Savior
Savior
It was finally light when May Walnut next awoke. She had to rub her delicate eyes to adjust. It felt like years since she had seen real daylight.
The bed she woke in was a strange one- lumpy and rich with boy-smell- in a state and a city May had never been. It belonged to her brother Hillis, who was snoring on the other side of the room on a black futon.
In one swift moment May remembered everything that had led her here. On a cold and snowy night four years ago, Hillis had run away from home at age seventeen, away from their strict, angry parents, to be with his bandmates who May had always heard about in Hillis’s letters but had never met. Their parents were beyond overbearing, beyond critical, expecting perfection at every turn, but that was never May and, for that matter, it certainly was never Hillis. It seemed in his life he only ever really cared about music and May. The night he left he had snuck in to see May, who was only fourteen at the time, and promised her that when she graduated high school, got her diploma, unlike him, he’d come back and rescue her.
So, the previous night, two weeks after May’s graduation, Hillis appeared out of the blue on the doorstep of their modest, Nebraska ranch house and took May on the long journey back to where he lived with his bandmates now- Las Vegas, Nevada. For the time being, she would sell merch on the band’s next tour while she figured out, finally free to breathe without all the pressure weighing down on her, what exactly she wanted to do with her life.
It couldn’t have been too soon. High school was a series of disappointment for May. She wasn’t valedictorian, a star student athlete, she had constantly lied to her parents about college applications she failed to send. And at every free chance she got, May turned to a razor. With Hillis gone, cutting had become her escape. When she finally admitted this to Hillis in a letter during her senior year, he had responded within two days saying he would come immediately back home, leave the band, leave his dreams, if she didn’t promise to stop. It was hard, and she slipped a couple of times, but May tried her hardest to keep her promise to her older brother and best friend.
Now it was finally time to start that new chapter. May slowly climbed off the bed, careful not to wake Hillis. Her head was throbbing something terrible after the stressful trip, and she figured there’d be some Advil or something in the bathroom.
Her feet slapped quietly on the cool bathroom tile floor as she rifled through the medicine cabinet for a little red pill. Eventually, she found one and reached down to turn on the sink when she noticed something strange. A case of disposable razor blades lie completely empty on the edge of the white marble sink. Even the razor stick lying next to it was missing its blades. May checked the shower... Five shower kits: five bladeless razors.
Hillis was worried. He knew May was going to eventually go after the cutting again, he had probably scoured the whole house at some point in the night getting rid of anything sharp.
May chuckled, despite herself, at the thought of Hillis dashing about the house as she went to shut the medicine cabinet. An unexpected reflection of a tall young man in the mirror made May realize she wasn’t alone. She jumped, startled, at the sight of one of Hillis’s bandmates in the mirror. His stubbly, naturally pouty jaw dropped.
“Sorry!” He said quickly. “I didn’t mean to scare you.” He blushed a rosy red.
He was a very good looking guy, May noticed when her heart slowed again. Taller than her, with that musician build, and with chocolate brown hair down to his ears messily sticking out all around. His eyes were dark and round and he had very full eyelashes. And his somewhat small, callused hands were crossed over his chest as he leaned on the doorframe.
To elaborate what she had laughed about, May pointed to the empty razor case.
“He really worries about me, doesn’t he?” She asked with an eyeroll.
The guy chuckled a bit himself. “He really CARES about you.” He corrected. “I’m Rhett, by the way. Rhett Lincoln.” The lead guitarist of the band, from what May remembered in her brother’s letters.
“May,” she introduced, finally turning to talk to the REAL Rhett instead of the mirror image she had been looking at the whole time. To avoid an awkward silence, she continued talking. “I don’t know if Hillis told you or not, but I’m really sorry for busting into your house like this. And I’m sure I’ll have figured out a place of my own soon enough so I’ll be out of your hair as soon as that comes along, unless, of course, I can find someone else to crash with for the time being if space is too tight here which I’m sure I can find someone and-“
Rhett laughed his bouncy little laugh again. “Hillis told us you’d try to do this.” He said. “And he’s right. It really is not a problem for us, May. We all have Hillis’s back through anything- that mean’s we have yours too.”
Something in his eyes told May he really meant what he said. Just as it appeared he was about to ask May something more, Hillis stumbled sleepily into the doorway.
“Good morning, all.” He yawned. His hair frayed over his eyes wildly. “Breakfast?”
Rhett looked to May and shrugged, before they fell into step together and followed Hillis down the stairs.
“I was just about to say,” Rhett whispered privately to May. “That I’ve heard a lot about you. And you seem even more awesome than Hillis described.”
“Oh?” May peeped, a squeak in her voice.
“Well... um... he never told us you were this pretty, for one,” Rhett stuttered, his voice cracking a little as well.
“Oh!” she squeaked once more, this time self-consciously running a hand through her long, straight, messy with bedhead brown hair.
“I’ve been looking forward to meeting you for a long time. And getting to know you,” he continued.
“But why?”
“Because I know what you’ve gone through is tough. With the cutting and everything... I know, I’ve been there.”
“Really?”
“Yeah,” he nodded thoughtfully. “And your brother, and the rest of these guys, were here for me- now I want to be here for you. Besides, every now and then, everyone needs a savior.”
