The Sun and Her Moon | CHONI |

One

With the last box piled on the kitchen counter Toni finally took a breath taking in her new surroundings. She didn't have a lot but that didn't matter, she was free and this was a fresh start for her and her son. Toni had escaped an abusive relationship with her five year old son Tommy after things had gotten worse than usual and Tommy's father had laid hands on their son. No matter what she allowed to happen to her she would never allow harm to come to her son. So at 28 years old she had packed a few of their things hiding them under Tommy's bed and slipping out in the middle of the night without a trace, no credit card, no cell phone and a little cash she had saved over the past few years. They had lived in a domestic violence refuge for a few months before finally finding a small apartment in a city called Riverdale.

'Mommy?' Tommy asked pulling Toni from her thoughts 'when are we going home to daddy?'. She knelt down to his level taking a steady breath, he was confused at what was happening since they fled their previous home. 'Well' she said handing him his tatty teddy bear Rory 'this is our home now, just for you and mommy. We're gonna have lots of fun and you're going to make lots of new friends. It's going to be an adventure' she smiled as he took in every word. 'Okay mommy' he just nodded. Every now and again he would ask questions about his father but he was normally satisfied with Toni's answer. 'Shall I put some cartoons on for you to watch?'. 'Yaaayyy' he squealed running to the worn down couch as Toni switched on cartoons on the tv. While he was occupied she could organise some of their things, luckily the apartment was furnished so she had enough to start and could upgrade when she could afford it.

She went to Tommy's room first, placing his few clothes in the set of drawers and his toys in a neat pile in the corner of the small room. She couldn't wait to decorate the room for him, it was white and clean but she wanted to give him the opportunity to have the room the way he wanted to make it feel like his, when she could afford it of course. Looking at Tommy still watching tv cuddled with his teddy bear as she exited his room to go to her own made her heart melt, she promised herself she'd give him the best life possible. Her bedroom was slightly bigger, a double bed in the middle of the room with a single set of drawers, it didn't look a lot but Toni couldn't have asked for more. She placed her box on her bed pulling out her clothes and the photo album she had packed which contained precious photos of her son. She sat down on her bed holding the photo album in her hands, slowly she started to flick through the pages her eyes filled up. At least after everything that had happened to her something good came out of it. The little light of her life. Her little boy. 'Mommy are you sad?'. She wiped her tear not noticing the small boy had come into the room. 'No baby, Mommy's fine. Just happy'. 'You're crying because you're happy?' His little face scrunching up 'you're silly mommy'. He climbed up on her lap and wrapped his small arms around her. 'I love you sweet boy' she squeezed him a little. 'Love you mommy' he tried to mimic her squeeze. 'How about I come and watch some cartoons with you?'. 'Okay let's go' he jumped off of her lap and reached for her hand dragging her towards the couch.

'Mommy I'm hungry' Tommy moaned holding his tummy. 'Me too, shall we go find some place to eat?'. He nodded eagerly. Toni hadn't had time to get any groceries yet and she was pretty tired so eating out seemed like a good idea. 'Okay go grab your coat and shoes. He jumped from the couch rushing to his room with Rory dangling from his hand. Soon enough he was back in front of his mom holding out his shoes and coat. Toni bent down to help him slip his feet into his shoes and tied them, she then pick up his coat and held it open for him to slip his arms through. After zipping it up she tapped his nose causing him to giggle. 'Okay let's go' she said putting on her jacket 'but keep hold of my hand okay?'. 'Yep' the little boy smiled.

As they left the apartment and got onto the street Toni took Tommy's hand. It was busier than what they were used to coming from a small town. 'Okay buddy let's go find some place to eat' she gently pulled his arm so he'd start walking. She looked down at him as they walked noticing him taking everything in with wide eyes. 'What do you think?' she squeezed his hand. 'The buildings are sooo big, they are touching the sky' he said pointing up. 'Yes they are' she chuckled. The streets had gotten slightly less busy after they had been walking for about 20 minutes. 'Mommy there!' Tommy stopped in his tracks and pointed to a little dinner tucked away on the corner of the street. 'You wanna eat there?' Toni asked knowing her son was a fussy eater. 'Yes Yes YES' he laughed. 'Okay' she said 'lets go'. The little bell above the door jingled as they walked in. 'Hello there, eat in or take away?' a man from behind the counter said with a kind smile. 'Eat in please' Toni smiled. 'Okay take a seat I'll be with you in a moment' he motioned to the seating area.

