Sweet Surrender

For the group 500 Words This is 552 words

I was standing in the rain waiting for him, my long blonde hair dark from getting wet and my green eyes seeping tears.  I knew he would come.  He always did when it was like this.  When my family was arguing and I didn’t have anywhere else to go.

I loved him.  I always had, and I knew that I always would.  That was all there is to it.  I guessed that he loved me.  Why else would we always do these things for me?

We hadn’t known each other very long.  Only four months, and four months out of sixteen years definitely isn’t very long.  We had met in a park, me crying on the swing set and him just going for an evening walk.  Nothing too strange.  Except for that it was two in the morning and snowing.

“What are you doing out here?” he had said, his dark hair accenting the snowflakes that were falling on his head.

I sniffled and replied, “Dad hit Mom again.  She had to go to the hospital.  We lied and said she fell down the stairs.  We can’t leave him.  He’s the one that makes all of the money.  He’s a lawyer.”

He snorted.  “If he’s a lawyer, then he should know what happens to people who beat their wives.”

“I guess so.”

Looking around, he said, “Come on.  Let’s go to that coffee shop.  It’s still open.”  Picking me up like a small child, he carried me to the shop.  It surprised me that it was open, but when he started talking with the owner like they had known each other for years, it made a bit more sense.

“This young lady here needs a hot cocoa and a double chocolate chip muffin.  Think you can pull it off for me?” he asked the owner, a middle aged Italian man.

The man said, “But of course!  Anything for you, John.”

“John?  That’s your name?” I asked quietly.

“Yes it is, and I’m not too proud of it.  It’s so common,” he replied.

I help the hot cocoa close when the owner put it in front of me.  “I like it.  It’s my real dad’s name.”

“What happened to him?”

“He died.  Four years ago.”

John looked at me.  “What’s your name?”

“Rosaline.”

He smiled at me and said cheerfully, “Rosaline, I’ll tell you what.  Whenever you need trouble, I’m going to be there for you.  Understand?”

“How will you know?”

“Oh trust me, I’ll know.”  That wasn’t really an answer, but I didn’t want to ask him how.  Maybe I was hoping for something more from him.

This time my mom retaliated against my stepdad, hitting him with a baseball bat in the back.  He’d cut up her face with a cracked bottle, and when I tried to protect her he had hit me with a broken shard.  It hit me in the side, and it was still bleeding.

“John, where are you?  Why haven’t you come yet?” I whispered.

Then the dark figure that I knew so well came up, breathless.  “I’m so sorry.  I couldn’t make it in time.”

I walked over to him and let him pick me up again.  “John?”

“I’m here.”

I smiled weakly.  “I love you.”  I then I succumbed to the sweet surrender of darkness.

Author's Note

Well, it was supposed to be romance, so that's what I aimed for. I know I'm terrible at romance. I tried my best. Please don't rate TOO low.

Reviews

[JulieNorell]

I liked it!...But i dont think the girl would just tell anyone off the street her life story...Maybe let them have a conversation rather than him sweeping her off her feet...It does paint a beautiful picture when shes sitting on the swing set in the snow...

[nono]

You did a nice job this is interesting and it pulled me in! I have like 4 stories and this is much much better than any of them! Nice job