Run

II

            People always said being a teenager was meant to be some of the best years of your life, but Alex wasn't feeling it so far. He was nearly seventeen already and was not having a good time. The only part he enjoyed was being able to drive. Picking up his childhood friend Nick and driving down the back roads near the forest was the perfect way to wind down after a week of non-stop schoolwork and social cues. It's what the two of them were doing, blasting music, windows down, just enjoying each other's presence.

"Shit, dude, is that a fucking dead animal?" Nick's voice caught his attention as he spotted a lump on the side of the road. Slowing down to check it out, Alex figured it might be a deer or bear. Maybe it'd been run over, and someone just pushed it to the side for the birds to pick at

"Poor thing, we should give it a burial if it's dead." Alex did feel bad for the animal, but at the same time, it should have stayed out of the road.

Alex watched as Nick hopped out of the car and walked over to the thing. "Shit, bro, it's a whole ass, uhm, person?" Alex felt his eyes widen in shock.

"Fuck really?! Jesus, Nick, get them in the car. We'll take them to my place!" He was panicking now, he knew his mom would kill him, but he wouldn't let someone die on the side of the road. He'd hide the kid in his room if he had to.

Alex watched as Nick picked the person up and placed them in the back seat; he could tell they were delirious, their green eyes unfocused and red. As Nick set them in the car, Alex figured he'd try to get a name, at least before the person passed out.

"What's your name, kid?" He asked as gently as he could manage

"Falren," Alex watched as the kid-Falrens head hit the seat, and they passed out.

Nick climbed back into the passenger seat and, glancing between Alex and Falren, asked the very question Alex was asking himself.

"How are you going to tell your mom?"

The two agreed on the plan of hiding Falren from Alex's mom. The garage had become Alex's gaming room a while ago. It had a mini fridge stocked with snacks and drinks so the kid wouldn't starve at least, and Alex was sure he'd be able to sneak meals in at least twice a day.

With their plan of action decided, the two boys began to head back to town. They sat in the car, not talking, and music played in the background. Neither wanted to voice the question out loud. Alex was the one to cave.

"So are we just going to not talk about how that kid looks? I mean, the clothes, the buzzed hair, the fucking elf ears sticking out of his head?! This kid looks like a walking human experiment!"

It was true. Falcon's clothes were ripped and torn. They'd been stained with mud and blood. His hair was cleanly shaven close to his head, and his ears weren't human; they were bigger than usual and came to a point near the end.

"I mean, in all fairness, we found the kid on the side of a road in the middle of fucking nowhere! Besides, them not being human is like literally the least of our problems." Nick had a point; they now had to care for an actual living, sentient being.

Pulling into town, the car's speed decreased dramatically, and for some reason, as Alex drove past person after person, his heart kept picking up pace; he couldn't help but think that they all knew something was going on. He did his best to ignore it as he turned down his street. Pulling into his driveway, he looked toward Nick.

"Mom will be home any minute; if we want to move Falren, we must do it now." With that, the two stepped out of the car. Nick opened the back door while Alex scooped the kid into his arms, heading towards the garage; the two continued the pattern. Nick opened and closed the doors while Alex carried Falren.

As the two entered the garage, Alex laid the kid on the couch, covering them with the plush purple blanket. With that, the two settled down into chairs surrounding the large flat-screen tv and settled to play some video games. Alex wasn't too worried about his mother coming in and seeing Falren; the couch was set, so she could only see something on it if she was specifically looking for it.

"When do you think they'll wake up?" Nick asked the question while adjusting his gold-framed glasses.

"Honestly, I'm not sure. The kid looks exhausted, so who knows how long it's been since they slept." Alex took a moment to glance at the couch at Falren; they hadn't moved a muscle.

Alex froze as he heard another car pull into the driveway; his mother was home. He listened to the doorknob twist before he saw it and watched as his mother, Mariah, poked her head in.

"Hey, Alex, I'm home- Oh! Nick, you're here too!" Her face broke into a grin as she spoke

"Hey, Ms.Gates, thank you for having me," Nick politely spoke to Mariah, never disregarding his manners.

"Oh, just call me Mariah, you silly boy; I've known you long enough! I assume you'll be joining us for dinner?" As usual, his mother assumed Nick would be over for the next few days.

"Yes, Ms.-er Mariah, Yes Mariah."

"Alright, well, I'll go get started on that now. If Emily comes in here, please let her play with you two. She wants to see what her big brother is doing." Emily was his little sister, barely six and could be exceedingly annoying, but Alex wouldn't start a losing fight with his mother while trying to hide an entire person from her.

"Yes, mom." He agreed with her

"Thank you, Hunny." With that, she closed the door and headed into the house.

"Whew, holy shit, dude, that was nerve-wracking." Nick exhaled a sigh as he relaxed into his chair.

"I know. I was so scared she was going to see Falren." Alex also flopped back into his chair as he tried to calm his racing heart. "Now, as long as Emily doesn't come in here, we'll be fine."

Almost as if on cue, the doorknob began rattling again before bursting open as his little sister barged into the garage announcing her presence

"I have arrived, muahaha!" Emily stood in the doorway, hands on her hips as she laughed like all the villains in her storybooks.

"He-hey Emily, what are ya doin'?" Even Nick, who usually tolerated Emily's presence, sounded exhausted as he acknowledged her.

"I got bored and wanted to come to play with you!" Emily made it sound like it was the most obvious thing before she began to dash over to her usual spot where she watched the two play games; the couch. The two boys yelled in unison as they watched her run around the divider separating the sofa from the door.

"NO, EMILY, WAIT!!"