>Damn, you're cold.
>Giving another shiver, you get yourself more snug into your jacket as you walk down the 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 and angsty were 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 if you want to live" 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 much drugs they've done or how many children they've raped or something.
>Animals, all of them.
>Approaching the final block on your way, something catches your eye.
>Correction, someone.
>You look down the alley on your left and see a girl sitting next to a dumpster beneath a streetlight, her head in her arms, and rocking back and forth.
>She's definitely 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 intentions are not malicious, only curious.
"Excuse 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.
>Now you're startled.
>She's... beautiful.
 
>Albeit, he hasn't bathed in quite 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's a victim of unfortunate circumstances.
>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 you give her a concerned look.
"I promise you, I won't hurt you."
>That worked, but only slightly.
>Her arms lowered a bit and her eyes now searched yours to see if you were being truthful with your words.
>In an effort to help her see your sincerity, you gave 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?"
>You're surprised with her words.
"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.
>Thats depressing as hell.
*ahem* "Well... Uh... I guess it's because... that's kind of a rude thing to do to someone. I'm not into being rude."
>You swear you see a small smile for a fraction of a second 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 in this dark alleyway where the two of you now sit.
 
>A gust of icy wind blows into the alley and you both shiver.
>Hers is noticeably a more violent shiver 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 I've met lately 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'd like to hear your story."
>She looks up at you.
>"Wh- What do you mean?"
"Your story. You. How you ended up here. It doesn't seem fair to me."
>You motion to the dumpster behind her.
"So I'd like to invite you upstairs to my place, where you can get warm, take a shower, and I'll make you some hot cocoa."
>She looked hesitant.
>"I don't know..."
>You aren't going to force her at all, but you're going to be persistent.
"Look, I understand that you're reluctant to trust me, or anyone else for that matter. Your bruises suggest you've been through a bit 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 out a bit."
>She still didn'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?"
"Sure as hell beats what you're sleeping in now, I'm sure."
>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 homeless girl behind you.
>Oh that's right, you haven't even introduced yourself yet.
"I'm Anonymous, by the way. But you can 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.
>Thats 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 apartment 213 and insert your key into the lock.
>You open the door and usher her inside.
>Upon entering, her eyes brighten up like a kid's 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. Sorry it's gross."
>"No... No, it's not gross. It's wonderful!"
>You cock an eyebrow at her as she continues staring at your apartment.
"Well, I'm not gonna stop you from thinking what you want."
>You walk into the kitchen and open your freezer.
>You pull out a couple of pizza flavored Hot Pockets and fill up two glasses with water.
>You nuke the Hot Pockets and carry them on a plate to the living room.
>Sunset is laying on your couch with a huge smile on her face.
>She gets up quickly 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 downs it in seconds.
>She exhales loudly and wipes her mouth.
>She then realizes the display she just showed to you and looks at you sheepishly.
"So, I take it we were hungry, huh?"
>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. It's all good! I understand. I'm just glad I could feed you."
>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 Sunset, there's a bit of an issue we have here. I only have one bed."
>She 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.
"And, I mean this in the nicest of ways, but I'd suggest you take a shower before bed."
>"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.
>And they used to be new.
>And they used to be clean.
>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.
>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'm happy to help you, 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. Her tears were probably all gone with everything you're assuming happened lately.
>She hugged you for an eternity though.
>It was a very sweet and tender moment you're glad you got to share with her.
>It unfortunately had to end though.
 
>You pulled yourself out of the hug and looked at her.
>She looked 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."
>"But... I thought I had to shower first."
"Technically I just suggested it. It's ultimately up to you. I'd sleep if I were you, though."
>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.
 
End of part 1.