Run Away

By: Sierra Wegener

God dammit Annie! Where is the Fucking Beer! yelled Richard,

standing with one bloody and blistered hand holding the fridge door handle,

gripping it so tight his hands could crumble the fragile door while the other

hand held a crushed empty beer can with sharp edges digging into his

already cut hands. Jane just sat there staring at his bloody knuckles and

wondering if people notice them as much as she did. Those knuckles hit her

enough times to the point when Jane looks at Richard, the knuckles are the

only body part that she noticed anymore.

Wham! Jane peeked over her book as her long, bright, red, perfectly

straight hair hung over her shoulders and saw Richards beer gut hanging

out of his greasy grey white t-shirt as he stood in front of the fridge door that

looked banged up from someone repeatedly punching it. Richard moved slow

like a penquin, but fast for him. He slammed his bedroom door shut where,

Annie, Janes mother, had been laying. Jane knew she was going to hear

something she didnt want to so she ran to the pathetic corner in the

basement she called her bedroom.

Down in the dark basement there were no doors or walls to give Jane

any privacy and sanctuary away from the hell that she claimed as her family.

She fell down on a twin air mattress that had little to no air in i and stared at

the sad pile of clothes. She decided to she was going to change her life; she
was done wasting her time. She picked up an old gym bag that used to be a

bright pink but now looks more like a dark faded red. She packed and packed

and packed. She had done this a million times before but they, Richard and

Annie, always caught her before she could step out of the house. Bruises and

cuts had been enforced to prevent her from every doing it again. But it never

stopped her.

Jane was fed up. She was done dealing with hiding in fear and she no

longer had to stay here in this degrading, rundown small house in her small

dainty town in the middle of now where North Dakota. She grabbed all of her

clothes, the envelopes that were lying between the bottom or her mattress

and her floor, a small jar of cash that she hid behind her mattress and next

to the wall. She tiptoed up the creaky stairs and slowly opened the dingy

screen door.

She ran to the small nearly ready to fall down garage, that was the

same pathetic white color of ecru, nearly beige but not as pretty. She

rummaged through the whole garage and saw four bikes all different sizes

and different colors of dark midnight blue to silver to bright princess pink.

These four bikes belonged to her siblings: Hunter, 15 years old, Zachary, 13

years old, Jordan, 7 years old, and Callie, age 5.

Jane couldnt imagine leaving any of them but she knew she wasnt

being selfish. She was leaving to find her father in California. Thats whom

the letters in the envelopes were from. If he were her siblings father then
she would take them with her but the rest of them with spawns of the

alcoholic abusive piece of shit man that Annie chose to be with.

Jane grabbed the dark midnight blue bike. She knew it was the one

that would be least missed and Hunter would forgive her someday. She

brought it out of the garage and onto the driveway cement. On leg over the

seat and she was on. She pedaled down the black pavement that she hoped

to never have to see again. Off she was at the speed of light or thats how it

felt with the wind in her hair.

Nearly 15 blocks later, Janes legs were feeling like they needed to give

out but she couldnt do that now. She could see her destination in sight. The

bus station. This was her escape plan. She would ride her bus to California or

however far it would take her and she would escape this reality that she was

stuck in. She needed to do that. She couldnt handle being near the violence

and damage anymore.

She sat the bike down, knowing thats the last time she would have it.

Jane thought to herself, Hopefully it will be returned to Hunter. Because if

its not, she knew he will be punished for it. She walked into the bus station,

up to the counter.

There was a lady standing there with curly whitish brown hair and

larger bust. She had that look on her face that she didnt want to be here

anymore than I did. Jane noticed that her nametag read Agatha.
 Can I help you? questioned Agatha in her sarcastic tone. You could

tell she had dealt with enough 17 year olds running away from home in her

lifetime.

Yes, I need one ticket to California, please, stated Jane.

Honey, the only bus today that goes to California leaves in 10 minutes

and goes to San Diego. Itll be $99.

Thanks, thatll work, stated Jane as she handed over the hundred-

dollar bill from her jar of money.

Here is your ticket, Honey. The bus is outside loading passengers right

now. Travel safe. Said Agatha sympathetically and she handed over her

ticket.

Jane took her ticket and headed out to catch the bus. She opened the

door and there she saw a petite woman with short curly blonde hair wearing

jeans and a baggy gray sweatshirt. Jane wanted to turn around but she had

to catch this bus. The close Jane got, she could see the fresh bruises laying

on her face.

The blonde short women ran towards Jane as she tried to avoid her and

she yelled out, STOP! PLEASE DONT GO! Then a pause, as if the women

was gasping for air. I LOVE YOU! yelled her mom. Jane turned around and

said, No, you dont. You only love me when its convenient for you. If you

did, youd leave that piece of shit man and protect your family. Jane saw her
mothers face turn beet red as she moved her hand closer to Jane to grab her

arm but she was too late.

Jane turned around and sprinted onto the bus not looking back,

hoping that would be the last time she would ever have to see that women

that she called her mother.

The bus driver looked at Jane and then at her mother. He stated, You

need a ticked madem

Janes mother yelled in a stuttering tone, Are you fucking kidding

me?! Shes my daughter. She needs to come with me!

