"Yoko...are you here?" John called out after opening the door to the apartment.

There was no answer.

"I guess you're going to have to settle for my cooking." He smiled. "The bathroom is right through there, if you want to clean up. I'll be in the kitchen....it's right over here."

"Thank you...for being so nice." She said.

A few minutes later, John saw the girl come into the kitchen. He noticed she had washed her face and put her hair into a ponytail.

"Have a seat. As you can see, I'm not much of a cook..." he laughed as he put a coke and a plate of two sandwiches in front of her.

"They look...incredible." She smiled.

It was the first time she had smiled. He watched her eat and couldn't imagine what a girl her age had gone through to end up in her situation.

"Thank you again." She said as she took another bite of the sandwich.

"No problem."

"You know...I've crossed paths with you before. You and your wife."

"Have you?" John inquired looking at her, trying to place her.

"Yes...I looked a lot different than I do now though."

Just then, John heard the door open.

"John! Are you home?"

"In the kitchen!" he called back to Yoko.

"Can you help me bring these bags in?"

"I'll be back...make yourself at home." He smiled.

***

Gali began on the second sandwich as she watched John walk out of the kitchen. She never thought something so simple as a sandwich could taste this good. She took a sip of the coke and it felt like such a treat. As her hunger began to subside, Gali began to analyze what had happened in the last hour and how incredibly lucky she had been despite her circumstances.

A minute or so later, she saw John walk in with Yoko into the kitchen.

She smiled at her.

"Yoko this is--"

"Gali." Yoko interrupted. John immediately turned to Yoko with a look of surprise.

Gali was just as surprised. How did she know her name? Yes, they had crossed paths, but had never even exchanged one single word.

"I thought you said your name was Marie?" Gali heard John ask.

"Gali Marie...the name Gali hasn't exactly been good to me recently...I figured Marie might bring a little more order to my life."

Yoko and John had now sat down in front of her.

"Gali is a beautiful name. You should not try to change who you are because of your life experiences...that it what makes you, you." Yoko said.

"How did you know my name?" Gali asked.

Yoko looked at John and he nodded before standing up.

"We have been looking for you." Yoko continued.

"For me? Why?"

"To give this back to you." John answered from the doorway.

Gali looked at him and could not believe her eyes. It was her guitar case.

"How did you get that?" she asked as she walked over to it.

"I saw you leave it...at the restaurant."

"And...you've been looking for me...to return it?" Gali asked with tears in her eyes as she took the case from John.

"Yes..." Yoko replied as she walked over to John.

"Thank you...thank you both. I never thought I'd see this again." She said as she knelt on the floor and began to open the latches of the case. She opened the case and gasped. She looked up to John in shock.

"You...got it restored?" she asked taking it out.

"It was in pretty bad condition...I hope you don't mind." John responded.

"Mind? I...have no way of repaying you for this! Thank you!" she said as she looked it over. She turned the guitar over and stopped abruptly. There it was...the picture she had always seen taped on the guitar. It was still there. She took her hand and touched it for a second as she felt tears fall from her eyes.

***

Gali wrapped herself in a towel and looked at herself in the mirror. She leaned in to take a better look at her face. Her eyes looked tired and she didn't see any life in them. It was a far cry from the person she used to be. She walked back into the room and found a set of clothes on the bed, a toothbrush, toothpaste and a hairbrush. Gali picked up the shirt and held it out. It looked rather small and she wasn't sure it would even fit her. She slipped it on and was surprised that it fit perfectly. She hadn't realized how much weight she had lost in the past months until now. After she was dressed, she took the toothbrush, toothpaste and hair brush back into the bathroom. She brushed her teeth and combed her hair. It was amazing what a few hygienic practices could do for a person.

***

"Where did you find her?" Yoko asked John after having left a change of clothes and some toiletries in Gali's room.

"She kind of found me, actually. I was in that little café near Central Park. The one with the red door? You know the one."

Yoko nodded.

"Well I was reading the newspaper and heard something going on at the front with the cashier. That's when I saw her. I didn't know it was her, but this guy pulled her aside and I got a bad feeling about him so I followed them. Found them in an alleyway. He was trying to take advantage of the situation...probably promised her food for sex."

"Sickening." Yoko stated.

"But I didn't even recognize her Yoko. She looks so different from the girl we saw 2 months ago. She looks emaciated."

"I know...it looks like life has been especially difficult for her since we last saw her."

"She looks so young too. How old do you think she is?" John asked.

"I don't know...maybe 18?"

"She looked pretty happy to see the guitar." John smiled.

"Yes...probably the best thing that's happened to her in a long time."

Just then they heard the room door open and they saw Gali walk into the living room. She smiled shyly.

"Would you like some tea?" John asked.

"Sure." she answered.

"I'm glad to see the clothes fit you so well." Yoko smiled.

"Yes, thank you again." Gali responded as she sat down in the chair opposite them.

"Cream, sugar?" John asked after pouring her a cup.

"No. Plain is fine. Thank you."

John handed her the cup and Gali took a sip.

"It's been so long since I've had tea." She said softly.

"It's been a rough few months, has it?" John questioned.

"Try a rough few years." Gali confessed.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Yoko asked.

***

In all honesty, Gali hadn't talked about what had set in motion the events that led her to be here, but considering everything the two people in front of her had done for her, she felt it was fair to tell them her story.

