After the initial shock of her sudden display of affection and after realizing she's crying, he returns her hug and for a while, they just sit there. A man, though practically a stranger to the girl, she considers him her dearest, her only friend; holding the fragile, battered body of a sobbing girl, who's come from nothing and has gone through hell, now finally in a save, comforting presence.
His soothing voice manages to calm her down: "Hey, it's alright. You're save now." A few moments, maybe minutes pass until he lets go of her. Although reluctantly, she also lets go of him.
"Come on now." he says as he wipes away her tears with his thumb. "I say we get you out of here for now. This cold can't be good for you."
At that moment a gust of wind sends chills through the little girl's body. She shivers visibly and nods at him. He returns a smile.
"Uh... Hugh..." The brute seems to be starting to regain consciousness. Her friend takes a judging look over his shoulder, estimating how much longer the brute'll stay down.
"And we need to get you away from him. Away from this place."
He stands back up and offers her his hand. "I'd suggest you stay at my place for a bit. Until we've found someplace save for you. How's that sound?"
*Someplace... save?*
She looks up to him, that sad smile of relief still on her face, hesitates for a second and reaches for his hand. But before she can reach it, a loud grumbling sound erupts from her stomach. Embarrassed, she holds her belly.
"Heh. You know I'm not the best cook out there, but I'm sure I could whip up something edible for ya'." Another warm smile directed at the girl.
*That'd be nice...*
With that she finally takes his hand.
They make their way back out the courtyard through the alley they entered from. The street is still empty. No cars coming by, no pedestrians out on a night walk. Aside from a few trees every so often and the occasional flickering lamp post, only the old car she was taken here with can be seen parking on the side of the road. In it the girl spots a figure, seemingly staring down the road. The moment she realizes who that figure is, she springs back behind her friend, trembling at the thought of being caught again.
"Don't worry. He's not gonna hurt anyone anymore. Besides, I am here to protect you, aren't I?"
Reassured, she steps next to him again and they continue along the sidewalk. Passing the car, she gathers all her courage and decides to take a closer look at who's sitting in the driver seat. She can only see inside the car for a split second and with just the moonlight illuminating the night she can hardly see more than the abstract shape of a man. That, and the moonlight reflecting off a red substance covering one side of the man. He doesn't move an inch.
*Is he...?*
"Never gonna hurt anyone ever again..." Her friend says under his breath while they are passing. "My car's right around the corner. We'll be out of here in no time."
Directing her attention away from the body, they turn the corner. Roughly the same picture unfolds before her: No pedestrians, no cars driving by, trees lining the sidewalk. On this street however, the trees are accompanied by the occasional car, parking on the side of the road. The two approach the first car on the street, a plain looking, white two-seater. He opens the passenger seat door for her.
"Hop on in. It's only a short drive to my apartment."
Still a bit cautious, she enters the passenger seat and he closes the door.
*I think I might... like this. But what comes next? He said he'll find someplace save for me. But what if-*
The other car door clicks open, causing the girl to instinctively recoil deeper into the seat, away from the opening door.
"It's just me, calm down." Her friend assures her as he's climbing into the seat and starts the car. They take off and drive past the villain's car back the direction they came from, back towards the heart of Vale.
They drive in silence for a few minutes. He keeps his eyes on the road for the most part, but can't help and take peeks at the girl sitting next to him in his passenger seat. Her small body barely covers half the surface of the seat, her knees are up to her chest, her arms around them. Her white dress is covered in dirt and she stares blankly out the window into the night, seemingly deep in thought. And he can't really fault her for that. After all, he can't even begin to understand what she went through these past couple weeks, how much pain she had to endure. And at such a young age too. Even before she got taken she had to live on the streets for who knows how long. If only he had found her sooner.
"Hey, kid?" Suddenly ripped out of thought, she turns her head to face him. "I'm sorry." Her expression turns from surprised to confused.
