"Okay Splendor. You can do this. It's just a proposal to your future wife. How hard could it be?" He breathes to himself from in the car.
It had been six months and he was finally ready to pop the question! He gets out of the car and grabs the bouquet of pink roses he had gotten specially from Trender, taking one more look at the ring in its red velvet box. It was perfect. He climbs out of the car and heads towards the small diner he had asked her to greet him at, grunting when he accidentally runs into someone.
"My apologies! I wasn't-!" He trails off when he sees the young woman before him. "Oh! Here!"
"Th-Thank you," She says quietly as she accepts the twenty dollar bill he offers her.
Poor thing. He'd come find her again after this but he couldn't stand up his future bride! She heads in the opposite direction and he finally enters the diner. It was his favorite place and held special meaning to him. He'd raised the child that now ran this chain of diners all over the world! This was the first location Splendor had ever bought for him after all.
"Sweetie!" He chirps, grinning as he hands her the bouquet of two dozen roses.
"Ew, you're not doing that here," She spits in disgust when he gets down on one knee. "Splendor, you're serious? My friend just got proposed to on a trip to Portugal! Another in the Bahamas. This is just pathetic."
"But the place shouldn't matter! Not when we love each other!" He reasons, his voice trembling.
"My love should be worth more than some pathetic little diner," She snaps, slamming her hands on the table. "Ugh, you spoiled my appetite. Come to me when you do something worth my love."
Splendor watches helplessly as she storms out of the diner, hanging his head as people whisper to one another about what had just happened. He holds back the tears as he gets to his feet, leaving the diner with the engagement ring clutched in his hand. He grits his teeth when he spots the homeless girl again.
"Take it. It'll do you more good than me," He hisses, storming past his car and down the sidewalk.
"H-Hey! Wait!" He hears her shout, teleporting further down the sidewalk so she can't keep up with him.
Y/N watches in disbelief when the man seems to just get further and further every time she blinks. She looks at the small velvet box in her hand before grasping it in her fist. She heads to a large neighborhood and rummages through the garbage cans, grinning when she finds a phone book in the trash. Good, they still delivered these on time. She hurries out of the neighborhood and back to the alley where she stays. She lights the small lantern she had kept ever since she became homeless and begins looking through the phone book. She finally finds the add she was after where she had seen the creature who threw her the ring. She gets the address to his daycare and decides to head there so she can greet him in the morning.
Getting clean was going to be her first priority. She wasn't exactly keen on going to jail right now. She finds a gas station that lets her take a shower. She strips out of all her layers to her cleanest outfit. A pair of leggings and a tank top. Hopefully this would be enough. She heads back to her sleeping place to put all of her clothes back before beginning the twenty mile walk to the daycare. This would be the longest walk she's taken in quite a while. It's early morning when she finally makes it, her legs aching but she continues to push through.
"Hey! Hey you!" She calls when the creature comes to open the daycare doors. "You forgot something."
"Why'd you bring it back? I don't want it," He snaps with an angry growl.
"You're giving up on her just like that? Some girls need some extra extravagance when it comes to things like this. Just go all out," She fires back on him. "If you love her so much then fight!"
Splendor clenches his jaw at this, snatching the ring before storming into the daycare. Y/N sighs but heads back to her little place in an alley. She puts most of her clothes back on despite the summer heat and finds a street corner where she hopes for a little money for food. By the end of the day she counts the money and finds a place that would let her buy food. The soup kitchens and the shelters were full and she'd spent a lot of her life on the street so she opted to give her space to someone else.
"Y/N!" Mikey grins when I show up at the back door of a pizzeria. "Don't worry about money tonight. They messed up the order so we have an extra pizza!"
"Really?!" She cries with wide eyes as she's handed a box of pizza. "Thank you!"
"Enjoy," He says with s chuckle.
Y/N grins before she hurries off to a road underpass. She settles with her small group of friends and sets out the pizza so they can all get a little food in her belly. The extra pieces go to a couple kids nearby. The four of them had known each other Y/N's entire life. She'd spent most of her life on the street and they did too. You were all surviving as best you could. Jimmy was a marine veteran that suffers with severe PTSD and he lost everything when it got him near suicidal. Y/N found him ready to jump off a bridge. He said everyone had abandoned him. Told him he wasn't worth anything outside the marines.
Y/N just waited and talked him down slowly. She showed him what to do on the streets and still get through his PTSD. She was a regular around the library and she researched everything she could and did her best to help him through his episodes.
Amy was a domestic abuse victim. She chose to stay on the streets where she couldn't be found by her abusive husband. She'd already filed for divorce but he never signed the papers so she chose to hide where no one could find her.