Before she could continue to yell, the bus driver shut the door in her

face and started his routine. He stated over the intercom, OKAY FOLKS-WE

WILL BE DEPARTING IN 3 MINUTES. THIS WILL BE A LONG DRIVE AHEAD OF

US. SAN DIEGO, HERE WE COME!

Jane walked through the isles hoping to find a seat for her and her

pathetic little bag. Finally after walking down the entire bus, she found the

only passengers who looked liked her, choosing to sit at the rear. She placed

her raggy old bag down and put her arm out for a hand shake and said, Hi,

Im Jane.

The one boy with tall and shaggy brown hair with a dirty complexion,

looked as if he could have the same background as Jane did. He took her up
on her offer and shook her hand and stated, Hello there. Im Nicholas. Call

me Nick, Nicky or anything but Nicholas.

He shut his mouth, looked Jane up and down. She knew he was judging

her based on her looks. Her bright red hair always stuck out the most and

outfits werent usually the best. She knew she may have gotten judged for

wearing white basketball shorts and a black and red school t-shirt. Jane

thought, Oh no! Hes going to think Im some weird girl or maybe hell even

think Im a guy

Nicky stopped looking at her and said in a cocky tone, My goodness.

You are pretty! You must play some good basketball in those shorts. Nicky

paused for a second and said, Just curious, where are you from? Must not be

from these cold barren lands of North Dakota. Im from New York City.

Well yeah. Ive played some basketball in my day, Jane giggled and

stuttered. But I cant play anymore. I broke my ankle my um.jumping on

the trampoline. She stopped, hopping Nicky believed the trampoline story.

She thought, Its not like I could tell him I broke it by running away

from my stepfather to avoid him stabbing me with a knife.

She thought for a second what else Nicky had asked her and answered,

Oh and yea I am from or I have lived in North Dakota for the past 15 years.

But the shorts are because I have an itch for the heat. Jane couldnt stop

smiling as she chatted with Nicky and it seemed that she liked him.
 Well, do you have some back story or do I need to tell you mine

before you sell your soul to me? joked Nicky.

Jane just stared back at him because she wasnt ready to sell her

soul to a boy she just met.

After the awkward silence, Okay, Ill sell mine first, said Nicky with a

grin across his face.

Nicky took a deep breath, almost as if he was nervous to tell me. This

funny, cocky boy got quiet and shy real quick.

Okay, so no judgment. Its been one nice long life, Nicky said

sarcastically.

Jane stayed quiet, not saying anything but she shook her head

promising not to judge his story.

She thought, Why would I? I probably have a much worse one than

his.

Nicky began to talk, I cant tell you the usual like where I was born or

who my family is because I dont really know. I was raised in inner city New

York City by this lady named Joanne. She runs an orphanage. My parents or

the people who gave birth to me, whatever you want to call them,

abandoned me at the hospital and her orphanage is one of the few that take

in abandoned children. They didnt care enough to drop me off at an

orphanage themselves. Pardon me; it may seem like Im angry at them. I

gave up them a long time ago. But yeah, so Joanne did her best job with me.

I know realize I made her life harder than it needed to be. She had so many

kids but for some reason she cared for me more than anyone else. I would

run away, when she would try to punish me. I would specifically get caught

shop lifting or vandalizing or any other trouble I could get into. The issues got

worse the older I got.

Nicky took a deep breath again. Jane didnt know whether he was

going to say something that was scary or that he was still nervous. Then 4

days ago, I was caught coming back in at 4 AM from a night out on the

streets with other orphanage kids. Joanne spelled my breath and the instant

she did that she knew I had been out drinking. It would not have been that

bad if, Johnny- a 13 year old orphanage kid, wouldnt have snuck out with

me. After that, Joanne decided to give up on me. Her eyes- crying. Her voice-

yelling. Her body- shaking. That made me realize what I had been doing to

her for the past 17 years. She always threatened throwing me out but that

night was the final straw.

Jane began to speak up, So, she just gave up? She just let you walk

out? Then she chuckled under her breath, must be nice!

Ha-no! Let me walk out would be lying. That night, she sat me down

at the kitchen table as she tried calling everyone, she possibly knew. She

was so mad, she wouldnt even look at me. Finally, not quickly, she reached

someone she was very distantly related to. The new relative, Suzan, and
lived in this small town of approximately of 200 people in southern Iowa. She

told me that Id be on the bus later that day. So, I had to pack everything I

owned, which wasnt much and I said goodbye to all of the kids at the

orphanage that I considered my siblings, Nicky said about to tear up.

I hopped onto the bus and looked back at my family. They all had the

sad face and tears running down their faces, all of them including Joanne. I

know that she didnt want to do what she had to do. I sat on the bus for a

long time, slept a little bit but a lot of staring out of the window. That was

when I reached Chicago, where I was suppose to transfer my bus to take me

to Iowa. I was there in the moment and I chose to trade my ticket to Iowa for

a ticket to California. So, that is how I ended up here. Nicky stopped talking

and began again, And Im not sure where Im going from here.

Jane was thinking, Wow, he thinks thats bad. I cant tell him that Ive

basically been through hell the past few years without feeling like Im

making this into a competition? Without telling him everything my life has

failed at? Maybe he wanted the competition after all?