Inyanga's Star and Other Constellations

III. Where Did Cielo's Apartment Go?

Glossary

Refri: Fridge, from Spanish

Forno: Stove, from Italian

pequiñisimo: the smallest, Spanish

cocina: kitchen, Spanish

encita: pregnant

cama: bed

Cielo's Star Part 3

Where was Drishti? Were they supposed to show themselves inside? Shouldn't there be a guide here to show them the apartment?

The sight in the brightly lit entry tripped Cielo up.

It was kind of like stepping into a house of mirrors or a fun house. Leading Samura inside by the hand, Cielo entered just inside and three steps in, the whole place filled the entire field of vision and it was so . . .

mindbendingly . . .

small.

Exactly as pictured, the kitchen counter divided the living space, and beyond that, a wall separated two nook bedrooms which would need to be covered behind a curtain for privacy; the fully open concept space, the kitchen to the left, complete with sink, a cool box refri, a forno to cook on, and a full bathroom aeh could see when aeh turned aer head to the right. Every square inch of the place entered aer sight in an instant, and that was it!

An apartment in miniature.

The counter Cielo imagined prepping home cooked dinners on didn't come up to their waists.

No extra space between the forno and the sink for a space rack or an appliance or to be of any use at all.

The living space would not fit the square table and sofa and coffee table they had imagined, maybe an armchair, no space to spare, and the two bedrooms up a step looked like two little cubbies. Space for a bed or a desk, and not a square inch more.

Every aspect of the flat matched the pictures on the classified, which had built the pictures in their heads, except in excruciatingly small dimensions! Even the ceilings dipped low toward their heads.

What boggled the mind was how it all seemed shrinked in proportion, all of it exactly the dimensions that would create the illusion of spaciousness in a picture. From where Cielo stood, instead it was pequiñisimo. As if a deception were in play. An intentional one.

A laugh tumbled from aer mouth. Catching Samura's eye, both broke out laughing.

At least no killer had been waiting inside to get them. One glanced showed that much. No one here.

The two tripped around the counter together to get another view of how absurdly small this prop flat could be. Spreading arms out and spinning in circles, their fingers grazed each other's or wall with each spiral.

Cielo kept on laughing and then a surprise jerk of tears crinkled aer eyes. It stung. High hopes fluttered in their flight and dropped to the ground.

In a show of optimism, they hit the top of their price range with the first housing appointment they had made. The top of their budget. This was it. The most they could afford.

Would each unit they saw after be worse and worse?

Expectations fell hard. Hopes of space to prance around with a little starborn in swaddling clothes, space for Samura to exercise while Cielo just watched and lazily let whatever wanted to happen to aer body after pregnancy just happen. Space for a toddler to stretch her legs, crawl, trip without splitting her head on the furniture, and run. Space to fill their home with the steam and spicy scents of la cocina de la Madre that wouldn't taste the same with magic cooking — it might turn out better with magic, but it wouldn't taste the same.