After arriving at the shelter, Ms. Reyes and my social worker had a short conversation about my situation and agreed to let me stay there while my case was still being looked into.

Miss Reyes and I walked in silence until we reached the stairs, where she gestured for me to head up. We stopped at an empty room with a mattress, a pair of slippers, some curtains, and a closet. This was it—this was my new home.

“I’m sure it isn’t anything like your room back at home... but I hope it helps to ease the pain.”

I hung my head a little as I made my way over to the mattress.

“Can I get you anything…?”

She slowly walked toward me and stood over me for a moment. I didn’t really say anything. The only thing I wanted wasn’t something I could get back. To be honest, I wanted to be left alone, but my stomach had other plans.

“Sounds like someone’s hungry…”

I didn’t say anything and just let my stomach do the talking.

“Did you want to go get something to eat, or did you want me to?”

I shook my head to say no.

“That’s alright… I can go grab something for you. There’s a TV in the dresser and some clothes in the closet if you need to get comfortable.”

She left the room, and I still didn’t say much. But minding my manners, I managed to stick my head out the door.

“Thank you…” I said quietly.

She turned and looked back at me with a smile. After that, I shut the door for a minute and kept to myself, lying down on the bed and looking out at the city road. It was sunset, and I could feel the warmth of the sun through the small crack in the window. But nothing would heal this heartache except time.

I looked down at the cell phone still in my pocket and tried to look on the bright side. Daddy was in the hospital, but he was going to be okay, right? The doctors were going to take good care of him. That was their job, yeah? Yeah, sure it was. Or at least, that was what I was going to have to tell myself.

After I set everything down, I got sick of the sunset and opened the dresser in the room to check out the TV, with a remote sitting right on top of it. Yet when I tried it out, the dang ol’ thing wouldn’t work. Of course it didn’t.

I felt antsy, like I just wanted something to distract me from everything I was feeling. I lay back, pulled my cell phone from my pocket, and started fiddling with it. If anyone could cheer me up right now, it was her.

“Sunny, hey! Finally got that new cellphone, eh, chica?”

“Heh… sure did…” My voice was a little shaky.

“Everything okay…?”

“No…” I said, a little choked up.

“Hey, what’s going on…?” There was concern in her voice.

“It’s a lot, Luz… are you free tomorrow?”

"Yeah, of course I am…! Did you wanna hang out? There was actually somewhere I wanted to show you!”

“O-oh yeah…?”

“Yeah, it’s a skatepark! I hang out there all the time…!”

“Oooh… but wait… I can’t skate, I ain’t got no rollerblades…”

“I’ll bring you a board, you’ll be fine…”

“Okay, cool… gimme the address! I can meet you there…!”

Luz gave me the address, and I jotted it down. Just as I finished, there was a knock at the door.

“H-hey, I gotta go… but I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?” I whispered as I hurried to put the phone away.

“You bet! Bye!”

Right after I hung up, I made my way to the door and opened it. On the other side, Ms. Reyes stood holding a tray of food—it looked like chicken and rice, and it smelled tasty. Even though I was still feeling down about not being able to go home and about Daddy being sick, the food made me feel at least a little bit better.

“Here you are, mijita. Enjoy!”

I gave her a small smile.

“Thanks, Ms. Reyes.”

“Of course. Is there anything else you need…?”

“Uhh… well, I did have a couple of questions…” I set my food down near the dresser.

“Ask away…!”

“Well, for starters, is it okay if I go out tomorrow? I’ve got a friend who wants to see me. Is that okay?”

“Of course—as long as you come back before dark. But be careful!”

“Thank you… and also… where’s Mr. Ernesto…?”

Ms. Reyes looked a little hesitant, but she motioned for me to head inside. She followed me in and shut the door. Something must’ve been up…

“After everything that happened, Ernesto feared for my safety, and so… he’s gone into hiding.”

Hearing that made me frown a bit. How dare those Cima fellers cause so much grief that they ran him out of town! Took the smile right off my face. Thinking about it reminded me I still needed to practice, and with Daddy gone, how was I supposed to do that? Guess I needed to get creative.

“Hiding, huh… well, as long as he’s safe…”

“I’m sure he is… but please don’t let it weigh too heavily on your mind, mijita. You’ve been through a lot—try to get some rest.”

I nodded and sat down on my little mattress to eat.

“When you’re done, slide your tray out the door. Someone will pick it up. Lights out after 10 p.m., entiendes?” Her voice was firm like a parent’s, but gentle enough to show she meant no harm.

“Yes, ma’am…”

“And Sunny… I want you to remember something.”

I looked up, curious, a forkful of rice paused midair.

“You’ve been through a lot, but remember this proverb from my country: Tu momento no sea ahora, pero tu momento siempre llegará.”

