When Henry offers shelter to a homeless woman, he doesn’t expect much, just a quiet act of kindness. But two days later, his garage is transformed, and Dorothy is nothing like she seemed. As her tragic past unravels, Henry realizes this isn’t just about saving her. It’s about saving them both.
I never thought I’d end up sharing my house with a stranger, let alone someone I’d found huddled under a flickering streetlamp in the pouring rain.But that’s exactly what happened.My name’s Henry. I’m thirty, and I’ve lived alone in my childhood home ever since my mom passed away last year. My dad left when I was a kid, so it had always just been me and her.After she was gone, the house turned into an echo chamber.
Too quiet. Too big. Too… empty. I kept busy with work, my girlfriend, Sandra (we weren’t living together yet), and kind of just… existing. I needed more. Something to remind me that I was alive.Then, on one rainy night, I saw her.She sat hunched on the curb beneath a dying streetlamp, drenched, motionless. She was older, maybe in her late fifties or sixties, but something about her seemed off.She wasn’t begging. She wasn’t looking around in desperation. She just sat there. Still. Contained. As if she belonged to the rain itself.
I should have kept walking to my car. I should have… but I didn’t. Something about her presence unsettled me. How was she so okay with just being in the rain?”Hey,” I called out. “Why don’t you find shelter somewhere?”She turned her head slowly toward me. Her face was lined with hardship, but her eyes were bright and sharp. Intelligent. Kind. They reminded me of my mother, and I knew then that she was going to come home with me.”I’m tired of moving from shelter to shelter,” she said, her voice quiet but steady. “It’s pointless, son.”
Before I even thought it through, I blurted,”You can stay in my garage!”She blinked at me, a small frown forming on her forehead.”Your garage?”I nodded.”It’s better than it sounds,” I said. “It’s got a small room inside. Old but livable. There’s a toilet, a bed, running water. It’s messy because I haven’t been there in a year. My mother’s caregiver stayed there sometimes. I’ll clean it up this weekend, I promise.”
Her lips parted slightly, like she couldn’t believe what she’d just heard. She exhaled a short, breathy laugh.”Well,” she murmured. “I’ve got nothing left to lose. Alright. I’ll come. I’m Dorothy.””I’m Henry. I just picked up some food,” I said. “Come, I’m parked around the corner.”And just like that, I brought a stranger home.
The next morning, I let Dorothy sleep in. When we got in last night, I brought her some blankets and gave her half of the takeout I’d gotten and some snacks.I locked the door to the main house and drove to Sandra’s apartment. I hadn’t seen her all week, and I just wanted to be with her. I also wanted to tell her about Dorothy before she came home and stumbled on the old woman herself.
