stopped being friends with Hollis.  The next day James and Alfred go to school.  They study for a test and then they take the test.  They both pass with scores of 89 percent and 92 percent.

One of his students asked if it was hard to get to a contender level. Alfred responds “ It was very hard to even get a chance of being a contender” Right after he remembers working hard every day and him giving it his all.

“Hey Al,” says James.

“Nothing much” responds Alfred

“Want to go to the Apollo Theatre to watch the new play Nightmare?” Asks James

“Sure but I have some homework so we can go at 5pm” responds Alfred”

“See you at five Al” says James.

Both Alfred and James meet up at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem.  They chat between them both.  Then they get in their seats and watch the play.  The play finishes and outside a fight breaks out.  Alfred thinks to himself, should I help stop the fight.  I trained to be a fighter.  Alfred intervenes in the fight so he can split it up so that nobody gets hurt.

“Al, I had no idea you could do that.  That was epic”  says James.

“ Well, I trained boxing you know”  responds Alfred.

“ Oh well, see you tomorrow at school Al” muses James

“ Oh that's nice to hear.  You know, when I was younger, I wanted to grow up to be an actress, and perform on stage in front of all those people” informs aunt Pearl.

Alfred also informs aunt Pearl that he saw a fight right outside the Theatre.  Aunt Pearl asks what he did about it.  Alfred responds by saying he intervened in the fight.  He tells her about how he split up the fight and how he saved people from getting hurt.  Aunt Pearl is proud of him.

The next day he trains a boy named Kyle.  He trains very hard and Alfred truly believes that he can be a contender one day.  And something he has that Alfred did not, was “ The killer instinct. ” He grows up to first be a contender, and then to be a champion.

# data[].attributes.body
2 years later, Alfred was walking outside. It was a little windy but the sun was very bright. He can hear birds chirping and see many people walking and running. He was heading back from work.  He still remembers his boxing days. He turned to his right and saw James. He was wearing a blue shirt and black pants. “Hey James, how’s it goin’?”

“Things are pretty good, just bought these clothes. How does it look?”

“Lookin’ good. I’m glad you aren’t doing a lot of drugs anymore.”

“Last time was a couple of months ago. And I got myself a job a week ago. Today’s my day off.”

“I used to always run here when I was boxing.”

They kept chatting while waking until Alfred arrived at his apartment. They said bye to each other and James left. Alfred walked in and decided he should cook some food. He thought, I’m kind of hungry, maybe I should just cook some eggs. After he was done, he waited for it to cool off and quickly ate it. He went to his room and laid on his bed. He remembers when he was fighting Hubbard and how he ran towards Alfred and hugged him. Hubbard said that he was tough but Alfred wasn’t able to keep being a boxer. He fell asleep and had a nice dream.

The next day, he went to work at the register. After he finished, he made a decent amount of money. He was thinking about how grateful he was toward Aunt Pearl, Donatelli, Lou, and some of his other friends. He was happy that Lou was still letting his work at the register and how Aunt Pearl was always by his side and helping him. Donatelli had taught him how to fight.

# data[].attributes.body
‌

‌

Epilogue‌ ‌

‌

thoughtful,‌ ‌logical‌ ‌ending‌ ‌ | 10‌ ‌ | 10‌ ‌
dialogue‌ ‌ | 10‌ ‌ | 9‌ ‌
characterization‌ ‌(even‌ ‌just‌ ‌3‌ ‌lines)‌ ‌ | 10‌ ‌ | 9‌ ‌
inner‌ ‌thoughts‌ ‌of‌ ‌character‌ ‌(put‌ ‌in‌ ‌italics)‌ ‌ | 10‌ ‌ | 9‌ ‌
flashback‌ ‌(optional)‌ ‌ | +5‌ ‌ | 4‌ ‌
sensory‌ ‌details‌ ‌(setting)‌ ‌ | 10‌ ‌ | 10‌ ‌
creativity‌ ‌-‌ ‌don’t‌ ‌sound‌ ‌like‌ ‌everybody‌ ‌else,‌ ‌don’t‌ ‌summarizer‌ ‌ | 5‌ ‌ |   ‌‌5‌ ‌
spelling/grammar/punctuation‌/caps‌ ‌ | 10‌ ‌ | 10‌ ‌
TOTAL‌ ‌POINTS‌ ‌ | 65‌ ‌ | 66‌ ‌

‌

1‌ ‌month‌ ‌later.‌ ‌

“Was‌ ‌James‌ ‌at‌ ‌night‌ ‌school‌ ‌with‌ ‌you‌ ‌today?”‌ ‌Aunt‌ ‌Pearl‌ ‌said.‌ ‌ ‌

“Absent‌ ‌a‌ ‌third‌ ‌time‌ ‌this‌ ‌week”‌ ‌Alfred‌ ‌‌informed,‌‌ ‌“I‌ ‌might‌ ‌have‌ ‌an‌ ‌idea‌ ‌of‌ ‌where‌ ‌he‌ ‌is‌ ‌

going‌ ‌every‌ ‌time.”‌ ‌Alfred‌ ‌started‌ ‌running‌ ‌away‌ ‌from‌ ‌the‌ ‌house‌ ‌

“What‌ ‌about‌ ‌sleep”‌ ‌Aunt‌ ‌Pearl‌ ‌yelled,‌ ‌“You‌ ‌need‌ ‌sleep‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌ ‌morning‌ ‌since‌ ‌you‌ ‌go‌ ‌to‌ ‌school‌ ‌at‌ ‌

night”‌ ‌

“This‌ ‌is‌ ‌very‌ ‌important”‌ ‌Alfred‌ ‌yelled‌ ‌back,‌ ‌“It‌ ‌has‌ ‌to‌ ‌do‌ ‌with‌ ‌something‌ ‌from‌ ‌a‌ ‌past‌ ‌issue‌ ‌

with‌ ‌him”‌ ‌

Alfred‌ ‌ran‌ ‌as‌ ‌fast‌ ‌as‌ ‌he‌ ‌could‌ ‌to‌ ‌the‌ ‌club‌ ‌room.‌ ‌‌“I‌ ‌can’t‌ ‌believe‌ ‌he‌ ‌would‌ ‌start‌ ‌drinking‌ ‌

again,”‌‌ ‌Alfred‌ ‌thought‌ ‌to‌ ‌himself,‌ ‌‌“And‌ ‌to‌ ‌think‌ ‌he‌ ‌would‌ ‌stop‌ ‌was‌ ‌a‌ ‌big‌ ‌mistake‌ ‌on‌ ‌my‌ ‌part‌.‌ ‌

