Moonlight Magic

“Are you crazy Sarah…of course you should report it.” Cried Mandy down the phone so loudly that Sarah had to move her mobile away from her ear. “If you don’t then I will. He could easily have really hurt you.” There was a brief pause. “He could have killed you Sarah.”

“I know. I know.” Replied Sarah quietly. “But…”

“But what?”

“But…it was my fault Mandy…I shouldn’t have disturbed him. Those cardboard boxes are his home.”

“Yes I understand that Sarah, but if someone knocks on your door at home you don’t immediately run out screaming at them, shoving a kitchen knife in their face do you? No.”

“No. You’re right Mandy. I’ll ring the police.”

“Good. You know you have to. What if he attacks someone else? A child maybe. You’ll feel awful if he did that.”

“Yes. Yes. Ok.” Replied Sarah resigned to the fact that reporting the cardboard-box man was the best and right thing to do.

“Ok Sarah. I’m going now but promise me you’ll report it to the police.”

There was silence.

“Promise me.” Insisted Mandy.

“I promise. I will do it as soon as you hang up.”

“Ok. Well…I’m glad you’re Ok…and please…if you will insist on talking to all the down and outs on the street…take someone with you so you’re not on your own…Ok?”

“Yes…I will.”

“Ok. Bye for now Sarah. Love you.”

“Love you too. Bye.” Said Sarah softly as she dropped the mobile from her ear, relieved her friend and colleague Mandy had gone. She loved Mandy to bits…and it was Mandy that recommended her for the job at the charity…but she could be a bit in-your-face at times…although her heart was in the right place.

Sarah stood motionless staring out of her apartment window not really looking at anything in particular just thinking about the cardboard-box man shoving a knife in her face…and then for no reason at all a thought drifted through her head. It was the old man in the hospital…Charlie.

Two men. Both homeless. Both scared.

She didn’t want to dial 999 the emergency number because…it wasn’t an emergency any more was it, so she looked up the local police station number and tapped the number into her phone. It rang and almost immediately someone answered. It was a woman.

“I’d like to report a…a….”

“A what. You’d like to report a what?” said the woman rather sharply.

“I’d like to report a…err…” She tried again.

“Are you alright?”

“Yes…yes…I’m fine sorry for wasting your time…I…” She quickly tapped the red phone icon to hang up and clasped her mobile phone in both hands. She felt bad for promising Mandy and then not going through with it, but she didn’t want the cardboard box man to get into trouble.

It was her fault.

She should have left him alone. He wasn’t doing anyone any harm hiding away in his mountain of cardboard and she really felt that the only reason he did what he did was because he was frightened. Goodness…anyone would be frightened living and sleeping on the street never knowing where your next meal was coming from and worse….never knowing if you would make it through the night because a huge truck reversed over you, not realizing that the pile of cardboard was your house…or being attacked by a group of drunks who thought it would be a laugh to kick and punch you until you didn’t get up.

Yes. It was her fault. And she wouldn’t do it again.