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- >Damn, you're cold.
- >Giving another shiver, you get yourself more snug into your jacket as you walk down the familiar, poorly-lit sidewalk.
- >You hate this place.
- >This part of town was a hole in the world, like a great black pit.
- >And it was filled with people who were filled with shit.
- >The vermin of the world inhabit it...
- >In a place like this, being edgy was preferable to being depressed and suicidal.
- >Making a right, you head down the worst part of your walk home.
- >Your apartment was on the other side of the riskiest street in town to walk through.
- >You called it "The Gauntlet", because it was filled with hobos who looked like they could snap at any moment.
- >Putting on your best "don't fuck with me" face, you proceed down the street.
- >Staring straight ahead, you continue walking to your destination, doing your best to ignore the smell, quiet mutterings and occasional laughter from those around the various trash fires around you.
- >Probably talking about how many people they've stabbed, or how many children they've raped or something.
- >Animals...
- >Approaching the final stretch on your way home, something in the alleyway on your left catches your attention.
- >No, not something... Someone.
- >You look down the alleyway and you see a girl sitting next to a dumpster beneath a streetlight. Her head is resting in her arms, and she's rocking back and forth.
- >She's clearly living in the same conditions as the rest of the scum on this street, but there's something... different about her...
- >You don't know why, but you start walking towards her.
- >She hasn't noticed you yet.
- >You take another few steps towards her. Your curiosity is piqued.
- "S'cuse me-"
- >Your foot bumps against a glass bottle and it rolls along the ground, breaking the silence.
- >The girl, startled, looks up at you with tear-stained eyes.
- >That in itself startled you as well. She's beautiful.
- >Albeit, she clearly hasn't bathed in a while, and she's covered in dirt, but there's something about her.
- >You don't know how, but you can see that she isn't like the rest of these hobos that live around here.
- >She whimpers lightly and cowers back against her dumpster.
- >"P-p-please... P-please d-don't..."
- >You quickly hold up your hands.
- "Woah, woah, woah, calm down. It's alright, I'm not going to hurt you."
- >She stays where she's at. She's way too scared to trust you right now.
- >You keep your hands raised and slowly step closer, her eyes are filled with terror as they meet yours.
- >In the dim lighting, you notice through the holes in her tattered jacket that she is covered in bruises, and she has a black eye.
- >You crouch down to her level and look into her eyes.
- "I won't hurt you. I promise."
- >If saying that helped, it was only slightly.
- >Her arms lowered a bit and her eyes were now searching yours to see if you were telling the truth.
- >In an effort to help her see your sincerity, you give her a small smile.
- >You both just sat there, staring into each other's eyes for a few minutes, saying nothing.
- >"Wh... Why h-haven't you h-hit me or... or... anything y-yet?"
- >What the hell?
- "Uh... I wasn't planning on hitting you or anything at all."
- >She looks at you with shock and wonder, almost like she physically can't understand what you're saying.
- >"Wh... Why?"
- >She seriously doesn't know why you're not hitting her.
- >She must've gone through all kinds of hell.
- "Well... Uh... I guess it's because... that's kind of rude. I don't like being rude."
- >You swear you see her smile, just a little bit before she looks down to the ground, her mouth open slightly as the gears in her head turn.
- >She's trying to grasp the reality of what's happening right now.
- >A gust of icy wind blows through the alleyway and you both shiver.
- >Her shiver is noticeably more violent though.
- >Hugging yourself, you look at her as she shakes uncontrollably, and tries in vain to warm herself.
- >You can hear her teeth chattering through the wind.
- >You take a few steps to the side, trying to block the wind from hitting her as best you can.
- >If it helps her at all, it isn't noticeable.
- >When the wind dies down some, you do the first thing that comes to your mind: you take your jacket off and set it on her shoulders.
- >The very second you make physical contact with her, she gasps and tenses up, her eyes shoot open, her pupils are reduced to pinpricks, and she is overcome by a look of terror.
- >You gently set your jacket on her and step backwards, your arms folded tight.
- >She slowly looks at your jacket on her shoulders and feels it with her fingers, almost like she can't believe it's real.
- >She looks up at you with curiosity in her eyes.
- >"Wh- Why are you being so nice to me?"
