Runaway (Tayvin)

One

The sound of the engine calmed her erratic heartbeat,  as she zoomed down the highway. She had no idea where she was going or what she'd do when she got there. The only things in her backseat were a duffel bag and a box of hair dye. She was on her way to her third town this month. She never stayed in one place for long and changed her hair color and style every time she moved. She was a fugitive after all, its just what she had to do.

She wasn't the kind I'm sure you're thinking of. She had no hand in any crime. There was just someone all too determined to ruin her life. When the English Hotel had gone down in a blaze, taking 13 lives with it she'd been no where near the scene. Whoever wanted her gone had set up the perfect crime and had planned for every dispute her world class lawyer had developed.

When she was sure she would never prove her innocence, she packed a bag and made a run for it. That was a year ago. Now she just moved around periodically before anyone could identify her. She usually went to small towns that wouldn't have heard about her, big towns and cities were some of the best and worst hiding places. Lots of people to hide among, lots of people to identify her. At this point she couldn't go back. Even if she was innocent, she still ran from the law. No court would let her go after that and it sure didn't make her look anymore innocent.
She drove down the highway, taking a random exit here and there. She wouldn't have had a clue what direction she was even going if it weren't for the compass in her car. She was heading north.
She came up on a new exit; port town, Maine. She decided to go down it. She'd never heard of it, it was probably pretty small. She had tried a big city once or twice. People started to see past her dyed hair and changed style, so she had to move on.
For her, the worst part of being in hiding was not being able to get to know people. She couldn't make new friends, or contact old ones. It was just her all alone.
By now she'd been driving for 10 hours and she was finally in the middle of the small town. It was the most beautiful she'd been to yet. It was surrounded by ocean and the sun shone brightly. The town had a whimsical vibe with small homes and cafes everywhere. After spotting the ocean inn, she made her way into the parking lot and then grabbed her few belongings. She quickly decided that her new alias would be Alison Lane. Not as pretty as her old name, but it still held part of it.

She made it past the check in without a hitch and made her way to the hotel room she'd be staying in for while. The room was nice. A little small, but it had a welcoming vibe. She could hear the ocean from her room and it appeared to have been carefully decorated. She decided not to take her clothing out of the duffel bag in case she had to leave in a hurry. The first thing to do was dye her hair. This time she decided to dye it blonde and chop it to her shoulders rather than keep the long, straight brown hair. She wasn't exactly a hairdresser, but by then she was pretty good at dying and cutting it. She'd done it multiple times after all.

After getting her hair squared away and figuring out her new outfit, she headed out to explore. On the run or not, in a town like this she couldn't control her desire to explore and enjoy nature. The more she explored, the more beautiful the town became to her. She could picture herself building a life there. That was if she could ever find a way to truly build a life anywhere.