I was 28 or 29 when I met Melanie. I had been visiting a family member on the north side of Phoenix, Arizona. I was driving a small, open air, tiller steered, parade car. The car resembled an antique from the late 19th century. I had made some repairs to the car, and was test-driving it before returning it to its owner.
I saw a small boy and what I thought was his teenaged sister watching me from their yard. Their hair got my attention. They both had the same bright red hair. Every time I passed their home, the boy would jump up and down with excitement.
I stopped in front of them, introduced myself, and offered them a ride. The little boy didn't wait for his sister to give her OK. His eyes lit up, and he instantly began trying to climb aboard.
Though it was not very fast, driving this little car took both hands; one to steer with the tiller and the other to operate the spring returned throttle. So, I looked at the excited kid's sister and said, "You come too. You'll need to hold Jr. down."
With a bright smile, she put the boy in the seat between us and climbed aboard. Melanie introduced herself, her son, Bobby, and thanked me for the ride. Though she looked to be about 14, it turned out that Melanie was 22-years-old. Her son, Bobby, was 5.
When they were safely seated, off we went. We drove around the neighborhood for twenty or thirty minutes. Bobby never stopped talking. He asked a million questions. Most of his questions were good ones. All of which, I answered as best I could to the satisfaction of a five-year-old boy.
Melanie didn't say much. She just sat there with a wide smile, staring at me, and intently listening to my every word.
If not for the fact that I was driving, I may have returned the favor and not taken my eyes off of her either. Even though she looked like a young girl, there was just something about her that piqued my interest.
Melanie was a petite young thing. At 22-years-old, she stood only 4'11" tall and weighed about 85 pounds. Little Mel, as I later came to call her, was as cute as they come. Her rounded, lightly freckled, face was surrounded by an abundance of well kept bright red hair. Bobby had the same hair. They also shared light green eyes. Her eyes were set over a button of a nose and full lips.
As the ride came to an end, I handed Melanie my card and asked, "May I call you some time?
Her smile quickly turned to a frown. She lowered her head, and, with a hint of sadness, said, "He's not around much, but I'm married."
"That's too bad." I replied. "If you need anything, or change your mind, give me a call. The number's on the card." When I offered her my hand, she reached out and gently squeezed it. Melanie then turned and led Bobby into their house.
Bobby was a polite kid. Before going into his house, he turned at his door, waved, and yelled, "Thank you."
Several weeks passed, and I had let the memory of Melanie and her boy fade from my mind. Then, late one afternoon, out of the blue, the phone rang. It was Melanie, and she sounded upset.
With a voice just above a whisper, she asked, "Can Bobby and I meet you somewhere to talk?"
Remembering the cute girl and her little boy whom I had given a ride, I quickly agreed to meet with them. "Where would you like to meet?"
"Some place private and quite, please." With a bit of hesitation, she asked, "Can we, maybe, come to your place?" She softly asked.
"Well, sure, I suppose that'll be OK. Is something wrong?" I asked.
"We just need to get out of here for a while. How do I get to your house?"
I gave her the directions to my home, and told her, "It should only take you about 20 minutes to get here."
She said, "OK" and hung up.
About 30 minutes later, Melanie and Bobby pulled into my drive. As I approached them, Melanie had her back to me. She was helping Bobby out of his car seat in the back of her car.
With a broad grin, I cheerfully said, "Hi guys. How ya doing?"
As she let Bobby climb out of the car, Melanie stood, turned, and said, "Not too well."
I was shocked! Her cute face looked terrible. She had a blackened left eye, her cheek was bruised, her lower lip was badly swollen, and her eyes were red from crying.
"What the hell happened to you? Are you alright?"
She began crying and said, "I'm sorry. I know I shouldn't be here. I hardly know you, but I had no one else I could call. My family is back east and the few friends I have here can't help."
I put my arm around her shoulders, and told her, "Come inside, tell me what happened, and I'll do what I can to help." I then guided her into my living room, sat her on the couch, and brought her a cup of tea. I then got her an icepack for her bruised face.
As she sipped the tea, with tears flowing down her cheeks, Melanie went into a story of abuse at the hands of her husband, Rob. Bobby sat quietly beside his mother.
