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homerfreak2011

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“I have to get out of here… I have to go…” Julia threw things wildly into her suitcase. “I just have to go…” Tears burned her eyes. Her black hair messily shook as she swung back and forth between her dresser and her suitcase. The streetlights cast an ominous glow into the lime green bedroom of 16-year-old Julia Barclay. Her room was a mess: clothes everywhere, various important items she wished to take with her scattered about the floor, her jewelry strewn out over her dresser, pictures littering the bedspread… And $74.82 on top of her TV. She packed the suitcase until it was bulging, but only took a few changes of clothes, some valuable jewelry she could pawn if necessary, and a few things that she just couldn’t bear to part with: her photo album, her scrapbook, her latest yearbook, and her notebook. She quickly zipped the suitcase, snatched the money off the dresser (shoving it into her jeans pocket), slipped on her Bullet For My Valentine jacket over her Avenged Sevenfold shirt, tightened her blue Nikes, and ran out into the icy December night.

She didn’t know where she was going. She was just going. She wanted to get away. Far away. Far away from the parents that held her under their thumbs for so long. Running through the snow, she felt a sense of relief. She was solving the problem that had silently eaten away at her for so long. She was free. She was finally free.

Her tennis shoes crunched the snow on the ground, making heavy footprints, marking her path. Normally she would see this as a problem, but they were expecting another 4 inches of snow tonight… and it was already starting. That’s why this night was the night she had chosen to leave. She would be safe. The more it snowed, the more impossible it would be to find her. She felt the 82 cents of change jingling in her pocket. She was going to use every penny.

She ran harder, seeing the city limits sign in the near distance. This sparked her hope. Her suitcase was getting heavy, but she didn’t care. She couldn’t just get on a bus in her town… it was too small. She would be noticed in an instant. Instead she kept running. She was going to have to go to the nearest city… two towns over.

* * * * * * * * * *

By the time she got to the city, the snow was falling more consistently. She sat on a lonely bench under a small awning. She wiped fresh tears from her eyes, trying to look as natural as she could. She easily passed for eighteen. Even if she didn’t, no one would know where she was from. That’s why she was wearing her Bullet For My Valentine jacket instead of her much warmer school coat.

Within 5 minutes, 9 people had gathered around the bench, 3 of which were sitting on it with her. None had spoken to her, or even to each other. They were just there. Waiting. When the bus pulled up, she quickly pulled out enough money to ride. She was 5^th to get on, and took a cold, stiff seat toward the back of the bus. It was big enough for two people, so she sat her suitcase next to her and leaned against it, letting her eyes close. She had done it. She didn’t think she had the nerve, but here she was, on this bus to nowhere, letting herself be taken instead of guiding. The thought terrified her, but she didn’t stir. She didn’t want anyone to sense her insecurity. She opened her burning eyes, once again wiping away tears. An old woman sat across from her.

“Ma’am?” Julia was surprised by how hoarse her own voice was. The old woman looked up from her magazine. “Ma’am, do you know where this bus goes?”

“Why, I’m going to Missouri, dearie. But I have to switch buses in Des Moines.” Iowa. It was going to Iowa. Julia looked out the stained window for a moment, then back at the old woman.

“Would you wake me up when we get there?” Julia was still fighting to keep control of the tone of her voice. The old woman smiled.

“Of course, dearie. Go ahead and rest your pretty little head. It should be awhile before we get there.” So Julia did.

* * * * * * * * * *

In Des Moines, she managed to find a bus to take her to Indianapolis. That would put two more states between her and home. By the time the bus stopped there, it was 9 o’clock the next night. She had been gone about 23 hours. Silently, her mind pondered whether or not her parents had called the police… or even realized that she was missing. She walked away from the bus stop and walked through the city with her suitcase, looking for somewhere to grab a bite to eat. She was starving. The day she left, she had avoided eating because her stomach was in knots. Now she wished she hadn’t. The sidewalks were horribly crowded, and she was shoved out of the way left and right. A 5’6”, 150 lb country girl didn’t stand a chance against a bunch of city dwellers. She had never been faced with a situation of ‘shove or be shoved’… excluding the hallways at school, of course.

