Chapter Two: Acclimating

A lonesome figure was sitting on the sidewalk with a tattered bag, holding up a dirty cardboard sign, 'please donate a quid.' The figure tightened her manky jacket and shivered against the cold Bristol breeze. She watched as the busy civilians ran about their errands as if she wasn't there, begging for enough money to get at least a small bite of something. The girl cursed her fast metabolism; she probably had lost an incredible amount of weight, which was also probably why she was more effected by the weather than usual.

She grabbed the hidden pocket knife when she saw a guy approaching her. She didn't recognize him, and by the way he was dressed in random and clashing clothes he didn't look like he could afford to give her a quid, very dodgy. He stopped a foot away from her, her eyes squinted against what glare there was from the sun poking through the clouds that flashed behind his head.

Her grip on the knife relaxed when he gave her a bright white and friendly-looking smile. Emily just gave him a raised eyebrow, very unsure of what his motives were. His dark-skinned hand was open and pointing to the pavement next to her, "May I?", his accent was intriguing, definitely not from anywhere she had been in all of England. From somewhere in Africa maybe, she guessed. She shook her thoughts away and saw he was still waiting on an answer, polite too. Anyone else would have just taken the seat, not minding whatever she had to say about it. Without waiting any longer she gave him a skeptical nod, watching him cautiously.

He shifted his trousers so they'd allow him to take a seat. She noticed he didn't really care about the large dirt splotches on the pavement she had previously tried to avoid sitting on. His eyes too, were holding the smile on his face, "Hi, my name is Thomas."

Emily wondered why the hell he was talking to her, she didn't look approachable. And it was incredibly unlikely any boy, (or girl), would have interest in flirting with her in the state she was in. She casually sniffed herself, nearly gagging at the awful smell that invaded her senses. Breathing through her slightly parted mouth she looked back to the boy who was watching her. A strong breeze swept past them, causing the flaps of the boy's numerous windbreakers to flap about, and the hair's along Emily's arm raise with the chill.

"You're teeth are chattering, here, I have many, it is so cold here." He starts to peel off his topmost layer and hand it to her. She wants to reject the kind offer, but her limbs are too cold to deny him, she slips it over her slim arms. Her teeth begin to slow down and she smells his jacket appreciating the soap scent, especially because she had been expecting it to smell just as bad as herself.

"I have been here five months and I am still not used to it." He said, facing the people on the street who kept on going about their own business. Emily wondered if everyone pronounced their 't's like him in the place that he had been in five months ago. She remembered the knife in her hand and its purpose.

"Why are you talking to me?" She asked.

"I have seen you here for over a two weeks without so much as moving more than a block or so. You don't seem to be doing very well." He was looking at her kindly now.

"So you're stalking me." Emily's grip tightened on the knife, more unsure of him now.

"No, I work at a gas station across the street. I thought I could help you, I have been homeless since I came to England and it is not very fun." His eyes flicked to the glint in Emily's lap, knowingly. "For free. I'll help you for free."

"If you think I'm so desperate that I'd rob a fucking bank then you're mad. I'm not interested." Knowing he was homeless now, too, Emily couldn't think of any other reason he'd be talking to her.

His laugh was light and it reminded her of when she used to have friends who sh could laugh freely with. "No, that's not what I meant; I just have a few tips that might help you be a better… homeless person?"

Emily rolled her eyes. She wasn't homeless, she was just thrown out of her home by her cold family, with no where to go, and only ninety-four pounds she had made from a few odd-jobs she had taken during the summer. The money was all gone after using it for transportation and food, and a few things she thought she'd need if she were stuck on the streets, including the pocket knife. And now she was just waiting on the side of the road for something to happen... in dirty clothes... with no food or water...

"What exactly could you possibly give me; you said you're homeless…" She subtley admits to herself that she is, in fact, homeless, no matter how much she may want to deny it.

"Many things. Come to the store with me, maybe I can help you get a job." Thomas pointed to the gas-station across the street. He then stood up and brushed off the back of his trousers getting rid of excess dirt.

"Fuck it." I take his hand and let him pull me off the ground. I grab my bag and throw it over my shoulder, it was mostly empty now. Everything had been stolen, thrown out, eaten, or sold for cash, now long gone, so it was pretty light. I grabbed the cardboard sign but Thomas took it from me and looked at it.

