My Savior

{9}

Carmen P.O.V.

   Walking through the doors of the café after days of not working due to the pain I see Mrs. Collins behind the register. As I get closer she looks up at me and runs towards me and crashes me into a bone crushing hug. I hang onto her longer as she runs her fingers through my hair as a mother would to her child to soothe them. As she backs away she wipes a stray tear that betrayed me and fell down my check. "I'm so sorry sweetheart, you shouldn't be going through this," she says to me tears of her own. "I'm okay now it doesn't have anything to do with Jack this time," I reply with honestly since its not about him. It's about Xavier. "Oh sweetie what is it," Mrs. Collins asks with worry in her eyes "It's Xavier Knight," as I say this she gets a small smile on her lips. "Love, what happened with him," she asks with honest curiosity in her eyes. "We've been hanging out for weeks and he saw my bruises and asked to see them again yesterday and when I did he got in his car and drove and he hasn't spoken to me since," I say as I drop to the floor crying my eyes out. "oh my god sweetheart," she reply's as she holds me in her arms and soothes me. "He's disgusted with me. I saw it in his eyes. What did I do that was so bad for my life be like this," I say as more tears fall. "Sweetheart, sometimes the worst of things happen to the best people to turn them into better and stronger people for the future," she says with honesty. "I don't want to be in the future anymore," I say quietly hoping she didn't hear, but when she holds onto me harder I know she did.

   After calming down we opened the café and served the customers. Closing up again tonight I think about everything that has happened to me. Pulling the sleeve up on my arms I see the scars Jack has caused in the past eleven years of my life. Feeling a tear fall don't my check I quickly wipe it away and finish closing up the café for the night. Locking the door I look at my phone and see if I have any missed messages from Xavier maybe. When I see that there aren't any I feel disappointed for even thinking maybe he did like me at all. As I walk home slowly taking my time not caring what happens to me anymore I think about the guy who has made me the happiest without even trying.

Xavier P.O.V.

   Walking out of the school looking for Carmen seeing if she showed up today or not. As I catch sight of something on the hood of my car I walk over and realize it's the hoodie I gave to Carmen a few days ago. Picking it up a piece of paper falls out of the hoodies pocket, reaching down I grab it and unfold it. "Dear Xavier, I know you must hate me right now and that's okay, but it didn't feel right to keep your hoodie knowing you don't want anything to do with me anymore after seeing past my walls. I know that the date is cancelled, but thank you for making me happy even it was for a few minutes. With lots of love Carmen. Goodbye<3". Reading that note I feel my heart break in two at the thought of her thinking these things. I only left her house so I wouldn't do something stupid so I was going to go talk to her today and explain myself to her.

Thinking she doesn't want to speak to me at the moment I go to Mrs. Collins to ask her for advice. When I look through the café window I see Mrs. Collins holding onto Carmen as she cry's her eyes out on her shoulder. I see Carmen say something like Mrs. Collins wasn't suppose to hear, but she does and hangs onto Carmen tighter then before.

   As I sit in my car thinking about the look on both their faces when Carmen said whatever she said hurts me. They both looked so hurt, so broken. I don't want Carmen to think that I don't want anything to do with her, but I don't know what to do in this situation. Starting the car up I reverse out of the parking lot and on to the road to head towards Carmen's house to get answers . I know I should wait for her to tell me everything, but I need to know if someone's intentionally putting those bruises on her. I need to figure out what happened to her the week she went missing and even her dad didn't know where she was. What kind of father is like that? I think to myself.