*Why would you be sorry? You saved me!*
"I'm sorry that I didn't find you sooner. That I didn't get you off the streets when I had the chance. I can't imagine what you had to go through." She looks at him shocked.
*He is blaming himself?!*
"If I had just stepped in sooner, I could have..." Before he can finish his sentence the girl starts shaking her head furiously. "Huh? What is it?" Now kneeling on the seat, she starts gesturing with her hands. She raises them over her head and strikes them downward as if she was holding a sword or cane. She then points back down the road in the direction they are coming from; then at the car. She finishes her little act by showing him a thumbs-up.
He gives her a slightly confused look. "You think I did... good?" She nods her head, looking at him proudly. "You're just glad it's over, right?" She keeps nodding and gives him a trusting smile.
*He understood!*
"Yeah. I guess that is all that matters now." He seems relieved. "You're not very talkative, are ya'? That's not... because of them, is it?" Again she shakes her head and sits back down properly. "So life just dealt ya' a bad hand, huh? I know the feeling."
They are now starting to encounter more and more cars passing them. They must be getting closer to downtown. "Come to think of it, I never told you my name, did I?" Her curiosity peaked, she looks at him and shakes her head. She never even wondered what his name was before. He turns to her and makes a dramatic gesture: "I'm Roman Torchwick, master of thievery and the bettin' game." He gives her a cheeky smile; she just looks at him amazed.
*Roman. Torchwick. I like that...*
"You got a name too kid?" Looking a little dejected she shakes her head. "Well, I can't just keep calling you kid, that's for sure. We gotta come up with a good, fitting name. You have to see the positives: You have the chance to choose a name that you like and aren't stuck with what your parents gave you." Just as he says that he pulls onto the side of the road. "But that'll have to wait a little longer, don't want to rush it. Besides, we're here."
"Can you get out by yourself?" A little annoyed she nods at him. Once the two leave the car, she first takes in her surroundings. They stopped in a quiet neighborhood, cornering on an intersection; the streets illuminated by regular lamp posts and cars parking in front of almost every building. Small trees are planted at the corners of the intersection, giving the area a more pleasant look. The buildings all seem to be massive apartment buildings.
"It's this one, right here." He walks towards the apartment building he parked the car in front of.
*I never thought I'd ever enter one of these!*
As he unlocks the front door she eagerly waits behind him, bouncing up and down, brimming with excitement. As he opens the door he notices her enthusiasm. "Hey, no need to get too excited. It's not exactly a pristine mansion I got here." As he says that she slumps down a little. Realizing his misstep he tries to salvage her mood: "I didn't say don't get excited at all, kid. You are about to enter the humble abode of the mastermind of Vale." With that he leads the way into the stairwell of the building. Right after him follows the little girl and the moment she steps into the building her eyes begin to glow with excitement again. She immediately takes off to investigate the interior. "Just keep away from the doors. This neighborhood isn't terrible, but you never know." He confidently takes his usual route to his apartment, never letting the girl get too far away or out of his sight. She, on the other hand runs around the complex, inspecting every nook and cranny.
*It's all so clean! I didn't expect the walls to be so high! But they feel so rough. Why would you want such rough walls?*
Like a tiny bundle of energy she bounces around from wall to wall, from door to door. Roman can't help but giggle a little. It's been a while since he's seen that much energy in a child. "Well, ready for the main event?" Stopping dead in her tracks the girl turns around to face him, standing directly in front of a door. "This has all just been the boring old stairwell. Now this, is the real deal." He opens the door and, after stepping in to turn on the lights, steps back out to stand beside it, letting the girl take the first step into his home. She slowly enters, making sure to take in the entirety of it. The first thing she notices is the room's warmth engulfing her. It's cozyness draws her further into the room and before she realizes it, she is standing in the middle of it. From there she looks around the room. With the entrance behind her; in front of her and on her right are two closed doors. In between those in the corner stands a tall shelf with all sorts of items stashed in it. Once she turns around further she spies a big, fluffy looking couch sitting in the corner next to the entrance with a small table in front of it, facing a medium sized TV on the other side of the room.
