Save Me

RaeLynn sat in College Algebra, reminiscing about all the events that led up to what just happened between herself and Matt Sanders. Defending Chris in the most fragile of moments. Forgiving him for all he’s ever done that’s caused her emotional and physical pain. All the arguments with her parents because of her relationship with Chris. One particular argument that ended with her packing her things and moving in with Chris because she didn’t have anywhere else to go. The days where Chris actually cared.



“You don’t know anything about him! I love him and he loves me! You just can’t stand the fact that I’ve finally found someone who makes me happy! Just because your marriage is falling apart doesn’t mean that my love life has to be miserable!” RaeLynn yelled at her parents as they engaged in an anger-fueled argument.

“He’s a senior, RaeLynn! You’re only a freshman! He doesn’t love you. He only wants you for one thing and when he gets it, he’s gonna throw you away like you’re some worthless piece of junk! And as long as you are living under our roof, you will abide by our rules which means you will no longer be seeing him!” RaeLynn’s mother argued. RaeLynn folded her arms over her chest in annoyance and rolled her eyes. This argument erupted after RaeLynn walked into her house an hour after her midnight curfew…for the 4th week in a row.

“What the big deal?! He’s my fucking boyfriend! We’re gonna be together whether you approve of him or not! Why can’t you just be happy for me?!” RaeLynn debated causing her father to purse his lips.

“Fine. You don’t wanna listen to our rules, then you can pack your bags and get out.” RaeLynn’s father stated plainly with his arms folded arms over his chest like his daughter’s. RaeLynn’s breath hitched when she heard those dreaded words fall from her father’s lips.

“You…you don’t mean that.” RaeLynn whispered and her eyes widened slightly when she witnessed her father nodding his head.

“Yes. I mean every word. Your mother and I have done everything in our right mind to make sure you’re safe, and what do you give us in return? You run off with your 19 year old boyfriend to god-knows-where doing god-knows-what. We don’t need that. Go pack your stuff and get out. I don’t care where you go, just get the hell out of my house.” RaeLynn’s eyes filled to the brim with tears at her father’s words. She sprinted upstairs and packed everything she could in her suitcase. As soon as she stepped foot out her parents’ home, the tears feel freely. She called her boyfriend and he allowed her to live with him.



RaeLynn quickly blinked away the tears that were threatening to fall from her eyes. She tried her best to tune in to the algebra lesson that was taking place before her, but no matter how much she tried to concentrate, the concept being explained to her by Mr. Spurling was going through one ear and out the other.

“Miss Meadows. Would you like to explain to the rest of the class how to find the focus of this parabola?” Mr. Spurling called out, causing RaeLynn to jump slightly from the verbal intrusion. She cleared her throat and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear.

“Umm…y-you have to…uhh...” Mr. Spurling sighed at RaeLynn’s desperate attempt to prove that she was actually tuned in to what was going on in class. He shook his head in disapproval and RaeLynn dropped her head in her hands. The bell rang, signaling that 5th period had come to an end. RaeLynn lazily gathered her things and proceeded to walk to AP Music Appreciation.

“Mrs. Meadows, it’s nice of you to join us on time today. I’m sure that whatever obstacle caused you to be late yesterday has been resolved, correct?” RaeLynn rolled her eyes and scoffed. The possibility of getting rid of her ‘problem’ was slim.

“Yes, Mrs. Rollins. The problem has be resolved…for now.” RaeLynn mumbled the last two words under her breath, hoping that no one heard. As she walked to her desk, her eyes locked with Matt’s. RaeLynn gave a slight smile in the attempt to answer the silent question that passed between them.

“Okay. Today, you will spend the class period working on your projects with your duet partner. Your song must be on a CD with the lyric booklet and cover art by May 31st. So, you have approximately two weeks to make everything perfect. Now, get started!” RaeLynn casted her eyes downward when Matt sat in the desk to her left. A moment of silence occurred for the lack of conversation between the two high school students.

“I wrote some lyrics last night. I don’t think they’re very good, but I’ll sing them for you if you’d like.” Matt whispered to RaeLynn. A slight smile crept across RaeLynn’s features at the thought of Matt singing his heart out to her.

“Umm…that would be great, Matt.” Matt’s dimpled smile showed itself at that moment and he proceeded to get the typed lyrics out of his book bag.

“Like I said earlier, they’re not good, but it’s all I could think of.” Matt informed RaeLynn and as she scanned the contents of the notebook page in front of her, he began to sing the lyrics that were permanently etched into his mind.

Eyes as beautiful as yours
Shouldn’t sparkle with tears
A smile as breathtaking as yours
Shouldn’t fade from sadness

I wanna be the one you can trust
I wanna be the one you can count on
Just give me the chance to prove
That I can be the better man

Let me show you how to love
Let me show you that I care
Let me lead you to the light
I’ll guide you there and prove to you that everything will be just fine

I will prove to you
That love is more than what it seems to be

“Matt…these lyrics are…beautiful. They’re absolutely fantastic.” RaeLynn praised which caused a slight blush to creep into Matt’s cheeks.

“Thanks, but we still have to add your part into the song. You know, the female perspective. I can’t wait to see what you have hidden up your sleeve.” RaeLynn froze at the hidden double meaning behind Matt’s words. The double meaning that only she was aware of.

“Umm…okay. I think I can manage that. But, you can’t look.” Matt chuckled at RaeLynn’s playful words.

