{ #5 } Eclipse Of The Moon (MxM || 18+)

Chapter 19 - Running Away

Eclipse Of The Moon ~ Book 1 of Aaron
Chapter 19
Running Away

Thursday 31 October 2002

2am. I should get a bit of sleep, but I'm sure my mind won't give me any rest. It is too busy thinking things over and over again.

I must not flinch.

I won't flinch.

Running away. Fleeing.

This is the best choice.

However much I'm going to miss them, this is the only option.

I just don't have another alternative because I won't survive the future my father has traced for me. I have permanently broken up with religion and God, so I just can't fathom spending years in a Catholic school or college, much less enroll in seminaries to become a priest. This is not conceivable in my head. Just thinking about it knocks all air off my chest and my body begins to shake again, my fingers tentatively aiming at spots of skin they could scratch.

Unfortunately, my father probably has a point when he says that as a minor, I can only comply with his wishes. If he has really decided to put me into this boarding school, I wouldn't be able to go against it. I could still break free when I turn 18, that wouldn't be a problem, but it means enduring a full year in this establishment, without my best friends' support to alleviate the torture. I just can't do that!

The only other option I have is to run away. This also means being away from Joshua, Mark and Camden, and their absence is already killing me, but at least, I wouldn't have to suffer the rest. Sadly, if I want to succeed in this plan, it implies going far from here so that my parents can't find me. Knowing them, they will report my disappearance to the police, so the further away I am, the more chances I get.

Right now, I am trying to decide on where I should go. I have always loved New York but even if it's one of the largest cities in the USA, it is much too close to Collingswood. I need to reach the West Coast, I think. I would rather go to a northern city, like Boston, Chicago or Detroit, but there are two reasons I should avoid these.

One is that my parents know how I dislike heat, and if they ever suspect I went far from New Jersey, they will most likely think about one of the northern states as my first choice. Heading for a place I might hate, like Mexico, Texas or even California sounds like a better plan.

The other reason is about survival through the winter. I am plainly conscious of what my life might look like in the next few months. I well intend to steal some cash from my parents and to find little jobs to earn money, but the first few months might be difficult, and I imagine I will have to sleep outside. I won't be able to afford hotel rooms obviously, and as far as shelters for homeless are concerned, I believe I might have to avoid them as well, at least in the beginning.

The police surely visit those often enough to find kids who have run away from their families, and I don't want them to find me. So, I will have to remain under the radar, find discreet spots in parks or whatever. Doing this in one of the northern cities where the winter strikes the hardest would be suicidal, so the south is definitely a mandatory option. Which city exactly, I don't know yet, though Los Angeles sounds rather attractive. For now, I mostly need to head south, maybe Atlanta, and from there, I can decide.

Staying under the radar also means I can't fly to the West Coast, though it would be faster, but for one, I won't waste money on a ticket, and then, I'm sure they'd ask for an ID. I might try one of those Greyhound buses. I have no fucking clue about their rates, but if it's reasonable, I might spend a bit on a ride, at least to cross a few states. Meanwhile, my legs will have to do the job to begin with, and I can also hitchhike. It shouldn't be too difficult to reach one of the huge highway gas station and there, I will be able to find truck drivers who will accept me on board for whichever their destination is.