Silent Rain

Chapter Two

The November they left was a cold one. They told their parents they were all meeting at a party Friday night, and would be back the next morning. Alex had a little more convincing to do than the rest. Riley's mom didn't hear her over the crying and chaos of the house. Neo's mom trusted him to make the right choices and didn't care what he did. Drew's dad was fine as long as he brought a condom with him. And Tessa's dad was never home anyway as he was a surgeon at the hospital a town away. He wouldn't even notice she was gone if he remembered her at all.
As soon as Alex got home from school that day she got two bags full of the supplies she had been collecting for over two months. She was ready mentally for the next step, but emotionally she couldn't help but cry as she looked around her bedroom for the last time. Lying on her floor staring at the fan wiggle back and forth as it spun, she wished that it didn't have to be this way. She wished something would have changed before it was too late. She wished it wasn't so hard to say goodbye to everything she hated about her old life.
Tessa walked home from her bus stop and passed by her dad sleeping on the couch and went straight to her room, not bothering to close the door. She grabbed her already packed bags; full of notebooks, sketchbooks, writing utensils, pictures, all medications she could get from her dad's bathroom, money from her dad's sock drawer, and clothes. Nothing else was necessary to her, no memories she wanted to keep, no special animal she loved as a kid, she only took the basics she would need to be comfortable. Then she was gone. Grabbed her dad's keys to his only car and drove off without looking back. Not caring that her last words to her dad will remain unknown to her.
Riley walked home and checked over everything in her duffle bag, bringing extras of everything she had. She always thought about others, one of the best things about her was how loyal and selfless she had always been. She fed her dogs, cats, snakes, lizards, birds, fish, rabbits, and rat then said goodbye to her mom and sister, both stoned on the couch.
"Bring back more brownie mix for tonight from...wherever it is you're going," her mom shouted, her speech slow.
"And don't let any guys put a finger on or in you!" Her sister laughed as she fell off the couch, her mom laughing along with her. Love you too guys.
Andrew's mom picked him up from his bus stop and took him to his grandparent's house. There, he had his fishing and hunting gear already packed and hiding in the garage. His grandmother made him dinner while he talked with his grandpa about a buck he had shot the weekend before. He was excited for his plans that night and after dessert he snuck out back to collect all the weapons his grandpa had in the old storage shed. He was extremely anxious for Tess to pick him up.
Neo got out of his mom's car and followed his brother to their shared bedroom. His brother knew his plan and helped him get the supplies that he could provide. Nate loved his brother, but with him gone he would get his own room and be the only son. No one for him to live up to, no pressure. Neo couldn't care less as to why Nate decided to help him as long as he was successful. Neo loved to cause problems and chaos so just for fun he chose not to tell his parents the story of a party and instead just disappear randomly, making it seem mysterious. So he took his younger brother outside to their old play fort and lit Nate's first blunt. For both brothers it was a bonding moment that neither would forget. Then Neo walked half a mile to his favorite place to be. Thirty minutes from any other house, past "keep away" signs, deep into the dryest part of the woods was his "happy place". He gathered his hidden stash of everything he's ever stolen off people, dead or alive. His knives, cash, clothes, and enough weed to last all five of them until December. Out there in his dried forest of isolation he waited, long past when the sun set low behind dead branches. Waiting for the darkness to engulf his body as it had his once innocent mind. Finally The Group would be free from everything including their pasts. Hatred had consumed their hearts until each one by one, they slowly gave up on trying anymore, and gave in and lost all hope.
Every person has their breaking point. Every person knows what it feels like to be the only one in the world. To sit in the dark corner, fear spilling from their lungs as they hide from the one thing they want more than anything. Death is always here. In the back of everyone's mind, waiting for the right moment to strike. Hiding is never a possibility without a tool. Alcohol makes the pain seem less hurtful. Drugs make it seem almost funny. A silver blade makes the red veil dissipate until the scars heal. Suicide is not a burden when you've sunk low enough, it becomes a comfort. When swimming in the ominous abyss of hopelessness becomes too tiresome and drowning starts to sound probable, that's when only the strongest can keep swimming.
