The skyline was beautiful, but not so much as her eyes. The way they sparkled as she leaned back into the damp grass and sighed, smiling softly at what she thought was the most beautiful thing in the world. Little did she know, I sat on the bleachers that same chilly morning. Two a.m. Under the same stars, under the same sky, in the same existence.

Needing somewhere to go because I couldn't sleep, I found myself wandering to the school to clear my head. As I situated myself in the bleachers, I noticed her. Sitting there, not a football field away. Situated there, she looked absolutely angelic. It was fate. It was in that moment that I knew without a shadow of a doubt; She was the one. She watched the stars, only a few feet away from where I sat; She was oblivious to my presence.

Me? I sat still and I watched her. I was completely entranced. She was grace, the epitome of peace, but then, then she sat up, wrapped her arms around her petite frame, and I watched as sobs racked her frail looking body. I could see her shaking from the spot where I stay seated. She was all alone, crying silently in the darkness. She looked so small, so delicate. She looked like she needed a guardian, a protector, someone who could keep the monsters away.

Quietly I walked down the bleachers and over to this diminutive girl. My footstep close to being silent, so that I wouldn't startle her. I crouched down beside her and she looked up at me with sad, watery, beautiful eyes. Shining from the moonlight, as tears rolled down her cheeks, highlighting the beauty that was naturally there. You could clearly see that she was broken. Even so, she was beautiful and she could be repaired. She still had hope in her eyes, the kind of hope you read about in fiction books. The kind of hope that made you believe there was still a chance for the world to be restored to beauty.

I reached out and wiped the tears away hesitantly, trying to be as gentle as I possibly could, not knowing how she would react to me touching her. I wrapped my arms around this beautiful stranger, of whom I had only ever seen in passing, and she fell apart in my arms, clinging to my shirt as she cried silently not caring that I was a total stranger, she just needed someone to be her stable ground so that she didn't fall apart and forget where all the pieces when when she tried to put herself back together. The breeze blew and she shivered, before a siren pierced the night.

I shot up in bed, breathing heavily. The same recurring dream that plagues my mind, but I wouldn't trade it for the world. I glanced at the clock and took a few breaths. Three seventeen in the morning. Sighing, I rubbed my eyes and checked my phone, the perpetrator of the simulated siren that aroused me from my slumber. One notification. One text message. One minute ago. I opened it and quickly read those three little words.

'I need you'

I jumped quickly out of bed and wrestled on my jeans and a t-shirt. I grabbed my keys from the hook by the door and locked it behind me. I didn't even bother with my car, I just started running. I didn't need any more information. I knew exactly where I was headed.

The moment I saw her, I ran as fast as I could across the football field. I skidded to a halt as I pulled her into me and wrapped my arms tightly around her, almost knocking us both over. I only pulled back when she didn't respond.

"Baby-Girl" I whispered, pressing my forehead to hers, brushing her hair behind her ear, there was a reason that she needed me. Se wouldn't wake me up if there wasn't one. "What happened, Love?" I asked softly. I kissed her cheek and sighed when I felt her flinch, I could feel where the skin was heated and risen. All she did was shake her head and shy away slightly, she wouldn't look up at me, eyes concentrated on her feet. She knew what my next question was.

"Mel, baby, did he hit you?" Everything was still and silent for a moment and it felt like time had frozen, my heart broke because I knew the answer to the question. I felt her heartbeat speed up before she started crying harder, like she had done something wrong. I felt her body begin to shake as she dropped to her knees as she buried her face in her hands. Nodding her head.

I picked her up gently, but with ease. She was so small. So fragile, I couldn't imagine how anyone could even fathom hurting this delicate little angel. I sat down on the grass and placed her in my lap, her legs thrown over the side of mine so she could lean into me and I could hold her securely against me. I held onto her tightly, like our lives depended on me holding her close in that moment. At the same time she could still look up at the night sky. The sky was her inspiration, her life force.

She was mine.