"When I first came here, I made one of these… no good, it was. I knew very little English, much less slang or modern things… unfortunately, I had written something suggesting prostitution on my sign… It made for some very awkward situations, so, tip number one, always choose your words very wisely…" He laughed as we made our way across the street.

Thomas pulled away for a second, Emily stopped and waited for him to return, he threw out her sign in the large dumpster on the side of the station. "You can look around while I talk to Mr. Rajeek."

The red-head followed him into the store part of the gas-station, her eyes drifted over all the merchandise while he went to the back. There was a delicious scent of fresh bakery nearby causing her stomach to rumble painfully. She wanted to breathe through her mouth, but it watered at the sight of all the food she so desperately wanted. To distract herself she found a magazine on a shelf and started to flip through it, not that she really gave a shit about what celebrity just broke up with their boyfriend…

Emily was laughing to herself on the irony of her horoscope compared to her shit luck when Thomas appeared out of no where, standing next to her. "Oh, Emily! Don't do that!"

He grabbed the magazine and stuck it on the shelf, flattening it as much as possible to make it look like it hadn't been read. The short girl was freaked out by the quick movement and back away a little, looking at him with skepticism.

"Sorry, just Mr. Rajeek is very strict about the magazines and papers. Only can be read during break and if bought… "

Emily nodded not really concerned with his explanation, more anxious for the answer to the question she had come here for. She was about to ask him when a middle eastern looking man, fitting to be Mr. Rajeek, came out of the back door. He was almost as short as her, up close.

"I am sorry, M'am. I do not have room for anymore employees at the moment. Thomas here got lucky, saving my life from a few rascals, I had no choice but to offer it to him. Perhaps I can offer you food though. Pick one item in the shop and I will give it to you free of charge. Nothing too expensive though, I have a reputation to uphold." He chuckled and returned to the back.

Thomas was looking apologetic but his face quickly lightened, "Miss, I still can help you, I have a break in one hour. Will you meet me just outside the shop then?" The red-headed girl agreed quickly, more interested in finding something to eat. Her heart finally set on a small ready-to-go lunch, it was kid-size but at least it would have a little of everything she could use.

Emily took her food and bag and exited the store to go back to her spot on the other side of the street. She opened the package and lifted it to her nose, taking a most gratifying sniff of the food she was about to gobble down. The sandwich had things in it that Emily normally wouldn't eat, but her stomach was in no mood to leave any crumbs behind. She wasted no time alternating between bites of her brownie and vegetables, she needed the food in her as soon as possible. She stared at the now empty package in front of her with a frown wishing she had taken her time. The red-head licked her lips and cleared her throat thinking she should have asked for a drink too.

She took a deep breath, annoyed that her stomach still wasn't satisfied. First it wanted food, and now it was hurting from suddenly taking in more food than she had had over the past few weeks. Annoyed that satisfaction wasn't easy to come by.

Emily woke up startled when she heard the familiar accent of the boy, right next to her. "Wake up, miss, I know a better place for napping." The friendly smile was now showing.

The red-head looked around and realized it was getting much darker outside, she must've nodded off after she ate. She lifted herself off the ground, her stomach was still hurting but she tried to ignore it. Emily picked up her bag again and looked Thomas straight in the eye. "Well?"

He didn't mind her rude tone, despite the fact he was only trying to help. His smile remained and he gestured down the street, "There is a lady who homes people until they get back on their feet. Very helpful, most helpful, yes. Come, she's only a few blocks down."

Emily's fingers automatically played with the knife in her pocket at his dodgy answer. She didn't really have anything to lose, and right now he hadn't actually done anything for her to second-guess him. So with discreet caution she followed him and his colorful jackets in the direction he had pointed towards.

The silence was getting too awkward for Emily so she decided to make an attempt at small talk.

"So where are you from, exactly?"

"I am from Congo, I left my village to look for work…"

"Not to successful are you then?" Emily chuckled at his lame gas-station job.

"No, but I am …optimistic. Yes, I am hopeful something good will happen soon."

"Right…optimism…evil thing that is…" Emily grunted, remembering how optimistic she tried to be before coming out to her family and how horribly that went for her. The boy sensed her sudden tenseness and he stopped in his place; Emily had no idea where the house was so she had to do the same until he continued to lead the way.

"If there is one thing I am sure about, it's that when you give up hope you have no chance in this world anymore. Hope is a very, very powerful thing…not worth giving it up so easily..." Thomas was looking at Emily seriously, struggling to remember her name, not that she had actually told it to him yet.

