All her life, Lexey Giverney had wanted to escape. Growing up in the small town of Hocksburg, Idaho, she had longed for the day when she would leave and never look back. She was born for much bigger things than potato farms, she would think to herself. So she saved every penny from age eight on and, when she turned seventeen, she left her small-town life behind and embarked for New York City. It was a long journey, but when she arrived she was breathless. New York City was all she ever could have hoped for. The city was her dreams turned to reality. She watched as people hustled down the street, arms filled with Christmas gifts from Saks. Then, she marveled at the perfect snowflakes falling from the sky, the glow of Christmas lights illuminating them in the dark. She could feel tears prickle in her eyes as she stared out of the bus window. Finally, she was home. That day marked the first day of the rest of her life. A life, she was sure, that was destined to be full of fame, fortune, glitz, and glamour. 12 Years and Three Weeks Later…. Lexey Giverney screamed in outrage! She could not believe that she was actually being thrown out of her apartment. So she’d missed a few weeks rent, big deal? She always came through when it counted. However, as she watched her very expensive wardrobe and designer shoes fly out at her through the door, it occurred to her that if she was kicked out she would be, essentially, homeless. She wouldn’t actually get kicked out, this was just a warning, Lexey assured herself. “Please, Mr. Thomas, I’ll have the money by tomorrow, I just landed a new gig, but it doesn’t pay until next week! Please, just give me one more chance.” She gave him the smile that never failed, twirled her brown curls, and batted her eyelashes. It always worked. She saw Mr. Thomas’s eyebrows crinkle, a telltale sign that he was about to give in, and cheered inside. However, when she looked up again she saw a different expression, pity. “Lexey, I’m sorry, honestly I am. You know how much I like you, but this isn’t just one time Lexey. In fact, I can’t say I even remember the last time you paid me! This is a really desirable location. Your apartment has one of the best views in Manhattan, for God’s sake. Do you have any idea how much money I could make if someone who actually paid bought it? I’m sorry Lexey, but you really have to leave.” He said with a definite tone of finality. Lexey wasn’t one to give up easily. “But Mr.-“ She began. “Lexey, if you don’t leave now, I will call the police.” He looked very serious and Lexey had the chilling feeling that she was now, indeed, homeless. She turned around to see several of her neighbor’s staring at her, but not because she was beautiful or glamorous or rich or successful, because she was downright pathetic. She lifted her chin and laughed. “I’m dreadfully sorry I can’t stay, but the new apartment I found on the Upper East Side, was simply too perfect to pass up.” She huffed delicately and watched as her life was boxed up, carried out the door, and placed in a cab that just so happened to have her in it as well. It wasn’t until she got in the cab, that her tears began to flow. Where would she go? Sure, there were plenty of friends she could stay with, but what would she tell them? That she hadn’t been offered a new modeling gig in six months? That the last time she had even auditioned for a shoot they told her she was too old? How mortifying would that be? Sadly, she thought, she had no other option. She began to think of friends she could call. There was Victoria Langer, her sometimes clubbing-buddy. Then, she recalled the fact that Victoria had just recently began dating her ex-boyfriend who she knew for a fact was gay and just needed a girlfriend to cover in front of his parents who wouldn’t give him access to his trust fund if he came out of the closet. Talk about awkward. Then there was Tory Goldstein, her first upper-crust friend in New York City. No, Tory wouldn’t work. Lexey had almost forgotten that Tory had moved to Greenwich Village with her new fiancée. She could always try Jenna Garcia, even though the girl was atrociously dull, she did have quite a nice apartment and, as she did, a penchant for shopping. She picked up her pink Razor and speed-dialed Jenna. “Jenna Garcia.” A voice answered. “Jenna! It’s me, Lexey!” She responded as merrily as her mood would allow. “Lexey…” Wow, had it really been that long? “Lexey Giverney, silly.” She said with a nervous laugh. “Oh, hello, Lexey how sweet of you to call!” Odd, she sounded slightly sad. “Well, I’m afraid it’s not about anything exciting, I just wanted to ask you a favor.” Lexey said delicately, trying to hold her pride intact. “A favor? You called to ask me a favor?” Jenna asked incredulously. “You honestly don’t know?” She paused, waiting for my response. “Know?” I responded meekly. “Wow, what a great friend you are. My father just died. Didn’t you get the invitation to the funeral?” Oh, that had been what that letter was for? When she saw that it was just from Jenna, she had used the envelope to wipe