"I told you it's nothing special." Roman says while entering himself. "But, judging from the look on your face, you're quite impressed." The girl, still looking around the room, starts nodding slowly.
*This is what a home looks like? It's so warm. It feels so... save.*
Roman hangs up his hat and cane on a hatstand next to the entrance and moves towards the door on the other side of the room. "So, I promised you some food, didn't I?" He enters the next room, the kitchen. The girl promptly follows. The kitchen is small compared to the previous room, only furnished with a small fridge in the corner, adjacent to a kitchenette. In the other corner, below one of two windows, stands a dining table with three chairs. Roman is already checking the contents of his fridge. "I usually eat out, so I don't have much to work with here." He takes out some vegetables and moves them to the stove before returning his attention back to the fridge. "But, that has never stopped me before." He notices her standing in the door frame, still wearing that dirty, white dress. "You know, this'll take a while. Why don't you hop under the shower in the meantime?"
*What?!*
The girl fixes her eyes on him and takes a step back, lifting her hands into a defensive position.
*A shower?! Why?!*
Picking up on her extreme unease towards his suggestion, Roman calmly insures her of his intentions. "Well, walking around in those dirty clothes must be awful." She looks down at herself. She's used to wearing filthy clothes, but that doesn't mean they are in any way pleasant to wear. "Besides, a hot shower might be just what you need. To calm the nerves and clean the slate. Wash away the filth of the past, if you will." She looks up at him, still concerned. "Trust me kid, whatever they made you do, you won't have to do that here. Never again. You're save with me. If it would make you feel better, there's a lock on the bathroom door. Doesn't need a key, only opens from the inside." She lowers her gaze, weighing her options.
*Maybe a hot shower would be nice... Ok, I'll... trust you.*
She gives him a nod. Seeing how his attempt to calm her down has worked, he tries to lighten the mood a little. "Besides, you're going to stay here for a bit, so I can't have you tracking dirt everywhere, now can I?" A cheeky smile grows on his face as her cheeks suddenly turn red with embarrassment. "The bathroom is through the bedroom; that's the other room. In there is a wardrobe. You can pick out some of my clothes to wear. They're not gonna fit you, but they're better than the dress you wear now. The dress you can just... leave in the bathroom. I'll take care of it later." With those directions she turns around and he turns back to the fridge.
Back in the living room, she walks to the other, still closed, door. Entering the bedroom, the first thing she sees, after finding and flipping the light switch, is a bed against the wall in the middle of the room. The sight of the bed has her recoil back out of the room, driven by a shaking panic rising in her body. She starts hyperventilating. Over the past weeks she had developed a severe revulsion towards beds. For her, beds tended to be where the pain became unbearable.
*Calm down. Calm. Down. It's just a bed. There is no one else here but you. No one will come this time. It's over...*
Talking herself down, her breathing slows down and she regains full control over her body. Now knowing what lay ahead, she steps back into the bedroom. Aside from the bed, which stands below a window, there was, just as Roman said, a wardrobe sitting in the corner. As she approaches it she makes sure to keep as much distance between her and the bed as possible. Safely arriving at the wardrobe she opens one of the drawers. In it she finds multiple, mostly black shirts and a few black pants. She takes out one of the shirts. Upon touching it she feels the sudden urge to rub it on her face.
*It's so soft!*
Resisting the urge, she decides to open the other, smaller drawer, it's contents consisting of socks and underwear. She quickly takes out a pair of socks and immediately closes the drawer again. Having secured new clothing she turns to, what she presumes to be, the door to the bathroom. She enters the bathroom and first checks if there really is a lock on the door. There is. After turning on the light, closing the door and locking it she shakes the door handle, making sure the door really is locked.