The bed she woke in was a strange one- lumpy and rich with boy-smell- in a state and a city May had never been. It belonged to her brother Hillis, who was snoring on the other side of the room on a black futon.
In one swift moment May remembered everything that had led her here. On a cold and snowy night four years ago, Hillis had run away from home at age seventeen, away from their strict, angry parents, to be with his bandmates who May had always heard about in Hillis’s letters but had never met. Their parents were beyond overbearing, beyond critical, expecting perfection at every turn, but that was never May and, for that matter, it certainly was never Hillis. It seemed in his life he only ever really cared about music and May. The night he left he had snuck in to see May, who was only fourteen at the time, and promised her that when she graduated high school, got her diploma, unlike him, he’d come back and rescue her.
So, the previous night, two weeks after May’s graduation, Hillis appeared out of the blue on the doorstep of their modest, Nebraska ranch house and took May on the long journey back to where he lived with his bandmates now- Las Vegas, Nevada. For the time being, she would sell merch on the band’s next tour while she figured out, finally free to breathe without all the pressure weighing down on her, what exactly she wanted to do with her life.
It couldn’t have been too soon. High school was a series of disappointment for May. She wasn’t valedictorian, a star student athlete, she had constantly lied to her parents about college applications she failed to send. And at every free chance she got, May turned to a razor. With Hillis gone, cutting had become her escape. When she finally admitted this to Hillis in a letter during her senior year, he had responded within two days saying he would come immediately back home, leave the band, leave his dreams, if she didn’t promise to stop. It was hard, and she slipped a couple of times, but May tried her hardest to keep her promise to her older brother and best friend.
Now it was finally time to start that new chapter. May slowly climbed off the bed, careful not to wake Hillis. Her head was throbbing something terrible after the stressful trip, and she figured there’d be some Advil or something in the bathroom.
Her feet slapped quietly on the cool bathroom tile floor as she rifled through the medicine cabinet for a little red pill. Eventually, she found one and reached down to turn on the sink when she noticed something strange. A case of disposable razor blades lie completely empty on the edge of the white marble sink. Even the razor stick lying next to it was missing its blades. May checked the shower... Five shower kits: five bladeless razors.
Hillis was worried. He knew May was going to eventually go after the cutting again, he had probably scoured the whole house at some point in the night getting rid of anything sharp.
May chuckled, despite herself, at the thought of Hillis dashing about the house as she went to shut the medicine cabinet. An unexpected reflection of a tall young man in the mirror made May realize she wasn’t alone. She jumped, startled, at the sight of one of Hillis’s bandmates in the mirror. His stubbly, naturally pouty jaw dropped.
“Sorry!” He said quickly. “I didn’t mean to scare you.” He blushed a rosy red.
He was a very good looking guy, May noticed when her heart slowed again. Taller than her, with that musician build, and with chocolate brown hair down to his ears messily sticking out all around. His eyes were dark and round and he had very full eyelashes. And his somewhat small, callused hands were crossed over his chest as he leaned on the doorframe.
To elaborate what she had laughed about, May pointed to the empty razor case.
“He really worries about me, doesn’t he?” She asked with an eyeroll.
The guy chuckled a bit himself. “He really CARES about you.” He corrected. “I’m Rhett, by the way. Rhett Lincoln.” The lead guitarist of the band, from what May remembered in her brother’s letters.
“May,” she introduced, finally turning to talk to the REAL Rhett instead of the mirror image she had been looking at the whole time. To avoid an awkward silence, she continued talking. “I don’t know if Hillis told you or not, but I’m really sorry for busting into your house like this. And I’m sure I’ll have figured out a place of my own soon enough so I’ll be out of your hair as soon as that comes along, unless, of course, I can find someone else to crash with for the time being if space is too tight here which I’m sure I can find someone and-“
Rhett laughed his bouncy little laugh again. “Hillis told us you’d try to do this.” He said. “And he’s right. It really is not a problem for us, May. We all have Hillis’s back through anything- that mean’s we have yours too.”
Something in his eyes told May he really meant what he said. Just as it appeared he was about to ask May something more, Hillis stumbled sleepily into the doorway.
“Good morning, all.” He yawned. His hair frayed over his eyes wildly. “Breakfast?”
Rhett looked to May and shrugged, before they fell into step together and followed Hillis down the stairs.
“I was just about to say,” Rhett whispered privately to May. “That I’ve heard a lot about you. And you seem even more awesome than Hillis described.”
“Oh?” May peeped, a squeak in her voice.
“Well... um... he never told us you were this pretty, for one,” Rhett stuttered, his voice cracking a little as well.
“Oh!” she squeaked once more, this time self-consciously running a hand through her long, straight, messy with bedhead brown hair.
“I’ve been looking forward to meeting you for a long time. And getting to know you,” he continued.
“But why?”
“Because I know what you’ve gone through is tough. With the cutting and everything... I know, I’ve been there.”
“Really?”
“Yeah,” he nodded thoughtfully. “And your brother, and the rest of these guys, were here for me- now I want to be here for you. Besides, every now and then, everyone needs a savior.”