Runaway

Chapter Five

The sun was so bright it was blinding to even look in its direction. It was different; I couldn't remember the sun ever being so bright, or so hot. As I looked out from behind the dark glass, I thought of what Atticus had told me at school:

"The President had something called 'Polar-ionized VISOR-glass' installed as an upgrade to regular glass in 2100. It's more durable and is installed in hexagon-shaped panels instead of it being one big piece of glass. It's more durable this way, and without it we'd go blind from the sunlight. Cars use this technology too, it makes their passengers more comfortable." his voice echoed in my head. Even though I have no idea what anything he said means, part of me missed the way he talks about things like that. He was always going on about his science stuff. As I reminisced about things, I sat in the car and turned on the air conditioning. I stared out into the horizon and watched as the sun slowly got closer to it. As I daydreamed about everything that must be out there, I noticed the headlights had turned themselves on. The sun was beginning to set. I checked the GPS; a little red banner popped up on the computer screen.

WARNING: vehicle is currently in an area where it cannot legally drive. Detailed mapping information is unavailable.

It was just like any message I'd seen on a computer before. But it felt strange; the map changed to a simple arrow on a blank white screen.It felt very strange. It was the same thing that happened whenever I tried looking outside the domes on the atlas programs at school.

"Okay, I got this. I'll just pick a direction and drive straight until I get somewhere. It can't be that far, right?" I thought aloud. I started the engine, turned the magnets on and I sat there. I reached my foot down for the pedal, and hesitated. I turned myself around and took one last look at the enormous glass and metal haven behind me. I took a deep breath, and put my foot down. As I drove off, the sun set, and the dome behind me slowly became smaller until it disappeared. I could see the little arrow on the screen move to the left, and a small "W" appeared in the bottom right. At least I've got a compass, I thought. As I kept driving into the night, I could feel myself grow tired, and I decided to stop. I turned off the magnets and the engine, looking around to make sure nobody was around. I then opened the sunroof, and, for the first time in my life, I fell asleep under the stars. For a first night, it felt great. I was finally free to explore the world around me, and once morning came, that was exactly what I did. I popped open a ration from the trunk for breakfast, and kept driving in the direction I'd started in. As I kept driving, I started to notice something in the distance. I stared intently at it, and it ever so slowly got closer and closer. It looked like it was a billboard, accompanied by lots of metal flooring or something around it. It was a strange sight. I decided that once I reached it, it would be a great spot to explore.