The Dangers of Pomegranate Salad

Chapter 14

Chapter 14: To Flee or Not To Flee?

We’ve driven for a while. I glance at Haden; he’s focused on the road. “Haden, why can’t we just go back home? Talk to the police? They could protect us” I say. “No, you saw what they can do; the police will be nothing against them. We have to find the Elementalists group” he says. “But why can’t we try?” I ask, “Because it won’t work” he says “we could at least try!” I exclaim “No! We’re going to Chicago!” “But I want to go home!” I say, sounding like a spoiled child. “Well I don’t have a home!” he says. “I have no home, it burned down and the people I thought were my parents all my life are trying now trying to kill my girlfriend!” he says. I don’t think he meant to say that because his face gets all red. I look away, my face feeling hot too. “God, your stubborn” I mumble then add “I’m sorry”

“Yeah, well, it was my fault it burned down. So I don’t know what you’re sorry for” he says angrily. We don’t talk for a while. “How do we get to Chicago?” Haden asks himself. “I don’t know” I sigh. “We should probably find a map” he says “yeah.”

We stop for gas; I go in to pay and to find a map while Haden works the pump (is that the correct term?). When I walk in, there’s a little TV behind the counter, showing the news. The Cashier is watching very intently.

  “…fifteen year old girl went missing yesterday, an amber alert has been called for Terre D’Artiste” says the news anchor, “she’s Caucasian, light brown hair, brown eyes, and about five foot three.  She was last seen at Wal-Mart wearing a ‘D’Artiste landscaping and gardens’ tee shirt, a light brown jacket and jeans.  She was with a friend, sixteen year old Haden Underlan, also Caucasian, he has dark brown hair and grey eyes; he is about five foot nine.” They show pictures of me and Haden “Underlan’s house burned down two days ago, his parents have not been seen since, and authorities believe it was a work of arson.” It cuts to my mom in front of my house, her face is red and puffy, she’s obviously been crying. “I don’t know why she would run away, but I think that boy has been a bad influence on her. If you see her please, please call, and get my baby girl home” she says. It cuts back to the anchor “that was Demi D’Artiste, Terre’s mother, so if you spot Terre or Haden, please call” The cashier finishes watching, and looks at me, his eyes widen. “You, you’re that girl!”  He exclaims.  I have great timing. I drop all the cash I brought onto the counter and take off out the door, the cashier try’s to jump over the counter, but doesn’t quite make it, he grabs a phone dials.

 I jump into the car and call out to Haden “Haden, I’ve made a friend, let’s leave” he looks back at the store and sees the cashier guy running towards us with his phone.  He puts the pump back, and jumps into the car and we take off. “You need to stop making friends” Haden says to me as we drive away. “Yeah.” I say. We drive north again.  I think about my mom. All the pain I must be putting her through. She looked heart broken, thinking I’ve run away. My phone has died so I can’t call her. I hate it. I sigh and watch the road. “Crap!” I say angrily.

 “What?” Haden exclaimed, looking extremely worried

“I didn’t grab a map!”

 He sighs in relief. “Oh, I thought you had hurt yourself”

 “No, but we still don’t know how to get to Chicago” I sigh “Where are we anyway?”

 “I have no Idea” Haden says. “Ok so we’re lost and don’t know how to get to Chicago and your evil parents are trying to kill-slash-capture us. Wonderful” I mumble the last part. Haden sighs. “Maybe we should just pull over and try to sleep.” He says. I nod. He pulls into a vacant parking lot and we both try to sleep.

                                                                       >-<

For someone living in a small town, your entire world sort of revolves around a big city. It might not be that way for some people, but it is for me. It’s like; the center of my existence is Kansas City, the closest city. Whenever I meet someone from somewhere else, I always say, I’m from Kansas City. I don’t know why, since I rarely go to the city, mostly staying inside of my little town and its surrounding areas. But I have to generalize, because not everyone knows where Oak Grove is, or Odessa, or Blue Springs, Heck, some people don’t even know where Kansas City is, it being trumped in importance by St. Luis. A lot of people just don’t care. I personally think that the reason my world is mostly circling Kansas City, like the earth circles the sun, is because, I don’t go anywhere else. I have lived here forever, will live here forever, it feels like. I hardly ever leave. So the prospect of going to Chicago, somewhere new and exciting, all be it, dirty and gross, is, secretly, extremely exciting.  I love it because, It means I can escape the monotony of life.