"It's Emily." After what he said, she felt like she could trust him, the way he seemed to truly care for her welfare. She released the hidden knife and pulled the jacket she was still borrowing, tighter. "Pleasure to meet you Emily." Thomas took her down the block then stopped again.

"We are here now." He started to go up the steps of a large-ish house on the residential road. He noticed her uneasiness and encouraged her, "Its okay, she's really nice. I promise." The red-head took a deep breathe and climbed up the steps next to him. The knuckles of his skin lightly tapped the door twice before falling back to his side. He gave Emily one last reassuring smile before turning to the person who was opening the door.

The short girl stood awkwardly on the steps watching as Thomas was being pulled into a hug by an older blonde woman. "Hello Miss Campbell, it is so good to see you," he said. The woman put her hands on his shoulders and pushed him away to get a better look at him.

"I wasn't expecting you Thomas, I thought you had night shifts at the station on Tuesdays, is everything alright?" She looked truly concerned, and Emily found herself wondering if she had adopted him or something, the boy hadn't told her anything about his family before. Emily coughed nervously, really wishing she hadn't because the lady's blue eyes flicked to her instantly. "Well who's this young lady, Thomas?"

"This is Emily, she's been going through a rough time."

"Say no more, come inside, I'll get you all settled." Miss Campbell let go of Thomas and put her arm over the girl's shoulders, opening the door wider to invite them inside. "I was at the market the other day Thomas, and I saw some tea I thought you might like…"

Emily was resisting the urge to rudely shrug the strangers arm off her shoulders, she looked to Thomas, hopefully.

"Sorry Miss Campbell, as you said, I do have a night shift to return to. Just thought I'd show Emily over…" He gave her his smile before nodding politely and turning to go out the door, shutting it gently behind him.

The red-head stared at the door, so much for hope she thought. She felt herself being guided through the house into a different room. Her eyes were everywhere at once, taking in all the people who were in the house but didn't seem to belong to it. They stopped in the kitchen and all the others in it left the two of them alone. Emily stood still, unsure of what to do with herself or the bag over her shoulder.

"Oh, just put that down over there and take a seat at the table. You look like you could use some tea dear, how many sugars do you like?"

Emily dropped her bag on the floor where the lady pointed and took a seat on the chair closest to her. "One, please." The red-head still wanted to deny the help, but her thirst was scratching at her throat and she felt like she would pass out if she didn't get something to drink soon. A cup of hot, sweet-smelling tea was rested in front of her while the lady and her own cup sat on the opposite side to face her.

"It's a good thing Thomas brought you today, there's supposed to be some stormy weather, get's very cold at night here… suppose you'd know that though…"

Emily put down the empty cup and tried to hide her blush. She was very embarrassed that she was living on the streets, and had no idea how this woman knew, the way the woman was talking about weather had she been forced to sleep outside. Then again, she remembered her horrid smell and ratty clothes that she had. There was also the way she just downed the tea like she had been living in the desert. The embarrassment worsened at the realization at how horribly she'd been living the past few weeks.

"Oh I didn't mean to…" The red-head's eyes shot at the woman's hand that rested on her own in attempt to comfort her. It only made her more embarrassed because her hand shot away from the mother-like gesture. Jenna never acted in such a way around her… The woman took the hint, with a sad glint in her eyes and pulled her hand away. "I'm sorry, dear. I'm going to help you get back on your feet okay? Don't be embarrassed, life has a way of biting us in the ass, 'scuse me, nipping us in the butt. Some people fall harder than others…The best thing you can do is let someone help you pick up the pieces, which I'd be more than happy to do, love."

Emily held back a tear from the sheer kindness this lady was showing her; two people in less than a day had shown more genuine sincerity than she had felt in her entire life. The red-head's heart ached more than ever at the absence of a good family to support her, a sob escaped her against her will.

"It's okay to cry, love. I'm so sorry you've had a hard time." The lady got up, opened the freezer, and pulled out a container of ice cream and grabbed a spoon from one of the drawers. She sat back down and put the items in front of Emily who looked at her questioningly. "If you won't accept a hug, at least accept some comfort food, I bet you're ravenous."

