With an explosive sigh, Jack Hadley let his head fall back against the concrete wall of the building he had collapsed next to, balling his long hands into fists before proceeding to slam them on each of his bent knees. He needed a fix badly, Feeling as if it had been months since his last hit, Even though the reality was that it had only been a few days. The slight quavering in his hands was testimony enough that it had been one day too many already. Trying to ignore the twitching of his left hand, The young man focused hard on the stars overhead, letting each point of light pierce his senses.

He hadn't always been in this situation, Out on the Streets without a home to go to or money to purchase food, his life caught up in a tangle of drugs and debt... No, at one time he had actually been quite happy with his circumstances. He had grown up in a decent middle-class home, The youngest of three boys. He had gone to a series of fancy schools, Made excellent friends, had been well-liked and popular, Captain of the basketball team in high school. And then after only a year in college, working for a Business that was quickly climbing the ladder, He made a huge investment in a Store of his own that he claimed would make him a rich man. Except that it hadn't. The whole company bombed within the first three months of it's opening, The money going down the drain and costing him even more then he could earn. His girlfriend promptly left him, claiming that she had only been interested in his inevitable fortune, The small condo he had owned falling behind on payments and eventually coming to a foreclosure, his car taken away for one too many parking tickets and the lack of gas, Insurance, or payments on the amount still due. He had crashed rather then fallen into a hole that he couldn't find his way out of. What little money he still had to his name had gone into alcohol at first, trying to drive away the pain through intoxication. But when that hadn't felt sufficient to him, he had given in to the pressure of a friend, finally let a needle slip beneath his skin. That experience, the high and the absolute freedom of the pain had been his downfall, his body instantly craving more ecstasy, Both emotional and physical, wanted to feel that freedom again and again, even though it was progressively getting worse...

But that, of course, was in his past. It didn't matter what he had been, Not now as he sat on the hard concrete sidewalk, Hands quivering and stomach rumbling loudly in his gut. His thoughts began to flicker towards the possibility of rummaging through restaurant trash cans, Even tensed up his muscles to get to his feet, but his malnourished and scrawny frame refused to respond, picking the most inopportune moments to want to take a break. A dry and humorless laugh escaped him, Closing his heavy eyelids to the world and began to wish at that moment for nothing more then death.

"Have a nice night!"

Ella Moore looked at the change in her hand, grazing each coin over once with her thumb to be sure she had gotten the right amount before stuffing it into her purse. "Thanks, you too!" She flashed the cashier a smile before gathering her bags, most of which were filled with ingredients for what she planned to make for dinner that night.

Before she left the store, she made sure her hat was covering her ears so she wouldn't get too cold on the rest of her way home. Little strands of her curly blonde hair popped of out the edges of her hat but she did her best to ignore that and continue on her way. As usual, Ella was quite out of it on her walk home, her mind was always wondering during the day. She had it made, all things considered. She managed a nice store that gave her fairly generous pay, at least generous enough to support herself and her cat with money to spare. Despite this, she felt a tiny bit missing from her life. Her father had moved away, in attempt to get out of the city, and soon after most of her friends did the same. Ella had originally hoped to go to college and be a teacher, but something had held her back from that and here she was, still where she was and still working a less than fulfilling job. She had friendly neighbors in the apartment complex, of course, but that didn't stop her from missing her old friends. It was a strange feeling, but sometimes she thought that her life would be even a little better if she just had someone to have dinner with once in a while.

In that moment, Ella felt her foot catch on something and she plummeted to the ground. She scrambled back onto her knees and looked back to seeing it hadn't been something she'd tripped over but someone. "I'm so sorry!" Ella had always been clumsy so this wasn't something new to her, but she still felt bad for the man. It was freezing out and he looked like he didn't have anywhere warm to stay and to top it off she had gone and woken him up. She stared back at him for a moment, speechless, before gathering her groceries (most of which thankfully hadn't fallen out of the bags). Now, there was something about this particular homeless man that seemed familiar to Ella, and she couldn't quite put her finger on it. She felt as if she knew him from somewhere and wanted to place a name on him.

Once her groceries were gathered, she began to dig through her purse, still sitting on the ground beside him. "Here," She held out a twenty dollar bill to him, "Do I know you? I'm, ah, Ella. You've got a familiar face, you know? I'm almost positive I've seen it before, obviously not lately, seeing as I can't think of your name..."

