Ramshackle (Stone) x reader

There's always a place for you..(Stone x reader)

  You were a childhood friend of Stone, your families used to associate with each other often allowing you two to interact on a regular basis. Your family wasn't extremely wealthy like Stone's, so eventually you moved away so your family could look for better money income. It's been years since you've spoken to each other, Stone just stopped writing one day and you never knew why. You even resorted to writing to his parents AND his sister who had a particular sweet tooth to see if he was ok, none of the letters you sent ever came back with a response. 

  Once you were old enough to leave the nest, you decided to move back to Ramshackle to not only enhance your career but also to see if you could locate Stone. You spent three days while getting settled in trying to locate him with no success, until you quite literally ran into him on the street as he and two other scraps were running from someone. 

  After an awkward reunion, the two other scraps said they'd give you time to catch up while hastily leaving to where they lived you guessed. Stone was visibly a bit intoxicated and dry, he offered you a bottle and a cigarette to which you politely declined. As you two were walking through a rich populated area, you both received some stares a looks of dislike as Stone explained that people here believed that one should not associate with scraps like him. Though Stone seemed to be apathetic towards it. 

 "Geez, is everyone always so...judgy?" you asked. "Yes." Stone responds with a frown. He takes a drag of his cigarette and shrugs. "We're nothing but dirt to 'em."

 You turn to Stone with a concerned look. "Why didn't you write to me that you were living on the streets? I would've been happy to help you."  

"You wouldn't have, no one would." He chuckled, looking away. "I'm just another dirty homeless drunkard, I don't deserve any aid. Besides, your mother'd never let you help another homeless scum like me, let's face it."

"Stone..."

"Huh? What, want me to lie? Admit I'm one of those 'woe is me' blokes who's too far gone? Too much of a drunk to get a real job? Cause I'll just let you know, I'm *more* than one of those." He sighed.

You moved in front of him. "I never said that! Stone, I don't know exactly what you've been through, but I really do want to help you! We're friends aren't we?" 

"Yeah well I suppose, but still..." He sighed, taking another drag of the cigarette. "It's not like I'll get any better than this, y'know? I won't ever get accepted anywhere. Can't find no work, and no one'll adopt poor old me, I'm too dirty for society." He rolled his eyes. "No one wants a loser, so I'm stuck to the streets. So, don't bother wasting your time on me, I'm probably beyond fixin."

  You grab his shoulders to make him look at you "Stone...we've been friends since childhood, I didn't care if you were a loser back then and I certainly don't now...and I have all the time in the world to dedicate to you if you need it...you are more than what those rich assholes say you are, you're more than dirty and poor...And hey, if you really are my friend, you should remember all the times I got unapologetically dirty from running around in the garden. And I definitely have not changed" You say that last part with a chuckle. 

Stone froze up, a slight red blush on his pale face. He looked away from your gaze and just listened to your little...motivational speech? He cleared his throat, trying to hide the blush.

"Well, yeah alright....but still, I'm *me* y'know? No one in their right mind is gonna want me. And what is it your gonna do? Get *me* a job? A job I'll probably end up losing 'cause I'm a drunkard?"

 "You may have to loosen up on the drinking" You say sarcastically "but your parents did force you to study to be a lawyer didn't they?"

"Yeah but I didn't graduate, did I? Ya know that damn well, I failed out. I never was cut out for college. I can't even remember half the shit I studied before, so you see I'm a completely and utter dimwit." He sighed, trying to take a drag of his cigarette without choking. He ended up doing so, and coughing up a bit of a lung. You were pretty sure he was still drunk, or maybe even more so than before.