“The shelter,” I clarified.
She wiggled her nose. “Oh, I don’t live here. I mean I did when I first came down here. But now I live with a community.”
“Oh.” I felt like an idiot for assuming. “Sorry, I didn’t realize. I had no idea there was a community here either.”
“Yeah.” She reached down to pick up a crayon that fell on the floor and set it back on the table. “There’s a big one. It’s cool. They don’t know about my past, and they don’t really care either. It’s more of a lost souls community. Not all of us are even gypsies. Just a bunch of outcasts living together in a group without the pressures of tradition, ya know?”
I didn’t know, and part of me hated that. I remembered my mom talking about her clan and how much they meant to her, and how sad she was when she said she could never go back. She explained that sometimes they shunned people, and I could only assume the same had happened to Luna for whatever reason.
“It’s good that you found a place you feel comfortable,” I said, and I meant it. I only wished my mom had better luck than ending up where she had.
“You should come check it out sometime if you want,” Luna offered. “I would love to hang out if you’re up for it. I don’t have many friends here yet.”
“Oh.” I blinked. “Sure, we could do that.”
“Cool.” She ripped a piece of paper out of a scratch pad and scribbled her phone number on it in purple crayon, handing it over to me. “Call me whenever. I’ll be around.”
“Okay.”
“The class is almost over,” Luna said. “If you want, you can help me clean up and then get snacks ready for the littles.”
I trailed along behind her to the storage bins. “Sure, I can do that.”
After all the crayons and paper and glitter pots were sorted and put into their rightful places, the desks were cleaned, and the kids were given juice and a veggie pack. I was grateful I didn’t have to cook anything and risk the chance of embarrassing myself again, and the kids were happy over such a simple gift that it seemed like there was more I should be doing.
“Does anyone ever donate toys?” I asked.
“Oh, sure.” Luna beamed. “The kids love toys, they’re always a hit. But the real winner is just your time. They enjoy having someone to hang out with. It can be a pretty intensive process for the women who come here. They usually need a lot of therapy and time to rebuild themselves so they can be the best moms that they can. Job skills, education, drug and alcohol rehabilitation, all those things take time away from the kids, so it’s really nice when they have someone to read to them or play a game or something simple like that.”
I remembered how much Birdie used to love doing those things with me, and how she never complained that we didn’t own a single toy between us. It physically hurt me to acknowledge that part of our past, and I tried to wash the memory away as I acknowledged what Luna said.
“Hey.” Lucian appeared from behind us. “How’s it coming along?”
“Good,” I answered.
He glanced at the clock on the wall, and my eyes followed. It was hard to believe we’d already been here for a few hours.
“We have to get going. I have some business to finish up back at home.”
“Okay.”
I looked at Luna but didn’t know quite what to say.
“Thanks for helping,” she supplied.
“Thanks for showing me around. I’ll probably see you soon.”
She nodded, and Lucian guided me out the door with his hand on my back. He was quiet and distant, and my thoughts were occupied by the possibility of spending time with Luna. I wanted to, but the sudden cold front from my captor suggested he probably didn’t like the idea of it. I waited until we were safely tucked in the car and halfway home before I said anything.
“I think I’ll call Luna this week.”
He didn’t look away from the road, and his response was automatic. “Okay.”
“Okay?” I glanced at him across the seat. That was it? No argument?
He must have been thinking about it because it wasn’t until we pulled into the driveaway and shut off the ignition that he turned to me.
“Just be careful, Gypsy,” he said wearily. “Promise me you won’t go to the community with her.”