School. What about school? She was a Sophomore… A mere Sophomore… How was she ever going to make it now? “Too late.” She decided. “I’ve made my bed, now I’ve gotta lie in it.” All her dreams… graduating valedictorian… college… graduating Suma Cum Laude…getting her PhD… becoming something great… All down the toilet. She stifled back more tears as she approached a McDonald’s. Certainly not what she was in the mood for, but if she ordered off the dollar menu, she would only use $3 of her much needed money. She walked in, suddenly feeling stupid. All eyes had focused on her. Why wouldn’t they? Her hair was a mess, her eyes were bloodshot, and she was carrying a bulging suitcase! She silently cursed herself, slid her suitcase under the table she planned to sit at, and went up to the counter.

“Welcome to McDonald’s,” The girl behind the counter couldn’t have been older than she, and it was obvious that she wasn’t thrilled about working this late on a Saturday night. “How may I help you?”

“I want a burger, fries, and a sprite.”

“Dollar menu?”

“Sure.” The girl behind the counter mindlessly pushed buttons on the cash register.

“3.85.” Julia handed her a five, accepted the change, and leaned forward slightly.

“And… um…” She whispered. “Do you possibly have a brush I could borrow?” The girl behind the counter reached into her purse, neatly tucked away beneath her, and pulled out a small pink brush. Julia smiled, trying to be polite. “Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.” She rushed to the bathroom with the newfound brush and tried to undo the damage a night on a Greyhound had done to her hair. After it was looking decent, she walked back out of the bathroom, handed the brush back to the girl, and sat back down at her table. There she sat, taking in all her thoughts, waiting for her simple meal to be prepared.

“Alright, Julia,” She silently thought. “What now? You’ve made it this far… you can’t turn back. But where the hell are you going?” Where am I going? The thought echoed through her brain. She had left. She had gotten on a bus and left. Now where was she supposed to go?

“Dollar menu burger, fries, and Sprite.” The call startled her. “Order up.” She went and retrieved her food, feeling a little more confident now that she didn’t look like some crazed maniac that was about to bomb the joint. The girl behind the counter gave her a small smile, but didn’t try to strike up conversation. Thank God. Conversation was the last thing on Julia’s mind.

“Kyle…” Julia felt the tears returning. She hadn’t even thought of Kyle. She had only thought of herself… and now her poor little brother would think she left to get away from him… What kind of a sister was she? She shook the thoughts from her head and continued eating her fries, quickly coming to the realization that 9 p.m. burgers were just zapped in the microwave… not cooked. She left it nearly untouched and focused on her fries and her Sprite.

There was only about 6 people eating at the restaurant aside from herself, and maybe 4 employees there at the most. One at the counter, one working drive-through, one cooking, and one assembling. Julia’s eyes roamed the small McDonald’s and her eyes rested on a 48 ounce shark cup. It was blue with a picture of a shark around the middle. Exactly the thing she would expect Kyle to bring home and stick up in the cup cabinet… It closely resembled his favorite. The one he had poured Julia milk in the morning of her birthday… the cup she had thrown in a fit of rage and shattered. She could still see the look in Kyle’s eyes when the pieces of his beloved cup flew in different directions across the kitchen floor. Julia had immediately regretted it, but she couldn’t change what was already done.

Maybe this would make up for it.

She hurried up to the counter, dumping her trash in the bin on the way up there, and pointed to the blue cup. “How much?”

“14.99.” The girl talked in the same drone that she had before. Julia pulled $30 dollars out of her pocket.

“If I give you an address, will you send it somewhere for me? Please?” The girl looked her in the eyes, and seeing the desperation in Julia’s eyes, took the money and nodded.

“Where to?” Julia scribbled down her address on a napkin and handed it to the girl.

“Can you please put a small note in it? ‘To Kyle, love Julia’?” She nodded.

“Thank you for eating at McDonald’s. Come again.”

* * * * * * * * * *

New York. What the hell had she gotten herself into? Julia was now walking the streets of possibly the busiest city in the country with a suitcase. Flat broke. It was now 6 p.m. on the fourth day. Crossing an intersection, a guy with a briefcase rudely shoved her out of his way with his shoulder. It caught her off guard, and she immediately lost her balance, rolling her eyes as her suitcase came open, spilling clothes all over the sidewalk. Luckily, her keepsakes were still carefully tucked into the bottom. She quickly started throwing stuff back into her suitcase. She zipped it, standing as the cross walk sign started flashing. As she stood, she saw a pair of her deep blue bikini underwear dangling in front of her face. She felt her cheeks turn a dark shade of red.

“Um… are these yours?”