BSIC/1/Start of the story

Thank goodness it's Friday, and you have just finished work at that. A soft sense of familiarity begins to wash over and relax you as you pull in to the apartment complex that you call home, and you are looking forward to flopping down in to your easy chair and unwinding for the next hour so that you can get some good old effective R&R as you plan out your weekend. The sound of the parking break clicking in to place once you have found your parking spot seems to signal your brain that you can relax, and the weight of the entire week seems to catch up with you all at once as your brain shifts gears and you officially go in to weekend mode.

The feeling of your brain relaxing and allowing all the tension to drop off your body is such a good feeling that you simply want to sit in your car and bask in it for a moment. You are not allowed to revel in the thought for too long though. It is not even 10 seconds after you have turned off your car that you see something that catches your attention.

Her name is Ms. Sarto. A young single mother of two who has been the subject of a lot of gossip about the complex. Nobody knows her real age, but from all outward appearances one would think she was 16 with her tight youthful face and petite body. This couldn't possibly be the case though considering her children are 10 and 11 years old. Also, it would seem she does not have a job of any sort, at least not one that would have her leaving the house much. Her kids do not go out much either as it seems she home schools them. Where she gets the money to support her household has always been the subject of a lot of wild theory and speculation.

This is not what really has the complex talking though. Apparently, she is quite the over zealous and over protective doting mother. From what the few people who have spoken to her and her children say, it would seem Ms. Sarto is hellbent on them not learning anything about sex, ever. Not even so much as to know about good touch and bad touch, as the rumor goes. There are even some that say this woman still baths her children, even though they are nearing puberty. Seriously, these kids ought to have been old enough to bath themselves years ago. The worst part about it is that you actually find that rumor believable. With the tight reign she always keeps on those two, always having them follow her around like her little ducklings with her as the mother hen, you could believe anything of the sort.

Just seeing her out and about is always something that makes you want to stop and stare, but that is not the thing that really gets your attention. The look on her face is one that you just can't ignore. You have never seen the woman looking quite so distressed. She seems to be wandering around the complex, looking at the various buildings as though the mere sight of them sparks a war of hope and doubt in her mind. She definitely looks haggard to be sure, and the exhausted look on her children's faces as they trail behind her at a farther distance than usual indicates that they have probably been at it, whatever "it" is, for quite a while.

It is against your better judgment, but you know you it will haunt you if you don't call out and see if you can help with whatever it is that has got her up in a tizzy. You get out of your car just as she walks past you on the sidewalk in her dazed state. "Hey" you call out to her. "Ms. Sarto!" The woman seems to jump half out of her skin upon hearing her name, and she immediately turns to look back towards you with a deer in the headlights expression, causing you to hesitate for a moment. "Is there something wrong?" you ask her. "If you don't mind me saying, you look like you could use some help."

"What?" she shrieks with a guilty expression as her eyes dart about before settling on you. You immediately begin to regret having called out to her as she seems to hone in on you, her face breaking in to a hungry smile as though she has found an oasis in the middle of a desert. It is a look of desperation and hope that you find somewhat terrifying to be on the receiving end of. You find your self preparing to flee until she gets within six paces of you, at which point she seems to reign in the crazy a little, softening her features and slowing her stride.

"Oh, yes," she says in a voice that sounds like someone trying and failing to feign the soft tone of a delicate little flower of a girl from the Victorian era, right down to the off sideways glance. "I... you see..." she stammers, sounding suddenly more genuine as she seems to be trying to speak her true plight, something that seems to have a very strong source of emotional distress, "I have been trying to find a babysitter for Jason and Julie," she declares with a gesture toward the pre-adolecent children who are just catching up to where you are.

The pair give you a tired glance as they walk past, each catching you directly in the eye before returning to their exhausted slouched-over postures. The younger of the two, 10 year old Julie, walks to her mothers side where the woman gently brushes the back of the girl's head as she draws her in to her side for a hug. 11 year old Jason seems to be a lot more stand offish, and stands at an equal distance from both you and his mother, just out of arms reach of both of you, and begins staring sullenly at the ground.

"My... uh... my father has taken ill recently" Ms. Sarto explains. "I had the Jhonson's daughter set up to come over and babysit while I was gone, but then I heard about her boyfriend and the reason she was grounded. I decided it wasn't such a good idea, so I have been out going crazy looking for a last minute replacement since then."

She doesn't seem to intend to elaborate much further beyond that, and doesn't do much more than direct an expectant look towards you. Great. That is certainly quite the request. Not to mention a shocking one that she would consider leaving her children with a man she hardly even knows such as yourself. She is definitely in a state of real desperation, that much is clear to see. You are really not sure you are up for this, but it is also hard to turn down someone who seems to be in this much need. Well, at the very least you could try and get a little more information on the nature of the request.

"Well, I can see it really has been quite the ordeal for you," you identify with her, casting a glance to each of the three faces before you. "When will you be leaving?" you ask her.

"Ummm..." this question seems to make Ms. Sarto very selfconcious as she nervously glances off to the side. "As soon as possible?" she confesses with a slight up-tone that makes the statement sound more like a question. "I am actually half packed already. The only thing keeping me from leaving is finding a sitter."

Well, that would certainly explain why she has been having so much trouble finding someone to sit for her. It really would be a short list of people who could agree to take on a pair of children at THAT short a notice. But considering how long she had to have been out looking for, you would think she would have to have found at least one person by now who was able to take them for the week end.

"Ok, and how long would you need to have them watched for?" you follow up.

If the previous question was a sensitive topic, this one seemed to be almost painful to the little woman. You could actually see her wince, almost as though she had been struck. "One.... week?" she replies with that same up-tone, clearly bracing herself for rejection. This one must be the one that she had lost all of the people she had spoken with before about. There are probably not all that many people who could take HER children on a last minute basis for an entire week, what with the home schooling thing working against them and all. If the children would be away at school during the week days, that would be one thing. But most people have to work during the week and would not be able to deal with someone els' children running around their house all day.

In your case, as much at it would put you out, you actually could probably help her out with this. Being a single man, you don't have any home obligations, and you do have enough vacation time coming that you could call in enough days to have the entire week off.

1. Agree to watch her children for the week.

2. This is just too much to accept. Turn her down.

3. Dig for more information. Why can't she take her children with her?