Who We Become (Power Rangers Ninja Steel)

Chapter 9- Under the Radar

(August 26, 2007)

Cheery warbling shook Aiden to consciousness. Confused, he quickly sat up, cracking his head on the low branches.

"Ouch! What the. . . ?" His gaze landed on the sleeping bag, tarps and twigs sticking up every which way. Slowly the events from the night before came back to him. "Oh, right."

Flopping back on the ground Aiden glanced at his watch and grimaced. 'Only noon.' That left almost eight hours left until sunset. Aiden rolled over onto his side putting an arm over his eyes. 'Too early to be up.'

Too early it might be, but between the light filtering through his arm and the sounds of animals and cars passing on the road Aiden couldn't fall back asleep. He sighed and turned so he was looking at the tarp above him. 'I actually did it. Oh I can't believe this. I'm in the woods, I'm hours- by bike- away from home. Aaaaand I have no idea where I'm going.' Aiden shook slightly despite the warm afternoon air. 'What was I thinking? I can't do this!'

Aiden sat up, pulling his knees to his chest. "I have no clue how I'm going to do this."

Moisture pooled in his eyes, and in the quiet isolation of the woods he let the tears fall silently. After a bit he swiped at his cheeks.

"I still have no idea what I'm doing, but I did it and there's no going back. Not if I'm going to keep my promise to Dad." Aiden felt like a wrung-out washcloth but his promise to Dane echoed in his mind. He sat up straight and took a deep breath. "This is what it is now. Might as well accept that and move on."

As he went about the rest of the afternoon breaking camp and anxiously waiting for the sun to move faster, he made another promise. This time to himself. 'No more tears. It's time to grow up. You are going to make dad proud.'

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Six days, or nights rather, later Aiden couldn't avoid the city any longer. Not if he wanted to avoid going hungry. He leaned against a storm drain some ways off the road, his glance turning to his ominously flat backpack. While late night garden hoses worked to refill his water bottles, only two soup cans and a few granola bars remained of his food stores. Careful rationing could last him another day- maybe two-, but he had to figure something else out before then.

The decreased weight in the backpack was a relief during the long hours biking, yet his decreased intake of what food remained led to quickened fatigued during the long nights. Though his flipped sleep schedule, and lack of rest during the day, probably also played a part. Aiden grimaced and looked away.

Exhaustion tugged at not only his eyelids, but his very bones. He let his head fall back against the concrete, willing his body to fall asleep. Yet the thoughts plaguing his mind wouldn't allow him to rest. Instead he watched as the sky slowly turned from navy to gray. It was easier to pretend everything was okay, if even for a few minutes. That he was just enjoying another early morning sunrise. Twinkling lights of the cityscape danced in the distance, gradually dimming with the red light of dawn. Gray, black and brown buildings shot high into the air filling the horizon. It was an impressive sight.

'But dangerous.' An unfortunate necessity to his complaining stomach. 'Bigger city means more people. At any time of night.' Aiden frowned. Until now there hadn't been a high risk of being spotted on the back roads. Any vehicle that happened to come along at three or whatever in the morning gave ample warning of its presence by its headlights, allowing Aiden enough time to get well out of sight. But the city was different. Lots of people still went about their business at night. Police also frequently patrolled.