Attitude is everything. Zachary told himself as he finished grabbing his meal for the day, an apple. It wasn't much, but he had to be careful with his money. Since he'd eaten some chicken yesterday, today was going to be fruit. Licking his lips, his eyes glanced sideways toward a head of broccoli and he felt his stomach constrict with need.

No. You can't have it. A vegetable is tomorrow. Today is a cheap fruit.

He stared down at the red apple in his dirty hand and forced a smile. It wasn't ideal, and he would have loved to be able to afford the broccoli as well, but he knew saving his money was more important than being full. He'd live with just the apple. Nodding to himself, Zachary turned and strode past the vegetables and walked up to the '10 items or less' line. The person working the register smiled and greeted him. She was an older woman who had worked there for as long as he could remember, so they knew each other somewhat well.

"How has your day been, Zachary?" She asked as she rung up the apple and he handed over the forty-nine cents it cost.

"Good Mrs. Besby. Going job hunting again after breakfast."

The woman nodded and smiled as she handed the apple back over to him.

"Best of luck, young one. I know you can do it."

Zachary grinned and winked. "I've got it, today for sure."

The woman nodded again and made a funny cheering gesture with her wrinkled fist. "Go get em, tiger."

With a slight skip to his step, Zachary headed outside and immediately began eating his breakfast. While the apple wasn't much, it definitely soothed his aching stomach, allowing him to start thinking more clearly. He'd noticed a few places north of where he lived that had Help Wanted signs in their windows so he figured he could try those first. Of course, with his ratty clothing and dirty appearance, he wasn't sure how well he'd manage first appearances, but he knew he was an asset if anyone would just give him a chance.

His feet stopped outside of a nightclub about two streets away from his alley home. The building was silent and loomed over its neighbors, boasting three stories were most of the buildings around only had two, or just one. One of his good friends, though the man likely didn't think so, was the bouncer at the club. Zachary had literally run into him one night while trying to maneuver through a crowd he hadn't realized was just waiting to get into the club.

Maybe I'll finally make him smile tonight.

The man was always stone-faced, even when dealing with drunken patrons.

I'm gonna crack that frown!

Grinning to himself, Zachary felt the need to run well up in his chest, so he obliged and bounded down the slowly busying streets. People were coming and going, most heading to work while those from the night shifts trudged home sleepily. Living in an alley, Zachary didn't sleep much. He got just enough to keep himself going, though last night he did manage to get a few extra hours in preparation for today's job hunt.

His attitude remained positive, even as he began to rack up rejections. He almost wished he had a phone so that they could at least give him some kind of hope by telling him that they'd call tomorrow instead of just saying that they had more qualified candidates that had already applied, though he didn't know how someone could be more qualified to stock food or fold clothing. Grumbling to himself, Zachary finally turned into his alley and sat down against the wall by the entrance, his eyes staring down at the dirty ground between his legs.

My jeans have a new hole...

It wasn't in an obvious spot being on the inside of his leg, but it would definitely be more noticeable soon. Leaning back, he felt his head press against the worn brick behind him. The sky, beginning to dim as day became night, loomed overhead. Clouds were also pooling over the city, foretelling an incoming storm. Zachary slowly stood, looking over at the awning he used to sleep beneath to avoid getting soaked by the rain. It had far too many holes in it now to be of any help for the night's storm.

"Guess I'll be getting a shower tonight." He said with a chuckle as he headed back toward the club he'd visited earlier. Judging from the dimming light, he knew it had to be around seven or so. The nightclub wouldn't be busy for awhile, but that just meant he'd have time to talk with George, the bouncer for a bit.

Money weighing heavy in his pocket and hunger weighing far greater on his stomach, Zachary headed off toward the club. When he didn't notice George standing outside he walked past, knowing that he wouldn't be allowed inside because of his age... and likely his dirty and torn clothing. So, he just kept walking, finding himself inside the grocery store for a second time that day.

