1 Showers of Blessing

An over cast sky is never a good sign, unless you've been experiencing drought, which in that case, ignore this statement. However, for a homeless person, such a sky means stop whatever productive activity you may be doing and find a place to shield yourself, which is exactly what Ysanne Moore was about to do.

As she walked down the stretch with her small suitcase, eagerly looking for "Help Wanted" signs, she felt a sudden wetness from the heavens land on her nose. As she stopped, stunned for a brief moment, another drop landed on her cheeks. She looked up to the sky to evaluate it and was greeted with a droplet in the eyeball. That was the final warning she needed.

"Of course," She said in an annoyed tone, as she rubbed her assaulted eye. "Always gotta get in my way, don't ya universe?"

As if hearing her words and feeling spiteful, the sky quickly began to release a shower of rain that was growing heavier by the second.

"Come on!" She yelled at the grey enemy before heading to find shelter.

The covered bus stop was not an option, for it was completely filled with people, and she couldn't enter any of the stores with a suitcase; the sketchy levels would be astounding. What was she to do? Where was she to go? And why don't these damn stores have awnings?

That's when she noticed a bright blue and pink building a block away, that had an unoccupied space under an awning. Ysanne sighed a breath of relief and quickly headed in its direction. Finally, something good.

By the time she got the awning she was drenched and she was certain the contents of her suitcase was no exception either. Now, instead of stressing over finding a job, Ysanne was stressing over having to take all her clothing out to dry somewhere. It seemed like no matter how hard she tried, things kept going sour. An everlasting warhead was her life, and she was becoming sore. She was born into a life of misery and abuse. Her father was abusive to her mother and her mother was abusive to her, coping each day with alcohol; what started out as a few glasses of wine a night, turned into day long chugs of Vodka. She spent most of her days avoiding her family by staying at school to study or hanging out at the library; she had learnt to strip herself of the love she had for her parents. What else does one do when they don't receive any?

The rain wouldn't ease up and Ysanne was growing very tired of having to stand; was God trying to flood the Earth again or something? She looked down at her watch and realized it was 5:45 p.m. She had been standing there for over thirty minutes. A few people exited the bakery with their goods and the scent hit her like a truck; her stomach growled, demanding that she feed it, after all her last meal was yesterday, but she only had fifty bucks left which she was trying to save for an emergency.

Looking behind her, through the tinted glass, she could see a woman standing behind the counter staring at her with concern. Of course, Ysanne took this to mean she wanted her to leave and so she quickly turned away and tried to focus on the ripples that each droplet made, basically anything that could take her mind off the piercing eyes burning holes into her back. She couldn't run anywhere in this rain, there was no other shelter close by, so she had to wait it out. It didn't seem like she was interrupting business, that was more the rain than her, so 'intense-eyes' there, needed to chill.

Another thirty minutes minutes passed and it seemed the rain had no plans of stopping soon. Ysanne had now completely disregarded the lady inside and was caught up in her thoughts of how she would move forward once the rain did cease; she was growing quite impatient. She was so caught up that she hadn't even noticed the voice calling out to her, until a gentle hand rested on her shoulder.

Ysanne jumped, snapping her head around to see the woman from inside the store now standing beside her; her face wore a kind smile. She was very pretty, seemed in her early forties, and had beautiful, silky black hair that she tied up in a neat bun atop her head. She was very shocked to see her standing there, especially looking so calm.

"Are you alright?" She asked, trying to speak over the bullets of rain pelting the ground.

Ysanne nodded, clearing her throat. "Yes, thank you!" She shouted.

"Your're soaked, would you like to come inside? My store is now closed."

Ysanne's eyes widened. Was the lady offering her better shelter? She was being kind to her? The stares from earlier weren't meant to judge her then...this complete stranger was simply worried about her....Good to know.

Ysanne smiled, "no thank you ma'am, I'd rather not mess your store up!"

"No, I insist, it's no bother at all! I wanted you to come in earlier, but the customers inside are sometimes very stuck up, so I didn't want to cause a scene! Come on!"

Ignoring anything else Ysanne might've had to say, she took her luggage and began pulling it inside.

"I can get that!" Ysanne insisted as she trailed behind her.

