Gingerly she pushed herself up. There was no point in wallowing in the dark. After all, nothing would get done if she remained curled up in this place. 'Up you get, Marlowe' she thought to herself. It was time to find some breakfast, hopefully. Marlowe stood taking in her meager possessions tightly packed into the lone ragged backpack backed into her temporary shelter. It really wasn't much. A set of clothes, a secondhand jacket several sizes too large, a meager first aid kit and the one hygiene kit the kind ladies at the shelter had given her a few weeks ago. A rather sad showing of her worth, really. Not to mention her current shelter. It wasn't the best but she was proud of her resourcefulness this go around. A salvaged tarp stretched taut between two trees held by bungee cords that had certainly seen better days was her roof. A couple discarded cardboard boxes served as her floor and the dense copse of trees at her back was her one true wall. This little shelter had served as her home for the past two weeks but the park security had been sniffing around lately so Marlowe knew it wouldn't be long before she would have to move on. It was better than being forced out. At least she could keep her stuff if she left willingly.
She sighed. "Better get started. Officer Blancher maybe willing to turn a blind eye once but none of his partners will." As she began to take her little roof down she found herself thinking back to how she ended up like this. Marlowe wasn't always homeless. It had been maybe...three years now? Her mind wondered back to that first night....
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"NO!! PLEASE!!" The teen screamed. She could do this! It would be hard but she knew she could. She had all of her money saved up from working double shifts at the store and while it wasn't much it would be enough to cover the first payment. She stared at the couple before her. Both were older, dressed professionally in nice suits and neither would look her in the eyes.
"I'm sorry Miss Anderson. I realize that this is difficult for you but the bank must collect." The stern faced woman said gravelly. While her heart truly went out for the sixteen year old, she had to remain professional. This wasn't personal simply business. "At the time of your parents death payments for the estate were scheduled to continue on a monthly basis, as per their final requests, however there was an over site." The grave faced man took a step towards the young woman, still nothing but a child really, and placed a firm hand on her shoulder.
"Miss Anderson, it would seem that your parents miscalculated their final funds and the account connected to the estate has been wiped out. I'm afraid that the only option is for the bank to seize the estate to compensate for the balance that is still owed."
Marlowe Anderson shook her head frantically taking a step away from the man as she did so. "B-but I have money saved up. I know that I can make the payments! I can give you the money now! Please!" Large tears rolled down her face. Marlowe sniffed before reaching up to wipe them away. She was trying so hard. She had been since her parents had gotten sick.
"I'm sorry dear girl. You may have saved enough for the payment this month but there is still the interest and the late fees to consider. This is truly the only option. You have somewhere you can go, yes?" The man looked at the girl. He had been the advisor on the family account for years and despite his grave appearance was distraught that he hadn't caught the error sooner. He watched as the girl pulled herself together, wiping tears from her eyes and standing straight.
"Yeah, sure. Don't worry Mr. Liev. I...I can check with my aunt." Marlowe sniffed. It wasn't that she was attached to the house but it had all of her memories of her parents. She had lived here for sixteen years and it felt wrong to be anywhere else. Turning towards the woman, Marlowe nodded. "Ms. Wendell? Thank you for coming today. May I have a few days to pack and contact my aunt?"
Ms. Wendell nodded before turning away. "You may have to the end of the week. That gives you four days. That should be sufficient, yes?" Marlowe nodded.
"Certainly." She mumbled and walked to her room. It was time to pack away sixteen years into four days. She glances around her room and was hit with the overwhelming need to cry.
She didn't hold back this time....