“They weep - you weep - it must be so;

Winds sigh as you are sighing,

And Winter sheds his grief in snow

Where Autumn's leaves are lying…”

-Emily Bronte

As they finished unpacking the few possessions they actually brought with them from Allentown the day before, the two Mendez children noticed a letter that their father had left them slip out of Flora’s back pack as she looked for her phone charger.

“Oh look,” Zekito said as he picked the letter up off the floor, “Papi left us a letter!”

“No…” Flora retorted as she snatched the letter back, “Papi left ME a letter.”

She took the letter, opened it up and saw a note and two one-hundred dollar bills peeking out.

“To my beautiful flower girl,” Flora recited as she read the note aloud:

I hope you know that even though you and Zekito will no longer be near, I’m only a phone call away.

Here is some money for food. Don’t tell your mother I gave you this, Just slip it into her purse when she needs it most. I love you guys, & I’m sorry things turned out the way they did. I’ll try to see you guys soon, Until then, you guys stay in my heart.

Sincerely, Your pops.

Small tears formed in Flora’s eyes as she put the note in her left pant pocket. She got up & finished putting away the rest of her clothing and walked to the kitchenette area in their new tiny apartment home, where their mother was cooking breakfast.

“Mija,” Maritza said to Flora as she noticed tears running down her daughter’s cheeks, “what’s wrong?”

“Nothing ma,” Flora answered as she sat on the chair and began to eat, “I just… I miss daddy.”

Maritza looked down at her two children, sitting next to each other, both looking as sad as the day they left. “I have an idea!” Maritza shouted as she put her own plate on the table and sat down. “Let’s walk around the city together, and maybe call your dad after?”

The two kids smirked slightly and nodded in agreement as they finished their food.

Walking around New York City felt very unique for three of the city’s newest residents. The amount of people in close proximity, the access to multiple cultures in stores and restaurants, the graffiti that varies from atrociously obnoxious to mesmerizing & beautiful.

It was a lot to soak in for them.

“Ma, how do people live so close to each other?” Zekito asked.

“I.. don’t really know,” Answered Maritza, “I didn’t realize just how crowded it is in this city. Everyone seems to be on top of one another here.”

“Meh, I kinda like it,” Flora said, “it has a sense of...community.”

While they were discussing their new situation, a man walking behind stared bullets at them, specifically Maritza’s purse. He swiftly snuck behind them, ripped Maritza’s purse from her hand and began to dart away. Maritza’s eyes suddenly changed to a deep blue glow as her fingers began to tingle, reminding her that she is in fact... not normal.

She blinked, breathed deeply, and regained her thin veil of normalcy as she ran after the man.

“Mami, be careful!” Screamed Flora as she took her phone out to dial police.

The thief ran voraciously, speeding down the crowded street, evading pedestrians and cutting the corner to a nearby alleyway, where he found himself reunited with a group of friends who were waiting for him.

“What’d you get?” said one.

“It better be enough.” said another.

Maritza soon joined them. “Can I please have my purse back?” she asked them meekly.

“Fuck!” The thief growled, “It’s that bitch I stole from. She’s fucking fast, man.”

“whatever,” said one, “let’s scare the idiot off.”

They approached her and started cackling and telling her how she made a mistake following them.

Maritza stared on at them, giving them a look of what seemed like pity. “Please… I... you can keep the money, I just have important things in there I can’t afford to lose. Give me my purse... you can keep my money, I won’t...”

She didn’t notice one of the thieves had quietly snuck behind her, brandishing a wooden baseball bat.

He swung it as hard as he could, and a huge THWACK! Sound resonated in the air as it hit her directly on the head.

The bat broke in half, and the three thieves stared in shock and disbelief as Maritza... just stood there. She was unhurt, unfazed and even a little over the whole situation in general.

“I’ll pretend you didn’t do that,” she said to them as she reached her hand out, “You can even keep the money, just give me my purse please.”

The first thief threw the fully intact purse to the ground and ran. The other two followed him, with one yelling, “What the fuck was that?”

Maritza calmly bent over, picked up her purse, scuffed the dirt and grime that was on the bottom and walked back to her children.

Zekito jumped on his mother, hugging her. “Are you ok mami?” he asked her.

“Si mi hijo,” she responded, “They gave me my purse back.”

“I called the police ma,” Flora said, “Should… should we still wait for them?”

“No,” Maritza said to her daughter, “I have my purse back and those people are long gone. Let’s just get home… I think I’m getting a small headache.”