Chapter Three

Chapter Three

Lying in my cot that night, my mind continues to swirl with hundreds of images as the events of today keep replaying through my head, but my mind keeps coming to one moment. When I yanked open the closet door and found those two children. The look in their eyes as I picked them up and put them on my back, neither could have been older than five years old.

The two sets of identical brown eyes will forever be etched into my memory, the way their little arms and hands clung to me as the water poured over us and we breathed in the sickening smoke. I can still feel their grip on me, they held on for dear life, because this was their only chance for surviving. Running my hand along my neck where the little girls' nails dug into me. I hope they are both okay now, I am just thankful I could get them out that building.

"There are reports on the news of a young African American woman, saving a baby thrown from a window by a desperate mother. The young woman then ran into the burning building and rescued all of the people still trapped on the top floor before a strange explosion occurred and then she disappeared," T says casually as we peel the vegetables for tonight's stew the next day.

"Wow that's insane, why would any sane person run into a fire like that?" I ask completely unphased.

"I could smell the smoke coming from your clothes the moment you came into the shelter Zana," T says.

"Yeah I went to check out what was happening on my way home from the library," I say trying to tiptoe around the truth. I know she is going to call my bluff.

"And that woman was you," she says also unphased.

"Oh? That's a pretty bold accusation," I say starting to cut up the massive pile of peeled vegetables.

"Your clothes are literally singed Zana, how blind do you think I am?" She asks me seriously and I snicker.

"I guess middle age hasn't hit you hard enough yet for you to miss that," I say snickering. She isn't that old, not even thirty if I remember correctly.

"If you weren't holding a knife right now," she says.

"Yeah a stab wound I can bounce back from, but a slice is different," I say amused and she shakes her peeler at me trying to be menacing.

"You told me you would stay out of trouble Zana," she says exasperated.

"I saved people T! I saved two children, an older woman, and some adults," I say. I saw people running out of their apartments after I turned the sprinklers on.

"It wasn't your job to save them, Zana," she says in the same tone, but I can see something shifting in her eyes.

"No, it wasn't, but I would do it again," I say seriously.

"Can't you stick to saving people in court?" She asks me quietly and I sigh, did I really want to be a lawyer? It would be a practical thing to do.

"T, you know as much as I do, that I have ignored my meta abilities for a very long time and that is is the first time that I have used them since I've been in this shelter. But when I smelt that fire and heard the crackling of something on fire, it's as if I lost control over myself. When the mother tossed her baby out of the window to try and save them, everything fell into place. I didn't even think about the repercussion of jumping off of the car and catching the child. I didn't think about what could happen to me because I knew I would be okay, I saved people T. I made a difference in someone's life when they were powerless," I say with an edge to my voice and my eyes hurt as I feel the hospital lights burning into my eyes.

"I understand Zana, why else do you think I make jack shit running this shelter? Nothing can replace the feeling you get when you help someone who really needs it," she says, and I smile. We've always had that in common, the overpowering urge to help.

"But I swear to all that is good in this world Zana, if you go and get yourself seriously injured, I will chain you to a cot," T growls out seriously and I can't help my massive smile.

"I'll be careful," I say honestly.

"You better," she says, and I just laugh and go back to working on my vegetables.

Sitting down to eat dinner with everyone, I notice a few men come in and head towards T's office. Looking over in that direction, they disappear and something inside me churns uneasily. I can't hear what is happening through the quiet chatter that is within the dining hall. I watch that corner with a heavy focus and am relieved when the men finally leave. I wait for T to come out and do her rounds to all the tables, but she doesn't. As I finish the last drop of my soup, I quickly stand up and run to the kitchen to put my bowl in the sink before darting over to her office.

"T?" I ask knocking on her door cautiously.

"Come in Zana," her voice says.

"Who were those guys?" I ask her confused and I can see the frustration in her face.

"What happened?" I ask sitting down and tears roll down her cheeks.I stand up and hand her a tissue, and she starts crying harder and I feel my heart stalling in my chest as I wait anxiously for her to finally say what they wanted. Something tells me that whatever she has to say, is going to hurt both of us a lot.

"T?" I ask her again.

"Somebody reported you," she says calming herself down.

"What?"

"Somebody reported you to my organization, that I have been letting you stay here repeatedly, they said tonight is your last night here and that they would be back tomorrow to check," she says and my head drops.

I knew this day was going to come eventually, I am thankful for every night I was able to stay here and not sleep on the streets, or in an orphanage. Although it is going to suck going back out onto the streets, I just hope the school doesn't notice. They would have to report me to the state if they found out I was homeless.

"Zana, where are you going?" T asks me as I go to open her office door.

"I need to find a place to sleep," I say seriously.

"You can stay here for tonight," she says softly.

"I shouldn't,"

"Please," she says, and I sigh.

"Fine,"

Yanking the door open, I go back out into the open area and go to my usual cot. Lying down I can't help but stare at the ceiling in slight dismay as I try to figure out what I am going to do. Tomorrow morning, I would get up early and go shower at the school before looking up other shelters to go to the library. I know I won't get into any of them because to get a space you have to get there super early in the morning, but it is worth a shot.

The next morning, I wake up even earlier than normal and head to school. I shower in the gym bathrooms as quickly as possible before heading to class. I do my best to focus in class, but everything seems to be passing in a blur and I can't absorb anything that my teachers are saying. Rereading my notes during lunch, I still can't make sense of the gibberish on the page, at least I wrote down what the homework is.

I eat in silence until someone comes and sits at the other end of the table. They keep their head down and eat quietly. I keep glancing at them out of the corner of my eye, I don't recognize them but that doesn't mean much of anything. I don't know most of the kids in this school but usually, I can at least recognize their faces. As I pass the girl, her head drops further towards the table and her long unnaturally curly red hair covers her face.