up red wine she had spilled on the floor. How awful! “Don’t you read the fucking newspaper? You want a favor? Unbelievable. You are unbelievable Lexey Giverney.” and with that, Jenna hung up. “Excuse me ma’am, but this is where the man told me to drop you.” The cabdriver said. She looked up, completely forgetting that she was in a cab. She looked out the window and began to sob. He had driven her to Saks Fifth Avenue. What was she going to do? Get out on Saks Fifth Avenue with boxes and boxes worth of stuff? God, she needed someplace to go and fast. She would have to resort to her Little Black Book. Three (Slightly Uncomfortable) Days Later… Lexey sighed as she made herself at home in her ex-boyfriend Carl’s rather cramped apartment. No wonder she had dumped him. “So, Lexey, this is only temporary right, because, uh, I have a girlfriend.” He said looking exasperatedly at all the stuff that had managed to unpack itself and settle into his apartment. “Of course, but I can’t go home right now, it will only remind me of Fluffy’s last days in this world.” She said as she forced tears out of her eyes. The average person may have been a little doubtful about her sincerity, but, thankfully, if Carl had any questions, like why she had decided to choose his house as her place to get over Fluffy’s tragic demise, he was nice enough to keep them to himself. He had always been an uncommonly nice guy. Just not uncommonly attractive or wealthy… “Oh, yes of course. Well, I’m going out with Trisha tonight, so make yourself at home.” He said and then laughed. She already had. Four (Very Uncomfortable) Weeks Later… Lexey woke up to the usual. She heard the sounds of Carl getting up, showering, making himself some coffee, and then leaving for work. She sighed softly. It had all become very routine and she had begun to feel quite at home, just her and Carl. She shook herself, her and Carl! They weren’t even dating! What was wrong with her? She was living with someone else’s boyfriend! Someone she had dumped years before! Someone she hardly even knew. What was worse was that he clearly knew that she had no other place to go. It was as if he could see right through her. He could see that she was a failure. She had no friends to turn to, no job to make her money, no house to sleep in at night, and no family to count on. She was all alone…with Carl. This was a disaster. She had to get out and as soon as possible. Unfortunately, she was completely broke. That would have to be rectified, she determined. It was time to find a job. She grabbed one of Carl’s newspapers and scanned through the open call ads. All but one read, “Seeking Female Models Under the age of 25.” She could try to pass as 25, but she wouldn’t be able to stand the humiliation if she heard the words too and old together again. She looked at the remaining ad, “Wanted, Woman to Pose with Small Animals, Any Age Accepted” and began choking on a grape she had just popped into her mouth. Maybe it was time to give up on modeling. She held in her tears. She could still see that daring, naive teenage girl on her first night in New York City. She could still picture her boundless dreams. Only now, they had become too faded and she was in the position of accepting that not all dreams really come true. She caught herself. Suck it up, Lexey! You have no place to go but up. Two long hours later, Lexey had called practically every place offering jobs. They had all said the same thing. “Send in your resume and letters of recommendation and we’ll call you from there.” She could still here the giggling voices that had answered her when she said, “What if I don’t really have a resume?” Basically, she was screwed, they had responded, in more professional words of course. The thing was, she couldn’t wait that long for a job anyway. She needed money ASAP. Her credit card kept rejecting, she had nothing left in her bank account, she spent every penny she had made modeling on clothes, shoes, and accessories, and, as far as she knew, the only money she had left was a twenty-dollar-bill in the pocket of her Burberry jacket. She decided hastily to get out of the apartment, take the twenty dollars, and treat herself to a nice meal. I mean, her modeling career was over, so now she was free to consume anything she wanted and not worry about the consequences. She put on a pair of Sevens jeans, threw on a shirt, her Burberry jacket, a scarf, and her Uggs, and left the apartment. She strolled for several blocks until she came upon a chic, adorable, little café. It was called Food For Thought, which was exactly what she needed. She stepped inside and let a rush of warm air surround her. She inhaled the scent of cinnamon buns and coffee and felt her stomach grumble. Then, Lexey surveyed the café and instantly fell in love. It was the quintessential New York café. It was straight out of a movie. Then she saw it. It was as if it were a sign from God. She read, “Now Hiring: Looking for a coffee-loving, hardworking person to join our staff”, and knew that this was fate. She forgot all about her hunger.