Simon followed, but the tight spaces with the large stroller proved to be difficult. This caused him to lose her. His head rapidly snapped from one side to the other while he kept an eye out for her. Stopping short, he saw her figure on the floor and the first thing he did was sigh in relief. Parking the stroller, he fell to his knees beside her with his expression stricken with concern, “Talk to me Cherish. Do you need help? What’s wrong?” he asked touching her knee and shoulder.
Cherish’s nails dug into her skin as she drew in and released deep breaths several times. Flinching away on instinct, her wide eyes stared up at him in a wild, scared manner before she calmed enough to realize that he wasn’t there to hurt her. He would never hurt her, and she knew it. Cherish clenched her jaw, shut her eyes, and pointed in the direction towards the front of the store. Her hand shook, and her voice was hardly above a whisper, “T-That woman. Does she have a large mole on her face, gold front teeth, and a tattoo on her neck with my name?” she questioned. Though, the woman was be long gone and on her way to another part of the store; Cherish was still too frightened to look for herself.
Simon thought the description was very strange, but he assumed that whoever she feared was a deranged individual; perhaps a stalker. Either way, he was confused as he lifted his head and looked around for a person fitting her specifications. No one. He placed his hands on her shoulders and looked down at her again, “I don’t see anyone like that. Who are you hiding from?” He asked. Feeling as though she wouldn’t answer right away, he then blew out, “Here, let’s get off the floor…” Pushing himself to his feet, he held his hands out of her.
Cherish clenched her jaw as she watched every move Simon made. As he returned his gaze to her, she blew harshly through her nostrils, rubbed her lips together, and nodded, “O-Okay.” She whispered to herself. Shutting her eyes, she inhaled a deep breath and pushed herself to take his hands.
Standing, she scratched along the side of her arm and could see a few people who still watched them; especially her. The babies were none the wiser to what was happening, and Jr. had already slipped away into sleep. Seeing Cherish unhinged threw Simon for a loop. He hadn’t ever seen her so scared of anything before. She was an abused, young woman abandoned and alone with a baby. She was by far the bravest person he knew, and this hurt him deeply.
Wetting her lips and feeling like a fool, she rubbed her knuckles along her cheek and, “Can we go home? I just want to go home.” She whispered.
Noticing the people around them, there wasn’t much Simon could do about it without calling more attention to themselves. He placed his arms protectively around Cherish and nodded, “Alright, we’ll go through self-checkout and go home.” He reassured her.
Nodding several times, she held her head down and away from the other eyes in her own personal shame. In the past weeks she hadn’t felt this way, but today, from just the glimpse and possibility of her past, she was once again withdrawn and broken.
He led her towards the front of the store but immediately noticed how quiet she was and how she constantly checked around for said woman. He had a bad, sinking feeling about her as well by the time he’d finished scanning the items. Cashing out as quickly as possible, Simon pulled on her arm a few times, but she’d zoned out.
Jolting a bit when she finally realized he’d finished, Cherish nodded and pushed the stroller to him. She honestly didn’t trust herself to handle the kids. Taking the bags, she followed him across the parking lot with a hurried step.
Simon unlocked the doors the moment they were closer. She climbed in, tossed the bags on the passenger seat, and rubbed her cheeks roughly. She was fighting an internal war with herself. Not only did she berate herself for making a scene, she got overwhelmed over something and someone she’d left in her past years ago. Plus, there wasn’t any way she’d be there, they weren’t even in the same state anymore. Now she was just ashamed of the fact that she’d embarrassed Simon and herself.
Simon silently loaded the kids into the backseats with her before he climbed into the front seat and paused. She stared down at the babies and Jasmine stared right back. Tearing up, Cherish wiped her face and forced a smile to her little girl; one who held her heart, “Hi baby.” She whispered. Even as she rubbed Jasmine’s cheek, her own child held a look of concern and didn’t smile in response as she usually would.
Staring back at her, Simon pulled on his seat belt and tried to see if she was going to be alright for the ride; he honestly couldn’t tell. Noticing the tears in her eyes, he felt a deep pain in the center of his chest. He hated to see her as torn down and broken as she was. Clearing his throat, he turned the key and looked at her once again, “Let’s go…”
She glanced up at him through the rearview mirror and nodded, “…okay.” She whispered.
The short ride home was that of intense silence. Not a sound came from Simon, Cherish, or the babies. The