Something quite solid suddenly caught Jack's ankle and jerked it towards his other foot, the same solid something crashing onto his shins, sending small jolts of pain up his legs. Hazel eyes flying open in surprise, he found himself staring dumbly at a young woman sprawled on the sidewalk next to him, her legs still over his ratty sneakers. She had just Levered herself up onto her hands and knees, Reaching hastily for groceries that had fallen out of the plastic bags she had obviously been carrying, looking slightly embarrassed with the situation. She glanced at him momentarily before she reached for her purse and he almost gave a wry smile. It would be just like a woman meeting a homeless stranger to worry about her purse... But then, the last thing he expected happened. The twenty dollar bill that was extended to him looked like a fortune, His hand shooting out halfway to grab it before he hesitated, looking at the woman warily. Blinking, he snatched The money away from her, Not wanting her to suddenly change her mind and put it away again. Only half listening to what she was saying, Jack hastily stuffed the money into one of his pockets, Mind already branching out to the possible locations of any local dealers, His head nodding absently. And then she said her name. All at once, his attention was snapped into place, focusing on her face, her voice.

"I had a friend named Ella once." He rasped, Throat and mouth dry from disuse. Quickly clearing his throat, he continued in a much more coherent voice. "I have one of those faces that people always seem to recognize. But it's Jack." Thoughts beginning to drift again, he quietly wondered just how much she had in her purse, what kind of food she had in the grocery bags was his secondary thought as his stomach grumbled once again. "thanks for the cash Ells." He flashed her a grin, Thinking back to the time when he had indeed had a friend with her same name and falling back on the nickname he had used out of habit. Breaking eye contact with her, he hungrily inspected her belongings, ready to jump forward as soon as she tried to get up.

The name clicked fairly quickly with her, especially after he mentioned his friend Ella, but when the nickname came up, that was when it really sunk in. "Hey!" Her voice was loud and filled with excitement, it had attracted the attention of quite a few passersby. Most of that attention was confused or negative, seeing as most people didn't tend to just sit around and talk to the homeless. Ella didn't seem to mind. In fact, she didn't seem to even notice. A large smile formed upon her face in the realization of who she had literally stumbled upon, only to disappear when she realized what situation Jack was in. "Well, I had a friend named Jack once, too!"

"And that friend was the only person to call me that!" Her brows furrowed as she looked him up and down, still sitting beside him. Twenty dollars wouldn't do much at all for him, even if he bought cheap food in small amounts. Ella was fairly distressed in realizing this and knew she had to do something, even if it was just one dinner she had to help him out a little. "You know, I haven't had dinner with a friend in a while, I mean aside from my neighbors..." Slowly, she stood, still standing right there in front of him. "And I make some really good fried rice, I'm not gonna eat it all and the leftovers'll just go to John next door...maybe Mary, too. You wanna have dinner? We can catch up and everything, my apartment's not too far from here, just a few minutes."

Ella, of course, didn't wait for an answer, seeing as the only answer she would take would be yes. She reached out to him and took his hand, pulling him up to his feet. "Come on, it's pretty cold out, you'll get sick, if you haven't already." She dropped his hand and continued on walking, the usual bounce in her step was a little more noticeable now. She was the same old Ella, so, naturally, Ella knew Jack was the same old Jack, just down on his luck.

Ella's face lit with excitement and Jack only had a moment to look at her in bewilderment before he was suddenly being yanked onto his feet, pulled part way down the sidewalk. Mouth gaping, he stumbled forward as he tried to keep up with her excited pace, Completely ignoring the scandalized expressions on the faces of people that they passed bye. "Hold up! Are you serious?" He finally blurted out, Reaching out and grabbing her arm to bring her to a stop. He lifted both of his dark eyebrows slightly incredulous. "are you even sure that I am the Jack that you were friends with? Jack Hadley? If that is your jack, then that's me. But I could be some random homeless guy that you're inviting into your home for all you know. He studied her face very carefully for a moment, all vague fuzziness gone from his head for the moment. Expression growing serious, he continued in a much softer voice. "are you Ella Moore?"

Her brows furrowed when he stopped her. She looked at him, taking in his words with silence for a moment before relaxing and nodding. "Yeah, that's me. And you're my Jack." It took her a moment before she realized how funny her words sounded, her face pinkened. "I mean...well, you know, you're the right Jack, not my Jack, but...the right Jack."