I kissed the top of her head, my arms wrapped tightly around her as I hummed her favorite song softly. Breathing in and out slowly as she toyed with my fingers, I knew she was calming down. I had to keep my anger down for her sake. She was a natural pacifist.

She was peace.

Love was the only way to make a change in the world in her opinion. Non-violent and full of compassion. As long as the sun would shine she would keep trying to make everyone happy, even if she was barely holding on herself. Rainbows were a like riches, animals were to be loved, and insults just meant you needed a hug. Nothing came close to the position love held in her heart. She found joy in finding it for others. As for me? I wanted to kill that bastard.

We sat like that for a while, my humming stopped. She found herself snuggling into my warmth. I didn't mind protecting her from the world. She was the sun that pushed the immense darkness away. She was the savior of my world, so it was my job to repay that. She was looking out over the horizon, her heartbeat slow, her breathing steady. Suddenly she gripped my arm a little tighter and looked up at me. She looked into my eyes and sighed, relaxing into me. She looked away and spoke softly, like she didn't want to disturb the silence.

"Have you ever looked at the sky? I mean really looked at it? I do it all the time." She started.

"I know. I watch you, in a very endearing and not a all creepy kind of way. It's your biggest thing Melody, it's part of who you are. You watch things. The little things and the big." I ran my fingers through her hair as she nodded, seeming to contemplate that idea, and not knowing how to respond. It was true though. She found joy in the little things. I found joy in her.

"Yeah, I guess." She started again, before pointing to where she was looking at. "Have you ever noticed though? Noticed how the stars stop eventually, and then the color starts to fade to a gray?" She spoke with so much passion, voice still soft though. Taking a breath as her finger moved to prove her point, my eyes following her finger, enchanted. When she continued she spoke a little slower, as if she was searching for the right words.

"Kind of like it's a painting... like a painting that isn't finished yet? Like the painter decided to let you decide what to make of the rest of it. Kind of like our lives. Our parents make our choices for so long, and then they stop. Then it's up to us to make the rest of the choices. It becomes our painting at that point, it becomes our project and we finally get our creative freedom, the freedom to express ourselves." She laughed a little at that. Softly.

"Or maybe like a book, but some of the pages are blank. Like the author is telling us that there's still a little hope. That our stories aren't over yet." She paused as if what she was saying sounded ridiculous and shook her head slightly.

"I don't know" She laughed again, like what she said sounded stupid. Before I could say anything she kissed me softly.

"Thank you" She breathed out, barely audible. She stood up and held out her hands, I grabbed them. She tried to pull me up, unsuccessfully. She pouted dramatically and stomped her foot. All I could do was laugh, she was a child at heart, so innocent nd pure. Untainted.

I stood up and brushed off my jeans and she poked my side before running away, laughing. I chased her around the track until we couldn't run anymore and we collapsed onto the field. Hands intertwined and bodies close. I pressed a kiss to her forehead and she held on tightly to me, snuggling into my warmth like always. Little did I know that would be the last time I held her like that.

I pulled out my phone to check the time. It was already almost five in the morning. I nudged her sleepy figure and she looked up at me yawning. I stood, and pulled her up, smiling softly as she rubbed her eyes. I rested my chin on her head. I never imagined a person would make me feel like this.

"We have to go home, my love" I whispered. She nodded into my chest and stepped back from me.

"I'll see you at school tomorrow." I couldn't read the look that crossed her face when I said that before she smiled at me and walked away. I watched her leave, a strange feeling in the pit of my stomach. She turned towards me and walked backwards a little ways away, waving at me.

"Check your pocket when you get home" She screamed. The sound barely making it to me as I felt the paper in my pocket. Why did I feel like she was slipping away? I walked home, watching the streetlights. Counting the stars. Thinking of her. I kicked rocks the entire way home. As soon as I got home, and back in my bed I pulled out the paper.

"Mister Reese" Called out my chemistry teacher, snapping her fingers. "Why don't you join us in the land of the living" Just like that, I was pulled back to reality.