Drive

Fresh Start

"This is you Captain speaking. We will shortly be making our descent into Charleston International Airport where the local time is 12:45pm and the weather is glorious sunshine. On behalf of my crew and myself we thank you for flying with American Airlines today and wish you a pleasant trip"

What on earth am I doing on this death trap?!

I've been holding onto my armrests for the last seven hours, I smell and I'm bursting for a pee but I will not leave this seat. Luckily my aunt booked me first class so I don't have to sit beside anyone and have my own pod but I refuse to stand up and move from my seat incase we hit turbulence or worse. I mean this is how my parents died flying in these metal flying heaps of shit!

"Miss would you like some water?" The stewardess asks politely smiling at me with her bright white teeth and orange make up.

"N-no, th-thank you" I stutter out, feeling myself flushing hot and cold with worry, not just from being on this bloody plane but because of the unknown.

I have been living with my Aunt Betty and Uncle Sinclair for the last two years. I tried living by myself when my parents died but that didn't work out so well. I thought I was more grown up and responsible that what I was and because I have been so independent due to my parents travelling a lot I think my family felt I would be okay, but I wasn't.

It started off well, going to school, coming home, going out with friends, doing my homework, checking in with my Aunt Betty and working on my car but then one day something just snapped.

I started pulling back from my friends, not that they were really my friend they only talked to me in the hope that I would spend some of my parents money on them or take them somewhere. When I started staying in they stopped bothering with me which I was fine with but then I got bored.

I went down the racetrack with my bike and began racing for money and hanging around with a few of the guys from there who introduced me to Mike's. A bar where they all went and no questions were asked about age and Tequila and I became great friends.

Of course Tequila and I liked to make bad decisions. I stopped going to school spending my days in bed and my nights out at the track and drinking. I began taking drugs because they were offered to me and I found they numbed the sadness that I was drowning in at the loss of my parents. I ended up loosing my virginity to a loser in the back of his jeep and got into some fights but all of that didn't fill the hole I felt in my life. So I decided to kick it up a notch and joined in with some of the group boosting cars.

I found I was good a distracting the target and picking their keys while the guys would do the rest of the work. I didn't need the money but the thrill of it gave me something I felt I was missing, that was until one day we picked the wrong target and my partner didn't get the drop. Deciding I could finish it myself I took the car and made the drop only to find it had been a set up.

I was arrested and threatened with Juvie but luckily my Uncle Sinclair stepped in and saved my ass but only on the understanding that I would move in with him and Aunt Betty.

A week later I sold my parents home and assets putting everything into a trust that I can't access until I turn twenty five. I sold my apartment and that money was placed into my account that my Aunt and Uncle controlled and give me an allowance from to stop me from having too much to spend at one time or on the wrong things.

The last two years I have spent working with a grief counsellor for my emotions and thoughts over loosing my parents. My Aunt and Uncle got me involved in their volunteer work helping teenagers in care providing respite for them showing me that other people younger than me have it a lot worse than I have and I wanted to make a difference.