DAWN (a Tori Vega and Jacob Black fanfic)

Chapter 3: Teenage Runaway

I stood up painfully, using the wall for support. I stepped forward, letting go of the wall. My legs were a little wobbly, and my whole body hurt, but I could still walk. Slowly, I walked up the stairs to the bathroom.

I looked in the mirror and almost screamed at the terrifying sight. The girl staring back at me had bruises and cuts covering her face, There was dried blood and tears on her cheeks. Her hair was a tangled mess. And her eyes... they were filled with fear and pain. The irises were a dull mud color instead of their usual chocolate brown. But what scared me the most... was that this girl was me.

Not able to look at the sight in the mirror any longer, I turned away. I went to my room and grabbed a change of clothes. I went back to the bathroom and took a shower, removing all the dried blood and tears from my face and washing my hair.

When I got out, I changed into a pair of skinny jeans, a t-shirt, and my hunting boots. I grabbed my father's leather hunting jacket from my closet. He gave it to me to me for my 16th birthday. The last time I wore it... was the day he died.

Sighing, I grabbed my backpack and put my PearPod, my PearPad,, the $300 I had saved (which I kept hidden in a locked drawer where my mother couldn't find it), and my stuffed black cat- Midnight. I got the stuffed animal when I was little and I've had it ever since. I picked up the picture that was sitting on my bed-side table. It was my family when I was 5. My mother was staring at the camera, a genuine smile on her face. She looked younger- happier. The total opposite of who she is now. My eyes drifted to my father. He was holding me in his arms, smiling at the camera with a twinkle in his green eyes. And then there was me- happy and carefree. Oblivious to what my future held. Oblivious to the pain I would endure...

I shook my head and put the picture I my backpack. I grabbed my phone and slipped it in my pocket. I slung my backpack over my shoulder and walked to my bedroom door. I stopped and looked back at my bedroom. I had lived my whole life here. And now I was leaving. It was sad, but I knew I had to go. I couldn't live like this anymore. I knew that if I didn't leave, my mother's mistreatment would eventually kill me.

I closed my bedroom door, not bothering to lock it. I walked down the stairs and out the front door, out of my old life and into my new one.

***

I ran through the woods, my backpack slung over my shoulder. I ran over tree roots and rocks. I ducked under tree limbs and climbed over logs. I felt running until I reached the hollowed out tree where I hid my bow and arrows. I grabbed the quever of arrows and slung it over my shoulder. I held the bow tightly in my hand and i started running again. I kept running for a while and once i was deep in the woods, i took a rest. I sat on the ground, my back against a tall oak, holding my loaded bow tightly in my hand. I leaned my head against the tree. I closed my eyes and sighed. I did it. I escaped. I'm officially a teenage runaway.