BILLET-DOUX ✦ CLASSIC ROCK

27 - tom petty

Requested by angelpioo ! I grew up listening to Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers – they are just so special to me, you have no idea. So I hope you like this! There's also a slight trigger warning for some vague mentions of violence.
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It was the swampland behind your house that you found yourself disappearing in every other night when your parents chose to use harsh words to solve their disagreements. The marsh was dangerous and threatened to swallow you up, holding you down by your sneakers with each squelching step. But it just egged you on further.

The swamp was the only thing that begged you to stay, pleading with you with every pull of the ground, every chipper chirp of a bird. In the past months, there was nowhere you'd rather be. Your parents had barely noticed your absence, so caught up in their chaos. You wanted to keep it that way.

This secret was your own, and if your mother were to find out, she'd have a fit and ban you from the swamp forever. There were plenty of threats to look out for, most of all the alligators. It was no secret that Florida was ripe with the things, so you were extra careful to look where your feet were going.

The last time you had come across a gator, you had barely gotten free with your foot in tact. Your poor shoe, however, wasn't as lucky. The alligator had gobbled it up before you could yank it away, and you were forced to run home partially shoeless.

Today was no different. You came armed with a pocket knife this time. It was a small thing you had bought for self-defense purposes on the street. Surely it wouldn't do much damage against a 700 pound alligator. But it gave you a fighting chance, at least, should you come upon one.

Further and further you journeyed into the swamp, putting as much distance as you possibly could between you and your house. Times like these made you wish your parents would just divorce already. What was the point of fighting all the time? It was exhausting.

Each time you tried to intervene, you were met with rejection. Your father had told you himself to stay out of their marrital affairs, all harsh and cruel like he couldn't care less if you were around, so long as you weren't in their business.

So you simply left. No great fanfare, no dramatic exit. You simply stepped out the back door and headed straight for the place you knew would accept you with open arms.

Those open arms were feeling a lot like a restricting embrace, you mused upon shaking your leg free of some brambles. You wouldn't let that stop you. You pressed on through the thicket of woods, hoping to find a stream or creek to sit beside. Soon you'd be coming upon the swamp that connected your backyard with the neighboring houses.

You hadn't planned to head that far, especially with just a tiny knife to defend yourself against any predators, but you figured anything was better than your current situation. In the end, it was somewhere quiet to clear your head. That's all you wanted.

Wrestling your way through a thicket of viney plants, you made it to a muddy bank. The damp earth was already seeping into your sneakers, making its way to your socks. You winced at the feeling, reaching down to rid yourself of your socks and shoes. It was much easier to go barefoot.

Once those were cast aside, you wandered up and down the body of water, not straying too close in case you came upon another gator. When you grew bored of your wandering, you found a patch of tall grass to sit upon and fished for rocks to toss. There wasn't much to find in the sticky soil, but you did come across a few dull shards of colorful glass and the occasional coin or two.