Toni let Tommy choose their booth, he sat down and she sat across from him. 'Okay little man what do you want to eat?'. 'Ermm fries, cheeseburger and strawberry milkshake pleaseee' he smiled happily. As Toni glanced around the diner she decided she liked the look of it, it was old school, something you wouldn't expect in a city. Her eyes landed on a help wanted  sign hanging on the door, 'perfect' she thought. The same gentleman that greeted them came over to their table 'Hi I'm Pop, what can I get you guys?' he smiled. 'Hi Pop. Could we have two cheeseburgers and fries and also a strawberry and a chocolate milkshake please?'. 'Is that everything for you both?'. 'Actually I noticed the sign on the door, I'm definitely interested if it's still available?'. 'It is still available, could you start Monday around 9.30am for a trial?'. 'Yes that would be great thank you, I'm Toni and this is Tommy'. 'Well nice to meet you Toni and Tommy, your order will be right out' he left with a smile. It was perfect, Tommy started his new school on Monday and it left her enough time to time to take him, things were finally coming together for the small family.

'So what do you think so far?' Toni started a conversation with her son. 'I like it and I like it in here' Tommy gave her a toothy grin. 'Good, me too baby'. The jukebox played music in the background and she chuckled as the little boy danced as he sat in his seat. He was such a great kid, so compassionate and kind, Toni was glad he was nothing like his father. It didn't take long for Pop to come back out with their food. 'Here you go' he said as he placed their food on the table. 'Thank you' both mother and son said at the same time. 'Wow Mommy look at my milkshake' he gasped taking a big sip. 'Yeah well make sure you eat your food before you drink all your milkshake'. He nodded picking up a fry while Toni cut up his burger before digging into her own food. Toni was thankful Tommy was seemingly enjoying his food, she didn't want to be dealing with a temper tantrum in front of the whole diner. Eventually they were both finished and feeling very full. 'Did you enjoy your meal?' Pop asked appearing back at the booth. 'It was very yummy' Tommy smiled. 'Yes Pop it was delicious thank you'. When their stomachs were settled Toni got Tommy ready before going to the counter to pay the bill. 'Thank you Pop, I'll see you Monday'. 'See you Monday, goodbye Toni, bye Tommy'. 'Bye Pop' Tommy waved as he was leaving with his Mom hand in hand.

When they arrived back at their apartment Toni gave Tommy a bath and got him into his pyjama's, she allowed him to play with his toys for half an hour before bed. While she let Tommy play she put her clothes away in her bedroom and the utensils away in the kitchen. In a way she was glad she didn't have a lot of things, it would have been more difficult for her to unpack everything by herself. Once she was satisfied everything had a place she went to go and check on Tommy and get him into bed. As she stepped into his room he had already fell asleep on the floor while he was playing with his toys. Toni stood for a moment just watching his chest rise and fall and his eyelashes twitching as he dreamt. She careful scooped him up careful not to wake him. After pulling back his duvet with one hand she laid him down with Rory the teddy bear and tucked him in. She placed a kiss on his forehead before putting on his nightlight and leaving the room shutting the door behind her. Toni had a quick shower and changed into her pyjamas before sitting on the couch and putting on some Saturday evening show. She picked up the cell phone she had purchased a couple of weeks ago and decided to make new social media accounts, obviously she couldn't use her full name and settled for Toni Tee, she made sure everything was private just in case. She couldn't add any of her old friends in case her ex found her and tried to harass her. That was one thing that did hurt Toni, the fact that she may never see her friends again. She hadn't spoken to anyone about leaving in fear she would be caught. She just couldn't risk it. She just hoped they weren't too worried about her, they knew about the abuse and so she hoped they'd understand. Not wanting to get sucked back in to what was her life, Toni stood up turning off the tv and went to bed. She was exhausted, not just from today but from the past few months. She settled under her duvet and allowed sleep to consume her.