RUNAWAY

01. THE IDEA

I woke up to rays of bright sunlight shining through the old, broken blinds that lay half open-half closed across my window. The sun's rays beamed brightly, lighting up my bedroom and forcing me to squint.

Slowly, I propped myself up on my elbows, and moved one hand in front of my face to block out the intense morning light. It must've been early because the sun was still rising, causing my room to take on an orange glow.

After basking in the warmth of the sunlight for a few moments, I decided it was time to get up. I pushed myself out of bed and swung my legs over to the floor. I rubbed my eyes as I stood up on the cold, hard wood. My eyes closed for a brief moment as I stretched out my arms and rolled my neck to the side.

I quietly shuffled across my room to the wooden dresser that stood to the left of my bed. Pulling the top drawer open, I scanned my dark, colored clothes in search of something to wear. My style was what set me apart from most girls in the 60s. A lot of girls my age dressed in soft, 'girly' colored skirts and nice sweaters, while I chose to wear darker colors and ripped jeans. I guess my criminal-like lifestyle probably has an influence on how I dress though.

Finally, I chose a white, v-neck shirt and paired it with black jeans. I threw on my favorite, and only, pair of black, combat boots. I slipped on my most prized possession — my leather jacket — and grabbed my navy blue backpack.

I began walking to my bedroom door, the floor creaked softly as I made my way over. My hand began turning the doorknob, but paused quickly. I looked over my shoulder and found the window, which was still shining brightly.

Glancing back at my bedroom door, I stepped away and began walking over to the window instead. Today was an important day and I'm not in the mood for my mother's drunk outbursts.

I pulled on the line to the curtains, and unlocked the window, pushing it up as soundlessly as possible. Once I pried it open, I ducked through and stood carefully on the fire escape attached to the side of my apartment building. I pushed my window shut, but left enough space so I could pull it back open later.

My fingers grazed the side of the brick building as I walked towards the ladder at the end of the narrow fire escape. I kicked the ladder down effortlessly, which caused a loud, booming sound to echo throughout the alleyway of the two apartment buildings.

"Hey, keep it down, kid!" An old woman popped her head out of her window, and shouted angrily at me.

I rolled my eyes and looked up at the woman. "Didn't mean to disrupt your 'beauty' sleep, ma'am," I shouted back, sarcasm evident in my voice.

The woman frowned in annoyance and muttered some profanities before slamming her window shut and disappearing back into her apartment.

I huffed and turned backwards as I crawled down the rusty ladder that was attached to the fire escape. Halfway down, I hopped off, skipping the last few steps, and landing on the hard concrete.