*He was right. It does feel safer.*
Only now does she inspect the bathroom. After getting used to the bare minimum, this bathroom feels like it belongs to a king. The shower isn't just a curtainless deepening in the floor, it has semi-see through curtains and a proper shower tray with shower gel and shampoo bottles. On the floor lies an orange bathroom rug that, when she stands on it, feels like it's hugging her feet. The sink is clean and holds bottled soap. He even has towel holders with clean towels on the wall. She puts her borrowed clothes on top of the toilet seat, next to the shower and takes off the dress. Looking at it now, the memories slowly come flooding back. All the suffering, all the humiliation and misery she had to endure while wearing these dresses, all of it creeps it's way back into the present.
*No. No more. Those times are over now. And they'll never come back.*
Disgusted, she throws the dress into the corner.
*He promised me that.*
The girl steps into the shower and closes the curtains. Her hand automatically grasps for the cold-water valve, but she hesitates before turning it.
*Right. Hot water.*
Her hand slides over to the warm-water valve and turns it. Right away hot water rains down onto her. Shocked by how hot it actually is, she jumps out of the stream and grabs the cold-water valve to cool the water down. It takes her a bit, but soon enough she has regulated the water to a warm, comfortable temperature. For a while she closes her eyes and just enjoys the sensation.
*So this is how it feels. It's so... comforting.*
A bright smile starts beaming on her face.
*Me, taking a warm shower. Who'd have thought I'd ever get to do that? Is life, after everything, finally taking a turn for the better? I hope so. No. With him protecting me, I believe so.*
She opens her eyes. The water is streaming down her face, making her tears of joy almost not noticeable.
*They didn't ruin this after all.*
After taking a few more moments bathing in bliss, she eventually starts cleaning the dirt off her body and hair. She also takes her time with that, reveling in the, to her foreign, smell of the shampoo.
The girl takes her long deserved time, but eventually does decide to step out of the shower. Stepping out on the rug, she grabs one of the towels, with which she quickly dries herself. She is in no rush, however she hasn't forgotten the soft texture of the shirt she took with her and can't wait to put it on. All her life she only wore cheap, mostly old and used rags. Never before did she have the chance to try actually comfortable clothes. And so, when she puts on the shirt, even though it is much to big for her, reaching down to her knees, with sleeves too long by about one hand length, she cherishes the moment.
*This... this... it's so fluffy! Is this what it's like to sleep in a cloud?*
While snuggling into the shirt she spies the socks, still lying on the toilet seat. She snatches them up and scrambles to put them on. Rarely did she wear socks during her time on the streets; most of the time she only had old, tattered shoes to cover her feet, if anything. And certainly did she never cover her feet with fabric so soft.
Before leaving and returning to Roman she takes a look in the mirror. Looking back at her is a small, smiling child.
*Hey, when was the last time I was... like this? Happy? Was I ever... happy before? Happy like this?*
Not able to find an answer, she decides to leave those questions for another day and leaves the bathroom.
By stepping back in the bedroom, the girl transitions from one new sensation into another.
*What's that smell?*
Following the scent, she leaves the bedroom, walking close to the wall to make sure she's far from the bed, and makes her way back into the kitchen. Waiting there for her is Roman, placing a plate of food on the dining table. He had taken off his suit, revealing a black shirt underneath. Seeing her walk in in her new clothes makes him chuckle, maybe a bit too loud. "Ha! Well, I did say they'd be too big for ya'." She pouts at him, crossing her arms in front of her. "I'm just messin' with ya', kid. How's it feel? Did the shower do any good?" Smiling, she nods at him, patting her shirt. "Told ya'." He takes out a fork and a knife from a drawer and puts them next to the plate on the table. "I think I did an alright job with this. But please, you be the judge." Still bewitched by the smell, she sits down at the table; he had put a rather large cushion on the chair. Before even taking the first bite she has to pause.