Once inside, the woman ran behind the counter and through the doors. In her absence, Ysanne took the time to survey the store. It was very spacious inside, much bigger than she thought. The walls were painted blue with pink designs placed all over; they resemble things like frosting, or cupcakes or cookies. There were some tables, with cushioned chairs and booths as well and in the corner was a coffee/tea and drink section, with numerous condiments and cutlery. The place was quaint, with a casual vibe, probably very popular.

The woman was now back, carrying a few towels in her hand.

"Here you go," she said handing them to Ysanne. "Dry yourself off and I'll grab you something warm to drink. You like coffee?"

"Yes ma'am," Ysanne said softly as she watched her walk away. "Anything is fine, though it's really not necessary."

"No need to be so modest dear, it's okay to accept things that are offered to you."

Ysanne nodded and continued drying her herself off. Inside the store as nice and warm, which made being in damp clothing a bit more bearable. The woman returned with a large Styrofoam cup that held the warm, dark liquid her body needed. She slowly brought the cup to her nose and shivers ran through her body as the heat from the coffee rose and warmed her skin. It was so very relaxing, not to mention the wonderful aroma of the coffee that added to the experience.

"Thank you ma'am," She said with a soft smile before taking a sip.

"You're most welcome, and you may call me Song instead of ma'am. What's your name hun?"

"Ysanne Moore."

"Beautiful name, I've never heard that one before."

"Thank you."

Song took a moment to look her over, trying to put the words of her next question together properly. Ysanne looked young, late teens probably, and she was very beautiful. She had olive skin that was lightly freckled around her nose and under her eyes, her big dark-brown eyes. She looked so sad and that hurt Song. What worries laid in that precious mind?

"Are you homeless?" Song finally asked.

Ysanne looked up at her and their eyes locked. Song was now searching through her soul and Ysanne felt naked, she had such a deep, intense stare. She quickly looked away, taking another sip of coffee before answering.

"I am," she said softly.

"How old are you?" Song asked, more questions pressing her. "Do you have any family?"

Ysanne shook her head, "I recently turned eighteen this summer, last month, June 19th. As for family, I have none, well none I want to be around. My mother is dead and my father is shit, so I've decided to be on my own, it's best that way."

"So you're fresh out of high school? Did you go to school? Did you have any plans?"

"Yes, I went to high school, thank God for public schools. Parents weren't very well off, but we had enough to live comfortably. Mom didn't work because she was an abusive alcoholic, and my dad did work but he also gambled a lot. High school was my daily escape, I even took up the free after school programs they had so I could spend more time there. Graduated with really great marks, no scholarship offers though, so I gave up on college."

"Such a waste!" Song's voice was now raised, which made Ysanne look at her. "Such potential being flushed down the drain because of bad circumstances and lack of opportunity. We can't have that!"

"Well, I don't really have a choice Miss Song."

Song sighed and pulled her chair closer, causing Ysanne to look at her wide-eyed. This lady was really getting personal, wasn't she? She took Ysanne's hand in hers and gave it a light squeeze as she smiled softly at her.

"Dear child," Song began. "When I was young I was dirt poor and suffering, so I was taken from my incapable parents and placed in an orphanage. They were drug addicts who put all their money into their opioid addiction; their child wasn't a priority. I grew up in a system that threw me from family to family, never seeming to find the right one, but one day a family came in and at the old age of 16 they adopted me. I figured it would be another fail but guess what, I stayed with this family and they treated me with so much love, and never gave up on me even when I became difficult. They were once foster kids as well, so they understood me better. They gave me a chance when no one else would, and they are the reason I have the successful life I live today."

Song brushed the stray tendrils of hair behind Ysanne's ear and patted her cheeks softly. As she looked at her, her eyes began to tear up and Ysanne's heart sank. This lady was looking at her with such pity in her eyes; it made her feel so strange.

"I'm sorry to hear that Miss Song," Ysanne said. "I wish those things never happened to you."

Song let out an unexpected giggle and Ysanne widened her eyes at her. That was not the appropriate response lady.

"Ysanne, that's not the point of my story. I want you to focus on the good that came from it in the end...it's the good I want to do for you."

"Huh?" Ysanne was now puzzled.

"I understand what you've been through, the feeling of hopelessness that haunts you everyday of your life, wondering if anything good will ever come. Cursing what ever being dealt you such a bad hand. I want to be that beacon of light you can run to, I want to give you the home you never had, the happiness you deserve. Let me take you in...."