Walking up to the library, I can't help but ponder who that girl is and why she looks so closed off. I don't exactly talk to a lot of people, but I certainly don't nearly smash my face into my food to avoid making eye contact with people. I wonder if she is a transfer. I would never want to transfer to this school.

The final bell of the day rings and I am thankful to escape this building. Especially because I need to go find a place to stay this evening. Thinking about how long the lines are going to put a massive pit in my stomach, but I just keep walking.

"Zana!" A familiar voice calls out causing me to pause in the middle of the parking lot and look around.

My eyes finally spot T, who is jogging over to me with a worried look in her eyes. She interlocks are arms and guides me off the school's property while avoiding all of the idiotic student drivers. Why is she here? Did she make connections with another shelter for me? Why isn't she at the shelter? She never leaves until the night team of volunteers shows up.

"T, what is going on?" I ask her confused.

"I've been trying to get a hold of you all day! Why didn't you answer your phone?!" She yells at me and I look at her startled.

"I lost it," I say.

T has bought me three prepaid phones at this point, I don't use it very often, so they last for quite a while. This one is the first one I have actually lost and honestly, I use my phone so little to begin with I didn't even notice that I had lost it. The only person I ever communicate with is T and normally I just walk to the shelter when I need to speak with her.

"What?" She asks me confused.

"I lost it when I saved those people," I say quietly and understanding dawns on her.

"Let's go get you a new one," she says walking down the street.

"T?"

"Yes?"

"Why? I need to go get in line for another shelter, I don't need a new phone," I say. What is she doing?

"You don't need to get in line for another shelter Zana," she says seriously, and I stare her down waiting for her to spill what is going on. I can feel her mind racing from here.

"That would be because?" I ask her, and she shifts in her spot.

"Let's just go get you a new phone, okay?" She asks turning to walk away. I don't follow her.

She pauses and if I had laser vision, I would be burning holes through her right about now. I swear if she reported me to child services, I will never speak to her again. I don't need to go back into a home. I don't need to deal with being surrounded by children and far too many in one place. The homes in this city are downright abominable.

"What are you doing?" I ask her firmly and with a fire starting to burn within me. She stays silent.

"T, I am going to turn around and walk away if you don't tell me what game you are playing," I growl out and her shoulders sag."How do I ask you to come live with me, without you refusing and not hearing me all the way out?" She asks turning around.

"What?"

"I want you to move in with me Zana, I already talked to my landlord and we worked it out. I don't have a second bedroom, but I have a couch, a shower, and electricity. I need help keeping the apartment clean and I also need help with cooking because I am never home. I know it probably isn't ideal, but I can't stand to see you back out on the streets," T says and the plea in her voice catches me off guard.

I stand there staring at the woman who has gone out of her way so many times for me. She's bought me all three of the phones I have had, she has bought me sweatshirts and jeans when mine were completely ruined. She supplies me with school supplies and soap so that I can keep clean and now she asking me to move in with her? She wants me in her apartment, in her personal life. Why? What have I ever done that was so important that she would ask me this? Her life will go on just fine without me.

"Why?" I ask quietly.

"I care about you Zana; you are an intelligent and compassionate woman who understands the way the world works but still wants to make things better. When I couldn't find you in the shelter this morning, I felt like someone had stabbed me and I knew I needed to get a hold of you immediately," she says, and I glance around.

"I can't be a burden like that-" I start but she cuts me off.

"You are not a burden, I need your help," she says.

"I-I... I don't know what to say," I say softly.

T walks over and slowly pulls me into her arms. I feel tears burning in my eyes and they fall without my permission. I have been on my own for so long, I don't know how to live with another person. I don't know what to do. How can I say yes to this?

"Please Zana, I can't live with myself if I let you sleep on the streets for another night," she says.

"Okay," I say. I don't want to hurt her further if this is really bothering her, and even if it isn't permanent, it's a roof over my head for now.

"What?"

"I said okay?"

"Really?" T asks with her face lighting up.

"Yeah, now about that new phone..." I say knowing she is going to want me to continue to text her.

"Let's go," she says tugging me along and I shake my head at her.

Looking at T out of the corner of my eye, I can see the youthful glow that she has when she is happy. I found out a few days ago that T is only twenty-seven but some days she looked as if she is in her mid-thirties from the stress she deals with, but she loves her job and that's why she does it. We stop and buy a cheap phone and I can tell she is excited by the fact that I agreed to move in with her.

"Okay, so my place is kind of small and old... but it does the trick," she says as we walk a few blocks from the shelter.

"I've literally slept behind a dumpster," I say with a snort and she shakes her head.

"Don't remind me," she says as we walk into the lobby.

The whole building reeks of being old, from the sagging foundation to the weird smell the lobby has, to the rickety stairs and the fact that T avoids the elevator. The paint is surprisingly fresh in the hallway, but the carpet is covered in stains. T unlocks a door, 326, and we walk in.

Looking around, the walls are a dingy white and a lot of her furniture is tattered and well-loved. I can see a small kitchen table with two chairs through the cutout that shows through to the kitchen. She has a small tv on a table in the corner, her door to her bedroom is open so I can see her bed, with sheets a mess and some shoes scattered around.

"I know this probably isn't ideal for a place to live, you don't even get your own room-"

"I love it," I say seriously. The past few years I have spent in a shelter sleeping in the same room as over a hundred women and before that I slept on the cold ground of Circa city, trying to hide as much as possible. This is a paradise compared to all of that.

"You do?"

"It's homey," I say and familiar.

"That's one way to put it," she says flopping down onto the couch. I sit down next to her.

"Thank you," I say quietly.

"Your family and I don't leave my family to live on the streets," she says.