Beautiful Disaster
written by: William Falo
Shadows appeared at the junkyard entrance, and I hid with the others until they left. When we came out, I heard someone yell for help.
I found the man on the ground with torn pants and blood on his leg. A nearby rusty metal beam stuck out of a pile of debris.
I twisted a rag around his leg, and he looked at me with pale blue eyes.
“Thank you,” he said.
“I shouldn’t have helped you.”
“Why?”
“I know you are part of the group that harasses us.”
It must have occurred to him then that I was one of the homeless. My hair looked like a tangled clump of fishing line, and I wore boys’ clothes. I don’t waste time stealing makeup.
“I’m Alex,” he said.
“Kat.”
“Why did you come here?” I asked.
“My friends and I got drunk, and someone complained about the criminals at the junkyard making the city look bad.”
“Do you know why I’m here? My father tried to become a football player but wasn’t good enough, so he bet on the games, losing all our money, even our house. He hit my mother, and he turned on me when she left. There are many similar stories here. The last thing we need is some rich jerks bothering us. Go home.”
He reached out a hand, but I pushed it away. Steam rose from the sewer pipes and swallowed him when he walked away.
The cold made me shiver, and my friend Stevie passed me a bottle.
A boy with blonde hair yelled out, “Drew is outside. He gave me some food.” They ran out, but I refused.
Drew ran a street gang, and I was once his girlfriend until I found him with another girl.
The next day, I ended up by the bus station. A man got out of a new car. “Kat.”
It was Alex.
“I couldn’t stop thinking about you.”
“Well, you should,” I said.
“I want to take you to get a coffee.”
I agreed. We got hot coffee and muffins that tasted wonderful.
His phone rang. “My father, I have to go.”
I shivered, and he wrapped his coat around me.
“When will I see you again?” He asked.
“My schedule is so busy,” I laughed, then coughed.
He reached out and touched my forehead.
“You have a fever.”
“I’m fine.” I returned to the junkyard and sat down, then closed my eyes for a second.
Drew lifted me up. “Rumors are that you helped someone the other night.”
“Who told you that?”
“The birds.” He laughed. “We want his money. Bring him to us, and we’ll do the rest.”
“Never,” I said.
“You better, or all of you get it.” He waved his arm at the small group held by the others of Drew’s gang.
“Nice coat,” he pulled out a knife and sliced through it. I tried to get my knife out, but he held my shoulders too tightly.
“Bring him here tonight.”
They left.
“None of us told him,” Stevie said.
“It’s okay,” I said.
I went to my secret spot where nobody could find me, except for one stray dog that curled up with me and licked my scars.
“You’re a doctor, too,” I said.
Alex found me and gave me Tylenol and antibiotics.
“Take two a day.”
“Thank you.”
“I’m supposed to start as an intern in a hospital in New York City, but I want to stay here and continue to get to know you.”
“Go become a doctor so you can help people, especially those like me, since most others have forgotten about us.”
“But I think you’re special.”
“You will forget about me when you meet someone else who is prettier, smarter, and richer.”
“No, that’s not true. I want to be with you. I’ll miss the flight and spend time here with you.”
If he stayed here, I would only stop him from ever being able to help others. The world needed doctors.
“Meet me tonight by the junkyard,” I said.
***
Alex appeared at the end of the street carrying flowers.
“He’s in love with you.”
Drew whispered. “We’re going to make him take us to his house, and you’re the bait.”
I moved to stand under a light so he would see me. He waved, then I grabbed Drew’s arm and pulled him under the light with me. Before he could pull away, I kissed him on the lips and held on with all my might. Drew gave in and wrapped his arms around me.
Alex stopped walking toward us and dropped the flowers. He ran away. A few stray dogs chased him, but when I let go of Drew, he was gone.
“You ruined it. Now, he will never come back to find you.”
“I know,” I said.
Drew shoved me away. The others ran down the street to look for Alex but returned only with the flowers.
He would make his flight. I later curled up in my secret spot with the stray dog that often followed me. The dog licked the tears off my face, but some of them made it past its tongue. The lonely tears fell onto the dying flowers I held close to my heart, giving them hope of life.
I would watch the coffee shop every day and look for a man, maybe a doctor, sitting alone with a steaming cup of coffee. I would walk closer and see if there was a cup for me there, too.
I remembered there was a college admission office not too far away. I think they need women doctors even more. The idea took hold of me, and once it did, I never let it go.
“Kat,” Stevie called me. “Someone gave us pizza for free.”
“Coming,” I wiped away the tears that kept falling and ran to join the others. But when I looked back at the flowers, they still looked beautiful, even in my sadness.
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