sitting in this room , [annah]

[wesley]

over the years, well had realised something vital. it wasn't that people didn't know what they had until it was gone, it was that people didn't appreciate it. the fortunate know they're fortunate, but they never appreciate it until they know what it's like to be without it. wes had always known that he was well off, that he would never have to work for money and that his parents would always provide for him and his little brother. he knew it and he didn't exactly appreciate it until one humbling day in november when he was seventeen. it was raining, down pouring really, and a hummer skidded right into the side of his parents little boxter. hit, bam, dead. when police showed up on wes's doorstep he was too numb to cry. his little brother, khane, was only seven and explaining to the boy that their parents were now dead was horrible. wes did as much as he could, raising his brother in their big house, living off the money their father had invested and earned. they were well off, so it wasn't tv dinners and a cramped apartment, but it was still hard.

now, at twenty, in the midst of skate competitions, homework, and raising khane, was wes's angel in disguise, annah king. she was khane's babysitter and wes's life saver. today he had a colossal paper to write on some shit about this poetic guy and he couldn't care less, but it was supposed to have been started already and he needed to powere something out for the rough draft due tomorrow. he grabbed his phone and texted annah to make sure she was picking khane up from school and then hiked his way across the giant house to the den and powered up his laptop, praying to the gods that he could get this shit done like yesterday. he knew annah would peek her head in when they got home, something she always did, so wes left the door cracked and set to work.

[savannah raegan king]

living in a low-income family, annah had never known was it was like to take advantage of what she was given. she'd never had anything flashy, or expensive, but it never seemed to bother her. her family wasn't scraping the bottoms of their pockets to get by, but they weren't spending what they had on new clothes every month, or luxurious vacations. the most exciting place annah had ever been was to visit her dad in miami, and it was always accompanied by a feeling of guilt. her parents weren't exactly on the best of terms, and though her dad could provide three families with all life's necessities, he only chose to pay the bare minimum child care demanded. of course, it was nothing against annah (he loved her to death), he was just spiteful of how his relationship had ended.

despite her father's reluctance, annah offered a helping hand whenever she could, and in order to do so, she babysat as often as she was needed. like today, for example. instead of hanging around the soccer field after practice like the rest of her teammates did, annah was rushing to pick up another one of her usuals. in all honestly, she really didn't mind spending her time with kids half her age. in fact, she kind of enjoyed it. there was never any drama, and they never ceased to surprise her with their imagination. khane especially. the kid was hilarious, to say the least, and sweet as can be. besides his curiosity, it was almost effortless to keep an eye on him while his older brother was off doing work, or out skateboarding.

with a smile plastered on her face, hair thrown into a messy bun, annah sped towards khane's school in her beat up volvo. the route was so familiar, she hardly had to check the street signs anymore. within minutes, she was parked in her usual spot, eyes searching for his familiar face. once he was settled in the back seat, baseball cap practically taking over his entire head, she sped towards the one place she knew better than her own home -- wes's. once they had finally pulled into the driveway, the motions were almost routine: grab khane's bag, race him to the front door, burst into the front hall, wave hello to wes, then escape upstairs to help with homework, adventures, and anything else khane felt like doing.

stopping by the den on her way upstairs, annah poked her head into the room. hey, mister studious. writing something life-changing today? a coy smile pulled at the corners of her lips, arms crossing over her chest as she leaned against the door frame.

[/justify]