Leaving the Nest

The Escape

        My dream was always to run away, to never look back, and to never think or worry about commitments to others. I never thought it would actually come true, though. And while it didn't come completely true, I enjoyed it for a while.

        It happened on a Saturday during December. Strangely enough, no Christmas decorations were up, and none of the usual cheer was in the household.

        My siblings and I were sitting outside on the dark brown deck, oblivious to the cold and playing in the gathered snow. I can't describe my brothers to you; their faces have become too familiar that I've lost the words that make them up. All I know is that they're not my real brothers. My mom adopted them when I was little. They are related, but I am the only one with biological connections to my mom. As for my dad, no one knows what happened to him. Some say he was pushed off of a building while others say he was shot to death. The murderer is unknown.

        That day, I was sitting in the snow drawing smiley faces in the middle of a snowball fight battlefield. Each side was trying to persuade me to join, but I've never been a fan of war. Everything was all fun and games until my mom's loud footsteps sounded from the kitchen, which was right next to the deck. She started to call out each of our names using a high-pitched voice that has ground on all of our nerves for the past 14 years.

        The snowballs stopped flying, and my finger was unmoving in the snow. My oldest brother spoke words that I would never forget: "Everyone, run." As if he controlled our lives, everyone took off. They jumped off the banister of the deck and into the snow below.

        The distance between the deck and the ground was a good 20 feet. Despite this, my brothers still jumped. The snow was thick enough to cushion their falls. I was still frozen in place, too scared to jump and too scared to face my mom. It wasn't that I didn't love her; it was just that I didn't like being in her presence. One of my brothers, his legs slung over the side of the banister, said to me, "Come on, Amber, jump! Get away! You can do it!"

        "I can't," I responded in a whisper. It was more to myself than to him. Then my brothers' voices rose in a chorus from below.

        "Come on, Amber, jump! Join us, we'll run away!"

        I pushed myself up and walked over to the banister. The brother perched there jumped and landed with a dull thud in the snow below. I peered over the edge to see that he got up fine, and not a scratch was on any of my brothers. I hoisted myself up onto the banister and swung my legs over the edge, where they dangled intriguingly over the white backdrop of snow.

        If I jump now, I'll be free, I told myself. Even if I die, I'll be free.

        My mom's booming footsteps were getting closer, and her voice was getting higher. The door to the deck opened with a creak. I took a deep breath and pushed off. For a minute, it was like I was flying through the sky. But then the pinkie-sized figures of my brothers got bigger and bigger until I was level with their faces. I slammed face-first into the snow piles and gasped slightly at the cold. Around me, I could hear the cheers of my brothers. I looked up at them with a beam.

        The same brother that encouraged us all before spoke again as I got up and brushed myself off.

        "Okay, now that we're all here, what should we do?"

        We all stared at him in astonishment. I guess we'd expected him to be the leader since he started this.

        All was quiet in the backyard, and the only thing ruining it was the screams of our panicking mother.