James‌ ‌was‌ ‌a‌ ‌very‌ ‌honest‌ ‌man.‌ ‌He‌ ‌would‌ ‌never‌ ‌lie‌ ‌to‌ ‌me‌ ‌no‌ ‌matter‌ ‌what‌ ‌his‌ ‌secrets‌ ‌were.‌ ‌For‌ ‌

him‌ ‌to‌ ‌break‌ ‌the‌ ‌promise‌ ‌to‌ ‌stop‌ ‌drinking‌ ‌and‌ ‌smoking‌ ‌and‌ ‌doing‌ ‌drugs‌ ‌is‌ ‌not‌ ‌him.‌ ‌I‌ ‌wonder‌ ‌why‌ ‌

he‌ ‌would‌ ‌start‌ ‌again‌ ‌just‌ ‌a‌ ‌month‌ ‌after‌ ‌he‌ ‌made‌ ‌the‌ ‌promise‌.‌ ‌There‌ ‌has‌ ‌to‌ ‌be‌ ‌someone‌ ‌else‌ ‌

manipulating‌ ‌him‌ ‌to‌ ‌do‌ ‌it.”‌ ‌

Alfred‌ ‌opened‌ ‌the‌ ‌club‌ ‌room‌ ‌doors‌ ‌ ‌

“James,‌ ‌you‌ ‌need‌ ‌to‌ ‌stop!”‌ ‌Alfred‌ ‌yelled,‌ ‌“It’s‌ ‌no‌ ‌good‌ ‌if‌ ‌you‌ ‌continue”‌ ‌

“I‌ ‌can’t,”‌ ‌James‌ ‌said‌ ‌calmly‌ ‌

James‌ ‌was‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌ ‌club‌ ‌room‌ ‌drinking‌ ‌and‌ ‌smoking.‌ ‌There‌ ‌were‌ ‌lights‌ ‌everywhere‌ ‌and‌ ‌

people‌ ‌were‌ ‌dancing.‌ ‌Alfred‌ ‌could‌ ‌smell‌ ‌the‌ ‌wine‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌ ‌air‌ ‌and‌ ‌see‌ ‌blinding‌ ‌lights‌ ‌everywhere‌ ‌

he‌ ‌looked.‌ ‌James‌ ‌had‌ ‌his‌ ‌shirt‌ ‌soaked‌ ‌in‌ ‌wine‌ ‌and‌ ‌his‌ ‌teeth‌ ‌were‌ ‌as‌ ‌yellow‌ ‌as‌ ‌cheese.‌ ‌

“I‌ ‌don’t‌ ‌want‌ ‌to‌ ‌lose‌ ‌you,”‌ ‌Alfred‌ ‌said‌ ‌sadly,‌ ‌“not‌ ‌again!”‌ ‌

Alfred‌ ‌started‌ ‌pulling‌ ‌James‌ ‌away‌ ‌from‌ ‌the‌ ‌club‌ ‌room.‌ ‌James‌ ‌started‌ ‌cursing‌ ‌at‌ ‌him‌ ‌and‌ ‌

eventually‌ ‌hit‌ ‌him‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌ ‌head‌ ‌with‌ ‌a‌ ‌wine‌ ‌bottle.‌ ‌ ‌

1‌ ‌hour‌ ‌later‌ ‌

Alfred‌ ‌woke‌ ‌up‌ ‌in‌ ‌a‌ ‌hospital‌ ‌bed‌ ‌with‌ ‌his‌ ‌head‌ ‌bandaged.‌ ‌His‌ ‌eyes‌ ‌were‌ ‌swollen‌ ‌and‌ ‌it‌ ‌

was‌ ‌hard‌ ‌to‌ ‌hear.‌ ‌The‌ ‌bed‌ ‌he‌ ‌was‌ ‌in‌ ‌was‌ ‌not‌ ‌comfortable‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌ ‌slightest.‌ ‌The‌ ‌room‌ ‌had‌ ‌

a‌ ‌shelf‌ ‌with‌ ‌different‌ ‌vaccine‌ ‌shots‌ ‌in‌ ‌it.‌ ‌There‌ ‌was‌ ‌a‌ ‌box‌ ‌of‌ ‌gloves‌ ‌on‌ ‌a‌ ‌table‌ ‌with‌ ‌a‌ ‌sink‌ ‌

and‌ ‌a‌ ‌strange‌ ‌red‌ ‌container.‌ ‌ ‌

“What‌ ‌happened,”‌ ‌Alfred‌ ‌said‌ ‌in‌ ‌a‌ ‌sleepy‌ ‌voice‌ ‌

“You‌ ‌were‌ ‌hit‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌ ‌head‌ ‌with‌ ‌a‌ ‌bottle”‌ ‌the‌ ‌doctor‌ ‌stated.‌ ‌Alfred‌ ‌then‌ ‌remembered‌ ‌

everything.‌ ‌He‌ ‌remembered‌ ‌going‌ ‌to‌ ‌the‌ ‌club‌ ‌room‌ ‌to‌ ‌stop‌ ‌James‌ ‌from‌ ‌continuing‌ ‌

drinking‌ ‌and‌ ‌smoking.‌ ‌He‌ ‌remembered‌ ‌the‌ ‌blinding‌ ‌lights,‌ ‌and‌ ‌James’s‌ ‌shirt‌ ‌being‌ ‌

soaked‌ ‌with‌ ‌wine,‌ ‌and‌ ‌him‌ ‌smashing‌ ‌him‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌ ‌head‌ ‌with‌ ‌a‌ ‌wine‌ ‌bottle.‌ ‌Alfred‌ ‌was‌ ‌mad‌ ‌

