My first day on my own. This felt amazing. For once in my life, I was truly free. I ran through the woods behind my old home, as fast as my legs could carry me. And not once did I look back. I ran until I couldn't run anymore, thought the next two towns, as night began to fall.
Once it was dark, I realized how hungry I was. Digging through my backpack, I found my money stash, or, in other words, my life savings. I'd been saving up since the age of five, doing odd jobs and favors, because I'd always known I was going to do this. I carefully peeled off a few dollars, then walked towards a nearby McDonald's. I knew it wasn't exactly healthy eating, but I needed to save my money, and plus, there weren't many other options. After buying a cheeseburger and some fries, I headed back to camp. Which for tonight, was behind some bushes near the restaurant. As I pulled my sweatshirt over my head and laid my head down on my backpack, I couldn't help but wonder, "What's mom doing right now? Has she noticed I'm gone yet?"
But I quickly extinguished those thoughts. This is what I had always been planning to do, and I was going to stick with it. I closed my eyes, and sleep came quickly, as my first day alone had been quite tiring.
I awoke to the sound of birds chirping. The air smelled of fries, which wasn't surprising, seeing as how I was camping right next to a McDonald's. It was warm, so I pulled my sweatshirt off. Reaching into my backpack, I pulled out the hairbrush I had taken along with me and brushed my tangled red-orange hair, straightening it out. Skipping on breakfast because I didn't feel hungry, I walked back into the McDonald's to use the restroom to freshen up.
And then, after packing up, I continued on my way. "Where was I going?" you may ask. In all honesty, I didn't know. The closest thing to an answer I could come up with was "far away from here."
