Standing up too fast, the girl reached for the wall, bracing herself. Stars filled her vision, but she didn’t pass out. Staring in front of her, she blinked a few times. Sweat quickly beaded across her forehead.

               “Are you okay, sweetie,” an elderly lady asked, touching her right arm. Thick glasses dangled from the bedazzled chain wrapped around her neck. “Mayhaps you need to sit for a spell, whaddya say?” Helping the young blonde girl down the hallway to a wooden bench between two locked office doors, the elderly woman asked, “You look green, dear. Would you like some gum? Nothin’ a stick of mint gum can’t fix.” She winked at the girl.

               The young lady shook her head no.

               “You sure? I’ve got some gum in here somewhere,” she said, digging through the carpetbagger purse, big enough to hold everything you might need. “Oh,” she pulled out a small umbrella, giving it an odd look, “I wondered where this got to. Now, lemme see here.” She threw the umbrella back inside the purse, not caring where it might end up in the recesses of her purse. “Ah! There we go,” she pulled out a small package of mint Trident, unscathed in the massive bag. The gum had never been opened, so she ripped off the end and handed the young lady three pieces. “If you ask me, they make these damn pieces so freakin’ small! Not enough to chew, you know what I’m sayin’?”

               The girl nodded, accepting the gum. Confused, she stared at the wrappers; it was almost as if she’d never seen a piece of gum.

               “Well, go on, girl. Take off their paper and pop ‘em into your mouth.” The old woman gestured to the gum. Her eyes were blank, lost as if she’d never seen a wrapped-up piece of gum in her lifetime. “My name’s Mitsy. But you can call me Ms. B. That’s what everyone here calls me.” Her hands gesticulated, indicating the various rooms in the hallway where they were sitting. “Here,” she said, taking the pieces from the girl’s hand, unwrapping each piece, and putting the gum into her palm. “Now, you just go on and pop those into your mouth, dearie.” She looked scared, like a frightened animal. “It’s not poison, child. It’s gum. You chew it,” she opened her mouth and showed her the chewed-up piece in her mouth. “Go on now, child.”

               The girl put one piece in her mouth and chewed. Her grimace indicated the new sensation of mint washing over her tastebuds. Her eyes watered for a minute before a smile widened across her lips. She nodded at the old black woman, smiling, touching her right hand’s fingers above her chin.

               “Oh, my stars, child. Youns deaf, ain’t you?” she asked, touching her hands to her ears. The girl nodded, affirming her suspicions. “Ain’t you never had gum before?”

               The blonde girl shook her head, a vehement no.

               “Well, you just let ol’ Ms. B. take care of you. Lord,” Ms. B looked up to heaven, “now I gots me a blonde white girl who can’t speak that’s I gotta take care of? Well, thank you, Jesus. This gonna be a challenge, that’s for certain!” Laughing, she held the girl’s head in her hands, looking deep into her eyes. “You gots nothin’ more to worry about, child. Ms. B’s gonna get you straightened right out. Right out!” Again, Ms. B. laughed, a big booming laugh. The girl felt the vibrations, a perma-grin attaching itself to her face.