“Fine. I won’t look. But, it’s gonna be hard for me.” Matt stated while RaeLynn instantly started to jot down lyrics. After an agonizing 15 minutes of Matt unsuccessfully trying to sneak a peek at RaeLynn’s work, the lyrics for RaeLynn’s part were complete. Matt eagerly scanned the piece of paper in front of him and smiled. At the bottom of the page of typed lyrics, were RaeLynn’s lyrics.

Eyes as beautiful as yours
Shouldn’t sparkle with tears
A smile as breathtaking as yours
Shouldn’t fade from sadness

I wanna be the one you can trust
I wanna be the one you can count on
Just give me the chance to prove
That I can be the better man

Let me show you how to love
Let me show you that I care
Let me lead you to the light
I’ll guide you there and prove to you that everything will be just fine

I will prove to you
That love is more than what it seems to be

The closer I get to you
The more terrified I become
Your kindness warms me
And I feel the one thing I’ve been deprived

I’m terrified for you to find
All the secrets I hide inside
Because everything you do for me
Is enough to me feel right

First Chorus:
And I wanna be held by you
I wanna be kissed by you
I wanna be shown that I am worth your time
And everything is alright

Second Chorus:
I wanna be loved by you
I wanna be cared for by you
I wanna know that you are here for me
And I can trust you with anything

Can you prove to me
That love is more than what is seems to be?

“These are absolutely perfect, RaeLynn. I love them.” RaeLynn looked down at her fidgeting fingers with a smile plastered to her face along with a blush adorning her cheeks.

“T-Thanks, Matt. I couldn’t pick between which chorus to use throughout the entire song, so I just wrote them both in there.” Matt shot his adorable dimpled smile towards RaeLynn and she desperately tried to ignore the butterflies that formed in her stomach.

“They’re great. Now all we need is a bridge and an ending verse and we’re good to go.” And with that said, Matt and RaeLynn began collaborating on lyrics to fully complete their song.
After 20 minutes of non-stop teamwork, they had the verses rearranged to fit their concept behind their duet. The song was organized and ready to be recorded. The bell rang signaling that is was time for lunch. Matt helped RaeLynn put away her things and proceeded to walk with her to the cafeteria.

“You know…I’m not really feeling school lunch. How about we eat off campus? Unless you want to stay?” Matt offered. A smile broke out across RaeLynn’s face as she contemplated Matt’s offer.

“S-Sure. I would love to, Matt.” Matt intertwined RaeLynn’s hand in his own and proceeded to lead her outside to his car. RaeLynn blushed like a schoolgirl from the feeling of Matt’s hand connected with her own. Matt helped her into his car and climbed into the driver’s seat after she was settled.

“Where are we gonna go for lunch?” RaeLynn asked curiously as Matt started the engine and pulled out of the school parking lot.

“Umm…I was thinking somewhere quiet. You know…a more relaxing atmosphere. I know this great Italian restaurant over on Vine Street. My friend’s mom owns the place. It’s called A Little Piece of Italy. Nice place to go if you wanna unwind and get some time away for yourself.”

“I love Italian food. That sounds perfect.” Matt flashed a dimpled smile RaeLynn’s way and grasped her left hand in his right. RaeLynn smiled and they both fell into a comfortable silence for the rest of ride to the restaurant.

After Matt cut the engine and they were both out of the car, their hands were once again intertwined as they walked into the restaurant. RaeLynn was thrilled from the fact that Matt wanted to continuously have her hand in his. The butterflies in her stomach never ceased when he was in her presence and she was relieved that she was actually able to relax around a guy.

“Hello. Welcome to A Little Piece of Italy. How many in your party?” A waitress asked.

“It’s only us.” Matt inquired and the waitress nodded before escorting them to a table in a quiet part of the restaurant. Matt and RaeLynn smiled at the waitress after she handed them their menus. They ordered their food and drinks quickly in hopes to have a bit of alone time before their meals were brought out to them.

“This is a really nice place, Matt. Thanks for bringing me here.” RaeLynn thanked as she tried to focus on something other than Matt’s arm around her waist. Matt gently squeezed RaeLynn’s waist as a welcome, but his facial expression turned to one of worry when he saw RaeLynn grimace from his gesture. Her hand balled up into a fist in order to conceal the shot of pain that raced through her entire body.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have done that. Are you okay? Did I hurt you?” Matt asked hurriedly. RaeLynn placed a reassuring smile on her face and looked up at the distressed guy sitting beside her as their food and drinks were set out in front of them.

“I’m okay. You didn’t hurt me. I’m just a little…sore. I guess I worked out too much last night.” The lie flowed out of her mouth so easily. She only hoped that Matt would drop the subject and forget about it. To her surprise, Matt simply nodded. But, by the look on his face, RaeLynn could tell that he didn’t believe her lie one bit…and she couldn’t have been more correct. Matt barely touched his food throughout their entire time together, his mind focused on something that sent him in a deep mental focus.

Halfway through their lunch, Matt caught a glimpse of a purple marking on RaeLynn’s lower right hip when she excused herself to go to the restroom. Now, they were outside after Matt dragged RaeLynn her away from the restaurant in a hurry.

“Matt, what’s going on? What’s wrong?” RaeLynn asked, her voice laced with anxiety. Matt spun her around gently, but quickly and lifted up her shirt. His eyes widened at what he discovered.