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#Post#: 46--------------------------------------------------
It's Not Okay | Chapter One
DIR By: Abbey Bominable
Date: July 5, 2013, 1:24 pm
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I've always known that unfortunate things happen to people.
There's no way to stop them; no one ever expects them, so it's
impossible. But Mom always tells me that nothing is impossible,
and to keep a positive attitude. That isn't an easy thing to do,
especially not when your dad has been diagnosed with gastric
cancer and is probably going to die, your house has burned down,
and your little sister barely escaped death the day she was
born. To sum it up, the difficulties I've faced keep my mind off
the subject of princesses and ponies.
But I never did think it would get so extreme that I'd do what
I'm preparing to do now.
"Clothes, check. Extra shoes, check. Bathroom materials, check.
Atlas, check. Am I forgetting something?" I go through my
backpack, making sure I've got everything I'll need for my trip.
My phone is in my pocket, I have enough money to last for a
while, and my high school ID is tucked in my wallet should I
need to identify myself. At the last second, I turn to my bed
and grab the stuffed cat I've had since I was four and gently
stuff it on top of everything else.
After triple-checking that I haven't forgotten anything, I zip
up my backpack and wince when the zipper makes noise. I turn
around and look at the pink toddler bed laying a couple of yards
away from my own and make sure I didn't wake up Annabelle. I
didn't, luckily, so I tiptoe over to the partially open door and
sneak into the hall.
I smile triumphantly and am about to head towards the stairs
when I hear a small voice ask sleepily, "Sissy?"
A dull thud follows and about a minute later a small figure
appears in the doorway. Annabelle's eyes widen considerably when
she sees that I'm fully dressed and carrying my backpack.
"What you doing?" She asks in her adorable toddler voice.
"Nothing really, just going to take a short walk." I tell her,
wishing I could tell lies that were actually believable.
"Me come too." Annabelle declares, taking a step toward me.
I sigh and silently put my backpack down. "No, Belle," I say as
I pick her up and carry her back into our room. I lay her back
in bed and kiss her forehead, then exit the room once more.
Annabelle starts crying loudly and screaming her nickname for
me. I roll my eyes and drop my backpack once more, anxious to
get my sister silent before Mom wakes up. But I'm too late.
"What's wrong, Belle?" Mom asks as she hurries to my little
sister's bed.
"Sissy leave!" Annabelle says in between sobs.
Of course, Mom gets suspicious when she hears this and turns to
look at me. She starts questioning me intently, obviously in
search of answers.
"Why are you up and dressed so early? Why is your bag packed?
Where are you going?"
I'm about to tell her that, due to insomnia, I got ready for
school earlier than necessary and am going to take a quick walk
when I realize it's Saturday. Since that's the best lie I had, I
say bluntly, "I'm leaving."
This catches her by surprise. "Why?"
"I don't like living this way. It's too stressful, and
nerve-racking. First, Belle almost dies, then Dad is diagnosed
with freaking cancer, and last week our house burned down. I
can't take it anymore."
"What makes you think I'll permit this?" Mom asks, traces of
superiority noticeable in her tone.
"I'm not asking for your permission." I tell her. "I'm sixteen,
Mom. You told me that once I turned sixteen, you'd let me make
my own decisions in matters like these and respect them."
"Where will you go?"
"East." I say vaguely.
Mom is silent. She's probably trying to think of a way to keep
me from leaving, but I know nothing will work. I've been
planning this for a month, allowing me to work out any loopholes
there may be.
As I wait for Mom to pound me with more questions, and I know
she will, I venture into the kitchen and fill a single cloth bag
with food I know won't expire for a while. Having backup food
will probably be useful.
"Will you come back?" Mom finally asks.
"I don't know yet."
"Will you have your phone?"
"No, I'm going to leave the house for who-know-how long without
my phone on me." I say sarcastically.
Mom sighs and finally turns back to Annabelle, who's still
crying but has thankfully transitioned to being silent.
"Me go, Emmy?" My little sister begs.
"No, Belle. Stay here with Mom." I respond. I love her and
everything, but having to look after a three year old that's not
potty-trained would make traveling difficult.
She starts crying again and Mom looks at me. "She'll be
devastated if you leave without her. You know how much she loves
you, Em."
