Running Home

Chapter 1

Charlie was running, almost sprinting. It's never a good sign to see a police car sitting outside your house when you come home from school. Especially after narrowly avoiding a fight earlier. He has slowed down to a walk, and went up to his house, stopping in front of the officers who stood at his door.

One of the two, a woman with reddish hair turned to him and looked down with pity written all over her face. "I'm sorry," she said quickly.

"Why? What happened? What's wrong?!" He yelled between breaths. A set of hands landed on his shoulders and started rubbing circles.

"Calm down, kid. First, do you have any family we can contact?" The woman spoke up.

"I.. no? Yes? Maybe? My mom mentioned someone over in California. Maybe a dad." He said, his breath slowly coming back to him.

"Ok. That's a start. We can do the rest. Second, your mother passed. A call was sent in from a neighbor. While this may be a lot to take in, I have to ask; how old are you?" The other officer asked.

"Fourteen. Why?" He had tilted his head slightly, and dropped his bookbag off his shoulders. The bag made a thud as it hit the ground, but it went mostly ignored.

"Alright. Can you stay here until we can get family to pick you up? Give you some extra time to pack anything you need to."

"Yes.. I can stay here. Um. Thanks for the news I guess." He mumbled out the end, not knowing how to end the conversation.

The male officer nodded, and patted his shoulder.

"We'll have a family member here as soon as we can." Was the last word spoken before the two took their leave.

Charlie picked up his bag, and unlocked the door. His mother must've been out or at someone else's house before passing. The door would've been open if she was inside. Pushing those thoughts out of his head, he went to his room and threw his bag on the bed. He needed to pack and the first mission was to find his suitcase. Couldn't be too hard. Just hope it's either under the bed or in the closet.

He was right on it being under the bed. He had dropped onto his hands and knees to look under. Not being able to see, he grabbed his phone and turned the flashlight on. That light illuminated the blue suitcase laying down. He reached for it, and grabbed it by the handle, thus pulling it out.

What does one pack for this occasion? The bare necessities? As much as you can? Charlie sure didn't know but he had to start thinking. He opened one of his drawers and pulled out three pairs of jeans. Those got tossed into the suitcase. He opened his closet and took out five shirts. They would be a start. He also pulled out two hoodies and tossed those into the suitcase. Glancing down, he looked at the pair of shoes on his feet. It would probably be best to bring another pair. This lead to him searching the house until he found another.

Charlie stopped himself in the bathroom. He flicked the light on and walked in. Opening the cabinet, he grabbed his toothbrush, tooth paste, deodorant, and a comb. Opening the shower curtain, he grabbed a bottle of shampoo. Turning on his heel, the teen left the bathroom, grabbed his things, and packed them in the suitcase. After making sure it was secure, he zipped it up and put it on the floor.

Charlie wheeled it out and sat down on the table. His head shot up when he heard a phone ringing. It wasn't his, but it did sound like the extra phone they had lying around. And he was right when he picked up and answered the phone.

"Hello? Is this the boy I talked to earlier?" A familiar voice asked him. It was the officer he talked to earlier.

"Yes it is."

"Good. Listen, we found your dad out in California. He lives there with one of his other kids. He agreed to pick you up at the airport if we can get you there, so I'll be by in a half hour to get you."

This was a lot to take in. He had a sibling? Was it older or younger? Did his mom know? Was this a full or half sibling? He stopped his train of thought and answered with a simple "ok."

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A/N

This is short and I heavily apologize. I plan for other chapters to be longer. Also; sorry for the year long wait this took to publish. Life has been a little wacky. Anyway, I can't guarantee updates will be fast, but there will be updates.