and‌ ‌knew‌ ‌this‌ ‌friendship‌ ‌was‌ ‌over.‌ ‌When‌ ‌he‌ ‌tried‌ ‌to‌ ‌get‌ ‌up‌ ‌the‌ ‌doctor‌ ‌stopped‌ ‌him‌ ‌

stating‌ ‌that‌ ‌he‌ ‌needs‌ ‌to‌ ‌stay‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌ ‌bed‌ ‌for‌ ‌the‌ ‌rest‌ ‌of‌ ‌the‌ ‌day.‌ ‌Alfred‌ ‌was‌ ‌still‌ ‌furious.‌ ‌He‌ ‌

knew‌ ‌that‌ ‌James‌ ‌did‌ ‌not‌ ‌mean‌ ‌to‌ ‌do‌ ‌it,‌ ‌but‌ ‌Alfred‌ ‌was‌ ‌not‌ ‌joyful‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌ ‌slightest.‌ ‌He‌ ‌knew‌ ‌

James‌ ‌was‌ ‌tough,‌ ‌but‌ ‌he‌ ‌did‌ ‌not‌ ‌know‌ ‌that‌ ‌he‌ ‌was‌ ‌able‌ ‌to‌ ‌smash‌ ‌a‌ ‌bottle‌ ‌so‌ ‌hard‌ ‌on‌ ‌my‌ ‌

head‌ ‌to‌ ‌make‌ ‌me‌ ‌fall‌ ‌unconscious.‌ ‌‌Alfred‌ ‌then‌ ‌remembered‌ ‌when‌ ‌James‌ ‌went‌ ‌out‌ ‌of‌ ‌the‌ ‌

cave‌ ‌with‌ ‌him‌ ‌and‌ ‌the‌ ‌wind‌ ‌was‌ ‌blowing.‌ ‌He‌ ‌came‌ ‌out‌ ‌and‌ ‌started‌ ‌doing‌ ‌night‌ ‌school.‌ ‌

He‌ ‌was‌ ‌finishing‌ ‌his‌ ‌work‌ ‌on‌ ‌time‌ ‌and‌ ‌even‌ ‌was‌ ‌doing‌ ‌extra‌ ‌credit.‌‌ ‌Alfred‌ ‌then‌ ‌realized‌ ‌

that‌ ‌James‌ ‌himself‌ ‌would‌ ‌not‌ ‌turn‌ ‌a‌ ‌new‌ ‌leaf‌ ‌only‌ ‌to‌ ‌turn‌ ‌it‌ ‌back.‌ ‌

“What‌ ‌happened‌ ‌to‌ ‌James,”‌ ‌Alfred‌ ‌said‌ ‌calmly,‌ ‌“Where‌ ‌is‌ ‌he”‌ ‌

“I‌ ‌don’t‌ ‌know‌ ‌that‌ ‌information”‌ ‌the‌ ‌doctor‌ ‌spoke‌ ‌out,‌ ‌“you‌ ‌will‌ ‌just‌ ‌have‌ ‌to‌ ‌figure‌ ‌out‌ ‌

yourself”‌ ‌

Alfred‌ ‌pondered‌ ‌where‌ ‌James‌ ‌could‌ ‌be.‌

# data[].attributes.body
Alfred with his nice black sunday suit handed James’ grey suit to him. They were walking from the Addiction center to church. After church Alfred decided to congratulate James, as he had finally quit! Alfred thought things like it’s about time. Yet out loud he said, “Oh thank you James! I can’t believe you went from begging for some marijuana in the clubroom to quitting drugs!”

Alfred’s thoughts went back to when James pleaded him for just one more joint, promising to quit right after. James had his own thoughts about it. He quit for self benefit as well as everyone else's benefit. I didn’t want to die of lung disease and knew that my new family was always disapproving of me smoking, so I had to quit. The most disapproving was always his new Great-Aunt. They had done it as a joke, and because they were about as close as family members would be. Alfred had adopted James! “No problem dad.”

They both laughed “I needed to quit anyway. It was taking up my time, money, and strength.”

They had both finished school and had gotten good jobs. James even got to be a builder! Of course, Alfred had to be in James’ company. So they now went to a J&A Builders’ home, their fresh (1 year old) company! As they walked into the hardwood floored, brick walled magical place they called home, James’ thoughts went back to when he was so broke he couldn’t even afford a joint, and was pleading Alfred for money. Pathetic, James thought.

James went straight to his room. Alfred knew that he wanted to design another park. This one was supposed to absorb some of the smoke in the air? Alfred knew James felt guilty for the smoke he put in the air with his drugs, but this was a bit obsessive. Alfred decided to make a steak dinner, and call over Aunt Pearl. She would like that. At dinner, Aunt Pearl, old and wise, asked James how he was doing on quitting drugs. She had a very small, almost undetectable hint of impatience in her voice. Of course, James and Alfred detected it at once. So James announced cheerfully, “I just quit; earlier today.”

“Good. It was wasting your time, money and strength.”

Alfred and James could tell at once she was pleased. Just then, all of a sudden, It hit Alfred; James had quit!! The beauty of it was overwhelming. Alfred excused himself to the bathroom. He needed to have a moment to himself. Lost in his thoughts, he caught a few strands of the conversation.

“So how have you been?”

“Good. You?”

“Fine, Fine.”

“So how is your company?”

“You know, the usual. Business is booming.”

“Do you want some of these clams? They are amazing.”

“Oh, thank you...”

A couple minutes later=

“...And then, Alfred said, ‘Oh thank you James! I can’t believe you went from begging for some mirijhana in the clubroom to quitting drugs!’”

“Class- Oh hi Alfred.”

“Hey Pearl.” I know you guys were just talking about me, but I’ll talk to James about it tonight.

But after Pearl left, Alfred went completely oblivious to what he thought before and went straight to bed after a quick “Goodnight James.”

That night all Alfred could dream about was how amazing a park that removes smoke from the air would be.

