A Mother's Touch

Chapter 1

Walking home that afternoon from the art supply store should have been 20 minutes tops, even if she took the time to absorb her busy surroundings. Hordes of busy people were speed walking along the sidewalk or risked dodging cars in the street. Some barely looked up from their phones. It almost made the woman sad to see humanity so unaware of the real world and what wonderful things it had to offer. Letting out a disappointed sigh, she turned around and began the long trek back to her apartment. Briefly, she glanced at her wristwatch to catch the time and the corners of her chapped lips curled downwards into a minuscule frown.

'Shit, I'm going to be late.' she frantically thought. The now tardy woman picked up her pace a bit from her leisure stroll to a borderline mom-walk.  She breezed by several storefronts with loud neon welcome signs and mouth-watering food and wished she had more time to spare. She passed the large crowds of tourists and locals and took a deep breath of relief once she made her way out of the packed area.  As the woman made her way past an average alleyway, she heard a small whimper followed by a sniffle coming from it. A worried expression crossed her face and without hesitation, she entered the mouth of the alley to investigate. Of course, she remained cautious and on guard with her pepper spray at the ready, but she could still hear something crying.

'Someone could need serious help.' the woman logically thought to herself and continued forward. Her feet moved her farther down the alley and past pieces of random trash and broken bottles, till she finally reached the source of the small noise. It was coming from behind a large empty cardboard box that probably once held a dishwasher or something of the like based on the size.  Her hand shakily moved forward and slowly pulled the box out of the way. What she saw next was alarming and entirely unexpected. 

A crying toddler was crouched on the ground, covered with small scratches and streaks of dirt on his face and hands. The poor boy couldn't have been older than 3 years, the woman observed sadly and full of concern. When he noticed the strange and unfamiliar woman, his cries escalated to full-on sobs before he hid his face within his arms and curled himself into a ball.  It was like he was instinctively trying to hide and curl his body to protect it from further injury.  The woman observed this in him and concluded either the child was very bright or he was being abused.  But, that wasn't important right now.  She needs to get him back to his guardians or possibly call the police to report a lost child if she can't find them soon.

The woman began to softly hum a small lullaby to calm the frightened boy and to gain a small portion of his trust. Well as must trust a child can have in a stranger. The toddler's cries slowly stopped after a couple of minutes of listening to her soothing hums and his teary heterochromatic eyes peeked through an opening in his arms full of curiosity.

Seeing that she now had his full attention, the woman gave him a small smile and said in her calmest tone, "Hi sweetie, do you know where your parents are?" The boy sniffled at her questions and slightly shook his small head. "That's ok, we'll find them together. Is that ok with you?" the woman inquired. After a minute of hard thinking, the three-year-old finally nodded his head reluctantly and looked at her with clear distrust written all over his face.  But he seemed to realize that he needed assistance badly, even if it came from someone he doesn't know at all.

A warm smile crossed the woman's face and she held out a hand towards him to grab. The boy slowly took her hand and shakily stood up even with her help. They carefully walked out of the alley avoiding the broken glass and into the street together. His small hand was tucked into hers firmly so he doesn't get lost and so he feels reassured.

"Ok sweetie, just tug on my hand if you see your parents anywhere ok?" she gently said to the boy. After 30 minutes of them walking around the area looking for his lost family, the woman got her cell phone from her jeans back pocket and called the police.