Previous Challenge Entry (Level 4 – Masters)
Topic: BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD (08/03/17)
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TITLE: Sugary Kindness | Previous Challenge Entry
By Lucy Steel
08/10/17 -
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Jane blinked. The service station lights were so bright � a contrast to the 3AM darkness outside. Jane could smell freshly baked doughnuts and thought she�d never smelt anything so good. Her empty stomach growled.
�The bathroom key please,� she whispered.
As the service station attendant handed her the key, he looked below counter.
�Hey little buddy, I didn�t see you there,� he said, and winked at Josh.
Jane felt her face grow hot. What kind of mother drags her three-year-old into a service station at 3AM? That surely was the thought going through this man�s mind.
Jane felt Josh clutch her hand tighter as he stared up at the attendant and blinked.
She took the key and led Josh to the large one-room bathroom at the back of the 7-Eleven. She winced as she helped Josh onto the toilet seat - the bruises on her rib cage meant any type of lifting was excruciating.
The bruises had been carefully placed. Her husband Mark never hit on the face. He was too smart for that, she thought bitterly. Even when she�d announced she was leaving and his rage reached new heights, he�d aimed his blows with calculating precision beneath the neck. He was a criminal defense attorney after all � he knew how to hide evidence.
Josh finished on the toilet and she gingerly lifted him down.
�Better Honey?� she said.
�Better mummy.�
She crouched next to him. �Arms up!�
Her son was used to this routine now � a quick stop in a bathroom when one of them needed to go, with Jane using the opportunity to change their clothes and �freshen up.� Although the smells of urine and disinfectant severely limited how fresh one could feel. Josh stood in the middle of the stark room shivering as he waited for a new shirt, his little white belly protruding. Jane rolled up the soiled Tommy Hilfiger Toddler T-Shirt and put it in a plastic bag. The expensive brand seemed out of place in the cheap, sordid surroundings.
But then, everything was out of place now. Five days ago, they were sleeping under expensive quilts. Now they slept in the car. Two weeks ago, she and Mark gave a $10,000 donation to the cancer council. Now, since Mark had frozen her account, she had only a tank of petrol and ten dollars until she reached her sister�s house.
She had lost everything. She had gone back to the drawing board. But she and her son were safe.
Jane finished their cleansing routine, gathered their bags and opened the door to face the world again.
She walked to the front counter with Josh toddling next to her and holding her hand tightly. The comforting smell of hot pastries was strong, and Jane felt herself salivating.
When was the last time they ate? It must have been over twelve hours ago. If she could hardly stand the hunger, how was her strong, courageous little boy feeling? But her last ten dollars was for petrol � they couldn�t afford to be stranded and at risk of being found.
�Thank you� she mumbled as she handed back the key, not making eye contact.
She could feel Josh eyeing the doughnuts and pastries neatly arranged in the glass cabinet near the counter. She picked him up. If she had to deny her son food she would give him what comfort she could in the process. She looked tenderly at his cherubic little face - his blue eyes were still glued to the doughnuts. As she turned to walk to the door, his lip began to quiver and Jane�s heart broke. He looked at her.
�A doughnut Mummy?� he said softly.
�I�m sorry Honey.� Jane couldn�t say any more, she was too choked with tears.
She hurried them out to the car, wanting to get away from her shame. She quickly bundled Josh into the back seat of the car, strapping him into his child seat. She got into the driver�s side and turned the key. There was a sudden rap at the window. Startled, Jane saw the service station attendant standing at the window. He motioned for her to roll the window down.
�You forgot these m�aam,� he said, handing her a paper bag that smelled of freshly baked doughnuts.
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