Save Me from Myself

When I got to the park, Damon was already there. He was sitting on a bench next to a big willow tree.
When he heard footsteps, he stood up and walked towards me and asked with a brittle smile: "How come you changed your mind?"
"I had insomnia." I replied a little sarcastically, then I walked past him and sat on the bench.
He took a seat next to me, looked me in the eyes and said: "I don't know why you came, I'm just glad you did."
His crystal blue eyes were sparkling under the moonlight and the wind was gently playing with his silky brown hair. But something was different this time: his contagious smile was gone, instead a sad look upon his face let me know that something was bothering him.
"Is everything ok?" I asked a little worried, gently touching his right shoulder.
"No, it's not... My life is a complete disaster." he murmured in a weak voice, staring at the full moon.
"It can't be that bad." I replied on a comforting tone.
"I have no friends, everyone hates me including my brother." he added bitterly.
"You have me. I don't hate you." I replied with a smile, giving him a small punch in his left arm.
He looked back at me and smiled, then said: "Come on, I want to show you something. Follow me!"
Damon took me to a beautiful lake near the small park and we sat on the grass to admire the wonderful landscape.
"This place is magical!" I said, amazed by the magnificent view.
"Welcome to my own heaven!" he replied with a smile. "I come here whenever I feel lonely or sad." he added looking me in the eyes.
"Hope you don't mind if I make it my favorite spot." I replied on a joyful tone and he gave me a huge grin.
We sat there for a couple of hours, talking about everything and nothing. I told him that after getting my degree in Business Management, my aunt offered me a job as an assistant manager at her company in New York, but I turned down her job offer because my dream was to open my own dance studio. My parents were upset about my decision, so that's why I decided to start a new life in Mystic Falls, doing what I truly enjoyed. Damon told me about his family and I found out the reason why he and Stefan don't get along. Some time ago, they were both in love with the same woman and that's when the trouble started. Then we started to talk about something more pleasant, like my job and our hopes for the future.
"Thank you for making this night so special." he said, playing with my curls.
"You're welcome! Just don't make a habit of asking me out in the middle of the night." I replied with a big grin.
"You're so beautiful when you smile." he added, looking me in the eyes, gently touching my left cheek with his soft fingers.
I blushed a little, then pulled away from him and said with a weak voice: "I should go home now."
"You don't like being here with me?" he asked with puppy eyes.
"It's 2 AM and I have to wake up early in the morning. Plus, mom's visiting and she has no idea I sneaked out." I replied, trying to avoid his glance.
"Oh, Mrs. Thorne is in town? I'd like to meet her." he replied with a big smile on his face and I smiled back without replying.
"Come on, let me walk you home." he added on a joyful tone.
We kept talking until we got to the building where I live. Before we said goodbye to each other, he kissed me on my right cheek and I blushed again. Then I entered the building and he went on his way home.
As soon as I unlocked the door, my mother greeted me on a worried tone: "Where have you been? I tried to call you, but you never answer the damn phone."
"I just needed some fresh air and I didn't take my phone with me." I replied defending myself.
"You needed fresh air in the middle of the night?" she asked, giving me a questioning look.
"Yeah, it helps me fall asleep when I have insomnia." I replied on a serious tone, trying to be convincing.
"I'm going back to sleep. We'll talk about it in the morning." she muttered while she was heading to my bedroom. I changed into my pyjamas and fell asleep on the couch thinking about what happened that night at the lake.
When I woke up in the morning mom was still sleeping, so I tried not to make too much noise when I got ready for work. As soon as I stepped outside the building, my cell phone started to ring. It was Damon.
"Good morning, beautiful! I hope you slept well." he greeted me on a joyful tone.
"Good morning, Damon!" I replied with a smile.
"Do you need a ride to work?" he asked kindly.
"I'm already on my way to school." I replied as I started walking down the street. As soon as I finished saying these words, Damon's convertible car stopped next to me.
"I'm at your service, miss Thorne." Damon replied with a smirk while he got out of the car.
"You never give up, do you?" I asked with a smile as I was putting my cell phone inside my backpack.
He smiled back, then opened the car door for me and I sat on the passenger seat.
"You don't have to drive me to work, you know. It's only a ten-minute walk." I said with a calm voice.
"I know. I just wanted to see you." he replied with a brittle smile, looking me in the eyes.
We kept talking until we got to the high school and he insisted on meeting my mother. Elena was surprised to see me with Damon, so she gave me a questioning look, then went to the practice field with the other girls. I said goodbye to Damon and joined the girls on the practice field for the regular course. Elena seemed pretty upset about the fact that Damon brought me to school and tried to ignore me during the course. I was tired of all this drama and I didn't want to talk to her either, so I walked home as soon as I finished working with the girls.
When I got home mom was sitting on the couch while reading an old magazine. After I greeted her, I left my backpack on the couch and went to the kitchen to eat something.
She came to me and asked on a cheerful tone: "Do you have a pen? I wanted to solve a crossword, but I couldn't find anything to write with."
"Sure, there's one inside my backpack. You can take it." I replied with a smile.
"Ugh, that ugly backpack... You should buy a nice purse like every young lady does." I heard mom grumbling on her way to the living room.
"That's not going to happen, mom! You know how much I hate purses." I replied with a smile.
Two minutes later she came back to the kitchen with a letter in her hand.
"Now I understand why you don't want to go out with Kyle." she said with a smirk, batting her eyelashes.
"What are you talking about?" I asked her, shrugging my shoulders.
"I'm talking about this love letter." she replied, still smiling and pointing at a heart-shaped envelope.
"Where did you get that?" I asked her on a serious tone.
"It was inside your backpack." she replied with a smile.
I took the envelope with my name on it, then opened it curiously and started to read the letter. For my surprise, it was a short love poem:

"Before we met my soul was trapped in the night,
Only your smile was sparkling in the pale moonlight.
Soon my fear became courage, the dark became light,
I left the past behind, my future seemed bright.
You are my sun, my guiding star, my full moon,
The pouring rain after a scorching afternoon.
Every time I see you my heart skips a beat,
So if this isn't love, tell me what is it?"

"What does it say?" mom asked curiously. "Who wrote it?" she insisted with a smile.
"It's not signed." I replied with a weak voice, still staring at the poem.