Daryna finished folding another shirt, then wiped the tears off her face. She didn’t want to go to America, no matter how much they tried to make it sound like the most perfect place in the world. Not if it meant leaving her guinea pig, Max, in Kiev.
She had to carry out the plan she devised when her parents told her they were moving and that there were “absolutely no pets permitted on the airplane.” Didn’t they understand that this was so unfair to her?
One more pair of pants and one more book. There, now she was all set. She moved Max to a little cage her brother Sergiy made for travel. She set the cage in a shopping cart with wheels and canvas sides.
Her little suitcase had wheels so she didn’t need to carry anything. As soon as midnight came, she could pull the shopping cart and her suitcase through the front door of their apartment, move them one by one down the stairs, and leave for her grandmother’s deserted little house just outside Kiev, Ukraine. Her granny lived in a nursing home now and they hadn’t sold her house. Daryna found the key a couple days earlier. And she knew the way there so well, she could probably find it with her eyes closed.
That evening, after supper, Daryna grabbed a few cabbage rolls and pieces of bread while clearing the table. There, now she’d have food for the next day. Her grandmother had left food in the cupboards in case the family decided to spend a weekend there. Her granny always prepared lots of preserves like canned peaches, applesauce, pickles and green beans in vinegar, tomatoes and pickled onions. There was chicken Kiev in the freezer and a few cookies too. Daryna checked that all out the last time her family went there.
“Don’t forget to wash the pans on the stove,” her mother called out from the living room. “There’s a big pan with more cabbage rolls in the oven. Put those cabbage rolls in a leftover container and put that in the refrigerator.
Good, more cabbage rolls she could take with her. Daryna put a few cabbage rolls in a piece of tin foil and slipped it in her pocket. They were so warm and smelled so good. Oh, better put those in her suitcase right away. Her mother would get suspicious if she smelled like cabbage rolls.
“Sweetheart, could you bring me a cup of coffee?” her father called out from the living area.
“In a moment, Papa.” Daryna put the foil packet with cabbage rolls on the counter and got her father some coffee. She pulled a few cookies out of a package and put them on the saucer where she’d set the cup of coffee. They would think she was happy if she was extra nice, and never suspect that she was up to something.
“Mama, would you like coffee and some cookies too?” she asked as she handed her father the saucer and cup.
“No, I don’t want to weight down the plane when we take off next week. I’ll have extra cookies when we get to Chicago. It sounds like Nadia and Davyd’s family there have a very nice bakery.”
Chicago, next week. All those words made her stomach turn.
“Mama, will we ever come back to Kiev to visit?” Daryna’s brother Sergiy asked. He looked up from his computer then was back to typing a moment later.
“I hope so, but the tickets cost a lot. So, not too often”
“We’ll probably be pretty busy for some time,” Daryna’s father added. “We all have to learn English, and you and your brother will be in school. They’ve already started classes, so you’ll have to do some catching up.”
“I’ve had three years of English and I know lots of words and phrases. Do I have to go to the English language school too?” Sergiy asked.
“Maybe not. We’ll see after we meet with the school director.”
English, another word Daryna didn’t want to hear or think about. Ukrainian was a beautiful language. Why should they throw it away?
Daryna finished washing the dishes. When her brother came in to dry them, he held up each piece of silverware and every dish and told her what the word for it was in English. He made her repeat each one after him. She did but after each word made a fist in the dishwater and vowed, I’m never saying that English word again.
She hoped the English lesson was finished when she’d washed everything, but Sergiy moved on to tell her the word for chair, table, light, stove, sink, and anything else that caught his eye. The clock struck 8 o’clock and the usual gong sounded. Four more hours of staying awake. Then all those hours of walking.
Her mother used to tell her not to have a cola in the evening or it would keep her awake. As soon as her brother finished drying dishes and left the kitchen, Daryna poured herself a big glass of cola. She drained the glass then went into her room to study.
A little while later, her mother came in with a snack and kissed the top of her head. “I’m so proud of you, honey. I know this move is hard for you. But we’ll all be together in Chicago and we will help each other. You’ll make new friends. Maybe after we’re settled, you can get a new guinea pig. You’ll see, you’ll be okay.” Another kiss on the top of her head.
Maybe she shouldn’t run away. Her mother would be very upset, very sad. And when she got lonely, her mother, father, and brother would be far away in America. Who would she visit with and who would help her?