"Besides, even knowing who you are, inviting you into my home is strange enough, don't you think?" Ella shrugged, her hand resting on his hand on her arm. Lightly, she made him release her arm before she returned to smiling. "I mean, I don't think people do that usually. Who knows? We can talk inside, alright? I'm getting pretty cold..." Her apartment had been just in sight when Jack had stopped her, which she was thankful for as it really was pretty cold out. She made her way to the doors, opening them and waiting for Jack to follow her in. "It's on the second floor," she explained before heading towards the elevator.

"Small world..." Jack mumbled under his breath, scratching idly at n itch on the back of his neck, the possibilities blooming into life within his mind as he started to walk once more, trailing distractedly behind Ella as she guided him to a nearby apartment building. He momentarily felt The first stirrings of awkwardness as his dirty sneakers came into contact with the lush carpeting of the entrance hall, The sparkling light of the chandeliers dazzling his unadjusted eyes. But close on the heels of that emotion came the withdrawal induced fantasies of the cash he could make from taking any number of items from such a ritzy place. Blinking several times and trying hard to keep the smile that threatened to bloom on his face away, Jack hastily shoved his hands into the pockets of his tattered grey hoodie, Stepping quickly over to the elevator as it chimed Saufley, following his old friend inside The dark stained wood interior. Shuffling his feet, he stared down at his Tangled laces and hunted vainly for something to say.

"So..." He said after clearing his throat once again, chancing a quick glance up at his elevator companion. "How long have you been living in such a fancy pad?"

She dug her key out from her pocket as they approached her apartment, 213. "Hm...not sure. Feels like forever. Don't be too impressed, I'm a friend of the landlord so I get a pretty good deal on rent and stuff."

The door clicked to confirm it was unlocked and Ella opened it, walking in and gesturing for Jack to follow. "Sorry, Sam has a bad habit of getting out and I think one of the neighbors is allergic to cats." She closed the door behind him before hurrying to the kitchen counter to set the groceries. The place was small, though everything looked about as fancy as the rest of the building. The door opened up to the kitchen and open living room, then there were two doors. One led to a bathroom, the other a bedroom. Of course there was something similar to a patio door by the living room, though it only led out to a tiny balcony.

"It's small but, y'know, small is good. Homey." Ella nodded and began to unpack the food, shooing the large, male black cat off the counter. She hurried around the kitchen, putting what she wouldn't need for fried rice away before grabbing a pot. Ella set the pot on the stove and stopped, looking back at Jack with a frown. "Do you want a change of clothes or anything? I mean, I can go next door and grab some pants and a shirt from John and you can change or shower or whatever you'd like."

Hesitating awkwardly in the entryway as Ella hurried into the kitchen, Jack's gaze swept quickly around what was visible of the apartment, lingering on luxuries he hadn't been in contact with in what felt like ages. The couch beckoned to him to sink onto the cushions, the television to absorb his thoughts and attention, the refrigerator making his mouth water with the images of the different foods it could contain... Jealousy and envy were the first emotions to strike at him, sprinkled with a dusting of longing, so strong that he struggled with the intensity for several seconds before he was finally able to shove the feelings into the back of his mind, putting A temporary lock around them so that he could deal with them at a later time. Blinking several times hastily, he finally focused is gaze on his hostess, His brain catching up with his surroundings and quietly informing him that she had asked him a question.

"I would kill for a shower right about now Ells, you have no idea." He chuckled. "I'm almost afraid to touch anything without one. And besides, I think your cat is telling me that I stink from the way he is avoiding me."

She nodded and began to prepare the food, "I'm sure it's nothing personal. He usually doesn't like strangers, anyway." Once she was sure she could leave the rice for a moment, she hurried back to the door and opened it. "Alright, I'll be right back, then."

She left the door open a bit and headed out to the hallway to the apartment one over. She knocked, and John answered fairly quickly. He was tall and looked to be five or so years older than her. He looked a bit dorky, his black hair was disheveled and he was pretty tired- as usual. "Oh, hey, Ella. You want me over for dinner again?"

"Not this time, no. Could you do me a favor?"

"Hm? Sure, sure, what?" He yawned and raised an eyebrow at her.

"Grab a shirt and pants for a friend I have over, no questions asked."

