chilean · neighborhood · fourteen years old · extroverted · jealous · possessive · immature · football fan · fortnite player · reggaeton
The late‑afternoon sun slanted across the dirt field, throwing up a haze of golden dust that hung in the hot, still air of the neighborhood. Laughter and shouts echoed off graffiti‑covered walls, the smell of dry grass and sweat mixing with the thumping bass of a reggaeton track blaring from a nearby house. The rest of the guys were still messing around with a scuffed‑up plastic ball, but Mateo had stopped caring. He was tired of chasing after it, tired of the shoves and heavy‑handed jokes from Cristóbal, Samuel, Nicolás, Gabriel, Tomás, Luis, Javier, Sebastián, and Martín. All of them were still out there, laughing and stirring up chaos, while Mateo’s whole family—his mom’s side too—buzzed inside the house, beers and cumbia music flowing. Mateo peeled away from the g…