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The night was dark and cold as James and Alfred were walking to the gym to their after school boxing program to train little kids on how to box. The alley was narrow, old and filled with garbage. The garbage smelled so rotten that they put their shirts over their noses so they could block the nasty oder. Finally, they got through the alley and

Alfred said to James, “When are they gonna clean up the garbage?”

James said,  “I have no clue but sheesh that was a nasty oder.”

They made it to the gym a little late and Alfred announced, “Sorry kids we are a little late today, but let’s The kids said, “Great!”

Alfred and James have been working at the after school program for 5 years helping kids. They practice in Donatelli’s gym. The gym was renovated and painted to look more intriguing. When you walk in the door, there are the same steps, but now they are cleaned up and painted a dark blue color, like the night sky. The workout gym is clean and they bought brand new equipment for the boxers and kids to use. When Alfred took a good look at the gym he thought, Wow, I remember when this gym looked abandoned , but now it’s the nicest place in town..

The next morning, James and Alfred woke up at 8:00 AM to go to school. James wore green khaki pants and and nice white button down shirt. Alfred wore a boxing T-shirt with Mahamad Ali’s picture and black shorts. They got their high school diploma 3 years ago and they both started attending the local community college. The college was a big brick building with a lot of windows. When they entered the school, many students were talking loudly and it was distracting to James.

He said to Alfred, “Why is it so loud in here?”

Alfred replied, “Maybe there is an activity going on, let’s get to class”.

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The sky was orange as the first rays of sunlight touched the buildings around. The air was cool and fresh as the breeze touched Alfred’s face while watching the beautiful neighborhood through his window.

Alfred! Shouted Aunt Pearl

Do you want some eggs and toast for breakfast?

Yes Please Aunt Pearl, said Alfred.

Packing all his things up, Alfred went to the kitchen table

Here are your eggs and toast Alfred

Thank You Aunt Pearl

Today is the most important day of the year, I have to go to the interview for The After school recreation program. This is why I have been studying so hard this last few weeks. This is the only chance…...

Al, don't be so nervous, you are going to be fine, said aunt Pearl

Thank you Aunt Pearl, but I have to go now to the office said Alfred in a hurry.

Alfred did you pack your lunch? Shouted Aunt Pearl

Yes!! Shouted Alfred back running to catch the bus.

Many thoughts invaded Alfred’s mind, he wasn’t concentrating. He was nervous and scared. After 25 minutes, the bus stopped and for Alfred it felt like an hour. He got out of the bus and saw the big sign near the school “Interviews available today” it said. After staring at the sign and wondering if it was a good idea, he finally entered the office. It was quiet and there were a few people sitting and waiting. Suddenly a woman approached him and told him that if he was there for the interview to sit and wait for someone to call his name. Alfred went straight to a sit and waited, waited, waited. It seemed like an eternity and as time passed he was even more nervous. After a while a man called his name and invited him to enter a small room with no windows, no shelves, just a small room with a table and 2 chairs. Alfred sweating and shaking went inside and took a seat, then the man started asking questions, like why he wanted the job, what were his hobbies etc. Alfred was nervous, but he really wanted this job and make Aunt Pearl proud, so he gained courage and said what he had to say. After a while he was confident enough to continue the conversation and in a blink of an eye the interview was over, he felt as if a ton of weight was lifted from his back. He felt happy and relaxed. He then stepped out of the school and headed to the park. He wanted to go to a peaceful place to relax and cograt himself for doing the interview. While eating his lunch he saw James.

James! He shouted

Alfred, good to see you man how ya doin? Said James as he approached Alfred

Doing great said Alfred, I just finished an interview for a job.

Good for you, how is Aunt Pearl?James asked

She’s fine, she is at my house right now. Answered Alfred

Gotta go, see you next time! Said James

See ya, take care. Alfred answered.

As Alfred finished his lunch it was 4:30 pm, he went to his house and told aunt Pearl everything that happened in the interview and how he saw James. The next morning was Saturday,he couldn't sleep, he was thinking if he was going to get the job, and what he would have to do if he didn't get the job. The morning was cold, and you could hear how the blowing wind roared from anger. Aunt Pearl was out, she went to go to visit a friend of hers. Alfred didn’t feel like cooking his breakfast so he just sat to watch TV. He then opened his computer and started looking through his email if there was news from the interview, but nothing. He charged his phone so he could be aware if they called, but nothing. Suddenly it was 12:30 pm, and Alfred lost hope of getting the job, he was sullen and sad, he didn't even want anybody to mention that interview or the job ever again. After a couple of hours Aunt Pearl came in.

Hey Alfred! How are you?How did you sleep? Asked Aunt Pearl

I’m good Aunt Pearl, I slept great. Answered Alfred knowing it wasn’t true

I’m happy to hear that, is there any news about the job interview? Aunt Pearl said

Suddenly Alfred’s mouth became dry, he felt as if he had something in his throat that he couldn't get rid of, there was the feeling of the ice ball in his stomach

Not yet Aunt Pearl but i'm sure everything will be fine, replied Alfred with a very faint voice.

Wanna go to the movies Alfred? Asked Aunt Pearl

Yes! Alfred replied, he wanted to forget about the situation

Then hop on the car cuz to the movies we go! Said Aunt Pearl

They drove 10 minutes on the street to go to the movies. The building was full of lights, the smell of just made popcorn, people walking around, It just was the most joyful moment of the day for Alfred.

Here Alfred! Let's see this movie said Aunt Pearl in an exciting voice

It was a comedy movie and Alfred just needed that movie to lighten his sullen mood

Yes Aunt Pearl i’m comin’ replied Alfred

The title of the movie was “The Science of Laughter” It was hilarious, Aunt Pearl and Alfred ended up almost crying from laughter as they walked out of the movies. At this point Alfred forgot about the interview and was enjoying the moment. When they got home he saw his laptop and phone and remembered the interview and how he lost hope of it.