No. You already got your food for today, tomorrow you can get some broccoli.

No matter how much he repeated those words in his head, he couldn't help but find his way over to the vegetables. His stomach growled, begging for him to just reach out and take something. Anything.

"Hello dear, how was your day? Did you find anywhere to work yet?"

Zachary squeaked, jumping from surprise as he turned to see the old cashier from earlier behind a cart with a few groceries in it.

"Oh, Mrs. Brisby. Hello, I didn't get anything today, but tomorrow, for sure." He said with an upbeat voice, even though the knot in his stomach tightened abruptly, making him wince.

"That's too bad. Well, I'd like some broccoli but I can never finish one of those big ones, but this granny doesn't like frozen food. If I buy one, will you take half so that it's not wasted?"

His tongue tied immediately, making words unable to leave his mouth. Stunned, Zachary just nodded as his stomach growled audibly, making the old woman chuckle as she picked out the biggest head of broccoli she could find. Not knowing what else to do, Zachary followed her to the register but then moved past it to stand against the wall near the exit, not wanting to seem intrusive. When she'd finally paid for her food and pushed the cart over to him, she took out the broccoli and tried to break it in half. She struggled with it for just a moment, then gave up with a shrug and offered it all to him.

"It appears like this old granny can't pull apart broccoli anymore. Ah well, I'm not really hungry for it now, you take it."

He thought he was going to pass out. It might not be much to most people, but it was an amazing dinner to him. "Thank you ma'am!" Zachary said a bit too loudly. The woman didn't seem to mind though, and the store was mostly empty so it wasn't a big deal.

"You're welcome, son. Best get going, the store is closing in a few minutes."

With that she sauntered slowly out of the store with her one bag of groceries after returning the cart. Zachary took a moment to regroup his thoughts before heading out as well, turning once back outside to head back toward the club. As he walked he dug into his food, getting odd looks from random people on the sidewalk but not caring in the least. He was going to enjoy his dinner!

He'd finished about a forth of the broccoli by the time he arrived at the club. George was standing outside, already checking ID's for those that came early. When he finished a particularly large group he glanced up and noticed Zachary. There was no smile for him, but he was used to that. With his own wide smile Zachary walked over.

"Hey George, how has your day been?" He asked cheerfully. The large man turned to check three more ID's before he looked back at Zachary and answered in a deep, rumbling voice. "Pretty good. How has yours been, kid?"

Pursing his lips, Zachary let the kid jest slide, knowing that grumbling to George about it wouldn't help.

"Pretty good. Still looking for a job, but I'm sure I'll get one soon." He said cheerfully. George grunted in response and began checking more IDs, only to suddenly stop when someone came out of the club. The man was surprisingly gorgeous, in a handsome sort of way, of course. He was wearing fitted leather pants, though they appeared stylish and not just tight. Raising his eyes from them, Zachary noticed that he was completely bare-chested. And what a chest it was. After a moment of staring his eyes rose the rest of the way, allowing him to take in the man's square, stubbled jaw, messy black hair, and cold blue eyes.

"Excuse me, but who are you? We don't allow loitering."

Zachary had to refocus his attention, then repeat the man's words in his mind before he was able to answer. "I-I'm sorry, s-sir."

Immediately Zachary's eyes dropped to his worn out shoes. The souls of them long-since detached and just barely clinging to the fabric by a few threads.

"You need to leave, guests are complaining about someone sometimes standing out here begging."

It hurt that people had lied about him. He'd never begged for anything in his life, and especially not when talking with George. He wouldn't argue though, and quickly backed up a few steps, then apologized one more time before darting away down the street. As he ran he heard George begin to say something, but got too far away too fast to catch any of it. When he was finally safe in his alley several blocks away Zachary walked down it about halfway and slid down the wall to the ground. The action made his dirty, previously-shirt ride up a little, but the slight scratch the wall gave his back didn't matter much. He was more frustrated that he'd actually bothered people enough just talking with someone he wanted to consider a friend. He didn't really have any, but George at least talked to him once in awhile and didn't seem to mind his company.