I tilted my head. I’d never heard that before. “My time ain’t now, but it’ll always come? Is that what it means?” I asked, trying to lock it into memory.

“Sí. It means even when things seem bleak, they’ll always get better.”

The way she said it made my lips curl into a small smile. It was exactly what I needed to hear. I knew I wasn’t gonna be here forever, but if I had to be… having someone like Miss Reyes around made it easier.

“Thank you, Miss Reyes…”

“De nada, Sunny… rest well. Buenas noches. And please everyone here calls me Mama.”

The next morning, I woke up bright and early. Normally, I’d be out practicing, but without Daddy, I wasn’t sure what to do. I got out of bed just as someone knocked on the door. Hanging there was a towel and a toothbrush.

I grabbed them and saw a bunch of kids running down the hallway with their own towels.

“C’mon, hurry!” one of them shouted.

I followed, only to be met by a long line for the showers.

“For real…?” I muttered, ready to pout. More kids lined up behind me, and that’s when I noticed something.

“Man…”

I don’t think I’d ever seen folks wearing clothes so worn out. Some were tattered, dirt-streaked—like they hadn’t had fresh clothes in ages. It made me go quiet. And it made me realize maybe I ought to count my blessings instead.

Living in the shelter was bound to be an experience—one I think I was glad to have growing up. But it sure took some getting used to.

After finally getting my shower, I made my way back to my room and saw Momma stepping out, carrying my sheets.

“Hey Momma… which way to the roof?”

“Why?” She raised a big ol’ eyebrow, like she already figured I was up to something.

“W-well, I needed somewhere to get some rays… so I could get around.”

She pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed.

“Sunny, you can’t use your powers in the building… but if you must know, make a left at the bathroom. You’ll find it there.”

Having me here was gonna be a handful—she knew it. But I was glad she understood what I was trying to do.

“But don’t make it a habit. And remember, don’t use your powers inside!” she called after me.

“I won’t…”

With that, I made my way up to the rooftop and dropped onto my back, soaking up the sunlight. It wasn’t the beach, but it’d have to do for now.

After a few minutes, I popped up to my feet and glanced back. The door creaked open, and a few kids stepped out.

“Hey!” one boy called.

I turned, cracking one eye open as I spotted my little audience.

“What’re you doing?” a girl asked. Seeing them watching, I smirked.

“Heh, stand back and watch this...!”

I let the heat build in my hands, then blasted off into the sky, leaping and soaring through the air.

First stop: the hospital to check on Daddy. The doctors said he was doing okay; he was just tired that day. We talked for a little over an hour, and I told him all about my plans.

“So we’re going roller skating… well, she is. She got me a board so I could tag along.”

“Well, guess you ain’t gotta worry about falling off,” he laughed.

It was good to see him smile, even if I knew he wasn’t feeling great. I just hoped he’d get better and back on his feet soon.

After my visit, I headed to the skatepark to meet up with Luz. The place was huge but nearly empty—felt like we had the whole place to ourselves. Kinda funny.

When I got there, I saw Luz inside something called a halfpipe, skating like lightning. She launched off the edge of the ramp and spun into a big ol’ flip. When she landed, I guess she must’ve spotted me banging on the gate, trying to get in.

“Yo, Sunny!” she shouted, running over to open it.

Once I stepped inside, I finally got a good look at the place. It was pretty run-down—graffiti everywhere, a bit grungy—but there was something oddly charming about it.

Luz skated over to one of the walls and slid a board toward my feet. “C’mon, hop on!”

I glanced at her. “But I don’t know how to skate...”

“Ahh, don’t worry about that. It’s easy—I’ll teach you!”

She kicked off her skates and swapped them for an old pair of sneakers from her backpack. While she changed, I stepped onto the board. It wobbled under me, made me really nervous. I knew I’d be fine, but still—I didn’t want to fall.

“Okay, jumping right in, huh? So what you’re gonna do is take your back foot and kick off, got it?”

I followed her lead and kicked off. The board rolled forward, wheels clattering against the concrete—but I kept one foot in the air the whole time.

“Hey, you’re supposed to put both feet on the board…”

I tried to fix it, but I wasn’t used to this weird thing. I tripped and tumbled right into the bowl.

“Whoa…!”

I landed chin-first and scraped it. Luz covered her mouth, trying not to laugh."

“You okay?” she said between chuckles.

I popped my head up, my chin already glowing as it healed. “Yep yep!”

She reached down and offered a hand to pull me out.

“It takes some getting used to, but we’ll work on it. Comprende?”

I nodded as I climbed out of the bowl and glanced back at the board. For the next few hours, Luz and I took turns practicing—she’d hop on and show me a few tricks, then I’d give it a go myself, making slow but steady progress. It took dozens of tries, but eventually, just as the sun began to set, we gave it one last go.

