Disclaimer: This story is a work of fiction. It involves elements of alcohol and consent. All characters are at the legal age of 18 or older.
*
Cheers and applause resonated in the large town hall. The crowd consisted mostly of teenagers and their parents. They had their attention focused on the girl who stood by the podium, the eighteen-year-old who had just shared her positive thoughts towards abstinence until marriage. Her name was Ashley.
It was, of course, a highly contested and often debated topic. Modern life was fast-paced. The whole idea of chastity, or saving yourself for marriage, was a dying concept. Which was precisely why Ashley sought to spread her views, so that perhaps it may inspire others as well. So for the past week, she mingled with friends at a Catholic youth conference. On this last day, she had finally gathered enough courage to give a speech of her own. It warmed her heart to see all the support she received among her likewise-minded friends.
"Thank you," she spoke into the microphone. Her voice had a nervous tremble. It may not be possible to convince everyone across the world of her views, but as long as she felt like she improved the life of even one person, it was all she needed to be happy.
There was one more person standing close to the podium. He was also clapping in approval of her nicely delivered speech. It was her father, and he was a large part of the reason why she turned out to be this way. After all, his wife -- Ashley's mother -- was the most religious person he had ever known. Which is to say, she didn't preach or force her views on others when she was still alive, but instead she had a certain calmness and peacefulness about her. It was what he had fallen in love with.
It was only natural that he instilled the same sense of purpose in their daughter, especially as single-father. He wished for nothing more than for his daughter to grow into as much of a positive influence as his wife used to be.
As part of that, he didn't mind the occasional trip to seminars such as this one. If anything, it was mesmerizing to have moments like these. He enjoyed seeing his daughter there by the podium, with her flowing long blonde hair cascading nearly down to her waist. She looked angelic in front of this crowd, with virtues that reflected her appearance. He couldn't be any prouder.
His eyes shifted from his daughter, towards a large analog clock that hung on a nearby wall. He realized they had spent more time inside the town hall than he anticipated. Their flight back home was due very soon, and if they missed it, then the costs would no longer be covered by the sponsors of the event.
Fortunately they managed to say their farewells relatively quickly, and were in a car to the airport soon after.
Ashley enjoyed the scenery that unfolded in front of her. She peered out the car window, and watched snowflakes falling from the sky. At first they were so scarce that she almost missed it entirely, but as the minutes passed, more and more descended from above. It was beautiful. The cityscape transformed into something new, as layers upon layers of snow turned everything pure white.
Once they arrived at the airport, another surprise caught them off-guard.
"Cancelled?" Ashley stood with her father by the check-in. She stared at the monitor that was meant to tell them to which terminal they were meant to go, but instead, it simply displayed that single word.
"Cancelled, yeah," her father confirmed with his own eyes. "Snowstorm in the forecast, and they didn't want to take any chances. I don't know. Looks like we could have stayed at the conference a good while longer." He uttered a low chuckle, and gave Ashley a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "Still, I'm not entirely sure what to do now. It's a little late to find a hotel here."
"A hotel?" Ashley repeated. "But I..." she began mumbling as her gaze dropped to the ground. "I was looking forward to hanging out with some friends today. There's this new mall which opened up, and-"
"I know, it's not what we planned," he interrupted. This turn of events quickly turned out to be more of a problem than he thought. "More importantly, we don't really have a place to sleep. Besides, until when is the flight cancelled anyway?"
"...'till tomorrow," an unknown third voice spoke up.
Ashley raised her eyes back up to see a stranger approaching. At first glance, she could already tell this man was a bit of a mess. He was overweight and out of breath. It also looked like he hadn't shaved in a day or two, there was a distinct stubble on his face.
She was no stranger to being out of breath, considering she was an advocate for fitness in her group of friends. The gym was a place she visited at least twice a week for the sake of cardio. It took her by surprise to hear someone breathing so raggedly without actively walking on a treadmill. Naturally she didn't mention any of her thoughts -- she was well aware it would be rude to do so.
"Oh?" her father replied to the man. "I'm Richard," he added before reaching out for a handshake. "Pleasure to meet you, but you're not working here, are you?"
"Jack, and nahh, I ain't." They paused briefly to shake hands. "I suppose I'm in the same spot as you two are, stood in that very same place a couple minutes ago."
Richard nodded, though he couldn't hide a frown. This was bad news, they were stranded in the wrong city and driving home by taxi would cost a fortune. He also couldn't just stay in place and force his daughter to sleep on a cold airport bench. That simply wasn't an option. She deserved only the best, he thought to himself.
"It's a shame you folks arrived when you did," Jack said. "If you had been a little earlier, there were still some vouchers they handed out. You know, for a stay at one of the hotels here at the airport, free of charge, because of the inconvenience. They got so desperate, they even gave out vouchers for a two-bedroom suite. I got real lucky there," the man gloated happily.
"Two bedrooms?" Ashley repeated his words with a raised brow. There was a brief silence as the three of them figured out the obvious solution.
"Oh!" Jack spoke up. "Of course, and you've got nowhere to go. We could just split the bedrooms. I'll take one," he said before looking back at Richard and the cute teenager by the man's side. "And you and your girlfriend could take the other room, I don't mind. I just hope the walls are soundproof," he winked with a lecherous grin.
It took Richard a moment to comprehend both of those statements.
"What—no, no you misunderstood! Oh god, no it's... she's my daughter. It's my mistake for not introducing her. Ashley and I visited a seminar nearby and it finished and...well, here we are."