Wanna eat something or your full because of the popcorn asked Aunt Pearl

It’s ok I will drink a coffee, said Alfred

Well, I'm heading to sleep, Goodnight Alfred Said Aunt Pearl

Goodnight Aunt Pearl, replied Alfred

While he was sitting at the kitchen table drinking his coffee, he stared at his laptop wondering what he could find there. After a couple of thoughts and sips of his coffee he made the decision to see what was in there. His heart stopped for a moment, he started to breathe heavier, and his mouth felt dry. There was an email from the interview that said “Congratulations you got the job. Please go to the office tomorrow to start working. See you there at 8 am” Alfred jumped from happiness and was relieved. He thought of telling Aunt Pearl, but he wanted to surprise her tomorrow morning. As he headed to bed he was smiling. He was happier than he ever was and happily went to sleep. The next morning He got up at 6 am, got a nice shower, dressed as nice as he could and went to the kitchen where he saw Aunt Pearl as he anticipated.

Good morning Aunt Pearl he said

Good morning Alfred, Were you goin in that fancy outfit? Asked Aunt Pearl

Nowhere special just to my first day of WORK!!!!!! Replied Alfred

Aunt Pearl started smiling as she had just seen a miracle. She was so happy she started hugging Alfred very tightly.

Good Job Alfred I am proud of you! Said Aunt Pearl

Those were the most important words for him.

Thank you Aunt Pearl, replied Alfred

We have to celebrate this with everyone said Aunt Pearl

Yes, that is a good idea, but I have to go to my first day of work see ya later Aunt Pearl bye! Shouted Alfred as he walked through the door.

Bye Alfred take care! Shouted Aunt Pearl Back

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Alfred took James to a private building.

“James drugs are bad for you, you gotta stop!” Alfred stated

Alfred taught James the bad sides of drugs. James listened to Alfred and started taking less drugs. The next day James goes to Alfred.  “Alfred, I'm doing great, I actually stopped taking drugs!”

Alfred remembers part of the past while talking to James. “James you were a part of the robbery right?”  Alfred claimed

“Yeah but we won't ever do it again.”

Alfred and James go back to the after school progam to teach some more.

“Ok kids how are we doing today?”

“Great!” one kid shouted.

Alfred and James start off by teaching about boxing. Both agreed they should start with the basics

“When you punch you wanna make sure your arms are straight and have much power in them.” Said James

Class ended for the day, James and Alfred went to the gym to practice boxing. The gym was empty. Alfred and James both were stretching and James pulled a muscle.

“James you ok?”

“Yeah let me sit out for today, it hurts badly I might’ve pulled it bad.”

James was ok, he got up and worked out. Alfred left the gym he had to get home for the night. James went to the cave to relax, he had a lot on his mind after Alfred left without saying anything. The next morning Alfred met up with Donatelli. Don wasn’t feeling too well, Alfred took him to the hospital. He was diagnosed with cancer out of the blue.

“Alfred if I die, take over the gym. That night the doctors had some bad news

“Hey Al Donatelli died.”

Al didnt know how to break the news to James so he told him with a straight face

“I'm gonna take over the gym.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Donatelli died last night.”

“He did”

James cried and cried, he remembered the times he spent with Donatelli. Alfred tried to comfort him.

“Thanks Al, you're a great person.”

Alfred then took James to the ice cream shop in Harlem. The bright sky widened as the clouds moved away. Alfred got chocholate and James got strawberry. They took their ice cream to their cave and just talked about life.

“Alfred how's life goin?”

“Fine I guess, I need to start boxing again.”

“Ok bet wanna go to the gym?”

“Sure, I found out that I was pretty rusty after trying to box again.”

Alfred and James went to the gym. At the gym they met this kid named Russell.

“Hey kid, how are you doing?”

“I'm doing great!” Russell exclaimed

“That sounds amazing!” Alfred shouted with joy

“Hey Russel, could we teach you some things?”

“Sure, that sounds fun.” Russell exclaimed

Alfred started off by teaching Russell how to punch better.

“Russell you should keep your arm straight when you punch.”

Ok, is this a bit better?” Russell said

“I guess so.” Alfred replied

Alfred then left the gym. He forgot about James, so he went back to get him.

When Alfred went back into the gym he saw Russell, but this time James was teaching him.

“Hi James, what are you teaching Russell?” Alfred asked

“I'm teaching him how to box like you were.” James replied

Alfred then took James on a little trip around Harlem. The sky was cloudy, with the sun. Alfred told James to dress a little bit, so he gave James some clothes. Alfred was wearing some really black Jeans. He was looking a little dark. James was given some white clothes with a jean jacket. He looked like a group of clouds with rain. On the walk, Alfred remembered Russell from the gym and thought to himself. “Russell has loads of potential man”

Alfred told his opinion to James, James actually agreed with him. After the walk, Alfred and James both went to the cave. They sat and relaxed. Alfred was able to make a fire with a few sticks and rocks so they had warmth. 10 years passed and both Alfred and James became professional boxers. Both of them went on to become the most famous boxers to live. Both lived a great life. Even James. James didn’t have a home, so Alfred invited James to come live with him. Unfortunately many years later Alfred and James both died at 78. Russell became a professional just like Alfred. He went on to become a boxer. They all lived very happy and different lives. Even Russell....

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¨ Make sure when you hit the peanut bag you don't lose eye-contact with it.¨ Alfred said after all this time.

He was teaching kids that were his age when Alfred went to Donatelli´s.

After all this time I'm right back where I started only this time, I'm the teacher and not the student. How ironic.

Once the class was over Alfred gathered his things from the locker room and slowly walked down the run down stairs that meant so much to him.

¨They are only stairs,¨ Alfred muttered, ¨the best stairs I will ever walk on.¨

Alfred and Henry are both coaches at Donatelli's gym.They have been for 8 years. He started to work for Donatelli after he went to night school with James.

The walk home was like any other night, dark and lonely streets with a few ratty looking men in the allies.

I don't mind l seeing them, James used to be one.

The thought of James made his body stop and shiver for a few minutes.

Why am I even bothering, not like he'll turn up anyways.

Alfred started walking again, only this time he was running home. He lives in Aunt Pearls home, with his wife, 2 daughters, and his cousins, Charlene and the twins.

Spoon and Henry came over for a while to talk with Alfred.