Zach was like Y/N. They had homes until their mothers left their husbands. It was when they were five or so and they've known nothing but the streets ever since. They learned what was and wasn't important. Material things were nice but they never mattered at the end of the day when you stare death in the face thanks to starvation. Food was the most important in Y/N's opinion and that was always the goal. Get enough money to eat. Y/N bids her friends goodbye after they eat and goes back to her little alley. It was tucked far enough away to avoid people and stay safe but was close enough to the street with businesses asking for someone to spare some change.
She's back to sitting in her spot the next morning, watching people scoff and wrinkle their noses as they pass her. She pays them little attention despite the pain that tugs at her heart every time they do it. She sighs softly and slumps back against the building, wondering if she'd even be able to feed herself tonight. A few cents didn't really get you very far in this world. Plus, with her lack of experience no one would hire her. She had nothing to her name. No address. No bank account. Nothing. She concluded she would always be homeless because no one wanted a woman with no experience.
So, she resigned herself to knowing she was forever going to be homeless. She looks up when someone puts a hundred dollar bill in her cup, her eyes widening in surprise when she sees the man from before. The ad didn't say his name and she had yet to even ask him. Still, he was back and was giving her money. Was it out of pity?
"I'm sorry," Is what comes out of his mouth, Y/N staring at him with wide eyes.
"What?" Y/N manages.
"For treating you poorly. I should have never snapped at you," He explains. "I'm sorry."
"O-Oh. Thanks," Y/N tells him with a smile.
"Can I buy you lunch?" He asks hopefully.
"I'm not exactly a good lunch date," Y/N points out.
"Please?" He begs. "I'll get you a whole new outfit."
"You can't buy my forgiveness," Y/N hisses, throwing the hundred back at him. "Piss off."
"Wait!" He cries, grabbing Y/N by the arm when she jerks up to storm off. "I'm not trying to buy anything! I just wanted to thank you for returning the ring. While I would love to use it on my ex she's moved on already."
"Poor you," She hisses back.
"I need your help!" He cries. "I want to show her she doesn't control me. Please. I want to take you to dinner but I need to get you spruced up.
Y/N stares him dead in the face as she contemplates his request. Well, he seemed sincere enough and nice enough. He got fucked over. It wouldn't hurt to help him stand up to his ex. Besides, what did she have to lose anyway?
"Alright, fine. In return you give me two joined hotel rooms for three nights," Y/N tells him.
"Deal! Now come!" He grins, tugging het arm and catching her in his chest.
She grunts when the ground suddenly drops from under her, feeling dizzy and compressed against the man's chest. He smelled like a candy factory. It was a sweet and very alluring smell for her. She'd never stepped foot in a candy store of or factory but if she had to guess he was what they smelled like.
"You can wear one of her dresses. There's one she hasn't touched because it's not her style or something. My brother made it special," Splendor explains.
Y/N looks around his room in amazement. This was bigger than any apartment she'd ever lived in! Her eyes widen when he brings out the most stunning dress she'd ever seen. She'd never even touched something that expensive!
"Here it is! A shower is in order then we'll get you dressed up!"
"I couldn't possibly wear something like that. I'll only ruin it," Y/N protests. "I can't do this."
"Please! I just wanted revenge on my ex so I could meet you again and get to know you. When you threw that ring back at me like that I realized. You had a determination that she doesn't have," He explains. "Please?"
Y/N is shocked by his words, having no idea how to even process this. This rich guy liked her even though he knew she was homeless. That doesn't just happen! It was more like some fairytale but if she was honest, that's exactly what she's wished for all her life. Her dreams never went away no matter how bad things got. Even if it was just for a night, maybe it's time she let herself really enjoy herself. Have fun before she goes back to the street.
"Okay. Okay. I'll do it," She huffs. "But first I need to know your name."
"Oh! It's Splendorman or just Splendor for short," He tells her.
"I'm Y/N," She tells him with a chuckle.
"All supplies are in the tub already. Do you know your measurements?" He asks.
"Measurements?" Y/N asks him, completely confused. Measurements for what?
"Well, you're bust size," He explains.
"Oh. I do know that," She says, giving him her measurements before she goes into the bathroom to shower.
She gets the temperature to her liking before she undresses, leaving her layers of clothes in a pile and entering the shower. The door goes from clear to white so no one can see inside. That was handy. She shaves and does everything thing she needed to look the part. She's surprised to find her clothes gone but changes into the undergarments and dress Splendor had left her.
"I put all of your clothes in the wash!" He calls from the closet when he hears her exit the bathroom.
"Oh! Thank you," She tells him.
"Come sit at the vanity!" He calls, Y/N following directions and doing so.
Her eyes widen when he comes out in a light purple suit with a white button down with a tie to match the suit. You can't help staring at him and eyeing him up and down shamelessly.
"Something wrong?" He asks when Y/N stares a little too long.
