Running. Running. My feet hit the cold, damp, wet ground like a thousand needles. The sky above my head is big and dark; never-ending. I look over my shoulder as I stumble through the woods, but see nothing except my baby strapped to my back. She's sleeping peacefully not worried at all. 'She doesn't get it', I think. 'And I hope she never will.'
Just as I dodge a tree root I hear it. The sound I've been anxiously waiting for, but never wanting to hear.
Feet running. Voices yelling. Loud, ringing gunshots.
I keep running, faster and faster. The vines hit my body like fingers; wanting to capture me, to take me prisoner. I look down at my clutched hand and the diamond necklace inside of it. I hadn't meant for it to be like this. I hadn't meant to steal anything. I was going to get a job, raise money, and my daughter would be able to have a better life. I don't know what happened.
The voices and footsteps, there closer now. 'I can't give up. I'll just sell this necklace and my baby will be safe. As long as I keep running.' I turn back again, only to find my baby still asleep; off in a world of oblivion.
'It doesn't have to be this way.' I think. 'There's a place where my daughter and I will both have a wonderful future. There will be no mean men, no poverty, and no empty stomachs. Where I'm thinking of, everyone is welcome. '
The footsteps are even louder than before and when I look back I can see some faint bobbing lights. The lights of lanterns. Of evil men who want to rob my child of a good future. I run the fastest I've ever ran, my feet burning with each step. I trip over sharp twigs, which makes my feet get dirty and bloody.
I come to a waterfall. I stop short. As I look down at the plummeting water, I realize that the fall alone would kill you.
I can distinctly make out what the voices are saying now. I take a look at my baby and kiss her head. I look up at the stars and at my surroundings. I take one last breath of air, and I jump.