- >Why is she so surprised by kindness?
- "Were you expecting me to be mean?"
- >"Yes."
- >Oh, your heart.
- >It's now filled with sorrow.
- >You look at her sadly.
- "Why would you immediately assume that?"
- >She pauses and looks down to the ground, sinking into your jacket.
- >"Because... Everyone else here I've met has been..."
- >You just stare at her in shocked silence.
- >She rubs the sleeves on your jacket as she tries to get warm.
- >You can't take the sight of this anymore.
- >You need to hear her story, but you can't let her sit out here in the freezing cold.
- "Look, uh... I can't leave you out here to freeze to death. How about you come inside and warm up?"
- >She looks up at you.
- >"Wh- What do you mean?"
- "I mean, I want you to come up to my apartment. Warm up, take a shower, and I'll make you some hot cocoa."
- >She looks hesitant.
- >"I don't know..."
- >You don't want to force her to come upstairs, but at the same time, you know she probably won't survive the night out here in the cold.
- "I know you probably don't trust me, or anyone else. Your bruises suggest you've been through your fair share of hell lately."
- >She shamefully looks down and tries to hide them.
- >Damn. Damage control.
- "What I mean is, I feel bad for you. Seriously, I do. I want to help you."
- >She still doesn't look up at you.
- "I promise you, cross my heart, that I'm not going to hurt you or do anything to you. All I want is warm you up, get you clean, get you fed, and give you a decent place to sleep. No funny business."
- >When food was brought up, she looked at you solemnly.
- >"Sleep? Like, in a bed?"
- You shrug. "Well, I'm sure as hell that it beats what you're sleeping in now."
- >You motion towards the dumpster behind her and she gives a slight giggle.
- >"Yeah, I bet it does..."
- >You smile at her as she starts to open up a bit.
- >You look into her eyes and extend your open palm to her.
- "Come with me, and I'll help you... I promise."
- >She looks at your hand for a moment before looking up at you again.
- >You smile at her reassuringly.
- >Finally, she moves her hand into yours and squeezes it.
- >"A- Alright..."
- >You smile wide at her and help her to her feet.
- >She trembles some as she stands up next to you.
- "Okay then. Follow me."
- >You walk out of the alleyway with the girl behind you.
- >Oh, that's right. You haven't even introduced yourself yet.
- "I'm Anonymous, by the way. But call me Anon."
- >"Anon?"
- "Anon."
- >She rubs your jacket and smiles as she walks behind you.
- >"N- Nice to meet you, Anon... I'm Sunset. Sunset Shimmer."
- >Sunset Shimmer.
- >That's a beautiful name.
- "It's nice to meet you too, Sunset Shimmer."
- >She smiles again and you turn the corner.
- >Walking upstairs, you get to your apartment and insert your key into the lock.
- >You open the door and usher her inside.
- >Upon entering, her eyes brighten up like a kid at Disneyland.
- >There were stains on the carpet, a few old pizza boxes piled in the corner, it was cluttered and messy, and the walls were gross and faded.
- >This place was a shithole to you, but it must've seemed like a five-star hotel to her.
- "Well Sunset, please, make yourself at home. I'm sorry it's a bit gross."
- >"No... No, it's not gross. It's wonderful!"
- >You cock an eyebrow at her as she continues staring at your apartment.
- >Five-star indeed.
- >You walk into the kitchen and open your freezer.
- >You pull out a couple of pizza flavored Hot Pockets and put them in the microwave before filling up two glasses with water.
- >Two minutes later, you take the Hot Pockets and water out into the living room.
- >Sunset is laying on your couch with a huge smile on her face.
- >She quickly sits up as you enter.
- "Alrighty then, here's some dinner."
- >Almost immediately after setting the plate down on the coffee table, she snatches both of them up and starts messily devouring them, like a bloodthirsty animal.
- >You yank your hand away quickly as she eats the Hot Pockets without restraint.
- >You set the glass of water down next to the plate and inch it forward.
- >Seeing it, she grabs it and gulps it all down within seconds.
- >When she's done, she exhales loudly and wipes her mouth.
- >She then realizes the display she just showed to you and looks at you sheepishly.
- "A bit hungry, were ya?"