"You look amazing in that. You could have any girl you want," Y/N breathes. "I hope I look at least half as nice as you."
"Don't worry. You already do. Let's just highlight those features," He says with a grin.
By the time Splendor finished her makeup she can't even recognize herself in the mirror. Was this how princesses feel when they finally get their happy ending? They get the most beautiful things at the end of the story. He offers Y/N his arm and she takes it, her heart racing as he walks her out of his home. It was huge! She'd never seen a house so big! However, it was empty. No one occupied any other rooms. Y/N wondered why but didn't ask in case it was personal. Some people just liked to live alone.
"We'll take my car," He explains.
He's a perfect gentleman as he opens the door for Y/N, both putting on their seatbelts before Splendor begins to drive. She's amazed when a road suddenly appears but she doesn't question it. A lot of creatures had come out into the public eye recently so it would make sense for a road to magically disappear. She's seen enough things to not get freaked out by happenings. She watches as the scenery passes by while Splendor drives. How nice this must be. To live a life as extravagant as this one. She glances over at Splendor who hums softly to a song on the radio. She bites her lip before reaching out and turning up the volume. She was no singer but she wanted to try.
She grows braver when he sings along as well, the two of them jamming out on the way to the restaurant. Sometimes Splendor would purposely sing off key which made her laugh. He keeps complimenting her on how beautiful she looks and how he can't believe he met someone as beautiful as her. She tells him the same as she blushes bright red. He didn't seem fazed by her compliments at all! Well, she supposed he probably got compliments all the time. Splendor makes a point to open her door when they arrive at the restaurant. He walks past all the people hoping to win a free table and gives his reservation number.
Was he already planning on coming to this place? Maybe he was still hoping to get back with his ex. He wanted to get her attention and show that he's definitely what she wants. It would make sense. Use a girl to make your future fiancé jealous so she comes back to you. If Y/N was honest her heart twisted painfully at the idea. She was foolish to think someone as rich and powerful as him would ever be into a jobless and homeless dead beat.
"Y/N?" Splendor calls, pulling her from her thoughts.
"Yes?" She asks.
"Let me take your coat," He chuckles, shivering when his soft hands brush her bare shoulders to take off her coat when she nods at him.
A waitress comes and takes them to their table and Y/N tries to keep her glances at Splendor's fiancée to a minimum. They're barely into their bread when she comes over.
"Is that my dress?!" She demands much to Y/N's surprise.
"No it's not. You never wore it so it's new. Fits her a lot better than it would have you," He huffs at her, glancing over at Y/N who snorts while she drinks her water.
"What's so funny tramp? How much is he paying you?" She demands.
"Oh, he's not paying me anything," Y/N tells her after wiping her face with her napkin. "I actually like him as a man. Did you know he loves hummingbirds? He has five feeders around his garden. His favorite vegetable is corn but he hates green beans. He prefers the vegetarian options but will occasionally eat meat."
"Wh-What?" She stammers out, her confidence dropping as she stares at this strange woman with wide eyes. "Of course I knew that!"
"When's his birthday?" Y/N asks her. "If you love him for him and not his money you'd know something so simple."
"You've been coaching her!" She screams, gaining the attention of the restaurant. "You brought her here to humiliate me but it's not happening! He wants to marry ME! Not some whore he picked up off the street!"
Splendor goes to move but Y/N is faster, leaving a bright red handprint across her face.
"Go fuck your other rich guy. He's over you," Y/N spits back at him.
"Splendor! Tell me she's lying! Where's the ring? It doesn't have to be fancy! I just want to marry you!" Splendor's ex cries.
"I already asked Y/N to marry me," Splendor tells her, catching both women by surprise. "Oh! Well, that was the surprise. Sorry Y/N."
"Splendor, you could take me on a date sorting trash and recyclables and ask me to marry you and I'd still say yes," Y/N tells him.
Just keep up the show. Still, her heart races when Splendor grabs her left hand and slides on a ring that would make any woman swoon. She gives him a happy smile, surprised when he's suddenly in front of her. Her heart pounds in her chest as she returns the kiss he places on her lips, feeling a million butterflies in her stomach. His ex stomps off and Y/N stares up at Splendor when he pulls away.
"I'm not doing this for show. I want to marry you," He tells her.
"We haven't even known each other long," Y/N protests with wide eyes. "Plus I have nothing to bring into a relationship."
"You helped me and all you asked for was a hotel. For you and your friends right? What if I help all of you?" Splendor offers. "I have too much room anyway. We can't save everyone but we can help as many people as we can. They trust you. Will you trust me?"
Y/N can't help the tears that fill her eyes as Splendor cups her cheek, nodding her head as she doesn't trust her voice. He makes it work and kisses her again, deep and passionate. Y/N couldn't believe it. It was like a dream come true.