It was nice to talk to them, they understood what I was going through. It was his birthday, they both miss James too.

Alfred walked up the old rotting stairs that lead up to his bedroom. He sat on his springy bed for a while, he thought about what an amazing  life that he was able to have, with his family, his friends, and his students.

Then he thought about James.

Poor, poor James. Alfred thought. I wanted to make him feel better, and I did. I helped him. I ain't gonna be dragged down by this, I have so many amazing people  around me.

He stood up and the bed swayed back and forth in the small musty room. Alfred got dressed into something more comfortable and walked down stairs.

¨ I can tell that you have been thinkin ´bout James.¨ Spoon said in a relaxed tone.

¨Uh huh. He  has been on my mind since last night.¨ Alfred sighed,  starting to tear up a little.

¨Ya man, I am so sorry about what happened to him. It was a tragedy.¨ Henry rasped,

¨mean he was better from the drugs.¨

¨Thank you guys,  but the car hit him in an accident. It was the middle of the night. A week ago-”Alfred started, but lost his words.

It was silent for a while but it was stared back by Spoon.They talked and drank for a few hours. Around 11 Spoon and Henry both went home. Talking to them Alfred felt a lot better, even if James was not here. He tried avoiding the fact that his best friend was gone and he was not coming back. Today  was the hardest because it was James's birthday. Some days when you lose somebody you want that person back so badly, like James. And for the first time in a week he was able to have a good thought about James and not a bad one about his dark past.

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A left jab goes into James’ face and then a right to his stomach. “Stick and run James!” said Alfred and Henry as the crowd was screaming. James goes in and out punching his opponent as he is getting hit back. Then a slamming hook goes into James’ face and the referee counts, “One, two, three”. James is struggling to get up and twitches as he feels like he got hit by a car.

“Four, five, six”, Alfred watches as James is on the ground, just like Griffin on his second win and yells loud for James to get up. He feels like he doesn't hear him. “Booo, get this kid outta here”, someone from the crowd yells. “Seven, eigh-”, James gets up and as his opponent thinks he won, James uppercuts his jaw and the contender falls to the ground, almost dead-like. Half of the crowd cheers as the rest boos about his K.O.

It is around midnight and after the celebration party, Henry drives Alfred and James home feeling exhausted. “Take me to the clubroom actually,” James announced, “I wanna see something for a second.” What would he want to go to the clubroom this late at night to see- Alfred thought.

As they make a sharp right turn to head to the clubroom, the car turns and the car goes tumbling down a little hill. The back of the car hit the stone walkway and the car stopped upside-down. In his field of vision, he sees another car and a person running towards them as his vision feels like it’s closing in.

James wakes up to find himself in a familiar place and sees a blurry silhouette. Around him he smells coffee and a nice, pleasant aroma that smells like flowers ut can quite determine what it is.

As he focuses more he sees Henry at a distance standing talking to a woman wearing white clothing and a red cross like on her white hat. After the person walks away, Henry notices James awake. Now that his vision is more clear, he sees he is in a hospital and sees that the sun is going up so it must be almost sunrise. The nice and pleasant smell was a rose bush near him. That woman was probably a nurse, James thought.

Henry walked over to James and said something about a “driver hit us on the road,” When he notices something or someone isn't there. “How are you feeling?” Henry says.

“Fine but, where’s Alfred? Is he hurt?” James said as he looked around him and saw no sign of Alfred. James follows Henry to a hospital bed and Alfred is lying down on the bed and notices more bruises on his body then his. “He got hurt pretty badly.” Henry announced. James is worried that something like this happened to his friend, if not his best friend. If only we didn't have that party, James thought as he watched the sun rise into the sky.

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“ right …… left …… right …… right …. snap out of it ……. right …… left” That's all that was going through Alfred's head when driving to see Henry’s new gym. He kept repeating it over and over again. He picked up James from the recreation center, and started heading downtown.

“ You gotta turn right here Alfred” James mumbled when in the car, but Alfred wasn’t paying any attention. “ What’s wrong with you man, what’s going on in your head?”

“ Nothin”, Alfred mumbled “ just distracted.” He kept on the same road, going on for miles and miles.

Finally they arrived at Henry’s new gym, it was a nice place, looked old and a light blue color. Alfred and James were greeted by a familiar face, the one and only Mr.Donatelli. “ Hey there Alfred, what’s been going on?”

“ Working, still not giving up on boxing you know, and I-.” Alfred paused when Donatelli interrupted.

“ Ah still working on boxing huh, been to any fights lately?”

“ Just a couple” Alfred muttered,” haven’t been in the mood these days.” He shrugged, than strolled right past Donatelli into Henry’s gym.

“ Welcome!” Henry shouted with a big smile on his face. He was wearing a nice, new outfit for the opening. It was a black dress suit with a red bow tie. “I’m thrilled you guys were able to make it!  How you guys been?”

“I've been alright” James sighed, “been better, work has been though.” Walking through the gym Alfred noticed a showcase with his name in bolded letters. Inside was his first pair of boxing gloves.

“ What’s all this?” Alfred exclaimed to Henry

“ Your first pair of boxing gloves”

“ Oh yeah? Why they up here?”

“ So that if kids I train feel like quitting, I bring them over here. I show them your gloves

and tell them that you wanted to quit, but kept pushing and never wanted to stop.” A grin started to sprout on Alfred’s face. “ Alright let's finish lookin at this place.”  After walking around for a bit longer the 3 of them made it back to the front of the gym “ Well that's really all I got so far in here, but I’m getting new equipment soon and would love it if you guys can help me set it up.”

“ We’ll be there” James chuckled with joy in his eyes.

“ Will do” added Afred. James and Alfred got into the car and started back to their apartment.

The next morning Alfred went for a run in the park and saw the 2 police officers he saw on his first run. When Alfred was just about to pass them, they stopped him, “ Ah back to trouble I see.”

“No sir” replied Alfred, “ just going for a run.” He continued on with his run, then headed back to his apartment. James was making breakfast when he got inside. “ Hey James can I ha-”

James interrupted

“ Two boiled eggs and tea I assume?”

“ Spot on.”

