Through Her Eyes

Entry Five

August 26th

       Last night I spoke with Mandy and let her know I would be leaving. For some reason she looked disappointed, and I couldn’t bear to see that. I did something very selfish. I walked away and went to sleep. This morning I went to find her, but she was gone. All that was left was an empty cot. I fear that this may hang over my heart for some time. But what was I supposed to do? Perhaps I could have at least talked to her a while, maybe she has had a worse life than me.

        However, I had to get on with my day, because I had plenty things to do. I got my things ready, ate the breakfast they offered, and left. I made my way south down a main road. I remember thinking about what would I be doing tonight for dinner, and shelter. The weather was warm, and a breeze lightly blew so I didn’t break too much of a sweat. About three hours down the road I was getting thirsty.

       A small shop came up to my right. There was two large carts parked to the side, a few horses waiting patiently near a trowel, and people going to and from inside the building. My pockets were bare, and I had no bottle. I decided to search through the trash can for an empty container, and found one. It still had a sip of something at the bottom. I decided to head to the well behind the shop and wash the container out. The water was cool and I filled it up all the way. I washed my face with cool water and corked the bottle after taking a few large gulps and filling it back up. I left the stop and a ways up the road was what appeared to be an abandoned barn. The front wall was half torn down and looked like it had been there forever. But it had a roof so there was some shade. I decided to sit for a few minutes in the shade and then be on my way.

       When I got inside to my surprise I saw Mandy. Immediately I apologized for the way I acted. She accepted and looked bright eyed. I wondered how she could appear so happy when everything seemed like a dark gloom. She asked me if I knew where I was going, and I told her my plan. She then asked me something I never expected.

       She asked if she could come with me because she is tired of living from shelter to shelter.

       I looked into her brown eyes and searched her other facial features. She was pretty, and her black hair fell a few inches past her shoulders. Her skin was pale and body slim. Her appearance looked dark, but she seems nicer than a lot of people I’ve saw.

       I always expected that if this situation arose I would quickly say no, but instead I quickly said yes. After a few minutes of explaining my full plan to her she gave an idea. She told me that the next state over was where she grew up. Her mother had died at a young age, and she was forced to live with an abusive stepfather. She told me she would explore the woods behind his house, and there was an old cabin by a river about three miles into the forest.

       I told her that should that be our destination if it’s still there.

       She nodded and I was ready to go. We had a long way to walk, and I knew we would have to survive for some time until we were able to reach that cabin. We left in the opposite direction; east was where the cabin was. She explained that up the river from the old abandoned cabin was a good view of mountains in the distance. This excited me, because I have never seen mountains before. My steps got faster… All I want is to see if this place still exists!

       It’s now night, and we managed to find something to eat from a man we passed on the road who gave us a few coins to help catch his escaped dog. We bought a loaf of bread, some other imperishable foods, and a large bottle of water. We found a clearing in a shallow forest where I made a fire. I laid out my bed and so did she. We are now sitting in front of the fire. She’s gazing into the sky with a look of utter calmness on her face. I don’t understand her. She seems so odd, but I like her. We got to talking when we were walking. She lived a rough life like me, and thanked me for letting her come along. She told me that she never had a friend before. When she said that, I felt a lump in my throat. I never had a friend either, and for her to be so calm about everything… I want to know her secret.