Uprooted once again…

Sofia sighed as she looked at the boxes around her. For the third time in two years, she was moving house. Since leaving her immigrant family’s home in the outskirts of London into the city for work, Sofia had had a difficult time finding a place to live. 

Flatmates had often been dirty, rude, or simply cruel. Landlords often didn’t want someone like her in their building. Many locations were simply out of budget. No matter how many times Sofia hoped to establish herself, she would be ripped up with no soil to cling to. 

Now, once again, she was surrounded by her belongings with no clear path forward. Nowhere to grow.

What am I going to do?

“Sofia, where would you like this one?”

Sofia turned to see Autumn juggling a large box and dashed over to help. Autumn Eyre, an amiable work colleague, had been the one exception to Sofia’s sour city experience. For some reason, Autumn had taken a liking to Sofia soon after her arrival, and often included her in outings and activities with her and her energetic teenage sister, Summer. 

“Right here is fine,” said Sofia as the two women squatted to place the box next to the others along the wall. “Autumn, thank you again for inviting me to stay in your flat. I’m sorry to inconvenience you, and I promise I’ll soon be out of your hair…”

“Sofia,” Autumn grunted as she stood and wiped her hands on her overalls, “you can stay as long as you like.” Tightening the bandana around her small afro, Autumn shot Sofia a warm grin. “Summer and I are happy to have you!”

Moved, Sofia shyly returned her smile. 

“Didi, you’ll never guess what I’ve just discovered!” a new voice said from the entryway. A tall and eccentrically dressed, but stylish woman in her mid-50s waltzed through the door with multiple bags hanging from her arms and a flyer in her hand. Pulling off her sunglasses and tugging slightly at the headscarf under her wide brimmed hat, the newcomer whistled. 

“Imagine, Didi, having a nice place like this one day!”

“What do you mean, Aunty A?” asked Sofia, relieving the newcomer of her burdens. “There’s no way I could afford a place like this…”

The older woman, Sofia’s family friend of many years, flapped the paper in Sofia’s face. “Oh, but you could – especially with the promotion you’ll be getting after this weekend. Look here, a perfect flat in this very building!”

Autumn looked over Sofia’s shoulder at the flyer. “Miss Aaniyah’s right, that’s the floor above us! Sofia, you should apply! Summer would love to have her aunty so close.”

Sofia blushed at the affectionate title. “What if I don’t land the deal?”

Autumn stepped around to face her. “Sofia, you are the best customer relations manager the company has seen in years. You’ve been researching for months, built connections, blew everyone away with your analysis presentations...”

“Now all Didi needs is the right attire to seal the deal,” announced Aaniyah. Swooping up her bags once again, the older woman motioned for the others to follow her to Autumn’s bedroom. 

Autumn smirked and leaned towards Sofia. “Didi?”

Sofia averted her eyes. “It’s… a childhood nickname. I only let Aunty A call me that now.”

“You only let Aunty A call you at all,” Aaniyah commented over her shoulder, causing her large, gold hoop earrings to swing. Tossing the bags by the large bed, the older woman whirled around and placed her hands on Sofia’s shoulders. “I don’t mind playing mediator, but… you should probably call home sometime. Or maybe even visit?”

Sofia turned her face away. “I can’t go home yet. Not until I can show my parents that moving here wasn’t a mistake.”

The taller woman’s eyes softened as she gazed at Sofia. She pulled her in for a quick, tight hug, before declaring, “Then let me show you what I’ve brought!”

The ladies rummaged through the bags, admiring the outfits that Aaniyah had brought and laying out their favorites on the mattress.

“Personally, I think something like this would help you stand out,” said Autumn, holding up a light blue suit. “Too many people wear black to these sorts of things.” The jacket had some ruching with a tie at the side to accentuate the waist, something a mid-sized woman like Sofia often struggled to find. 

Feeling excited, Sofia’s eyes began to sparkle as she reached out to touch the suit. “I think I have just the shoes to go with it.”

Autumn’s mobile phone began to ring. “Excuse me,” she said and exited the room.

Sofia continued gazing at the suit admiringly.

“Why don’t you try it on?” asked Aaniyah, pleased with Sofia’s reaction. Nodding, Sofia gathered up the outfit, went into the ensuite restroom, and soon returned. The suit was a perfect fit, and made her feel confident.

Aaniyah whistled in admiration. “Beautiful. Powerful. This is your suit. But something is missing…” The older woman circled Sofia with narrowed eyes, inspecting. She stopped again before Sofia, gazing intently at the younger woman’s face. “I’ve got it!”