Emily shook her head and pushed the food away. "I'm not really hungry right now…" She sniffed away her tears and wiped her eyes with her sleeve, realizing she still had Thomas's jacket. "Um, Miss Campbell, I forgot to give Thomas his jacket…"

The blonde woman let out a laugh, "Oh don't worry about that, you can give it to him in the morning. And call me Gina, even my daughter calls me Gina sometimes; only Thomas won't give up the formalities… he's got a big thing about being the utmost polite as possible, his mother was a very proper woman despite the 'primitive' stereotypes of third-world countries."

Emily's eyes flicked around the room unsure of what to say next, she let out a yawn, her drowsiness displaying itself to the public.

"Silly me, you must be exhausted, I'll show you where you can sleep, just grab your things, dear." Gina put the ice cream away as the girl grabbed my bag. Curious eyes were watching her, as strangers around the house were involved in their own conversations. She followed Gina up a flight of stairs until Gina stopped in front of a door. "Just a second, dear." The blonde woman disappeared behind the door; Emily just shrugged and dropped her bag on the floor again to look at the framed pictures on the wall.

"Wow. She's beautiful." Emily whispered to herself as her eyes tried to memorize the picture of the gorgeous girl in the pictures, being hugged by Gina. The red-head assumed the unknown girl must be Gina's daughter, she could see a resemblance, but the girl was undeniably the most breath-taking sight she thought she had ever seen. The blue eyes of the younger blonde were a shade that reminded Emily of the harshness of ice and the softness of the calm ocean, as if they had been fused into one. Then there was the small smile, a smirk that seemed to proclaim her as better than anyone else, it hid secrets that Emily found herself wanting to know.

There was something else about the smirk Emily couldn't place, perhaps insecurities buried deep down, the red-head shook her head not wanting to believe that someone so enthralling could actually have insecurities. She felt intimidated by the girl suddenly, more self aware of her horrid and depressing state. She forced herself to stop staring at the pictures, ashamed that she could never be as perfect as this girl appeared to be.

There was shouting from a voice she didn't recognize from behind the door, definitely not Gina's. A minute later the door swung open and the young blonde from the picture flew out, looking lovely even with an angered expression. She didn't have the chance to see her for long though because the girl stormed down the steps. Emily frowned and turned realizing Gina was standing in the doorway now.

"You'll have to excuse Naomi, she's just a little stressed out these days, exams and all. Oh, that reminds me, are you in school Emily? You look about the same age as my Naomi…" She looked the shy girl up and down with a loving smile.

"Uh," Emily willed herself to forget thinking about the girl and focus on the woman's question, "I'm seventeen." Her mind flicked back to the girl, 'Naomi,' that's what Gina called her. What a pretty name, she thought.

"And school?" Gina raised a knowing eyebrow at her.

"Hm, oh. I haven't really…" Emily blushed, even though she hadn't intentionally dodged it the first time Gina asked, she was just distracted...

"I see, well perhaps we can settle that tomorrow. There are towels in the closet over there; the shower is down the hall, and you can sleep in here." She gestures to the room she had just been in. The room that the girl, that Naomi just ran out of.

"Is that um, N-," Emily coughs to clear her throat, "Isn't that Naomi's room?" Emily suddenly feels as if she's intruding, realizing she's probably the reason that the girl was so upset. "I can sleep somewhere else if it's a problem…"

"Oh don't worry love, Naomi's just a shy little thing. She could certainly use someone friendly like you around. Now, no more of this nonsense, my home is your home. Naomi's room and all, it isn't going to kill her to share. I doubt she appreciates her a warm bed as much as you do. Go on. I'll be down the hall if you need anything, don't hesitate to take anything from the fridge or anything else you need, dear. Goodnight!"

Gina gave Emily's arm a light squeeze before going down the steps. The red-head once again didn't want to accept the unexpected kindness of these people but her body got heavy at the sight of the comfortable bed. She told herself she'll shower tomorrow, she was entirely too tired to move another step, let alone take a shower. Emily collapsed on the bed, too tired to even throw the covers over herself. Her eyes closed, pushing away the one thought that was swarming around her mind. 'Naomi sleeps in this bed.'

With one last glance at the door, she checked that Naomi isn't coming. She justified sleeping in Naomi's bed thinking maybe the blonde is sleeping elsewhere and left for the night. Borrowing her bed for one night couldn't be so bad. Sleep casted over her, the drowsiness that accumulated from all the nights she was restless and couldn't sleep, knocking her out into the hours of the night.

Enjoying writing this, apologies I haven't been updating so frequently, life's been shit. So hope you liked it. Leave a review and make life less shit? :)

Thanks! Shira.