But her parents knew she always had trouble making friends. She tried to be nice to people, to share things, to help other kids with their science homework. But she was shy. When the other kids were choosing teammates, she would always be overlooked until the end. It was very disappointing. Besides, she didn’t want another guinea pig, just Max.
What would happen when she didn’t show up for school the next day? They’d probably call her parents and they would go look for her. She’d have to hide in her granny’s basement the next afternoon. She could put Max’s cage under the steps. Better take his bottle for drinking out of his cage. He often banged it against the cage when the water didn’t come out quick enough. Better give him extra pellets and carrots so he wouldn’t squeak or squawk.
When the clock bonged out that it was 9 o’clock, Daryna’s eyelids were droopy. How would she stay awake another three hours? Maybe if she took a little nap and had some more cola. But an hour after the extra cola, she was even more tired. When she closed her eyes for a few minutes, her head dropped onto her desk. Her mother came in and when she saw Daryna asleep on her desk, insisted she go to bed.
Please God, help me wake up at midnight so I can leave. You know I love my guinea pig and have to take care of him. If I’m doing something bad, please forgive me, God.
The clock made its usual sound at midnight and Daryna woke up. But a minute later, her eyelids were so heavy, she let them fall. She’d leave at 1 o’clock instead. She heard the bong at 1 o’clock and got up and dressed. She got Max ready, quietly pulling more carrots out of the refrigerator and dropping them into a plastic bag.
She slipped a sweater over her shirt, pulled Max in his cage-shopping cart out to the entryway then got her suitcase. She slowly opened the front door and moved her things out onto the landing. Just as she planned, she moved her things down the stairs, one at a time. When she got out onto the street, she couldn’t believe how dark it was. Why didn’t she think to bring a flashlight? It was going to be a long, long walk to her granny’s place.
Five blocks later, she was tired and stopped at a park to sit on a bench. She pulled a carrot out of the plastic bag and broke off a piece for Max. She could hear him crunching from a meter away. Would he give her away when she hid him at her granny’s? She moved two meters away and then three. He sure was loud. Maybe she’d just give him pellets then. She packed a whole sack of hay and pellets.
Daryna slowly stood and stretched. Back on the road. She went another block, then another. Then she saw a headlight come from behind her. She froze.
The light stopped moving and she heard a car door open then close. Dear God, please keep me safe. Jesus, help me and Max.
“What are you doing out at night, little lady?”
Daryna turned around and saw a policeman standing with his hands on his hips. “Where is your home, little one?”
There was no way she could run, not if she was going to take Max and her suitcase with her. She needed both. Better just give up. But then she’d have to give up for good because her family would know her plan and never give her another chance to run away.
She told the policeman her address and soon they were at her family’s apartment. Her mother and father apologized to the policeman many times. But they didn’t seem angry with her. When she explained why she ran away, her mother cried and kissed the top of her head again. She put Max back in his regular cage and gave him another piece of carrot.
Her brother got up and when he heard what happened said “You’re goofy, the goofiest sister in the whole world. Where were you going to live? Who was going to get you food and clothes and keep Granny’s place warm and safe? Goofy girl.”
Her father said “You are very fortunate a policeman was the one who saw you first. You could have been hurt by someone mean or hungry and looking for food. Thank Jesus you are okay.”
“Your cousin Ludmilla will take care of Max, just like we planned.”
“But she already has a guinea pig.” Daryna didn’t agree with that plan when her mother came up with it three weeks ago.
“Then she’ll know how to take care of Max,” her father answered
“And Max will have a friend,” her mother added.
“That’s true. I always wanted him to have a friend.”
“That is exactly what we want for you, Daryna. New friends, new school, new opportunities.”
“But not a new mother, or father, or brother,” Sergiy added. “Because you’ve already got the best.”
“Best, but goofy too,” Daryna added as she slipped off her sweater. Max was chewing on a stick of hay. “Ludmilla can send me pictures and tell me how Max is doing. And I can pray for Max too. Max, I got your back.” She slipped him another piece of carrot and headed to her room. “Night best mother, best father, best goofy brother. I love you.”
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LuWc3-dNGRTY2M7HZY_iB33o6yg9EfBZWgjDAy_4C4E/edit?usp=sharing