Stay positive. Not everyone is going to be nice.

Zachary nodded and leaned back, looking at his hand... where his dinner had been. Tears immediately stung at his eyes. The food wasn't as important as the feeling of losing the gift the woman had graciously given him. To add insult to upset, the sky finally decided to open up and drenched him in seconds.

Well, at least the rain isn't too cold tonight.

The thought made him smile, even if he was getting soaked to the bone and beginning to shiver. He hunched, trying to get as close to the wall as possible to stem the water that could hit him. When he turned against it to rest a bit more comfortably, he noticed a silhouette in the rain at the entrance to the alley. Zachary fidgeted and stumbled to his feet right away, worried that he was going to have to fight. For what, he wasn't sure. He only had a few bills to his name, and his clothing was in tatters. There was nothing worth taking in the alley, including himself.

He hoped that the silhouette would just disappear, curiosity sated that there was nothing worth bothering with in the dirty alleyway. Unfortunately, he wasn't that lucky. In fact, another form joined the first. The rain was too heavy to be able to see them clearly but he wasn't interested in waiting until they came closer. Hoping that they hadn't seen him yet in the downpour, Zachary began backing up, moving until his back was firmly pressed against the far wall some twenty yards from the entrance where the two people were standing.

Just go away, please. I don't have anything for you to take!

When they did the exact opposite, Zachary knew he had to get ready to fight. His blood pumped fast, heart thrumming hard against his chest. It wasn't until George appeared through the downpour that he felt all of the adrenaline suddenly leave his body.

"Hey kid, you dropped your food."

Zachary looked down at George's hands, then back up to his face. He hadn't brought it back, so why mention it?

"It's o-okay," he stuttered anyways, shrugging, though it was stiff from the cold seeping through his bones. George's normal frown deepened before he was suddenly nudged aside.

The other man.

Zachary immediately stepped to the side, wanting to get away. George easily blocked him with his towering size though, forcing him to hesitantly look up at the other man. He was soaked as well, but since he wasn't wearing a shirt, most of the water just ran off of his sculpted body. Zachary assumed he was going to get lectured on going near the club again, or maybe for dropping his food, but when the large man knelt down, he flinched and dropped his eyes to his shoes.

"Hey..."

Shivers began along his spine, then quickly traveled all the way to his fingertips and toes.

"Come back with us to warm up, please? I apologize for judging the situation so quickly."

Even though the offer was more than generous, Zachary couldn't help but shake his head. He was more than content to accept the apology and leave it at that, but evidently the man had other ideas. Zachary could feel his eyes on him, and when the man's next baritone words finally came, he couldn't help but answer.

"What is your name?"

"Z-Zachary."

A large, slightly-tanned hand appeared in front of his eyes after he spoke.

"Zachary, come back with me."

He wanted to tell him no, but the word was stuck on his tongue. When the man's fingers curled slightly, beckoning him, he reached up slowly and found himself placing his own dirty hand atop his. The man tugged him gently and turned to face the entrance to the alley. George was standing there now, waiting but not paying them any mind as he looked down the sidewalk. Zachary trusted him, but his friend from the club was someone he wasn't sure about.

"Zachary?"

Blinking away some raindrops on his eyelashes, Zachary glanced up, unable to meet the man's eyes but at least managing to get close and stare at his neck.

"Come."

The man squeezed his hand, then began walking. It was against his better judgement to do it, but he couldn't disobey any longer. His right foot lifted, then moved forward and splashed into a dirty puddle. His left one soon followed, and pretty soon he was walking, following a man he didn't know back to a club he'd never been inside of. As they moved, Zachary found himself finally lifting his eyes high enough to watch the man's face through the heavy rain. He stared for only a moment before he was caught looking and abruptly looked down. Instead of saying anything though, the man just gave his hand another gentle squeeze as he lead him away from the home he'd known for the past three years.