A/N: Before the story starts, I want to point out, this story has absolutely nothing to do with the title, nor the song it's titled after, by The Fray. It was simply the song to inspire me to write this.
So, now you know.
How to Save a Life
He went too far this time and he knew it. He watched as her now tear-filled eyes went wide. Her brunette hair covered her eyes as she looked down and away.
"I...I'm sorry I can't be as great as you are, Drew." she apologized.
"May, I was kidding." he attempted to assure her. He placed his hand on her shoulder, but she snatched her arm away.
"Don't touch me!" She stood from the bench. "Someone as 'pathetic' as me shouldn't possibly be allowed to touch such royalty as yourself!" she spat.
That's right. He called her 'pathetic'. It just came out. He didn't mean for it to happen. He just liked the attention he received from her whenever he teased her.
"Why can't you just go one day where I meet you and you don't make me feel like complete shit?" she questioned.
Drew wanted to defend himself. To tell her that he didn't always tease her when they saw each other. He wanted to point out all the times where he was actually quite encouraging, but he couldn't. He couldn't speak. It was rare when she snapped-really, truly snapped. When she did he always found himself shrinking inside.
"M-May, I-"
"I don't want to hear it! I don't care! Every contest, every one, was for you. Every time I got up on that stage, it was to impress you! To hope that one day, you'd think me 'worthy' enough for you!"
Her logic would always be off by a little bit when she snapped. After all, she didn't even know him when she began coordinating, so not 'every' contest could be for him. He didn't bother correcting her though. He glanced down to her heaving chest, then back up to her face, reddened from anger.
"May, you are wor-"
"Shut up!" She screamed, receiving stares from the people around them. "Just shut up! Shut up, shut up!"
He was legitimately scared now. He could never tell how much she was holding in; how angry she was at him internally. He looked around to the staring people, who were now awkwardly walking away. He looked back at May and her tear stained face. Her next words were quieter now, signaling that she was nearly finished with her rant.
"I just...I just never know what to do. I never feel good enough, I never feel..." she trailed off, looking him in the eyes, before returning to her seat on the bench. She buried her face in her hands, openly sobbing. "I don't know why I try so hard to get you to notice me."
These were the words that finally made him realize why she was so angry. In his head, he went back to other similar phrases she'd said: 'to impress you', 'was for you', 'worthy enough for you'. He thought she meant coordinating. He thought she wanted to be as good as him, which she already was. He never expected that she meant that she liked him.
"I don't know why I'm even telling you all this." she confided, as she lifted her head from her hands. "I don't know why I thought...why I thought you..."
Drew moved to kneel down in front of her. He took her hands in his own. He didn't open his mouth yet, in fear she'd snap once more. Moments went by, as the two just looked at each other. Finally, he spoke.
"May, you're incredible. As a coordinator and a person." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a pack of tissues. He handed her one. "I'm sorry I make you feel like shit, May. But honestly, it's because you make me feel the same way." Her head poked up. "I never feel good enough for you. I want to impress you. And I try doing it by seeming like this overly confident guy, because I thought that's what you wanted."
"You thought I wanted you to call me 'pathetic' when I lose contests, or brag when you beat me?" she questioned harshly. His face turned red.
"Well, it sounds stupid when you say it like that..." he said. May glared.
"Probably because it was a stupid thought to begin with."
Drew's shoulders slumped. He gave a sigh and looked away from her.
"I just kinda thought...well, I don't know what I thought, really." He pulled himself off of his knees, and sat next to her. "May...why do you want to impress me so bad?"
May gave him a quick glare before facing forward. She didn't answer.
"May..." Drew said, after a few moments of silence.
"I don't know, okay?" she replied. "I guess I just kinda like it when you seem happy with me."
Drew chuckled at her answer.
"I'm always happy with you."
"You are?" May replied, stunned. "You never seem like it, sometimes."
Drew pulled a rose from his jacket pocket, handing it to her. As she held the red flower in her hand, he kissed her cheek before standing, much to her surprise.
"Always." With that, he walked away, leaving the shocked brunette to stare after him.
A/N: Alright, so there's a super short story. Feel free to review or critique. CRITIC out.
