Devil's Prey

{chapter 1, part 2} - Memories

Sapnap shoved the last few articles of clothes into the luggage. He zipped up the third suitcase he grabbed, quickly opening the door of his parents' bedroom. Finally, his parents were screaming at each other anymore. They finally sat calm, accepting the situation. Jackson leaned against the wall, arms crossed against his chest as he thought. Abigail sat on the couch, hands folded tightly on her lap, waiting for her son. She had ordered an Uber for the two, planning to head far away from that house and neighborhood.

She didn't want to put her young boy through a new school and have him meet new people. Abi didn't want to befriend neighbors again. Sapnap struggled to bring the three suitcases down the stairs, catching his parents' attention. Jackson remained against the wall, watching as Abigail stood up immediately to help her son. "Thank you..." he said, allowing his mother to handle two of the luggage.

"You're welcome, let's hurry! The Uber driver is almost here," Abigail said. Sapnap nodded, feeling his heart drop. His mother would've called a family member if they weren't going far. However, calling an Uber? He knew his world was about to come crashing down, more than it already has. He remained quiet, not wanting to cause another argument between the two adults in the room.

Abigail sighed, "Come on."

He nodded, following his mother toward the front door of the house. She opened the door, dragging the luggage outside. Sapnap dragged his own, not daring to look at his father. However, the man cleared his throat. "Kid," he said.

The boy turned to look at him. He could feel his hands shake with fear.

"If anything happens... call me, okay? I'll be there in a heartbeat," he said. Sapnap only nodded before leaving the house, closing the door behind him. He can feel Jackson look out the window, keeping his eye on the boy. "Hurry now, the driver is here," Abi said.

The raven nodded, following his mother. He never noticed how silent the world was at night. After listening to the constant yelling, it was almost peaceful to listen to the crickets. Hearing the buzzing of flies and the wind pick up, blowing through the leaves. He shoved the suitcase with the others into the trunk of the Uber's car. "Let's sit in the back, alright?" Abi said, holding Sap's shoulder gently.

He nodded, opening the door for his mother. The woman smiled happily, stepping into the car. She greeted the driver, "Hello!"

"Hey! Where are you two off to?" the man asked.

Sapnap remained quiet as he sat down, closing the door. He pulled the seatbelt, buckling it. He listened as his mother and the driver conversed. He can tell Abigail was using the conversation as a distraction from her and Jackson's arguments. As the car moved, driving far from the house he grew up in. He'll miss it, even if those memories were ruined after his father's actions.

He looked out the window, watching as they zoomed past their neighborhood, passing all the familiar stores. He stared at the sidewalks and alleyways that he and his friends walked. All the shopping stores he went through, buying countless clothes, most of which he wouldn't wear. Sapnap held back tears as he saw his school. Looking out the windows to distract himself, refusing to pay attention to his teachers banters, running around those crowded hallways with his friends, and hiding in the bathrooms as they skipped classes to smoke.

Sapnap let out a heavy sigh as he shut his eyes, reliving those moments. He didn't realize his mother was shaking him back into the Earth. "Sapnap! Are you okay?" she asked, looking at her son worriedly. The raven nodded. He ignored the endless tears streaming down his face. Abigail shook her head, "You're not. Talk to me..."

"I don't want to talk."

Abigail sighed, "You can't keep these feelings bottled up. It's exactly what you did when your father did what he did. Are you aware of how much it affected you? I could see it."

"Of course, it affected me, Mom. What kid expects their Dad to hit them?" he harshly responded, pushing off his mother's hand from his shoulder. The woman frowned, keeping her eyes on the boy. "I don't know what you want me to do."

"I want you to talk to me! How are you feeling? Are you upset that we're moving away?"

Sapnap rolled his eyes. He was a teenager. He couldn't blame himself for being pissed at their situation. Even though he knew moving away was their best option, he didn't want to go through all the worry and stress of going through a new school. It wasn't like he was more than halfway through his Sophomore year in high school. He was just three months in. However, leaving all his childhood friends, discarding all those memories and endless laughs and plans they had in Texas, was horrible. He didn't know where they were going. He knew they were leaving the state, that he did know.

"Yes, Mom. I'm upset! You expect me to leave all of my friends without being able to see them one last time? Without being able to experience all the good moments I had one last time? Why can't we go with one of my aunts or grandma? They don't live too far from my school. We could've stayed with them until we found a house!" Sapnap said, turning to look at his mother.

Abigail shook her head, "You know that if we stayed, your father would've done anything to drag us back with him."

"Then go to court and make sure he can't! I don't know, Mom. I would've rather done anything else besides leaving our home state."

Abi fell back, "How do you know we're leaving Texas?"

Sapnap rolled his eyes before turning back to the window. "I overheard you arguing with Dad. You said we were leaving Texas. You didn't say where."

Abigail nodded. "So he wouldn't attempt to follow us."

Sapnap sighed as he laid his head against the car door. Abigail decided not to add on to their conversation. The boy knew he should express his feelings, but he couldn't. "I'm sorry..." he whispered. His mother smiled, rubbing her son's back soothingly.

"It's okay. You talk when you're ready. Rest, I'll wake you up when we get to the airport."

"Can you answer me something?" he asked. Abigail nodded. "Where are we going?"

Abigail stood silent for a moment. She put on a small smile as Sapnap turned to look at her. The raven sat there, waiting for his mother to speak. "We're going to Florida."

To Be Continued. シ