Hot Chocolate

Chapter One: One strange day

Ashlyn's POV

Ashlyn Collins here, I am 22 years old and I use to be rich...I use to live in a nice home with caring parents and I had lots of friends. But that was four years ago...after graduation my parents kicked me to the curb and told me to get my own life and of course having no money and no work experience I ended up in a homeless shelter. It wasn't particularly the best place to be considering as soon as the lights went out the guys got horney and tried to do stuff with me. After four years of being in and out of the shelter I was almost raped and couldn't stand to be there anymore so now I'm living on the streets. The worst thing is...is it's December, which means it's cold as hell, and snow is already falling, I walk around with no shoes. They were taken while I was asleep and then I had a pair of jeans that were torn and ripped, and then I had a t-shirt and a long black jacket that wasn't really the warmest. I lay down on the bench that I normally slept on and cuddled up into my jacket as best as possible...one day I knew I was going to wake up with hypothermia or just not wake up at all. I shivered and then slowly drifted off to sleep. I woke up to the sound of sirens coming down the street, I groaned and opened my eyes now looking around the park. There was a small family walking and holding hands as they smiled it reminded me of my family when I was younger, I moved my head refusing to look at them again other then that there were a few more people scattered around but one caught my attention. He was walking away from me but when I sat up he was near the bench. I shook my head and sat up now looking at the ground and that's when it caught my attention. A coffee cup was beside the bench; I bent down and picked it up having a confused look plastered on my face as I looked at it, I expected it to be empty but I smiled as the heat from the cup warmed my hands. I held onto it tighter letting the heat warm me up as I closed my eyes taking it all in. There was nothing else here but being homeless I never get anything and this was a full cup of something. I took a sip letting the warm sensation slide down my throat now warming my insides as I smiled even bigger and sat back on the bench. Hot chocolate was in the cup and it was delicious...I slowly drank it loving the warmth that it gave me; once it was all gone I sighed and threw the cup in the garbage. I wrapped my jacket around my body trying to keep all the heat in as much as possible but by the time it came to the afternoon the heat was gone and I was back to being cold. I walked around town trying to keep myself as warm as possible and of course got those looks from people...apparently I'm not the greatest looking person in the world. You would be to if you hadn't showered for a long time or had anything to eat...the only thing that I'm actually able to keep clean are my teeth. The very little money I get I spend on tooth paste and I know what your thinking why not food. But I've always had good teeth and I want to keep them that way. By the end of the day I was back on the bench again and trying to get some sleep or as much sleep as one could possible get in the freezing cold.

The next morning I woke up to yet another coffee cup, I wasn't sure where this was coming from but I enjoyed it that's for sure. It seemed that someone was trying to be nice but that was really the last thing on my mind as I drank the hot chocolate letting it warm me up. Over the next three weeks I woke up every morning on the bench to another cup of hot chocolate and I smiled every time...but this morning for some reason there wasn't one there. Truthfully I was sad, I had gotten so use to waking up and drinking the hot chocolate and now there was nothing here. I crossed my legs as I sat on the bench wrapping my jacket more around me so I would stay warm, I felt something cover me and then I looked over to see a guy sit down beside me. I moved the blanket and wrapped it more around me as he handed me a coffee cup.

"So you've been giving me these," he nodded his head and laughed slightly.

"Yeah you seemed really cold and you enjoyed the first one I gave you so I just continued."

"Well it was really nice of you," I took a sip and smiled as I felt my insides become warm. "So why did you decided to talk to me today, normally you just stay anonymous."

"That's the thing...the hot chocolate sorta comes with a string attached to it," I sighed and shook my head.

"I'm homeless I'm not a stripper," he laughed slightly and shook his head.

"No...no that's not what I meant, I need a favor and if you say yes it'll get you out of the cold for a little while." I looked at him with both my eyebrows arched but nodded my head telling him to continue. "I'm visiting my parents next week for Christmas and I told them that I was bringing my girlfriend...but I don't have one so I want you to pose as my girlfriend."

"Why me...I'm hideous and I smell."

"Yeah I figured you'd say that...but if you say yes you'll get to live in a house that's warm, be able to take a shower, wear clean clothes."

"And why would I want to do this and why would you want me."

"It's a win- win situation, you need a place to stay and I need a fake girlfriend. Plus I'm sure underneath all that dirt your very beautiful."

"What's your name," I asked still looking at him funny.

"Jacob Andrews," my eyes widened now.

"Andrews...as in the famous photographer Andrews," he smiled and nodded his head. "I use to buy magazines just to see the photo's you selected every month, you're an amazing photographer."

"Well thank you," I nodded my head and smiled.

"Alright fine I'm in...but shower first," he laughed and nodded his head.

"Come on my car's over there," I walked beside him and then got in the car as he held the door open for me, this had turned out to be one strange day.

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