Mom are we really out of food today? Andy asks in a hushed tone, his voice shaking like a trembling leaf. His big brown eyes search Emilys face for an answer, and that look hurts her more than any hunger.
No, Andy theres nothing left, she whispers, pulling him close as if she could shield him from the whole world. But maybe well find something along the way.
Andy bursts into tears. In that moment Emily feels the cold of the house and the chill of the streets squeezing her heart. Every day is a battle for survival, every step a effort not to fall.
Outside the streets look grey and drained. Crumbling terrace houses with peeling paint, broken fences, grimy windows everything seems weary, just like them. By a rusted lamppost stands Victor, an old friend, his gaze empty.
Emily, how much longer can you endure this poverty? he asks bitterly.
As long as Andy needs me, she replies calmly, though pain rings in her voice. If I give up, hell have no future.
The walk to the market is hard: neighbours stare sideways, children wail from hunger, stray dogs rummage through bins. At a corner a little girl in tattered clothes shivers, eyes wide with fright. Emily stops, pulls out a few bunches of parsley and a hardboiled egg. The girl sobs silently, and Emily feels the strangers pain become her own.
Thank you I dont know how to repay you, the girl whispers.
Its enough if you look after yourself, Emily says, wiping a tear.
At the market everyone hurries, buying only the essentials. A biting wind pierces their thin coats, fingers go numb. Suddenly Emily notices a crumpled sheet on the ground, tucked under passing feet. She picks it up a notice of eviction. Her heart clenches. If they cant pay the £150 due in two days, theyll be out on the street.
No we cant lose everything, she murmurs, clutching the paper like a last hope.
On the way back a neighbour blocks her path.
Emily, you cant keep living here without paying, he says coldly. I cant keep covering you forever.
I know Im looking for work, trying to earn, she replies.
Make it faster. Youve got to be out by tomorrow.
That night the cold seeps even through the thin blanket. Emily holds Andy close to warm him, but her own body trembles. Andy falls asleep with tears on his cheeks, while she sits in the darkness, unable to sleep from fear.
The next day desperation becomes unbearable. The landlord threatens to come first thing in the morning, and they have no money at all. Emily sells what little she has, yet the cash barely covers a loaf of bread.
Emily, what now? Victor asks, having come to help. Were out of options
Well have to ask for aid hoping they dont turn us away, she whispers, lowering her eyes.
That night Emily drifts off hungry, frozen, exhausted. She dreams of a house without walls and a child reaching for her, but she cant reach back.
She doesnt give up. At dawn she goes searching for any job sweeping courtyards, selling vegetables, cleaning neighbours gardens. Days melt into fatigue, but every penny she tosses into an old tin from a coffee shop becomes a tiny flicker of hope.
Andy grows beside her, watching. At school other kids tease him for his shabby clothes and worn notebooks. Emily teaches him to look higher.
Andy, ignore them. A persons worth isnt in what they own, but in what they give.
Years pass. Andy studies hard, grabbing every chance. From meagre wages he pays for extra lessons, learns English, maths, reads late into the night. Emily supports him even when shes collapsing from exhaustion.
When he wins his first national science competition, Emily weeps with joy. Its the first beam of light in a long darkness. Yet the struggle continues. University fees loom, the road ahead demands stamina. Andy takes odd jobs to afford textbooks, travel cards, everything he needs.
Its tough: stern lecturers, indifferent strangers, sleepless nights. Still, he refuses to quit. Each fall teaches him not to fear getting up. Meanwhile Emily keeps sending parcels, writing letters, scraping together tiny sums living solely for him.
Eventually Andy graduates with honors, earns a scholarship to study abroad. It hurts Emily to let him go, but her heart whispers, Now he can fly.
He returns years later, changed: confident, strong, successful. He starts his own firm and helps others, never forgetting where he started.
One afternoon he takes his mothers hands.
Mom everything I have is because of you.
Emilys eyes fill with tears.
I was only doing what a mother must, she says softly.
He hands her a set of keys to a new house warm, bright, free of cold and fear.
This is yours now, Mum. Youll never be cold again. This is your home.
Emily settles onto a soft sofa, looks around the room, and feels calm. After years of fighting, warmth finally returns. In Andys eyes she sees the highest reward gratitude.
I love you, Mum, Andy says.
And I love you, son, she replies, smiling. Im prouder of you than anything else in the world.
From the ashes of their pain, hope has grown. A mothers love didnt just save a child it created a person. And even on the darkest days it proved that true light lives inside those who never give up.
