I had many questions in my mind and I had to choose wisely since I had only five questions left to myself. Magenta sat in front of me looking serious about the whole thing. It was scary to agree that my apartment looked less haunting and lonely with her sitting there. She was a girl of few pounds and a bad fashion sense, there was something messy about her and she had a rough, broken aura around her and yet when she sat there on my clean plush carpet it felt some darkness reduced by here presence, like my demons will not peep out from the closet or there will be no one crawling out from under my bed.

She was there nullifying all the bad.

The drink was kicking and all the logic in my head was leaving me. Or that is the reason I gave myself for staring at her.

Why are you here?

"It was your turn so you can ask me", I offered her a chance to speak up.

She looked like she was about to cry.

"No, you can ask your questions first." She said in a voice heavy with emotion.

She was letting me ask all my questions.

"Where do you live?" I asked since this bothered me looking at her condition.

She gulped and it was clear that the question was hard for her.

"On streets." She mumbled hoping that I will not hear her.

But in that crazy moment, I was only hearing her.

It made sense though, her clothes, her presence in the most obscene part of the city, her evident lack of fear when it came to danger, her reaction on drinking something as common as a latte.

Again I was noticing her closely, her fingers playing with the carpet, her eyes staring down at the same carpet. She was ashamed of her living conditions. But it didn't make me feel any different.

But it made me realise the hardships in her life. I have a rough idea how the life for street kids are.

"Why?" It made sense to me to ask the reason her life was this way.

She inhaled sharply and I should be going easy on her but I can't lose this chance.

"My parents died when I was young and a foster family took me in. They were not that loving so I had to run away and then Sam found me." 

The only thought that struck my mind was her life was so hard, how was she so kind? Why isn't the darkness consuming her as it is consuming me? Why is she still surrounded with that aura of calmness? Why does she feel like redemption in garbs?

"Why is your name Sasha at hospital work list?" Shawn must have pulled strings for her so that she was working under a fake name.

"I am afraid my foster parents will find me."

What the hell did they do to her?

"Who is your favourite actor?" I asked but I swear I didn't plan to.

This time she stopped playing with the carpet and looked up. 

Disarming. Her eyes had that effect on me.

"I have not seen movies." Reality hit me hard.

She might not have enjoyed some basic things in life.

"Last question." She reminded me and I felt the loss of questions now.

I thought carefully and asked, "Why did you want to help me?"

She analysed me for a while as if deciding on her final answer, "Because I want to."

That was an abrupt, befuddling answer but she didn't elaborate. why does she want to? 

Just because I was going to help her?

"Now you know everything, will you help Sam now?" She asked obviously worried.

Of course, I will but I can't seem easily agreeable.

"And what do I get in return?"

"What do you want?" She asked worry crossing her face.

Last time I asked to come to my fight and that was to scare her away but I do not want to run her away. It was like she said, I needed her. In the most subtle unromantic way but I needed her.

"Help me fight my demons," I said it out loud.

And I thought she will ask me what that meant or why was I asking her to do so.

"Your demons?" She echoed my words like she was well aware of this situation.

And then like after a frozen night the sun rays make a gallant entry in the morning, her sad face lit up with a smile.

"Of course I will help you fight your boogyman." She was mocking me but not in a hurtful way.

She was just rejoicing the fact that I agreed indirectly that I needed her.

"On one condition Jeremy." The smile on her face makes me think about sunshine and spring and beaches, good things I have stopped thinking about.

"What?"

"Don't get too attached to me." I thought she will laugh now but she stared at me with utter seriousness.

Was this her condition?

"Like I said I don't get attached to people Magenta." I wanted to sound harsh but it didn't come out that way.

"Great then, we have a deal." She out stretched her hand for a handshake.

And third time tonight I was staring at her hand. I never backed down from a physical contact from a girl but now I was thinking. I was afraid that she was a fragile glass and I was a destructive hammer and I will shatter her into million pieces.

When I didn't respond she used her free hand to grab my hand and forced it into a handshake. I couldn't describe the feeling and I didn't want to because that might sound like a fucking girly girl but let's just say the cascading waves of warmth you feel after drinking hot chocolate on a winter night; that is how I felt in that moment.

***

I hated that she didn't ask me any questions for her side of the deal. I hated that she said Jack must be worried for her and she needed to get back. I hated that she asked me not to get attached even when I was not planning to.

But what I hated more was where I dropped her. The slight tint of her cheeks was evidence of her embarrassment of the situation. It was four at night and I was in front of an old chemical factory. She can't be seriously living here.

But I can't bring myself to say anything since I had no idea what to say. I was bad with feelings and worse at expressing them.

She got down and I was racking my brain to say something intelligent or rather something to stop her from walking in that lane of darkness. But she didn't find it scary, she just kept walking. I sighed when she was lost in the darkness as I stood there fumbling for words.

My drive back home was suffocating and I stopped near the beach. The light of the morning sun was arriving in the golden chariot over the waves of the sea and I sat down on the sand. It was seldom that a film star like me got a chance to enjoy peace like this in his own city.

I contemplated over the thought that what I asked from Magenta was right or not.

The cold water touched my feet and I felt all the warmth draining away from my body. And for a moment I thought what it will be like to walk in cold water till I could touch the light orange hue spread by the rising sun, what will be like to walk inside the water away from this world as my footprints wash away and I leave nothing behind.

Maybe then I could meet Charlotte.

But what I found surprising was the deal I made with Magenta and how I wanted to keep my word of helping her.

Before I did something drastic, I called Ash. It took longer for him to pick up since it was five in the morning.

"What now?" He groaned.

"Do we have a job opening?" I asked not sure what kind of jobs we had around us.

"A what?"

"Ash, a job opening," I said in a slower tone.

"Like what?"

"For a girl."

Ash sighed deeply probably aggravated at my demands.

"It depends on the qualification." He said.

And then I remembered that there was a place I can get a nice job for Sam, Charlotte's Boutique.

Another place I didn't go. I owned it but now it was run by other people.

"Put her in the boutique." I decided.

"Are you sure?" He asked as if he was not believing what I just said.

"Pretty sure."

"Okay, I will get it done."

The sun was visible clearly now and I decided to walk away before people started arriving on the beach.  

I pulled out a piece of paper from the stack of papers in the back seat of my cars and decided to write down my demons since I had too many of them.

And put down at beginning of the list, no attachment.

It felt fucking stupid to do this and I was not a kind of guy to put it down in a list. I was not that systematic but right down I needed to realise how deep I was in this.

And whether I actually wanted to get rid of my demons or not.

Visit the dreaded Boutique. I added first thing on my list.

☘ ☘ ☘

Getting closer? xD

Sam is going to freak out when she meets the star  :D

Hope this chapter was ok?

Don't forget to vote and comment.