I sigh a conflicted sigh. If I let Annabelle come with me,
she'll slow me down, but she'd be happy. If I refuse, she'd be
devastated and would probably come after me, therefore putting
herself in danger.
"Sorry, Belle, but I want you to stay with Mom. You'll be safer
here." I tell her.
Annabelle cries harder and runs to me, wrapping her little hands
around my leg. I gently pry her off and kiss her cheek.
"Bye, Belle. Be good for Mom." I say.
Unlocking the front door, I look back at my sister's
tear-streaked face and feel terrible. The fact that my choice
will keep her safe doesn't really help.
"Emmy!" Annabelle shouts.
I act as if I can't hear her and continue walking, not stopping
until I reach the sidewalk. Taking my atlas out of my bag, I
open it to the California page and find Citrus Heights.
"I'm on Antelope Road," I mumble. "So if I go far enough east,
I'll reach Old Auburn Road and go from there."
After carefully fitting my atlas back into my bag, I stand up
and stride confidently to the east. I walk for fifteen minutes
or so before coming to a stop. I read the two signs and find out
that if I go to either side, I'll be on Sunrise Boulevard. Not
where I want to be. I'm about to consult my atlas when I see a
sign that, for whatever reason, is considerably smaller and
shows an arrow pointing north. Below the arrow are the words
McDonald Field.
I glance behind me to see if I missed a sign, but I don't see
anything that could be useful. After a few seconds of
consideration, I decide to follow the arrow to McDonald Field,
thinking that if I continue past there I'd get to Old Auburn
Road.
As I walk, I look around me and vaguely remember passing here in
the car a few times, then mentally smacked myself. How could I
not know this place like the back of my hand when I lived like
two blocks away? I really need to pay closer attention to my
surroundings.
I follow a small curve and see another sign. Upon drawing
closer, I see it reads Old Auburn Road. I head northeast from
here and check my Blackberry, curious to see just how long I've
been walking. My phone reads seven forty-five a.m., and my
stomach growls, causing me to remember that I haven't eaten yet
this morning.
I know there a couple of creeks up ahead, so I decide to walk to
one and have a picnic. I go for another twenty minutes, allowing
me to reach the crossing between Old Auburn Road and Coral Oak
Way. Which way will get me to the nearest creek? I rack my
brain, trying desperately to remember when it hit me. C.O.W.;
take C.O.W. to reach the creek. I remember Mom telling me that
years ago when we were driving to a village to visit a relative.
"C.O.W.? What could that stand for?" I ask myself as I scan the
signs. Then I see one that has Coral Oak Way on it in what looks
like freshly painted letters. "C for Coral, O for Oak, and W for
Way! That's it!" I say aloud, attracting a few stares. I blush
and hurry down Coral Oak Way.
A few minuters later, I'm sitting a couple of feet away from the
creek and eating an oatmeal raisin granola bar. It's delicious
and tastes so close to the cookie that I can hardly believe it's
actually healthy.
I remove a bottle of water out of the food tote and take a few
large sips, then put the cap on. I set the water bottle back in
the tote and throw the granola bar wrapper away.
Walking back the way I came, I'm about to turn back on to Old
Auburn Road when my phone buzzes. I take it out and see I've got
a new text from Mom.
"'Where r u Emmy?'" The text reads. It's obviously from
Annabelle.
"'Old Auburn Road. Why?'" I say as I type out my response.
Upon hitting send, I get back on Old Auburn Road and continue
going northeast. I walk quickly and quietly, taking in the
sounds of people going about their morning routine. This gets
boring and tedious after a while, though, since most people are
doing the same thing, so I stop long enough to take my purple
iPod nano and headphones out of my backpack and play some Taylor
Swift.
I sing with the music, not caring if anyone hears me, and am so
distracted that I almost don't realize my phone is vibrating. It
makes my leg tingle, which gives me an overall unpleasant
feeling, so as soon as I feel the vibration, I take the phone
out of my pocket and read Annabelle's message softly.
"'Where that at?'"
I smile and work on my reply. "'Go east on our street, follow
the curve, and go upward.'"
Then I hit send and start walking once more.
#Post#: 127--------------------------------------------------
Re: It's Not Okay | Chapter One
DIR By: Jessica
Date: July 8, 2013, 5:35 am
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This is really, really good! I can't wait until more is posted!!
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