Neo and Tessa were notorious for abusing drugs for their escape. Riley had once experimented but after watching what they did to her mom she stopped. Drew drank for fun while Alexa had begun to sink low into a state of unconsciousness. She drank by herself, she drank with Tess, she drank with her neighborhood friend, Chad, she drank at her family reunion, she tried so hard to drink her thoughts away. Never wanting to admit the truth behind her hollow words. Tess had always been the same, snorting, smoking, drinking, anything to get her mind out of the realm of reality. This night was the night they stopped faking through smiles and stopped pretending to be someone they weren't. They all agreed to start this new chapter of their lives together. This was only the beginning.
Outside in the frigid night a horn beeped twice, signaling Alexa that her ride was there. Jessi was a good friend of Alex's from chemistry and her mom just so happened to be a pharmacist. The Group had decided Alex was to get what she could from Jessi's mom for the trip just in case. Jessi had agreed to go with her mom to work twice a week for a month and grab what she could, using the list Neo and Tess had made her. Alexa picked up her things, walked down the hall and took a deep breath. "Mom Jessi is here I've gotta go now," faking her excitement so as not to tip off her mom.
"Do you have your phone? How much money did you bring? Will you be warm enough in that? How late will you be out for?" Alex's mom was always over the top protective. In fact it was surprising she was even allowing her to go to a party in the first place.
"Mom. Seriously. I'll be fine. I've gotta go though."
"Well excuse me for caring about your well being! Goodbye sweetheart have fun check in with me every 20 minutes or so! I love you! Be safe and be smart!" Her mom brought her in for a hug that was entirely one-sided. When Alex didn't acknowledge her 'love you' she repeated herself.
"I love you!" Alex kept walking out the door without looking back and whispered, "Love you too mom." The last thing she saw before leaving couldn't be her mom's gentle but fake smile and she didn't want her mom to question the tears forming in the corners of her eyes.
As she climbed into the passenger seat of Jessi's car she stopped crying and smiled at her friend. "I'm ready."
Riley had left her mom's house early to meet Tess. She didn't need to wait long, Tess was there within minutes. Riley got in the passenger seat smiling at Tess, "What?" Tess couldn't help but laugh as Riley had no answer, but just kept smiling. Tess shook her head, "Jesus, you are so weird sometimes," she laughed as she passed Riley her joint.
Neo wasn't at his house by the time Tess got there so Riley showed her where his secret stashing area was. The found him unconscious on the ground with a pipe in his hand, no lighter, and a fresh bud in the bowl. Riley kicked his side and he jolted awake.
"Fuck! Not again!" He grabbed his bag and noticed Tess and Riley staring. "What?"
"What happened?" Tess questioned.
"Haha well uh... see I was going to smoke a bowl while I waited but i couldn't find a lighter so I tried asking...no one important to light it anyway but then i blacked out again." Without saying a word, Riley grabbed the pipe from him, using her lighter she lit the bud then took a deep breath. She handed it back to Neo along with her lighter and led the trio out of the woods and back to the car.
Drew saw Tess headed for him and immediately got excited. "Oh come on guys seriously with the weed? We haven't even technically left yet!" He complained as he opened the door, letting the smoke drool out onto the pavement. Riley flicked the roach out the window and Neo pulled out his pipe, while Drew told them all again about their brain cells dying. "Oh no! Not my brain cells!" Tess dramatically took a short drag and blew it right in his face. The stoners laughed as they worked on re-hot boxing the car.
Alex was invited to stay for dinner with Jessi's family but politely declined, mentioning her mother expecting her home soon. She heard the familiar horn of Tess' father's Lexus. Jessi hugged Alex goodbye, handing her the bags full of prescriptions, and wished her luck.
"See you soon," she said walking away.
"What? When?" Alex didn't plan on seeing any of her friends again anytime soon.
"On the news! Under the headline, 'Runaway girl joined cult and living in the shadows'. Alex laughed at the inside joke they had and headed for the car waiting in the street.
Tess driving, Riley in the passenger seat staring out the window at nothing, her teeth showing as smiled, Alex between them so emotional just thinking about the next step, Neo behind Tess, imagining the adventure to come, and Drew behind Riley, trying and failing to not breathe in the smoke. The Group was ready and anxious to begin their new lives together. They were now family and all they had. Tess slowly put pressure on the gas pedal and moved them along down the road, leading them to their freedom.