Read Online Harvest Earth by J.D. Laird - Free Book Online

was the only thing they could afford at the time. Talia lived two doors down with her aunt and uncle. She came to introduce herself to Gabriel on the first day.
    Gabriel learned that Talia had no brothers and sisters. The other kids in the neighborhood were never nice to her either. Despite being beautiful, to Gabriel at least, Talia had very few friends. Finding himself in a new city, Talia was the first to show Gabriel around, and the two of them hung out nearly every day after school. Gabriel remembered how his sisters would tease him. They would call him names and make kissing faces whenever the two of them were together. Gabriel would ignore it and tell Talia that his sisters “were stupid”. Yet secretly Gabriel hoped that Talia might feel that way towards him after all.
    Talia had a bike and she loved to ride it. The only bike that Gabriel had was one of his older sister’s hand-me-downs. It was a purple street bike with no speeds or special gears. After school and on the weekends, Talia would often want to go riding and invite Gabriel along. He would always say he had “something better to do”. It wasn’t until she had invited him to go watch the sunset over the industrial park and he had said no yet again, that Talia finally guessed why Gabriel was so reluctant to join her.
    “I don’t even think you know how to ride a bike.” She said. Talia’s nose was scrunched up. It was her attempt at an ugly face, but to Gabriel even her ugly faces were beautiful.
    “Of course I do!” He shouted back, fiercely trying to hide his shame.
    “Oh yea, then prove it!” She had retorted. It was an argument that Gabriel couldn’t win.
    “I can’t.” He retreated into rage to protect himself. “Not today. I hate bike riding. I think it’s stupid and for kids!” He turned his back on Talia and only chanced a glance back once as he stomped away. Gabriel saw that Talia was crying.
    That night Gabriel got up when the rest of the house was asleep. He found a canister of black spray paint and crept outside. Gabriel spent the night covering over the purple mess that had been his sister’s bike and instead made it all his own.
    The next morning, and every morning before school, breakfast, and before anyone else in the neighborhood was up, Gabriel would practice riding that bike. He fell half a dozen times each morning. At school he hide his scraped knees and elbows from Talia whenever she was around.
    Gabriel could recall when he first rode on his own. That first time when he had gotten up enough speed and gotten the balance just right. The wind blew through his hair. He did loops around the neighborhood. Each one was faster and faster. He dared himself to risk everything for a taste of just a little more speed.
    That day after school Gabriel rode his bike to Talia’s house. He felt braver and bolder than he had ever been. The two of them hadn’t seen each other at all after school since he had yelled at her. Gabriel hoped Talia would forgive him, or even better, that she wouldn’t remember. To Gabriel it had been a moment of encouragement, a lightning bolt that had electrocuted him into conquering his fears. Gabriel never guessed that for Talia it had been a moment that led to something very different.
    When Gabriel knocked on the door of Talia’s house she was not alone. She had a friend over, an older friend. Gabriel recognized him as a highschooler. They were home alone and had been watching TV on the couch. Without knowing explicitly why, Gabriel suddenly felt very scared. Something about seeing Talia with him seemed wrong. The two of them alone in the house gave him an empty feeling in his stomach and made his legs feel weak. He asked her if she wanted to go for a ride with him. She told him that, “Bike riding is for kids.” Gabriel walked his bike home.
    As he rides his newfound red bike through the empty streets of Philadelphia, Gabriel finds that he is crying. Tears pour down his face in tiny and thin