Beep! [Bob Gray x Reader]

One

Tonight for dinner was the same as it was every night,  bread and apples from the apple tree out back. 
Luckily apples were rather filling,  as the bread slices were thin this time of the month. 
"Momma? " You spoke after you swallowed the bite of bread you've been chewing into mush for a solid minute.  "Yes dear? " Your mother spoke,  she was gorgeous- like a model version of yourself,  but older and wiser.  "When will Dad be home? "

As if to answer,  the front door slammed open,  and sauntered in with a teary eyed and bruised face, was your father. You stared at him for a second,  he looked nothing like who you remember him to be when you were younger.  His face was fatter and scarred,  body anorexic from lack of nutrition and hard work,  and remaining hair was white from stress.
You opened your mouth to greet him,  but were immediately silenced by his thunderous voice.  "Don't fucking start.  "
Your heart seemed to skip a beat,  clenching the hem of your skirt in your white knuckled grip.  "How old are you? " It sounded more like a statement than a question.  "20 sir."
"Tw- Enty- years old.  You're 20 , and still not married.  What the fuck is wrong with you? "
Fear settled into your belly,  feet firmly planted on the ground incase you needed to run. "Sir I'm just trying to help mother. I never have time to-" He interrupted you again,  this time louder,  yanking a fearful noise from your mothers throat.  She was just as scared as you were.  "Never have time? You're a fucking female,  all you have is free time- while I'm out there busting my ass you two are here giggling together. You know what you are,  [Y/N]? Huh!?  You're a fucking burden,  you only make shit harder for your mother and I. So you know what? " The larger man grabbed you but the collar of your dress from across the table,  yanking you against the hard wood and onto the floor.  Your mother yelled and screamed at him,  but stayed put,  scared for her own safety as well. 
"You're done here."

Those were the last words you heard from your father as he tossed your battered body into the alleyway.  You sat there,  motionless,  as reality caught up to you.  This house behind you wasn't home anymore,  your gorgeous mother and hardworking father wasn't yours to hold anymore. Your bed and dresses?  Gone.  The feeling of being safe in your own home seemed like a dream already. 

The present snapped into vision like a jump scare,  you were a young female in a dark alleyway- alone.  Quickly you brought yourself to your feet,  knees popping as you put your weight on it. The dimly lit streets provided a path for you to follow,  leading out into long field of long grass and shadowed structures in the distance. It smelled wonderful and awful at the same time;  like sweets and animals all in one.  Mother told you about these smells,  they were called a Circus- a fun happy place where no one was sad or scared. That's exactly what you needed,  and so- you made your way over,  trudging through the holes and spiky grass barefoot in the middle of the night.  Cuts and scrapes decorated your legs,  thighs,  and feet by the time you approach the circus. 

Upon closer inspection,  you could see that these structures and shapes where covered by heavy dull tarps.  The smell was easily distinguishable this close,  the structure to your left smelled richly of caramel,  on your right you could catch pure sugar.  You followed the pattern of these covered stands,  not daring to peek under - but rather enjoying the adventure of smells.  However the smells got more and more unpleasant as the smell of animals covered any kind of sweet lingering in the air. 
You could hear them,  low grunts and growls,  strange noises you've never heard before.  The tug of curiosity pulled you under the red and white tarp to enter this large tent.  You were immediately greeted with dull candle light and the eyes of several different species of animals.  The first one you noticed was the bear directly in front of you,  instinctively your back hit the tarp.  But you quickly noticed,  none of these animals made any more noises.  They just stared,  unblinking. 
Among the bear,  there was: dogs,  cats,  lions,  tigers,  elephants,  llamas,  and horses.  A giant smile spread across your face,  you've never seen any of these animals before they've been described to you before,  yes,  but words are just words in the face of reality. 
The elephant was the first one to move,  lifting it's trunk over the bars and reaching out to you from it's enclosure.  The smile you had had formed into a giant grin,  rushing over to hold the trunk that was offered to you. Happiness flooded your chest,  replacing the previous fear and sadness.  Mother told you once that elephants had an amazing sense of empathy,  matching one of a human mothers.  It was comforting,  feeling this giant rub your face and head with it's trunk,  soothing almost. 
Tiredness soon took over,  feeling safe,  your body allowed you to slump down in front of the elephants enclosure and fall asleep.