Reaching into her handbag, Aaniyah revealed a small green cloth pouch with delicate golden embroidery resembling a tree. When it was placed in her hands, Sofia felt a strange yet comforting warmth on her palms. Opening the pouch, she discovered a set of red stone earrings unlike anything she had ever seen before.

The flat bottomed tear drops were a deep red that contained flecks of blue and green. Around each stone was a remarkably thin gold wire that crawled across like veins, enclosing the gorgeous stones in a network of fine metal, connecting it to the hook.

As Sofia held up the earrings, they caught the lamp light from overhead and nearly seemed to glow. Looking back at Aaniyah, she briefly noticed the older woman’s red nose stud do the same. 

Tugging briefly at her headscarf, Aaniyah said, “I found them as I was going through your things, buried at the back of some drawer. Didn’t you have them when we first met all those years ago?”

Fuzzy, forgotten scenes of her childhood suddenly appeared in Sofia’s mind. Furrowing her brow, she replied, “I… I’m not sure.”

Aaniyah smiled softly then gently led Sofia to a large mirror. She watched as Sofia removed her gold stubs and put on the red and gold earrings. They seemed to brighten Sofia’s entire visage.

The older woman wrapped her arms around Sofia’s shoulders. “There, something special for them to remember you by.”

Just then Autumn reappeared, a map pulled up on her phone. “Sofia, traffic is getting heavy. We should leave soon!”

“That’s my cue to depart!” declared Aaniyah. The older woman grabbed her handbag and made her way to the door. 

“Can’t you stay for a quick supper, Aunty?” asked Sofia, disappointed. 

Aaniyah paused. “Unfortunately, no. But speaking of supper, be sure to try that pub by the sea while you’re in Dublin. Those being my old stomping grounds, I can promise you they have the best Irish stew in town!” 

Taking Autumn’s phone, the older woman saved her number. “Feel free to call Aunty A anytime!” With a wink, she waved farewell and departed with a flourish. 

“What a whirlwind!” laughed Autumn. Noticing Sofia’s expression, she touched her shoulder. “Now that everything’s here, let’s get you packed!”

Soon, the ladies were heading to Heathrow Airport. As they entered the departures drop-off, Autumn ventured to ask, “So… you and your folks aren’t on speaking terms? You’ve never really talked about them.”

Surprised by the question, Sofia shrugged. “Not really. My brother texts me occasionally, but I haven’t spoken to my parents since moving into the city.”

“That was nearly two years ago!”

“It’s complicated, alright?”

“But they’re your parents…”

“Well, you never talk about your parents either. When was the last time you spoke to them?”

Autumn tightened her lips, regretting she had brought up the topic. The two continued in awkward silence until they reached Sofia’s drop-off point. 

As Autumn helped Sofia pull her luggage from the car’s boot, they heard a strident male voice call to them. Both sighed upon seeing who it was. 

“He’s going, too?” asked Autumn. 

“Unfortunately…” replied Sofia. 

Sauntering towards them was a tall, angular man with dark brown hair and eyes. Although handsome, he carried himself with an air of arrogance and self-importance. 

“Pigita I was expecting, but you,” he turned to look Autumn up and down, “are a pleasant surprise to behold on this crisp evening.”

“Stuff it, Jasper,” said Sofia, placing her short frame between him and Autumn. “Don’t you have a plane to catch?”

Jasper frowned, but then smirked again. “Indeed, perhaps I can convince them to leave before any farm animals decide to board.”

Waving dismissively, he entered the airport. 

“That jerk needs to be reported to HR,” growled Autumn.

“No,” Sofia said, “not yet. He’s the boss’s nephew. I don’t want to stir the waters until this deal is in the bag.”

Autumn tightened her lips again. “If you’re sure.”

Awkwardly, Sofia held out a filled application for the flat Aunty A had mentioned. “Can I bother you to turn this in for me?”

Autumn nodded. “Of course. Email me the client’s contact once you connect. Safe travels.”

Sofia nodded tensely and hurried to catch her flight.

The next day, Sofia milled about a large exhibit hall in one of Dublin’s largest convention centers. After hours of networking, she finally connected with the sought-after client.

The friendly Hispanic gentleman listened attentively as she spoke in somewhat awkward, dusty Spanish, and then smiled and offered her his card.

[“Send me the mock up of the deal via email. I believe our companies will work very nicely together,”] he said in Spanish. Tapping his temple, he said, [“Make sure to mention you were the young woman in the red earrings.”] 

Elated, Sofia thanked the man profusely. Scurrying away, she found a quiet sitting area to write Autumn an email. 

“Why are you so cheery?” sneered Jasper, approaching her from behind.

Sofia rolled her eyes, hit send, and faced him. Sitting up proudly, she said, “If you must know, I’ve just landed my deal.” 