- >She gulps and smiles at you nervously, and you think you can see her blush under that dirt on her face.
- >You just laugh and take the empty plate.
- "Don't be ashamed, I understand. I'm just glad you've been fed."
- >You walk into the kitchen and put the plate in the sink.
- >"Thank you, Anon."
- >You turn around and see Sunset standing there.
- >She looks embarrassed, sad, and grateful all at the same time.
- >You smile at her.
- "You're welcome, Sunset."
- >You glance at the clock real quick.
- >10:37
- >You're tired, and you're pretty sure she is too.
- "So, there's a bit of an issue we have here. I only have one bed."
- >She immediately looks worried about where this might lead.
- "So, I'm gonna give it to you. I've got the couch. Okay?"
- >She breathes a sigh of relief and smiles at you.
- >"Okay."
- >Poor thing.
- >You walk past her and go down the hallway.
- "Here to the right is the bathroom, here to the left is the office room, which has just a bunch of crap in it, and down at the end of the hall is my room."
- >You turn on your light and she looks around your room.
- >Nothing flashy. You got a few posters on the wall, a decent-sized bed, an old dresser, and a small tv.
- "Here you go. You can shower in the morning, if you want."
- >She looks at your bed and pauses before turning back to you.
- >"But these are the only clothes I have."
- >Her "clothes" consisted of an old jacket that was filled with holes, a black beanie cap, and a pair of old blue jeans.
- >Well, they used to be blue.
- >Snapping your fingers, you go to your closet and dig through the contents on one of the shelves.
- >You pull out a magenta t-shirt, a pair of clean jeans, and some women's panties.
- >You also pull out a pair of short shorts and an oversized AC/DC t-shirt.
- >Turns out, ex-girlfriends ARE good for something.
- "Here. Now you have another outfit to wear tomorrow, and you have some sleeping-in clothes."
- >She takes them in her arms and looks at you.
- >You smile at her.
- "Go on, take 'em. I have no use for them, and the girl who owned them before probably won't care. So, they're yours now."
- >She looks at her new clothes and gives a small laugh.
- >"I just... I am at a loss for words, Anon. I have no idea what to say."
- >You set your hands on her shoulders and look into her eyes.
- "You don't need to say anything. I couldn't let you freeze to death, Sunset."
- >With tears beginning to form, she closes her eyes and slowly hugs you.
- >You smile and wrap your arms around her, rubbing her back and patting her head.
- >You hear her sniff and start to cry.
- >The best thing you can do now is just make sure she's comforted and feeling cared for.
- >You don't stop the hug, you let it run it's entire course.
- >She didn't cry for long, but she hugged you for an eternity.
- >It was a very sweet and tender moment. You're glad you got to share with her.
- >It unfortunately had to end though.
- >You pull yourself out of the hug and look at her.
- >She looks really tired all of the sudden.
- >Crying takes a lot out of you.
- >She looks up at you with a tired smile on her face.
- >You smile back at her.
- "Well missy, I think it's time for bed."
- >She rubbed her arms and looked at your bed.
- >"It's been so long since I slept in a warm bed..."
- >You smile at her and back up out of the room.
- "Well, you're in for a treat tonight then."
- >She looks at you, her smile fading as you leave.
- "Don't worry, I'll be right out here on the couch. If you need me for anything, don't hesitate to wake me up, okay?"
- >She looks around the room a bit, still standing there before looking back at the bed.
- >"Well... M- Maybe... Y- You c- *mumble*."
- >You lean forward.
- "Say again?"
- >She looks back at you and snaps herself out of it.
- >"N... Nothing. Never mind... Thank you so much, Anon. For all this, I just... I don't know what else to say..."
- >You smile at her and go in for another hug.
- "You're welcome, Sunset."
- >She hugs you back and sighs happily.
- >You both stand in the hug for a while before you break it.
- "Okay then. Goodnight, Sunset."
- >"G... Goodnight, Anon."
- >You both smile at each other and she shuts the door.
- >You feel good.
- >Taking off your shirt, you plop on the couch and take a deep breath.
- >Sunset's a good girl. You like seeing her happy.
- >Tomorrow, hopefully, you'll get to do it more.
- >You yawn and shut your eyes as you fall asleep.
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