Chapter Text
“Yes —yes, i understand ma’am but you cant return that”
”Give me one good reason why?” A brunette fifty-something screeched
”Well for one you don’t have a receipt and for two you’re making quite the scene and i might have to call security ma’am”
”Well I will be taking my business elsewhere! You have just lost a paying a paying customer!” she shouted over her boney shoulder”
Roy scrubbed his hands over his face before running them through his cropped dull red hair. He blew out a breath before standing abruptly and at his phone buzzing for five o’clock.
”Abupbupbup” Miranda his manager jogging over dropping her hands down onto his desk “Can i speak to you for a little itty bitty bit”
”Well i was ju-“
“Thanks so much! So… Roy. I know, you know me which means we both know you can do better! Now don’t get me wrong you’re doing a particularly bad job it's just that…” she drew in sharp breath tumbling her hands in a repeat motion, “you’re doing a bad job Roy. And I just need you to step up your game! Try to be more—more sociable. I took a chance on you Roy, don’t let me down!”
”Of course not Miranda”
“I know you won’t Roy!”
”Bye Miranda”
He picked up his holey crossbody and stuffed his i phone 8 into his back pocket and walked out. He was definitely losing his job, he thought. Which was bad news in particular for Roy because Miranda had taken a chance on him and he wasn’t sure many other places wanted a ‘druggie’ working for them.
When he walked out of the obnoxiously bright white light of the grocery out of automated doors he was greeted with the simultaneously thick and painfully cold air of Bludhaven.
He’d been walking for maybe 15 minutes along thin pavements when he heard groaning from inside an alleyway.
He should've just kept walking. It wasn’t like the area was unpopular for the homeless. He should’ve left him there but Roy never really did what he should.
He peered into a dark alley and saw a maybe twenty year old with almost bright black hair that curled around the nape of his neck and around his ears. It was almost in the type of ringlets you see in those marble statues people would also show you when talking about the Romans. He had a sharp nose bridge that straight down into a rounded end that pointed at his tapered lips which were drawn back slightly.
Roy sighed, surrendering and picking up this stranger’s surprisingly heavy frame.
Roy got a few looks from neighbors that also were trapped in the same depressingly cramped and probably mold infested apartments he was. But then again he was carrying a full man up into his apartment. Roy couldn’t quite remember why he’d decided it was a good idea to take this stranger off the street into his home but for some reason he couldn't bring himself to leave them like he had so many other poor would he’d come across on the street.
He shut the door behind himself with his foot setting down the black hair man on his couch. As he put his hands on hips he thought about calling 999 but decided against it on account of being too tired for anything more than kicking off his shoes and dropping onto his thin, twin mattress.