Chapter 6 - A Home of Our Own
With the retainer from GreenTree, I finally had enough to secure our own space. I found a charming, sunlit two-bedroom apartment on the second floor of an old Victorian house. It had warped hardwood floors, a small bay window overlooking a park, and a kitchen that smelled faintly of old wood and spice.
It wasn't a sprawling four-bedroom colonial, and it didn't have a manicured lawn maintained by landscaping crews. But it was ours.
On moving day, Martha from the community center helped us load our few belongings into the minivan. We had upgraded from a single garbage bag to a few cardboard boxes filled with thrifted kitchenware, cozy blankets, and toys donated by the shelter.
When we walked into the empty apartment, Leo and Maya immediately ran to the bay window, squealing with delight at the sight of the playground across the street.
"Is this our home, Mommy?" Maya asked, pulling on my sleeve. "For real?"
"For real, sweetie," I said, kneeling down to hug her. "Nobody can ever make us leave this place."
Sarin stood by the doorway, looking around the empty living room. She walked over to me and wrapped her arms around my neck.
"I knew you'd do it, Mom," she whispered.
May you like
That evening, we ordered a cheap cheese pizza and sat on the hardwood floor in our sleeping bags, eating by the light of a single floor lamp. It was the happiest, most peaceful meal I had eaten in ten years.
There was no tension, no walking on eggshells around a husband who looked at me with cold indifference, and no suffocating judgment from my parents. There was only love, laughter, and the sweet scent of freedom.
