When Marine Biology professor Alex Vergara received the email from Australia Institute of Marine Science, he reread it five times before believing it.
“We are pleased to offer you a senior research fellowship in Australia.”
He went for psychological evaluations. He gathered character references from business partners. The letters he solicited from the victim’s surviving family were astonishingly compassionate, explaining that they no longer viewed him as a danger.
His lawyers argued that the offense was accidental, not malicious, that he had no repeat offenses, that he contributed economically through his business, and that denying him would cause hardship to his long-term partner legally residing in Australia.
Meanwhile, James searched for work. And discovered something nobody had prepared him for - in Australia, he was nobody. His business credentials from Batangas meant little. His accent marked him immediately. His record made background checks complicated.
Months passed. Savings thinned. Finally, he accepted a dishwashing job at a seafood restaurant near the harbor. The first night destroyed him. Steam burned his wrists. Teenagers half his age gave instructions impatiently. Plates towered endlessly beside industrial sinks. He returned home smelling like detergent and fish guts. Alex tried to comfort him.
*Images enhanced using AI filters
* All characters and events in this work are fictional. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, or actual entities is unintentional and coincidental.