*WOW! How is this possible? It looks even better than it smells! And I... can eat that?!*
For a solid few seconds she sits there, looking at the steak in awe as she slowly starts to drool. Never before had she seen such rich colors in food. The outside of the steak is a woody brown, while the inside shines in a light pink. It's accompanied by orange and yellow slices of something she had never seen before. The whole dish is still steaming.
"Do you... know how to use these?" He's pointing at the fork and knife. Shifting her attention from the food to the eating utensils, she remembers seeing some of them them before, dirtier ones in trashcans, but she never figured out what they were used for. Puzzled, she shakes her head. "Alright, let me show you then." He walks over to her, picks up the fork and knife and squads down next to her to be at eye level. "So, you hold the fork like this and the knife like this. Then you pierce the meat with the fork and start cutting it with the knife." All throughout his explanation and demonstration she kept her eyes on his hands and the utensils, making sure to remember every movement. "Simple, isn't it? You got all that?" A nod. Content, he sits down on a chair next to her. A little hesitant she picks up the fork and knife and uses them like Roman had just shown her. The first bite on the fork she first glances at Roman, who gives her a reassuring nod, and then eats her first piece of steak. While chewing the soft meat, the inside of her mouth feels like hundreds of small explosions of flavor are going off. She feels like she might pass out because of the intense amount of goodness.
*This! Is! Nothing like the bread I always ate! This... this... this is amazing! How can something taste so good?!*
After the first bite the second is sure to follow. Then the third and the fourth, the pace at which she eats getting faster with each bite. "Slow down kid! Or else you'll-" On her sixth bite she finally chokes. "Yeah, that." After composing herself, she decides to slow down for the rest of the steak. "Come to think of it, we never came up with a name for you." The girl looks up from her food, not stopping eating. "Let's see... It should be something fitting. Something unique to you." He leans back in his chair and looks at her intricately for a couple minutes, while she continues eating. "AHA!" he exclaims all of a sudden, startling her. "Sorry, but I just found the perfect name!" Intrigued she follows him with her eyes as he walks towards the fridge. He takes something out of it and puts it on the table in front of her. It's a pint of ice-cream with the name Neapolitan written on it. "It has your colors! Pink and brown hair and white eyes!"
*Hm... he's not wrong, but-*
"Although we can't just call you Neapolitan. That'd be a bit... on the nose. How about Neopolitan, or Neo for short. To celebrate the beginning of your new life. How's that sound?"
.
.
.
*Neo...*
.
.
.
She was stunned, dumbfounded and, if she weren't already, speechless. A few moments, then minutes pass; both Roman and the girl just staring at each other. Then, after a while, her mouth slowly forms a shaking smile and tears start gathering in her eyes.
*N-n-neo... I... He... All this, I... Why... How did I-*
"Are... you ok?" He slowly approaches and kneels down beside her. "If you don't like it, we can-" She jumps up off the chair at him, throwing her arms around him, pressing her sobbing face against his body. The impact almost makes him fall over backwards. "Whoa! Guess you do like it?" Still shaking with joy, she nods, smearing her tears and snot over his shirt. Chuckling happily he says: "Glad you like it, Neo", and returns her hug.
When they arrived at Roman's apartment it was already pretty late, so after Neo had finished her meal and stopped hugging Roman, he decided they should rest up for the next day. He offered to sleep on the couch so that Neo could have the bed, but that idea was shot down the instant it was proposed. And so he gave her a, rather big, blanket and some pillows, with which she made herself a bed on the couch. Roman himself went to sleep in his bedroom, but left the door open in case she needed him. Now she lies there, on a fluffy couch, with her head on a soft pillow, body covered by a warm blanket.
*This is really happening, isn't it? I'm really, finally save, aren't I?*
She can feel the tears coming back, but not as strong this time.
*It's because he cares. Because he's the first to ever care. Roman... He named me. Neo... He cared enough to give me a name. My own. I'll cherish this forever, cherish him forever...*
But slowly she fades into a deep slumber, filled with dreams of tomorrow, of the next years, of life.
*The pain is finally over. Now... it will all... be... good...*