After breakfast, James and Alfred got into the car and went back to Henry’s gym.

“ Great, you're here just in time, all the equipment just got here!”

After lugging everything into the building, they started to unwrap the new machines.

“ Wow these are great!” Alfred exclaimed

“ You guys can come to the gym anytime you want to workout. It would be an honor for the kids to get to workout with you guys once in a while. Al you in?” A spark went through Alfreds eyes.

“ You know it”

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Alfred went out with James as they cheered in glee. They were in a wave of despair long ago as they sat in their hopeless devoured lives. They had to work for the top through all of the bloodshed and tears. People didn’t think of them poorly when they walked the streets. People don’t think that they couldn’t do it from the way they looked. With their slim bodies and rough clothes. Their jagged smiles and their button down waist.  They decided to break away from all of that despair and 🤬. They actually cherish their lives now. When they look back at it they can think of all the great memories they had. All the things they made for the future.

“So where do you want to go?” James said.

“Em, what about that big hill over there.”

They walked over to the hill, gazing over it at its bright green grass as it swayed in the wind. They started walking up this giant hill.

“Geez, this thing has to be like twenty eight feet tall.” James said as he chuckled.

“I don't know. Looks pretty small to me.” Alfred jokingly said with a smile on his face.

“Oh, shut up.”

When they had finally gotten to the top and looked up there was a dark alluring sky. It was filled with all sorts of colors and beauties. The stars sparked in the midst of the narrow sky. The wind blowing through the trees as the leaves fell down to the silk grass. The air smelled fresher than ever. They stood there and stared at the narrowed down sky as they took in all of its beauty.

“Did you know that all of those stars up there represent the people who passed through the years.” Alfred said as he looked at James.

Alfred sat on the silky grass thinking of all the people that have devoted their lives over the years. James just stood there looking up to the starry sky.

“Hello? Earth to James.”

James just stood there. Alfred looked up in confusion.

“No, I heard something different. I heard that when you die you get reincarnated into something depending on what you did in your past life.”

“Huh.” Alfred said in confusion as he looked away from James.

“Well what I mean is, it depended what kind of person you were. Like right now you're a human being. I like to believe that we all started off as something small like a spider. As you were that spider depending if you have an exceptional life or an evil life that whole time of your years you would get upgraded or downgraded. So you say you were terrible in that life, you would like a mosquito in your next life. Or if you were good that life you pass on to be a butterfly and so on.”

“So you're saying if I was bad this life I would get downgraded into a fly?”

“Yeah, basically.” James started to walk back down the hill.

Alfred got up off of the silky grass and started following him. James got into the car.

“Hey, you alright?” Alfred asked with a worried look.

“Yeah. It’s just getting really chilly out. Hey um. Do you think you could drive me home?”

“Yeah, yeah. Of course” Alfred said in relief.

Alfred got into the car, started the rusty engine and drove off. When they arrived at James’ destination they said their goodbyes and Alfred drove off into the starry night.

When Alfred arrived home he took off his shoes, hopped on his bed and passed out.

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A long tasteful night in Harlem, Alfred would be walking out a diner after having a very splendish meal, it would be Alfred’s resting days at this moment after his latest training session with Mr Donatillie, it was around 7-8 PM, walking on the rainy streets, crossing traffic carefully, he looked that he was bit in a hurry, soon to be shown that he was running towards a bakery, the date was December 20th, Aunt Pearls birthday, everytime his feet hit the ground as he was making his way to bakery sounded like everytime he punched the bag whenever he trained, right as he got to the bakery he stopped and looked at which cake fitted Aunt Pearl the most, Alfred chose the one that was covered with chocolate and white frosting on the top. “Can I please have this cake.” the baker nodded his head as he took the cake out the container and asked Alfred what he would want it to say. Alfred simply replied with. “Can it say “Happy Birthday Aunt Pearl.” Please.” The baker gave him a simple “Alright.” And got a type of frosting that we could write with and wrote Happy Birthday Aunt Pearl. Alfred smiled and gave the baker a thank you as he took the cake out the bakery, and back onto the streets of Harlem, Alfred had to be safe though, Aunt Pearls house was 4 blocks away from the bakery and Harlem wasn't known for its safety especially to someone of Alfreds color, after 15 minutes, walking to Aunt Pearls house with not trouble, Alfred would be entering Aunt Pearls house ready to celebrate her birthday with her and have a good time together

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After Thursday's routine practice Alfred headed home face sweaty, and body tired. “Alfred honey do you want a cup of milk, maybe some tea?” says Izzie.

“No, thanks I've got to head to bed so i'm not super tired later, i'm going out with James tonight”  Alfred tries to be respectful, but he's had a long day at practice and would really  like to rest. “Well what time are you going with James, Alfred?”

“he's coming by here around 6:30” It’s been a while since Alfred and James got together, he's been busy with school. Though they haven’t seen each other too often Alfred is content, James is 5 years sober, he pulled his life together, I mean man he's got a family  even a dog! I recently got married to my wife Izzie. She's great, we are expecting our first child in december! It was five to 6:30 and James pulled up in front of the house.

“Long time no see, hop in let’s play some music!”

Alfred jumped on in the first seat of the freshly cleaned car, there was music playing and James looked so happy, so put together.  On the way to the restaurant Alfred and James mostly caught up a bit, but by the time we finally arrived at “Joes” we remembered how to have some fun! Not fun as in dangerous drugs but fun as in have a genuinely good time laughing, and making jokes. We went inside and got seated at a nice table by the window. ‘The place was nice Alfred thought not too fancy, but not too casual’ I would say the only unfortunate event that happened that night was that by the time  we arrived at home it was nearly half past 12:00! “I guess time really does fly when you're having fun!”exclaims James

“Oh we couldn't have gone out  for that long, right?”

“Well if I were you I would hurry up and get inside, say hi for Izzie will ya!” announced James

“Sure, see you soon James! Oh and thanks for tonight” replied Alfred. ‘I’m happy for James I really am, but he's not the James that I know anymore.’ Alfred thought to himself before entering the house. He pulled open the door to see Izzie waiting for him on the couch. “You’re late”

“I know I'm sorry we were just talking and then before I knew-” Izzie cuts off Alfred.