Exhaling dramatically, Jasper plopped himself down in a nearby chair. “You know that uncle only gave you that deal because you and that jefe are both Guatemalan, right? It isn’t going to make much of a difference for the company. Not like mine with the group from the UAE will be.”

Smacking his lips, Jasper said, “That raise is as good as mine.”

Fuming, Sofia bit her tongue. Don’t say anything. Not yet…

“Hey, Jasper!” an unfamiliar voice called. The two turned to see a group from a partner company approach them. “We’re heading out to get supper, want to join?”

“Absolutely!” Jasper stood excitedly, throwing his arm around the newcomer’s shoulders. “I’m starved! Where’re we headed?”

“There’s a pub by the sea we were told is quite good,” another person in the group chimed in, catching Sofia’s attention. 

“You can come, too, if you’d like,” said a third person, inviting her. 

“I’m sure little Pigita is on some sort of diet,” Jasper sniggered dismissively.

“Dude, that’s not ok…” said the first person, uncomfortably.

“I’ll come,” said Sofia, standing. Jasper scowled. “I have it on good authority that they make the best Irish stew in town.”

After changing into warmer, more comfortable attire, the group of young adults made their way to the pub by the sea. Sofia made a point of using her wide-brimmed hat to avoid looking at the ocean on the way in. The expansiveness of it in the waning sunlight made her nervous.

The evening was surprisingly pleasant and with the group spread out among several tables, Sofia was able to relax a bit with her new acquaintances. As she searched her crossbody bag for her purse to close her tab, there was a commotion at the entrance of the pub.

“Looks like someone is messing with that hound that’s been hanging around,” a customer muttered nearby.

A dog? Sofia thought.

“I thought animal services woulda been called by now…” said his friend.

Suddenly, Sofia heard a yelp of terror followed by a strident laugh. Standing, she grabbed a couple of large nearby mugs of Guinness and made her way outside.

“It’s just like when I was a kid,” a very drunk Jasper slurred loudly, getting up from pinning down a large dog. He shouted at the creature, causing it to bolt, a clatter of cans tied to its tail loudly trailing after it. 

“Look at him run!” Jasper and the others reveled until they were suddenly doused in beer. 

“You really are a piece of work, aren’t you?” Sofia snarled. Turning, she caught a glimpse of the dog as it turned a corner under a street lamp. 

Purple?

Sofia slammed the mug into Jasper’s chest and ran after the animal. As she went, one of the others from the group ran out. “Wait, Sofia!” They held up her mobile and purse. “You forgot your things!” 

Already out of earshot, Sofia nervously followed the animal’s trail onto the beach. The rising full moon gave her plenty of light to see, but the sound of the dark, lapping water made her uncomfortable. 

Why did it have to come towards the ocean?  

At the sound of pained whimpering, Sofia quickened her step down the shoreline. Soon she came upon a dark figure collapsed in the sand unlike anything she had ever seen.

The creature was indeed a dog. Or, looked like a dog, anyway. The animal was huge; wolf-like, but stockier. More surprising was its fur. Sofia shook her head to make sure she was seeing correctly. 

“You really are purple!”

In addition to the cans that had tied to its tail, there was a deep, infected wound on its hind leg and lower back. Its mouth grimaced in pain; its yellow eyes were keenly on Sofia’s face. 

“Did he do this to you, too?” asked Sofia, leaning closer to the creature’s hind quarters. The dog snapped at her, causing her to jump back. 

“Ok, buddy, ok. Boundaries, understood. Let me just…” she approached again and reached for the string of cans. The dog jumped and moved away from her, collapsing again a short distance away on the sand. Sofia triumphantly held the cans in her hand. 

“Well, that’s one problem solved. I’m so sorry you ran into that brute.” She tossed the cans aside, and noticed a surprisingly human expression of uncertainty on the dog’s face. 

Carefully, she approached again to get a closer look at the animal’s wound. Now seeming to understand that she was there to help, the dog allowed her to draw near. 

After inspecting the wound, Sofia wondered what her options were. Maybe I should call animal control?

Sofia reached for her phone and realized it wasn’t in her back pocket or bag.

Gripping her hat, she exclaimed, “Shoot, I must have left it at the pub!” She turned to walk back to the pub and stopped. 

“They wouldn’t even know what to do with you…” she sighed. Turning back, she crouched down again to look at the dog’s leg. “But we have to get you to someone who can treat your wounds…”

“I know someone,” said a pained voice. 

Startled, Sofia stood and looked around. “W-who’s there?”

Sofia scanned the moonlit beach until her eyes landed back on the dog. It winced as it attempted to raise its head to look her in the face. 

“I said,” repeated the dog, “I know someone. But to get to them, I am going to need your help.”