“Ray of Sunshine”

The level of humanity displayed by a complete stranger was enough to send my already bewilder mind into a state of unexplainable speechlessness.

Frozen solid, I watched in stunned surprise as the unusual man faded from my sight, my thoughts struggling to connect the dots of my puzzling luck.

I shook away the sudden fog he had caused to plague my mind as the stranger vanished from view. When my temporarily confused brain regained control, a spontaneous wide smile stretched across my ever-permanent upside-down lips, and for the first time in God knows how long, I felt genuine happiness swagger through my body like a drunken butterfly.

Without thinking twice, I abandoned my goods by the side of the road, only taking the tray, and raced ecstatically down the wide asphalt dusty freeway, breathing heavily and never looking back.

As I joyfully ran back home, I had only one target in mind...Peter. I prayed with all my heart that he had returned safely and was not in any trouble with our mother. Even though I knew I couldn't always protect him from her cruelty, I tried my hardest every day; after all, if I didn't look after him, there was no guarantee that anyone else would.

My train of thought was abruptly interrupted by a strong aroma that had me halting by the side of the road. My head swerved comically towards the source of distraction, and I couldn't help but inhale deeply.

There was no doubt about it: the street food vendor's cart's deft manipulation of roasted plantain and fried fish was simply intoxicating.

Standing by the vendor's cart, unable to will my limbs to walk away, I reluctantly took out the money given to me by the very nice stranger and began quickly counting it.

My eyes widened to the size of saucers, and my lips formed a perfect 'O' as the sweet realization dawned on me... this money was worth twice as much as the goods I was given to sell! That is, for the first time in my unfortunate existence, I had extra money to do with as I pleased.

A delightful explosion erupted in my head, "JACKPOT!" I unintentionally exclaimed, startling passers-by and most of the food vendors. I couldn't help but laugh at the sight of my scorching stomach, knowing that it would soon be a thing of the past—at least for tonight. Overall, my ecstasy was too much for me to bear.

This unusual stroke of good fortune meant a lot to me: first, Peter wouldn't go hungry tonight; second, after buying what we'd eat, I still had enough spare change for the next day; and, finally, it brought the fascinating realization that not everyone around me was as horrible as I had initially made myself believe.

I confidently strolled up to the food vendor cart and placed an order, a wide smile on my face. I was completely engrossed in watching the vendor serve my food as a wave of extreme happiness soaked deeply into my chest and bones.

I never thought I'd be so happy—even for a second—but here I was, buying roasted plantain and fried fish, a meal I never thought I'd try.

This type of happiness may appear or sound trivial to others, but it was simply the best thing that had ever happened to me.

*****

Arriving home later than I initially anticipated, a sudden panic took over my entire system as soon as I heard a loud furious voice, followed by another, tear out of our house. My legs began to move towards the door on their own without much thought.

As I approached the front porch of our prison, my hands trembled and my eyes watered. The prospect of my brother being beaten again on an empty stomach heightened my fears and tears to the point of overflowing.

Through the angry screams inside, came mother's voice as clear and sharp as ice, declaring loudly, "I will kill you with my bare hands before you get the chance to take a second wife!" and as quickly as it came, all my fears and tears melted away, leaving my shaking body to take much-needed breaths of relief.

Fortunately, it wasn't mother hitting or yelling at Peter as usual; this time, it was father and mother fighting.

Standing on the porch, I couldn't help but laugh quietly at my previous crying situation. I was such a drama queen, but I couldn't blame myself for how I turned out because, as you all know, living with mother and father was like sitting completely tied up in front of a consistently hungry cobra, waiting for it to tear a chunk out of your already half-eaten skin or waiting for it to finally decide to end your painful torture and just swallow you whole.

Shaking my head, I let myself be entertained by their squabble. It wasn't unusual for them to fight and batter each other with words and fists; in fact, it was a very common occurrence. I was just relieved it had nothing to do with us; it surprised me a little that father wanted another wife when we were barely surviving.

Father never ceased to amaze me...well, as long as he was causing my stepmother even the smallest amount of pain, it was well worth it.

Done laughing at their entertaining conflict, I circled the house as quietly as a mouse and went straight for our bedroom window. I quietly opened the window sidles and placed the food I had purchased earlier by the side of it before returning to the front porch and taking a deep breath.

I gently opened the door and stepped inside, holding the money I was going to give to my stepmother.

Shortly after my feet made contact with the tiled floor, silence descended upon the room. Abandoning my father and their arguments, mother purposefully strode toward the door and fixed a cold stare on me.

"Why are you late?!" she yelled, her rage visible on her features.

"I couldn't sell the goods in time," I admitted sheepishly, as a hard hand swept across my face, nearly knocking my teeth out.

"You're as useless as your father; you can't do anything right!" she exclaimed. When father heard her mention him, he quickly cut into the conversation, which caused mother to refocus her attention on him, and they began yelling again.

Their argument heated up again, this time more harshly, so I quietly slipped away from them to avoid being hit again and then dashed straight to my room, not letting my encounter with mother dampen my spirits.