What Does It Mean?
A Short Story
What Does It Mean? imagines a woman who, despite painful ordeals, focuses on strangers’ kindness rather than predators’ sharp teeth.
Karina bolted to a sitting position, one hand clasped to her chest, the other clutching her blanket. With sobbing gasps, she tried to pull her mind from the swirling nightmare to the quiet of her dark bedroom.
“What does it mean?” Her words echoed against the wooden furniture. She reached for the lamp on the end table and switched on the light. Squinting, she tapped on her phone and tried to read the glowing numbers: 3:33 AM. A shudder worked over her body as she tugged the blanket tighter. With darting motions, she set her phone aside, switched off the light, and leaned against the headboard. Cold metal made her jump. She snatched the extra pillow from the empty side of the bed and plumped it behind her. Then she relaxed with a sigh.
Haunting images rose in her mind. The awful boat ride, her wet clothes clinging to her exhausted body as she wove through the crowded pier, trying to make sense of the foreign land. Though she had shivered under the brilliant sun, no thought or emotion stirred her senses. It was as if she moved by some compulsion beyond her chosen will. Something led her weary legs up the incline, across the boardwalk, into the bustling town, and right to the doorway of a café that would become her home for the next three years.
She had no idea why Mr. Gracia had given her a free dinner and then offered her a job that day. She had feared that he’d want something from her that she wasn’t willing to give.
Her anxiety evaporated when his wife, Josephina, a stout woman with streaks of gray hair springing like wildflowers from her head and a robust smile, grabbed her by the hand and rubbed her fingers, exclaiming, “So cold! Just came off the boat, eh? Well, bet you could do with something hot inside of you!” She had merely pointed to the counter. The tamales Mr. Jose placed in front of her were hot, but she still felt frozen. At least on the inside. Until she scarfed them down in a few bites.
When Josephina’s eyes rolled from the empty plate to her husband’s bemused face, the radiant smile that burst forth enveloped Karina. She thought she might die in its glow.
She didn’t die, but in the twisted whirl of her nightmare, she was spirited to another glow, a raging fire that consumed the Garcia’s diner and nearly took the life of the man who had done more for her in one morning than most people had in her entire lifetime.
The fire dwindled into tears that slipped down Josephina’s cheeks as she patted Karina’s face in farewell. The rough, hard-working hands clasped hers and then slowly slid away.
Suddenly, Karina was on the street again, but this time she was a small child running, pelting down the sidewalk as fast as her legs would carry her toward a fence, a safety zone, wild dogs nipping at her from either side. Her heart pounding, doom pending, she tried to spurt forward but slipped. As she went down, a wolfish face, a man’s, closed in, fangs barred. She awoke terrified, her mind racing, her legs aching to get over the fence.
One hand slid from her chest to her middle, and she knew she wasn’t afraid for herself. “Who are the wolves?” her whispered question hung like a vaporous thread wending its way through the room. A smile ghosted over her, a familiar quirk when she had to laugh at herself. “There are so many.”
A burst of January wind slashed the window, sending a fresh chill over Karina. She grabbed the blankets tighter and slid down into the enfolding warmth. Her mind filled with her first glimpse of a handsome face, bold black eyes dancing at her from across the playground where she worked as a teacher’s aide. A mere ten months ago. The sweet glow she had thought she’d lost forever had revived. “I’ve got Jano now. He’s the king of wolves and won’t let anyone get me.”
Rolling onto her side and caressing her round belly, she closed her eyes, ready to banish snapping teeth to the darkest corner of her mind. Horrors had been a part of her life for as long as she could remember. But as long as Mr. Garcia, Josephina, and a man like Jano were in the world, her baby would find a way over the fence.
A. K. Frailey is the author of 21 books, a teacher for 35 years, and a homeschooling mother.
Make the most of life’s journey.
For novels, short stories, poems, and non-fiction inspirational books, check out
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“According to customers, the stories cover a range of unexpected topics and journeys of the imagination. One review mentions the book can be emotionally resonant, noting nobility, bravery, decency, kindness, and mercy are themes that pierce through the darkness explored in the stories.” ~Amazon
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“Customers found the book offered cultural insights. As one review notes, ‘The stories provide a window into diverse cultures, offering nuanced perspectives on family dynamics and human experiences.’” ~Amazon
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