“Okay... we’re gonna give it one more go. You ready...?”

Luz stood about twenty feet away. I narrowed my eyes at her and nodded.

“Mhmm, mhmm!”

“Go, go, go!”

I kicked off and quickly got my foot back on the board, riding it down—still a bit wobbly, but trying my best.

“You’re almost there... now kick the board up!”

Right as she said it, I stamped my foot on the edge of the board and managed to bring it to a stop.

“Heyyy, there you go!”

“I did it!”

Luz ran over, gave me a pat on the back, and held up a hand for a high five.

“Hell yeah, you did!”

“Luz! You ain’t supposed ta swear!”

“You’re such a baby, Sunny!”

“No, I ain’t…”

She stuck her tongue out at me.

“C’mon, pack the board up. It’s getting late—we gotta get you back to the train station, right?”

“Train station... right...” My voice softened a bit. I’d almost forgotten everything else, just for a moment.

“By the way, there was something you wanted to talk about, right...?”

“Yeah…”

She placed a hand on my back, and as we walked toward the train station, I told her the whole story.

“So someone set your house on fire!? And like, you fought the mafia... dude, you’re like a superhero!”

I glanced at her, a little annoyed, shooting her a look that clearly said, Really? That’s what you took from all that? She knew that wasn’t the point.

“Oh, s-sorry... that sucks—especially everything with your dad. But he’s gonna get better, right?”

“I sure hope so…”

There was a moment of silence.

“Hey… I’ve been there. I know what it’s like…”

“Does it get any better?” I asked.

She paused and looked down at her feet—one of the only times I’d seen her not smiling.

“Only if he does.”

That sure quieted the mood.

As we kept walking, I noticed the sun was setting fast. I checked my phone—8:30. Mama was gonna kill me if I wasn’t home before lights out, especially since the shelter closed at 9:30.

“Hey, Luz… it’s getting kinda late. We might need to hurry.”

“You wanna use the board? I’ll put on my skates. Wanna race?” she said with a smirk.

“Actually, I’ve got a better idea—get on my back,” I said, leaning forward a bit.

She looked confused for a second but climbed on as I arched my back.

“Okay…?” she said, still unsure.

“Now hold on tight.”

“What’re you doing?”

“You’ll see.”

I felt her grip tighten around my neck—and just like that, I launched into the sky, soaring high into the dusky El Lugarian skies.

“Whoooaa… we’re flying!?”

“Yeah! Ain’t it fun?”

“You really are a superhero.”

“Hold on!”

With a quick twirl, I shot off like a star, streaking through the air like a comet, leaving constellations in our wake. Luz was getting dizzy, but her laughter rang in my ears like music. For once, I wasn’t ashamed of showing off my powers. We took the scenic route, flying as high as we could. I’d glide now and then to let her take in the view before blasting off again, finally slowing just behind the shelter.

“Dude, that was so cool!” she said as she slid off my back.

“You were like—psheeew—and we were like—nyeeaar.”

She made sound effects and wild gestures, then gave me a quick squeeze.

“We totally gotta do that again sometime. Uh… dude, what’s with your face?”

I hadn’t realized it, but I might’ve been blushing.

“N-nothing… I’m just glad you had fun,” I said with a laugh, taking her hand and leading her out of the alley.

“C’mon—don’t want any nasty fellers seeing us in here…”

“Where are we, anyway?” she asked as we stepped out of the alley and onto the street, where the shelter’s entry line was already forming.

“Home,” I said, stopping to check both ways before crossing.

“You live… here?”

“Yep.”

“¡Órale! Sunny! ¿Dónde has estado?”

I hadn’t known Mama long, but I could tell she was mad.

“Who’s that lady?” Luz asked, pointing as Momma marched over.

“I told you lights out was at 10 p.m.—it’s almost nine! The least you could do is call!” she scolded, grabbing my arm and pulling me away from Luz.

“W-wait, Ms. Reyes– I mean Mama! Let me introduce you to Luz!” I said, reaching out.

“Some other time. You need to get inside and take a shower.”

I looked back at Luz, completely embarrassed by how everything went down.

“Uhh… sorry about all this, Luz!”

“Hey, don’t worry about it. Call me later—I’ll see you soon!” she said with a wave.

Even with Ms. Reyes chewing me out, it was still nice getting to spend time with Luz. It felt…refreshing.

For the next couple of weeks, that was pretty much my life. I’d wake up in the morning, soak in some rays, and head off on some kind of adventure with Luz. And while it was great, I knew it couldn’t last forever. Eventually, those mafia fellers were going to strike. Ms. Monster lady wasn’t gonna go easy on me next time so I really needed to be on my A game, but would I even be able to do that? might have some ideas but I'll just have to train up and see.