“Well are you gonna keep going on, or are you going to come sit and tell me all about it” by the time Alfred was dozing off it was so late he could already hear the birds chirping outside their bedroom window. It was difficult trying to fall asleep, he couldn’t stop thinking about the fun old times with James. Stories and pictures appeared inside of his head, but after a long night of tossing and turning he was finally able to get some sleep. Tomorrow is always another day!

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10 years later Alfred is suffering from poverty, and depression because the two people he cared about most had passed away a little over a year ago - Aunt Pearl and James. As he is walking through the streets of Harlem, thinking back to his childhood days, he is reminded of all the good times. Unfortunately, James had passed away because of addiction, and Aunt Pearl died of old age. Alfred suffered from poverty because he didn’t do boxing anymore so he couldn’t afford a place to live. He also lost hope on becoming successful and left his job as well. What has life come to, I never imagined this would happen, he said to himself.

“What has my life come to?” Alfred says “I should’ve tried harder when I had the chance. Now I'm sitting on the street begging for money when I could’ve been making millions of dollars.”

“Hey man, I can hear you are going through some tough times. Why don't you come with me.” It was a random man. “Okay” Alfred says “Anything to get a friend.”

Alfred walks with him for miles.

“Where are we going?” asked Alfred.

“We have to walk to my house because my limo ride was cancelled.”

“So what’s your name?” said Alfred. What a strange man, he just picked me up out of nowhere, Alfred thought.

“That’s not important” says the man, “we are here!”

“WOAH! This is your house? It’s huge!”

“I think it's about time I let you know my name, Alfred, It’s me, James.”

“JAMES?! You died! I saw your body!” Oh my goodness! Is this real life?! Alfred thought.

“I faked my death simply because I didn’t want anyone holding me back from my dream, Acting.”

“Acting? Really?”

“Yes, Alfred, I wanted to make it up to you by offering to live with me. Would you like to?” “OF COURSE.” said Alfred, “I haven’t had a meal in 2 days!”

James laughs “THEN LET'S EAT!” he says.

Alfred proceeded to live with James for the rest of his life. They lived a very eventful and happy life after finding their soulmates and getting married. Then he got a job as a doctor and eventually bought his own house and lived with his wife and he later had 3 children. It’s important to learn from Alfred that no matter how difficult life may get, you must be a good person through all the hardships.

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Alfred and James walk up to a bright, shiny, and clean hallway with classrooms and bulletin boards.

“How did we get here” Alfred said, “ New York University , NYU.”

“I don’t know Alfred,Only two years ago I was addicted to heroin and now I am going for my ma-”  James stated

“Why are you late, you were supposed to be in class ten minutes ago!” The teacher yelled

“ Sorry we were not sure how to get here.” Alfred said

“ Well, sit down, this is the last time you guys get a pass I-” The teacher said

“ I am sorry,” Alferd said “We live far away and there was not a bus from harlem to NYU, so we had to walk.”

“Just sit down” The teacher puffed

After Class Alfred goes to “Alfred Brook’s Boxing Gym.” Mr.Donatelli passed away last year at the age of 62, after being in the car accident. Alfred bought the gym and now trains boxers under mr.donatelli techniques.

“How is it going,Will.”, Alfred said

“Good but I want to do some actual Boxing” ,claimed Will

“ I was in the same spot as you,Mr. Donatelli made me train for months before actually getting in the ring.” , Alfred Told Will , “ I think it has been enough time, you can get in there and try.”

“Alright”,  Will said excitedly.

“Who do you want to verse.” Alfred said

“Rodriguez” Will said confidently

“ Rodriguez, He is the best boxer here” Alfred said, “ He will kill you”

“ What about Klein”, Alfred questioned

“ Klein” Will questioned

“What is wrong with him,” Alfred questioned

"He has not won a match,” Will said

“Well you haven’t either,” Alfred told Will

“I want to show everybody I can beat the top guy,” Will stated

“But if you lose, you will look like a fool,” Alfred said, “Mr.Donatelli always said, you have to be a contender before you be a champion” Alfred told Will “ Let’s start with Klein,ok,”

“Sure”

James works at an after school program at Harlem elementary school.

“Stop running, jake” James yelled, “get back here”

“Come get me” Jake said

“ Don’t run into the street” James yelled “Stop running now or you get detention for a week.”

“ Ok I will come back” Jake said

“Good” James said

“Thank you, everybody” Alfred said, “ Mr. Donatelli started this gym on March 23, 1953 and he would love to see all of you here just for him.”

“ Today, we will be celebrating 30 year of this boxing gym” James told the audience

“ It had some name changes but it is still the same gym, you  trust and love.” Alfred said

“ Now, we will like to present this movie of the legacy of Mr. Donatelli” James said

“Why did he have to go, why” Alfred cried to himself, “ He didn’t have to go like that, he had so many more years to go.”

“What did you say, Alfred” James questioned

“Nothing, just getting a little choked up” Alfred said

“I’m sorry, Al’” James apologized

“It’s ok, you have nothing to apologize about.”  Alfred said

“Happy birthday, Alfred” Aunt pearl said

“Thanks” Alfred said

“ You ready for tonight” Aunt pearl said excitedly

“ Ya, palumbo’s, the best italian restaurant in all of Harlem” Alfred said

“ Hay, how you doing, birthday boy” James yelled

“Hay, don’t you have to work today” Alfred yelled

“I got off, I wasn’t going to miss my buddies birthday, and a free dinner” James said, “ Can’t wait for palumbo's”

“Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday dear Alfred, Happy birthday to you.”

Alfred went on to get his masters in physical education at NYU, James got his masters in teaching and got a job at Harlem Middle school. Alfred still lives in Harlem but now has a wife and two kids, James also still lives in Harlem and has a wife and no kids. Alfred and James are neighbors and see each other everyday.  Aunt Pearl died at the age of 81 and was buried at the Harlem cemetery.  This was the story of Alfred Brooks, James Mosley, and their Friendship.