Save Me, I'm Lost

It was almost completely dark and Tom knew he shouldn't have been in the city that late. His mom was going to kill him. Back then he had a curfew and his parents were terribly strict about it. It's not like they thought he was going to cause trouble, they just worried about the gangs and crime that came out at night.

He took a shortcut through a few streets he didn't know all too well. There was a park on the outskirts of the city and he stopped there to watch the rest of the red sun fall below the horizon.

Tom checked his watch. It read nine o'clock. It was much too early to go home, so he thought. He could have gone to a party or out to a bar, but you know how parents are. Especially in this town, they have a reason for their overprotectiveness.

Figuring he wasn't too far from home, he walked around the park. There were a few rusty swings and one of those do-it-yourself carousels. The ground was still muddy from the afternoon rain. Luckily, Tom was wearing an older pair of shoes, otherwise he would have been pissed.

He sat down on a swing and looked at the sky. It was a deep purple, with flecks of orange. He liked this time of night when it wasn't pitch black. He swung lightly back and forth, not putting too much effort into it.

A sudden feeling came over Tom as he sat there. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up as he got the feeling he was being watched. He didn't dare turn around for fear that it was guys from a gang, ready to take all his money or something worse.

He stopped his light swinging and heard the carousel creek. He looked over at it from the corner of his eye but no one was around. His palms sweated as he held on tightly to the rusty chains of the swing.

He thought he should run, but if it was a gang, they'd run after him. So he stayed put.

"Hello?" he whispered, his voice shaking.

No one answered.

"It's probably just my imagination," he shook his head and stood up.

Tom turned around and nearly jumped out of his skin. A person was leaning up against the support bar of the swing set. The person just stood there, a soft smile on his face. Tom froze, not knowing whether to run or whether to talk to this person.

"Hello," the person said and took a few steps towards Tom.

It was a boy infact; a terribly skinny boy at that. He was wearing jeans and a thin, tight sweatshirt appropriate for the weather.

"Who are you?" Tom asked, taking slights steps backwards as the boy walked toward him.

"I am a human being," he replied and took a big step. They were so close now and Tom could feel his breath.

The boy was a bit taller than he was and very very scrawny. His black hair waved slightly with the wind and he had a thin rim of black lining his chocolate eyes. He smelled like baby powder, which Tom thought extremely odd.

Facially it was like looking in the mirror, but Tom didn't notice at first. He thought this boy was a freak. He at least knew the boy was gay. What straight guy would wear makeup, straighten his hair, and smell like baby powder?

"Well do you have a name?" Tom asked.

"Names are for conformists," the dark-haired one smiled.

"So you don't have a name?"

The boy shook his head. "At least not that I know of. I never grew up with one so I don't see the sense in making up one now!"

"Alright.. well... I'll be leaving now," Tom turned to leave, weirded out by this kid.

"Wait!" the boy called and grabbed onto his arm with a firm grasp.

Tom turned around.

"What is your name?" he asked.

"Tom," he replied regretfully, not knowing if he could trust this person.

The boy smiled and rocked on the balls of his feet. "Why are you out so late?"

"I might ask you the same thing."

The boy turned and walked over to one of the huge trees outlining the abandoned park. "I live here," the boy called and expertly climbed up the tree.

"Er.. that's cool I guess," Tom just wanted to leave. This was getting weird.

The unnamed one hung upsidedown from one of the branches and giggled. "Have you ever climbed a tree, Tom?"

"When I was younger..."

The boy sat back upright and frowned. "You are young, Thomas. Very young. Why do people insist on growing up so fast?"

"It's just Tom. And I don't know. No one wants to be a kid forever," Tom explained.

The scrawny child let out a loud bout of laughter. "You're silly, Tom. No one really wants to grow up."

"Whatever you say. I have to go," Tom turned to leave.

"You'll be back tomorrow, won't you?" the boy called and jumped down from the tree.

Knowing that the truth would make the boy sad and cause Tom to stay longer, he replied yes.

"You're kind," he replied, a smile appearing from ear to ear.

"Thanks I guess."

He walked towards Tom, his eyes searching more than what he saw on the outside, but delving into his soul. "You won't be back tomorrow," the sadness showed in his eyes, not his smile.

"I-I will.." Tom replied, almost believing his words.

He walked home, thinking only about that strange boy. He couldn't just never come back to that park. He wanted to know where this kid had come from, who he really was. Did he actually live in the park? Where was his family?

Getting in trouble for coming home late was almost okay thanks to Tom's peculiar night.