Save Me

I awoke with a start, to an elderly woman patting me on the arm. I opened my eyes and squinted as the figure of the woman was hardly tall enough to block out the morning sun beams. She smiled at me as I assured her that I was alright, and with that I thanked her and she walked away, pulling her dog on its lead behind her.

I looked around to see handfuls of young kids with their mothers, there was a family of four sat across the park from me; they were having a picnic. The young was girl sat cross-legged on the green and black checked picnic blanket, handing around what seemed to look like cupcakes. They looked a very happy family; all loved as much as each other. I thought of how lucky the two children were to have loving parents like they did, I would have given anything for the kind of childhood they had.

I stretched out my arms and let out a big yawn, I felt my back jolt as it clicked back into place. I’d slept curled up against the tree for the most part of the night, now my muscles were aching and tired. I winced as a sharp pain flew through my stomach, making the tiny hairs on my back stand up. I clenched my stomach in my arms until the pain died away, then quickly got up on two feet and wrapped the Pantera hoody, that I had used as a blanket the night before, around my waist. I scanned my arms; they were battered and purple from freshly bruising skin.

I walked on along the path situated between the high towering trees; it was surprisingly hot for an autumn day in California. It was too hot to wear a hoody. I was still dressed in the purple skinnies and Iron Maiden tank top I had worn the day before. .

I carried on walking. By now I was getting a few worried glares from mothers. It wasn’t hard for me to suss out why they were looking at me in such a way. My skin was pale and heavily bruised. I looked up at one blond haired woman who looked to be in her mid-twenties and smiled at her but she turned the other way to hide her sympathetic worried expressions. It made me feel uncomfortable and without a doubt self-conscious but I had to carry on and try to keep my head held up high; even if I had no mother, no father and no home.

I gathered together my thoughts before concluding that I would never give up on this. There was no way that I would be coming face to face with a social worker any time soon. I knew they would be looking for me so I would have to be extremely careful with the places I would go and the people I would talk to. For now, I would keep myself to myself. That way people wouldn’t ask questions. That way, I would be fine and could try to get on with my life.



By now I had come out of Central Park and was now trekking down a main road. Not too far ahead of me I could see sparkling white crests of waves; I must have been somewhat near the pier. I walked on further until I came to the end of the road I was traveling along. I turned to the right, around a corner and ahead of me leading me onto Main Street. I watched the world around me pass by, kids screaming with excitement, teenage boys surfing the waves and mothers gossiping in coffee shops. I had no idea what I was to do next; I had no money, no food and no home.

I walked along the beach – my converse in my hands, shuffling my tired feet through the soft yellow grains of sand. I let the cold salty water run over them as each wave collapsed at the shore. I kicked the shells and stones out of my way and took a sit down on the warm sand next to the pier. Nobody was around; this would be my thinking time. I did too much thinking but that was all that maintained my sanity – so I settled for it.