I Ran Away...

Not long ago, I used to live in Texas with my mother and my step-father and their four kids. I grew up to learn to not be ungrateful and love everything you have, cause there are people in the world that don't have anything; but I took in too much hurt and pain to stay.

I was the positive one in the family, the one to smile even though your life is falling to pieces, the one to lock herself in the bathroom and cry her eyes out then walk out and smile and try to live a normal life. I was the one people made fun of, the one my mother was embarrassed of, the one that was called lazy, even if she did the most she could. I fought through the hardships in life from elementary through high school. After high school, I wondered what would life be like if I didn't have my friends to support me around every corner. Well if you're wondering, my life was trash. My life consisted of taking care of animals and children and going to church. I had no life outside of that, which was sad, cause I wanted a life like other teens. I wanted to be able to have a full-time job and have a car and explore with friends and actually have a fun summer break. I didn't get any of those chances. I was told I couldn't get my driver's license, because I wasn't ready. I hated sitting around and seeing the other girls in church get what I was supposed to already have in life. I felt worthless and my family made me feel more worthless. It got to a point, I fell into depression and I couldn't sleep properly at night. I got so sick of the life I had and I decided, if I want to be an adult, I have to get rid of this lifestyle. I packed my luggage in secret, I hid it underneath my bed. I made sure I had all my plans written down in a private journal. I planned a cab ride, a hotel and a plane ride. Every day, I packed little by little and as I packed, my anxiety grew. I was terrified I was going to get caught and held back in the house I wanted to escape from. I stashed my luggage on a hill behind the trees when no one was looking. I planned to leave early in the morning when no one would suspect anything.

It came the day I wanted to escape; it was 2 AM, I peeped through my bed room door to make sure there wasn't any movement and I closed the door quietly. I pulled my last baggage from underneath the bed and opened the bedroom window and slipped myself out and pulled my bag through. I covered my tracks and fixed my curtains and and closed the window back. I ran across the yard to fence farthest from the house and I threw my bag over and jumped over. My heart was pounding out of my chest, I started walking towards my other luggage, I threw them over my shoulder and went to the next fence. I threw my big luggage over and crawled over the fence with the rest of my bags on my back. I only had a light flashlight from my phone to see where I was going. Out here was wildlife and cacti, so I had to be careful and walk fast enough to make my cab. I got to the next fence and got over it with ease and I got to the back of the corner store (this is where the cab was going to pick me up) and I didn't notice till now that they built a big wooden fence around the back, so I was stuck until I could figure how to get out of it. I walked around the perimeter to find a way to get out and there was no way out so I had no choice but to climb and jump over the fence. I threw everything over and then threw my body over the fence. It wasn't easy getting over at all. I had scratches all over my skin from the rocks on the other side. It was 3 AM and I had to hide until my cab got there, so I hid on the dark side of the corner store until I saw the cab drive by. I rushed to get into the cab and threw all my bags in just to make sure I couldn't get caught. As I sat in the back of the cab, my heart was pounding, I couldn't lay down or relax. It was a 2 hour drive to the hotel and when I got there, the hotel I reserved was completely booked. I got into another cab and went to a new hotel and they cut prices because the other one was unavailable. It was 5 AM and I was in a hotel room by myself and I couldn't fall asleep; the anxiety kept me awake until I forced myself to sleep. I woke up at 8 AM and sat in disbelief that I actually escaped. I still felt like something drastic was going to happen, so my anxiety was on level ten. I did everything I needed to do for my flight the next day and I was prepared. It was Saturday night and I was ready to lay down finally, because my anxiety calmed down. As soon as I laid down, the hotel room phone rang. It rang so loud, it felt like I was in a horror movie. I answered in fear and the hotel manager told me my step-father was there and he's looking for me. She asked me if I wanted to see him, I told her no, I do not want anyone up here. At that moment my anxiety came back. I was all alone with no protection. I called the police out of my reaction (this was my first time in my life calling the police) I called them and I just started stuttering and I couldn't get my words out and I asked them to come to my hotel .

I sat in my hotel room terrified, pacing back and forth, wondering what's going to happen next. I didn't know if they were going to come up there with the police and drag me home. I was in tears and shaking and couldn't get the possibilities of what might happen to me out of my head. The police finally came to my room, they asked me questions and notified me that it's okay to be scared. They moved me to a new room for security and safety, but for some reason I felt like I wasn't safe. In my new room, I had a big window. I peeped out the window and there they were — my family, waiting outside so they can capture me. I had to make my flight in the morning, so I had to get out somehow. I planned to go out the back, but I needed a ride. I was so nervous, so I called the hotel manager to send the shuttle to the back, so I can escape. I got up at 4 AM and left by 5 to make to the airport, so no one could capture me. I got passed security check and I made it, I was finally safe. I ran away.