Homeless - Book One

Chapter Two: Hope

"What?" I asked. I was still cautious of what he might have done.
"You can come back home with me. I have people and they'll love you." He replied. What did that mean. I couldn't lie anymore. I'd keep having to lie to cover up the lie.
"I don't know. I think I'll just stay here." I said, cautiously. The man shook his head and looked back up at me.
"My name is Johnathan. I promise we'll take care of you. It just isn't safe out here. There's dangerous people." Johnathan said. At least I knew his name. Or was that just another lie? I had to think carefully about what I was doing. I looked at the sky for a moment. I saw one cloud. It was just one. It was one of the most beautiful clouds I had ever seen. It made me think that maybe God sent this mad to me after what my mum and dad did to me. I decided to accept the offer.
"Okay... okay. I'll come with you." I said. I began to climb down from the tree with the back hanging off my shoulder. Johnathan and I made eye contact for a few seconds before we began to walk through the woods. It was peaceful in the woods. There was no shouting, no nothing. All I could hear was mine and Johnathan's footsteps and the birds chirping in the distance.
"So, what's your name?" Johnathan asked me, trying to make some sort of conversation.
"Jack." I replied. I was still cautious of him despite convincing myself that it would be okay.
"So, Jack, who left you on the side of the road back at town?" He asked me.
"Well, it was my dad. I don't think him and my mum ever really loved me, anyway. They used to shout at me, and hit me a lot. It was just today when they decided to abandon me." I explained. I had never opened up to anyone like that before. I took it as a good sign. Positive thoughts then began to fight the bad thoughts in my brain. I knew that he had good people waiting for him back home. It took a while for the fact that I was going to have a good home sink in.
"That's horrible. You know, whatever happened at home, you're safe now. My family are amazing. They'd love you."  Johnathan explained. I loved the idea. I was finally about to have a home. A real one.
"So, where do you actually live? Because the way we're going doesn't lead to town." I asked, curiously. Maybe they lived in a farm I didn't know about.
"Well it's not a house that you'd be used to. You live in a town." Johnathan replied.
"What?" I asked.
"You'll see." Johnathan said. We continued walking through the woods. We walked for a very long time.

I was out if breath. We had walked miles. Finally, I began to see some sort of cabin through the trees. I had to squint to be able to see it clearly.
"What's that? I asked. Johnathan and I stopped walking.
" Well, remember when I said you aren't used to homes like mine because you live in a town?" Johnathan asked. I kind of knew where it was going,
"Yeah?" I asked.
"Well, that's my home. It doesn't look like the group is home yet. What do you think, though?" Johnathan replied. I was gobsmacked. I didn't know people could live like that! I was actually very impressed.
" You... you built that?" I asked him.
"Well, yeah. I had help from Lizzie, Alden, and Bradley, though."  He said. I guessed they were the people from his. 'group.' He suggested that we should walk to the cabin, so we did. When we got there, I noticed more cabins next to his. It was like a little village. The other cabins were his peoples'.
"This is really cool. How did you all do this?" I asked. We both sat down in the bed in his bed. It wasn't big. It was just a butch craft shelter. It was probably temporary. He began to speak.
"Well, my dad taught me about survival when I was young. As soon as I met the others on the street. I knew we couldn't just sit on the street feeling sorry for ourselves. I taught them what I knew." He explained.

[Flashback from Johnathan]

The snow was hitting Johnathan's skin. He was sat on the street wearing jeans and a top. His teeth chattered. He was desperate to find a home. A woman sat next to him. She had a coat on, and had a blanket. There was kind of an awkward silence between them.
"How'd you end up here?" The woman shivered. Johnathan didn't really want to speak to her, but was bored so decided to continue at the end of the conversation. At the end of the day, they were both in the same boat.
"Got sacked and couldn't pay bills. What about you?" He responded. The woman sighed.
"Well, I couldn't afford to keep my dog. I didn't wanna give up on him, you know? He was like my baby. When we got kicked out, he was taken off me." The kind woman opened up.
"Well, that's horrible." Johnathan replied.
" It's alright. I'll get him back one day. I know exactly where he is." She said. Johnathan admired her ambition and the fact that she didn't give up on a dog.
"What was the dog's name?" Johnathan asked just in curiosity.
"Max." She replied. "Do you want the blanket?" She asked. He accepted the offer and she gave him it.
"That means a lot. Thank you so much." He said. She talked about how it was a hard winter at the time and how they needed to help each other if they wanted to stay alive.
"I wish we could just simply be in a house. The cost of living nowadays is unbelievable." The woman kept the conversation going. That gave Johnathan an idea.
"Well, what if we make our own home?" He suggested. The lady looked at him confused.
" No, like what if we built a butch craft shelter. We wouldn't have to worry about bills or anything ever again." Johnathan explained.
"You being serious?" The lady asked. He nodded his head.
"What's your name?" She asked.
"Johnathan, you?" Johnathan replied.
"Lizzie." She responded. They made deep eye contact for a moment.