Soo, I have a bit of a problem on my hands. Character A got saved from a kidnapping attempt by Character B. This is how they met, in fact. Then Character B bailed from the scene because he didn't want to wait until the police arrives. The next day, Character A happened to walk by when Character B was confronted by the police (for a completely unrelated reason. He was innocent by the way). A got B put of trouble with a bit of smooth talk. And since B is basically a petty criminal (the lovable rouge type, the kind of guy to steal some wallets to support himself) and kind of homeless, I want A to offer him to stay the night, at least until they figure out a more permanent solution. You know, out of gratitude for saving his life. My problem is, apart from the fact that most people, no matter how kindhearted, just wouldn't do this, instead would just give a guy some money and be done with it. Now A is a pretty generous guy, but he's also a bit of a loner, and that's kind of a plot point. He's almost hermit-like and is perfectly okay with being alone. But for plot reasons, I have to keep these two in each other's vicinity and I obviously can't rely on them coincidentally bumping into each other until they become friends, can I? So I'm afraid I've written myself into a corner. I tried to lampshade the fact that normal people don't invite strangers to stay the night, no matter how much the strangers saved their lives, but it still feels pretty unrealistic to me. Any ideas?
Can A have a guest house on the property, a room above the garage, something like that which doesn't involve the personal safety of letting a stranger into his house?
It's a flat in Central London, so unfortunately, not likely. He has a bookshop but I think as much as letting someone stay the night in your shop might be less dangerous to your personal safety, it's still not a very wise thing to do...
Can the bookshop have a storage area, separate entrance, like a garage lock up? Or it could be a small apartment over the shop that the previous owner used but no one has used for years, it's in disrepair. Use your imagination you can create any world you want.
Every problem has a solution, and in writing every problem has every solution. Okay... That doesn't make any sense. Anyway, as @GingerCoffee said, it's your world so you can create anything. The apartment-over-the-shop idea sounds pretty good to me, and another way would be to let A have a small summer cottage or something at the outskirts of the city (if B has the possibility to travel). A third way could be have A invite B home for the one night which either leads to a more permanent bed or just takes them closer to a friendship (and thus makes shortens the time before you can call them friends).
I would also go with A offering B a job. Or perhaps A suggests B for a job he knows is available where he works himself, so that there doesnt have to be a employer-employee kind of relationship between them.
A could offer B a pint out of gratitude. They hit it off instantly, and get totally hammered. When A is fetching a refill, a couple of loudmouths start hassling him, but B has his back and they end up fighting side by side before the bouncers toss them out on their asses. Then they wolf down some fish and chips, puke them into the nearest garbage can, get rejected by a couple of girls they try to chat up, and, admitting defeat, stumble into A's apartment to sleep it off. By the following morning when they order hangover pizza or go out for morning porridge aka Guinness, they're already buddies. At that point it wouldn't be a stretch by any standard for A to offer B a job in the bookshop or the keys of the studio apartment above the shop or both, like others have already suggested. That's just one example of the mysterious phenomenon that is male bonding.
@T.Trian Oh my God, that is hilarious! It's not that easy to break the ice with A since his so reserved, but a couple of pints should to the trick! Thank you everyone! Now I have general idea of where to go with the story, thanks to your ideas! I'm very grateful for your help
@MorieTris, that was actually a slightly modified version of the events that took place when I first met my wife's brother. The only differences being that there was no puking or hitting on girls involved, we didn't have fish and chips, and @KaTrian, my then fiancée, was with us. Anyhoo, glad to be of help.
You forgot getting fined for public urination and falling down on your face on the asphalt and slicing your head open in the process. Yup, male bonding.
I was trying to be tactful! You know, since those were largely his exploits. Then again, in all fairness, he was a bit smarter in the bar scuffle and didn't partake in it with similar vehemence as I did, so guess we both have our own highlights (or lowlights) of the evening. Well, it kinda is, isn't it?
B has something that A desperately needs. But he can't ask B directly. The thing he needs is so much of worth, either money or idea or information, that letting B stay with him doesn't seem a bad idea.
You're right, most people wouldn't see the logic in doing this. Perhaps you don't need a circumstantial reason, but an emotional reason. Maybe character A falls in love with her kidnapper. Even heard of that syndrome? I forget what it's called, but it's basically a psychological thing that a kidnapper begins to admire or falls in love with their abductor. It could be as simple as that. OR, he reminds her of a man she was deeply in love with, who didn't love her back, and so she started developing feelings for this guy, especially since he looks similar to her past love interest. It could almost be like a psychological mixup, and she even starts calling him by that past love's name. OR, he could remind her of a family member, like a brother she had who died in an accident, and so she has extreme sympathy for him and tries to help out so he doesn't dig himself into a bigger hole. That way, you don't need a justifiable reason, simply that character A has a particular weak spot for B. Readers won't agree with certain things but they won't question the legitimacy of it because something really emotionally driven rarely makes sense anyways lol
It's called "Stockholm syndrome", if I recall correctly. @MorieTris : I read your first post in this thread again and now I'm a bit confused. Does B save A from a kidnapping attempt (that's how I read it the first time), or is B the one kidnapping A (that's how I read it the second time)?
I think you're worrying too much. TONNES of movies have the "Why don't you stay at our place?" line, esp Christmas movies. Lonely old man helps the little girl and the little girl's mother asks if the old man has a place to stay and he doesn't, so the mother invites him to stay and spend Christmas together. Happens all the time in films, so I don't see why you can't pull it off in a book. Also, it's not so rare as you think. My friend actually just randomly invited a homeless man to his flat to sleep for the night and served him dinner too. True story. They'd never met before that point and never met again afterwards. Just give your rogue criminal an injured leg so your MC feels obliged to help. Problem solved. Hey that's actually how one of the books I read started - a romance I stopped reading eventually cus the writing annoyed me. It's being made into a film, so it's certainly a success. It starts with a man bleeding in a store, he walks up to this kid and his single mum and asks if he could get a ride, and she just takes him all the way back to her house. Never met the guy before. All I'm saying is - people use this device all the time and get away with it. You'll be fine.
I thought it was the other way around: the abductee starts bonding with, and feeling sorry for, the kidnapper.
I apologize if I catch it wrongly. So this A guy is unrealistically 'kind' while B guy is a petty criminal. One day, A guy saved B guy from the cops. Now you want 'A' guy to offer a place to stay for 'B', yes? And you want to make them friends? My version would be: a) Give it a gap of time and make B guy obliged to A once more, make them sit privately and let them break the ice b) Classic way. 'A' guy dropped his valuable wallet and B guy return a day later to his home. They meet, A guy say thanks and invite him to nearby cafe to eat and talk. B guy's stomach grumbles and they go to cafe together and talk to know each other.
