Noelle never thought she could be anything more than an orphan who lived on the streets. All she had ever known was the look of disgust from passers by as she settled down to sleep under a cardboard box. At eighteen Noelle doesn't know whether she...
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Noelle Carter scurried across the front of an alleyway on her way to the bakery. A few drops of water hit her cheek and she started to move faster, if she didn't get there before the rain came the door would be shut. The Baker's son always threw out some stale bread to her if she was there, but if she was late she'd go hungry again as the only food that would be available was the trash from the new food shops that were opening up along one side of the town. Eventually it would be rebuilt to match the metropolis that was growing nearby, it wouldn't be long before the small town she grew up in became part of the big city they'd already started on the east side. Keeping to the shadows, she moved closer to the door. Her heart sank as she neared the bakery's back door. It was shut. Noelle cursed internally as she went to walk away, carrying on towards the towns centre.
As she walked, dragging her feet, she didn't notice the package on the floor until she tripped over it. She knew it was wrong but she scooped it up and ran off before anyone could see her. Once in the safety of the shadows again, she found somewhere to sit behind a dumpster in an alley and started to open the box. Inside was a dream come true, a freshly baked cake. It had everything she had missed from when her father ran the bakery. Moist sponge melted on her tongue as she stuffed a piece she'd torn into her mouth, the jam centre exploding with flavour. Her belly started to hurt as she crammed the last mouthful in, wiping the icing off of her face.
A noise alerted her to a passer-by and as her panic set in, ready for her to run, she realised it was only a cat that had landed on the dumpster next to her. The small wet feline looked as hungry as she was. Trying to lure the ginger cat over to her didn't work and her failed attempts only kept her occupied for a few minutes before the downpour got heavier. If she'd thought about it, Noelle would've grabbed the cat as she ran for cover but her full belly and weak legs couldn't carry her very far. In the end she took shelter at the other end of the alley, underneath a balcony.
She settled down on the dry patch of ground with her long jacket covering her legs. Her blonde hair fell in rattails down her face before she moved it out of her eyes. Noelle hated the rain; it made getting to sleep harder because the water drew in the cold. Pulling her knees up to her chest, she tried to keep the warmth in with her arms. The ginger cat nudged her elbow and when she moved her arm out of the way, the cat clambered up onto her belly and lay down. A small smile crept across her face as the small amount of warmth from the cat gathered on her belly and they snuggled down into a slumber.
Noelle woke from the pain in her side. When she opened her eyes she saw that one of the local children, one who hung around with the bullies her was stood near by, just out of arms reach.
"Give me my ball back," she called not waiting to come any closer.
Noelle pushed herself up so she was sitting more comfortably against the wall. She almost forgot about the cat that had sought warmth from her, but the feline was gone.
