Back to the Streets by Treasure Hernandez

smothering her with his body, his hand over her mouth as she tried to scream for him to stop. In her nightmare, Manolo was raping her, and had been, every morning, to teach her obedience. Maury’s voice had managed to blend into her nightmare.
    â€œYour food is gon’ get cold,” Maury said, shaking her. “Wake up.”
    Halleigh slowly opened her eyes, and a feeling of unfamiliarity crept into her heart. She felt a pair of strong hands on her neck, and she immediately jumped up, thinking that it was Manolo touching her.
    â€œStop it! Get off of me! Manolo, please stop! Don’t touch me!” She scrambled out of bed and peered frightfully at Maury.
    â€œWhoa! Calm down, Halleigh. You’re okay. It’s just me,” Maury said in a low, soothing tone.
    Halleigh looked around slowly and began to realize where she was. This was one of the first mornings she was able to wake up without worrying about Manolo’s treacherous ways. “He’s gone,” she whispered as she collapsed onto the bed and put her face in her hands. “He can’t hurt you anymore,” she told herself as her tears came unwillingly.
    Maury didn’t know who “he” was, but he knew that whoever Halleigh was referring to had terrified her to the breaking point. He walked over to the side of the bed and sat beside her. “You’re good, ma. Ain’t nobody gon’ hurt you.” He wrapped his arms around her.
    Halleigh rested in his arms for a few minutes. It felt so safe and reassuring. There was only one pair of arms that ever felt like that around her—Malek’s. Halleigh closed her eyes and envisioned Malek there rescuing her from the horrible life she’d been living. She never wanted him to let her go.
    Halleigh put her arms around Maury and pulled him closer to her. Oh, Malek , she thought as she pressed her face against him. Just then she looked up and saw Maury staring down at her. She quickly pulled away from him and walked into the bathroom and closed the door behind her, leaving a confused Maury on the bed.
    Tears filled Halleigh’s eyes as she began to whimper. “He can’t hurt you anymore,” she told herself. “You run your own shit now. Your life is in your hands, and you won’t allow anyone to make you feel powerless again.”
    Halleigh got a piece of tissue from the toilet paper roll and wiped the last tear from her face, promising herself that she would stay strong. She needed to take control of her life, and she decided that today was the day she would start and never look back again.
    She splashed cold water on her face, dried her hands, and then walked back out into the bedroom. Maury was still sitting on the bed. Halleigh saw that he had breakfast spread out on a small tray for her.
    â€œI didn’t know what you wanted,” Maury said to Halleigh as he nodded toward the spread, “so I got you a little bit of everything.”
    Halleigh gave Maury a smile that said, “Thank you.” She then lowered her head. She was sure that he would want an explanation for what he’d just witnessed from her a few minutes ago, but to her surprise, he didn’t mention it. She was grateful for that as she stood there looking down at the food, wondering why he was being so nice to her. Nobody was kind for no reason, not at first anyway. They always wanted something. Halleigh wondered just what it was Maury wanted from her.
    â€œCome here,” Maury stated. He got up and walked toward Halleigh and grabbed her hand. “What’s wrong? Never seen sausage and pancakes before?” Maury tried to lighten the awkward mood.
    â€œYeah.” Halleigh nodded. “But what’s it for?” she asked as she followed him toward the bed.
    â€œWhat do you mean, what is it for? For you to eat.” He pulled back the plush comforter for her.
    She sat down, and he put some pillows behind her back.
    â€œI mean,