Melanie told me, "Rob drinks too much. He used to just cuss at me. But, lately, when he'd come home drunk, he'd hit me. Until today, he just slapped my face. Then, after slapping me around, he expected me to make love to him that night. Today, when he came home, drunk as usual, he started hitting me with his fist. Bobby started crying and yelled at Rob to stop hitting me. Rob then slapped Bobby and knocked him down. That's when I knew we had to get out. You're the only one I know that Rob doesn't know. I hid your card the day you gave it to me, and he has no idea who or where you are."
"Damn! No one should take that kind of crap. You and Bobby can stay here for a while, if you like. I have an extra room. Or, I can help you get a room someplace. I have a friend who owns a motel. It's not in the best area, but it'll be safer than your place. But first, have you two had dinner?"
"No. We left as soon as Rob fell asleep." She replied.
"Then you two relax and let me fix you something." About 20 minutes later, I served them cheeseburgers and fries.
Shortly after dinner, I turned on some TV cartoons for Bobby while Melanie and I talked about her short and long-term options. She said she knew she could never go back to Rob.
Bobby was soon fast asleep on my living room floor.
"It looks like Bobby has decided to stay here. How about you?" I asked.
"I'd like to stay here a little while, if you don't mind." She said.
"You can stay s long as you need to."
I then gathered the sheets, blankets, and pillows to make them a place to sleep in my spare bedroom. There was no bed in the room, but with several blankets and a carpeted floor under them, Bobby and Melanie soon had a fairly comfortable 'bed' to sleep on.
Melanie carried Bobby to their room while I moved her car to the back yard. That way, it would not be seen from the street. Melanie didn't want Rob, or any of his friends, spotting it. After moving her car, I brought their small suitcases with me when I went in.
Melanie and I then sat on opposite ends of the couch, sipped tea, and talked for several hours. Her tears had dried, and she was beginning to relax. The stress of her day had taken its toll on her. She was exhausted. She apologized when she started yawning. She agreed when I suggested she take a shower and go to bed. We'd continue our talk in the morning.
As I cleaned the kitchen, Melanie disappeared into the bathroom. A short time later, she went to her room.
When Melanie left the bathroom, I took a quick shower and went to bed as well. I heard Melanie get up several times that night. I guess the stress she was under wouldn't let her sleep very well.
The next day, Mel went to the local police station and filed an assault complaint on Rob. Then she went to the courthouse and had a restraining order placed on him. When she returned from court late that afternoon, she found I had made room for her car next to mine in the carport.
I ordered a pizza and popped a cartoon movie into the VCR for Bobby. Melanie and I shared part of a bottle of wine as we ate the pizza.
Bobby must have been starving. He ate nearly half the pizza. He sure was cute with his face covered in pizza sauce matching his red hair.
After Melanie gave him a bath, Bobby settled in to finish watching his movie. Like the previous night, he again dozed off on the living room floor. Mel carried him to bed.
After talking for another hour, or so, Mel and I were getting tired as well. She took her shower and joined Bobby.
When Melanie got out of the bathroom, I took a shower and went to bed as well.
Just as I was about to doze off, I heard a soft knock and my bedroom door slowly opened. I looked up to see Melanie standing in the doorway. She was using a long, white, T-shirt as a nightgown. It came down several inches past her hips, so she was well covered. Lucky for me, the hallway light behind her was silhouetting her oh so petite body through her nightshirt.
"Are you alright?" I asked.
"I've tried, but I can't go to sleep. Would you mind holding me for just a little while?
Without saying a word, I flipped my bed sheet back and held out my arms to her.
Melanie softly walked to my bed and climbed in. Facing me, she cuddled up close, and I firmly, but gently, pulled her to my chest. She put her head on my shoulder and snuggled up to my neck. Her left arm was draped over my chest and her right arm folded between us.
I placed my left arm under her head and neck and held her close. With my right hand, I caressed the back of her head.
"Thank you so much. I don't know what we'd have done if you hadn't helped." She then kissed my neck.
"Shhhhhh. It's OK. You're safe here. No one will hurt you. Go to sleep now." I whispered, as I softly kissed her forehead.
Melanie still didn't go to sleep. She quietly sobbed into my shoulder and continued to kiss my neck while she let her left hand come around and begin rubbing my chest.