"Four years ago...my mother and younger sister died in a fire." Gali began. "Dad always blamed himself for their death...he wasn't there...he always said that had he been there, he might have been able to save them. He never really got over their death...and as a result, never really lived after that day. I was only 13 when it happened, but I had to grow up real quick after that. Dad was never the same. It's like he checked out of living. Soon after, he started drinking every day...until one day he just didn't get up. I found him on the floor in his bedroom. At 15, I was forced to go into the foster care system until I turned 17. I must have moved nearly 10 times in those 2 years...not much of a family life, really. The only thing I kept with me for those two years was my dad's guitar. It's all I have left from the life I once had...except for maybe a few pictures."

***
Listening to Gali's story, John couldn't help but feel compassion for her. It was true that he had lost his mother as a teen as well, and his dad had never really been in his life, but he had known the love of a family with his Uncle George and Aunt Mimi...and even after his uncle had died, Aunt Mimi had always been there for him, despite their constant bickering. But here was this girl who had nowhere to go and had been put into a system that constantly moved her from place to place, never staying long enough to form any deep connections.

"How about you play something for us then?" John asked trying to lighten the mood.

"Oh." Gali scoffed. "I don't know how to play. Silly isn't it? Lugging around an instrument I can't even play..."

"I could teach you if you'd like." John offered.

"He's a good teacher." Yoko smiled. "I'm sure you'd pick it up."

***
Gali looked at John as he strummed his guitar. He had kept his promise of teaching her how to play her dad's guitar. She had learned how to tune the guitar, how to play a few notes and chords and now John was teaching her some songs. She had learned how to do it, but it felt more like work to her than a hobby.

"You never thought about going back to school?" Gali asked John.

John stopped playing, looked up and laughed. "What kind of question is that? Does it look like I'd be the type to go back? I never liked it the first time around, what makes you think I'd go a second time?"

"I don't know...to learn."

"Let me tell you something, Gali...it doesn't matter how many degrees you get...you can have more degrees than a fuckin' thermometer...it doesn't make you better than the next person."

"I know it doesn't...I didn't mean...it's just that...nevermind." Gali said softly, regretting having brought up the topic.

John set the guitar down. "What's this all about?"

Gali sighed. "Well...as opposed to you, I actually liked school. I was good at it in fact..." she replied almost a bit embarrassed. "I just...I'm not like you or Yoko...you guys are artistic and have natural talent at your art...your music. It's not like that with me. It's hard for me to play the guitar...it feels like work, you know? Not really all that fun for me."

John looked at her with surprise.

"Numbers are easy for me. Math is easy." she laughed.

"Bloody 'ell, Gali..." John chuckled. "So you'd rather be doing math than music?"

"It'd be more fun." Gali smiled.

***

"Now, I've heard it all!" John laughed as he looked at Gali.

He was amused by what Gali was telling him. In the last few months, John had seen this girl physically recover, he had seen her smile and laugh with pleasure. He had spent hours teaching her how to play her father's guitar and she had learned faster than he thought. And here she was telling him that she didn't find any of that fun...

"I'm not artistic, John..."

"Not artistic? You've picked up the guitar real quick...and you've been dabbling on the piano too...you're a quick learner, Gali."

"But I don't enjoy it..." she said softly. "I don't want to seem ungrateful. You've taken all this time to teach me how to play guitar... and piano, but the truth is that I'm more methodical and analytical than artistic."

"You don't ever have to worry about being ungrateful, Gali." John said as he sat down next to her. "Even if you don't share our same interests..." he winked. "It's evident to both Yoko and me how appreciative you are."

"You and Yoko have been so wonderful...there's no way I could ever repay you for what you've done for me."

"We're not asking you to." John smiled.

***
"We'll see you for dinner, tonight." John said as he opened the front door.

"We can go over the classes for the semester." Yoko smiled as she walked through the door.

"Thank you...for everything." Gali said as she waved and forced a smile.

As the door to the apartment closed, Gali stared at the closed door. She couldn't believe that would possibly be the last time she'd ever see John and Yoko. She walked into her bedroom and pulled out the suitcase from under the bed. She had packed it the night before; John and Yoko had been quite generous with her since she had first arrived into their lives. They had even offered to pay for her to go back to school. She felt a knot in her stomach, knowing she would probably regret giving up that amazing opportunity, but she couldn't stay.

She hadn't expected to develop feelings for John, but it had just...happened. All those hours of him teaching her about music, teaching her how to play the guitar...it had all led to this. She didn't know exactly when it happened; perhaps it had been an accumulation of everything he had done for her, starting from when he saved her that day in the alley. He had taken a genuine interest in her thoughts and opinions; truly caring about her. It was the deepest connection she had felt since her own family. Despite this, however, John had not shown any inklings that he felt the same way about her...he was married after all.

Gali sighed as she grabbed her guitar case and sat down on the bed.

"For goodness sake, Gali, he's 15 years older than you." She scolded herself as she thought of John. "And he's married...you have no right..."

Yoko had been the deciding factor in her leaving. She couldn't do anything remotely disrespectful towards her after everything she'd done for her. From the start, Yoko had made sure she recovered both physically and mentally from everything she had suffered. It had been her who had suggested she go to school and secure a future. How could she interfere in her marriage with John after all of her support? She couldn't. It wouldn't be fair. But Gali didn't trust herself to not act on her feelings and so she had decided it would be best to simply leave.

She opened the drawer to the nightstand and pulled out the money John and Yoko had given her to pay for her first semester. This would be enough to keep her off the streets. She had a plan. To find a job and never go back to the place where John had once found her. John and Yoko had helped her find her way back and she wouldn't let them down. Gali placed an envelope on the bed before grabbing her belongings and walking to the front door. She opened it and looked at the apartment one last time before stepping out.