"What? Why?" He waited for her answer, an eyebrow raised at her. But, as if he'd just taken in what she'd said, he nodded and retreated into his apartment to grab clothes. When he returned, he still looked fairly curious. "Here, you got a boyfriend over or something?"

"No questions asked, John. But no, of course not, you know me better than that." Ella smirked and took the clothes from him with a nod. "Thank you, I'll be sure to drop the leftovers off if we have any!"

She hurried back to her apartment and shut the door behind her. Ella held the clothes out to Jack, "John's a bit taller than you, so these probably won't fit you just right. But they're clean! Bathroom's just through that door, just toss your dirty clothes in the hamper- I've gotta get the laundry done soon anyway. Ah...oh, and the towels are in a bin under the sink." She smiled slightly before adding, "Food should be done by the time you're out, and, ah, sorry for all the girly smelling soaps and shampoos, I don't usually have guys using my shower so, y'know."

There was barely any time for him to register the fact that she had left, his mind so sluggish with the desire for drugs buzzing through his system and the smell of the food making his stomach twist painfully, Jack blinked in surprise as it appeared that his friend had only been gone for less than a second. He stared mutely at the pile of clothing she offered to him for a moment too long before taking it, fingers brushing over the soft fabric and finding himself reveling in the feeling. It had been such a long time since he had had any experience with something clean. For A brief moment, his emotions threatened to overcome him, the sheer weight of what his friend was doing for him just beginning to hit him across the shoulders. It threatened to make his knees buckle.

Clearing his throat several times before he was able to speak, Jack finally got his voice to come out, though it was quiet and ragged. "Thanks Ells... It's been a long time since my last shower and square meal..." He ran his fingers over the fabric of the jeans for a moment before breaking into a grin, reaching out and tweaking The end of Ella's nose. "and I'll take it, even if you have a cat and I'm going to end up smelling just like you." Letting The first genuine laugh to come from him for months burst out of him, he swiveled his body and began heading towards the bathroom, raising one hand and giving it a small wave. "catch you after I smell better!"

Ella was silent as she watched him go, her face felt hot. She touched the end of her nose where he tweaked it and grumbled to herself, "What's wrong with having a cat?" She smiled slightly and her hand dropped to her side. She jumped slightly when Sam walked by and rubbed up against her legs, then remembered she had cooking to finish up.

The fried rice was simple to make and consisted of onions, peas, carrots, and chicken mixed in with rice. Ella mixed in a little soy sauce, but wasn't sure how much soy sauce Jack liked so she was sure to put in very little so he could add more if he wanted to. When she was done, she figured Jack would be out soon so she grabbed two bowls for them and filled them up. She set them at the small table for two with silverware and poured herself a soda. She grabbed Jack a cup but left it empty so he could choose what he wanted to drink himself. Ella generally didn't drink alcohol much, but had wine and beer around in case she was in the mood for it. Aside from that she had soda, milk, and water and wasn't sure what he'd prefer. Sam was still insistent upon follow her around, so she filled his food dish up before sitting down at the table.

The shower had been marvelous.. Jack couldn't clearly remember the last time he had been properly clean, had a shaved face, or even had his hair combed. He had opened up drawers and cupboards almost as soon as the door had closed, quickly locating an extra toothbrush, a disposable razor, and the pile of soft clean towels. True, there was nothing but flowery fruity smelling soaps and shampoos on the other side of the curtain,, but it ultimately didn't matter in the long run, the months of dirt washed away from his skin, his hair free of oil and sweat. He would put up with smelling like a fruit basket if it meant he could be clean.

Emerging from the bathroom with his dirty clothes left behind in a laundry basket behind the door, his teeth brushed, his hair free of tangles and revealed to be a very light brown in color without the greasiness, Jack happily made his way into the kitchen in his borrowed clothing, ignoring the fact that he had had to roll up the pant legs several times before his feet had appeared. Grinning cheekily at Ella as he parked himself into one of the chairs of the small table. "Smells delicious, which is much more than I can say about myself. What is it with girls and things smelling like flowers and fruit?" He teased, barely able to fight back the urge to pick up his utensils and dive into the food. He wasn't sure if she was the religious type, he might offend her by tucking in before she had a chance to say a prayer or something. So he waited, mouth watering uncontrollably, letting her make the first move.