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Characters: Open Location: Jasper, Nevada - Five Years In the Past Content Warnings: Mentions of Abuse Plot Summary: Five years in the past, Shane makes a decision that will ultimately change the course of his life - forever..
That was all Shane could think as he stood there facing an uncertain future. The ten year old didn’t regret running away - he didn’t regret sneaking out when his stepdad was in a drunken slumber. He didn’t even regret stealing money, or food from him in order to get outta dodge fast. But in the pit of his stomach he did regret one major thing: leaving his mom behind.
Even if she was gone and buried he felt a great deal of sorrow. Would he ever see her grave again? Her garage again? Their friends in the town? Shane had no answers only questions for himself as he pulled his backpack over his shoulder. Checking the time, he noted it was nearing late afternoon which meant if he was going to get out of town he had to do it now. Because once Bradley woke up he knew he’d have people all over looking for him, especially at night.
So maybe out of fear, or sheer bravery. He began the journey of a thousand miles with the fabled single step. By putting up his thumb to hitch a ride by the side of the street.
Three years after leaving her home behind, Marie still had no regrets. Her younger sister had recently gotten out, too. In the coming school year, Marie herself would be heading out to Finland when the next school term began. That would be fun. Maybe she would pop down to France one weekend and visit some of her former professors there...
The handle of the gas dispenser clicked, signaling that her tank was full. She looked down, drawn out of her thoughts, and replaced the dispenser in its slot. The machine beeped, asking if she wanted a receipt, and she quickly pressed down on the 'no' button her chipping gold nail polish flashing under the afternoon sun. Despite the heat, she had kept safety in mind while riding from her Jasper to her hometown. Sensei would get on her case if she left the dojo without wearing her jacket and helmet. Underneath the leather, a faded blue band tee hung on her too-skinny frame. Ripped jeans and sneakers completed a look that could have been stylish for the time but was decidedly more grunge on Marie. Her long hair, streaked through with forest green at this time, was loose.
Cramming her helmet on as she settled back in her seat, she started the engine of the motorcycle. It was an eighties model that had certainly seen better days, but, it got her where she needed to go. With a carefully practiced hand, she set off, pulling onto Jasper's main road. She was already dreading returning home. Unfortunately, she had nowhere to stay on breaks, aside from her parents' house. Which meant dealing with her stepdad. Still, he worked third shift, which meant he was gone when Marie was home, and vice versa. Plus, after their last altercation, when he'd nearly upped the ante to physical abuse, and she'd threatened to press charges of domestic violence, he'd stayed out of her way. And that was just as well. Still, she would have to see him when she got home. And that wasn't pleasant. She was jealous of her sister for getting an apartment so far away.
She pulled onto a side street, taking a less-traveled route out of town. It was only a few moments later that she saw him: a kid of about ten, if she was guessing right, holding out the unmistakable sign of a hitchhiker's thumb. She slowed down, concern immediately bubbling within her. What was he doing? Was he lost? A runaway?
Marie came to a stop beside him, engine still rumbling, and flipped her visor up to see him clearly.
"Hey, kid," she said, loudly enough to be heard over the engine, "You know that's a good way to get picked up by creepers, right?"
She sat back in her seat, one foot on the road beneath her, just a nineteen year old college student with too many problems at home.
Yet he couldn’t help but drool a little over the bike. Of course given his love of pretty much anything sleek that was a ride how could he not? But at the same time he also had to keep his cool. Especially when this woman was now telling him what he was doing was wrong. He grimaced a little, Crossing his arms and looking defiantly at her. He definitely didn’t want to look like a scared little kid, even if he was one.
So he straightened a bit and tried to smirk wide and act tough. “I can handle them. I wouldn’t be out here if I was.. a.. Afraid of them!”
Marie raised an unimpressed brow at the kid. Riiiight. She sighed, turning off the bike and removing her helmet.
"So, where you hoping that the non-scary creepers will take you?" she asked, dragging a hand through her hair to shake it out.
She remembered being about his age. Dad had died three years earlier, mom was struggling to support them. Then...stepdad. She'd thought about running out a few times, but, what would that have done to her sister and mom. She'd begged her mother to give up on him, but, when she refused, promising that things would get better, Marie hadn't been able to force herself to stay. She'd gone off to college, and was happy.
Shane shoved his hands into his pockets, feeling like she wasn't taking him seriously. But he did have to think about her next question. Where did he want to go? Shane wasn't even sure he knew where he wanted to go at this point. Did he just go as far away as he possibly could? That sounded like a good start, far away from his stepdad at least.
So he simply shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know, I'm just trying to get as far out of town as I can," he explained. "And I got twenty bucks in my backpack for anyone who's willing to take me there."
Marie's expression sobered just slightly. Oh. The kid was dead serious. Huh. She paused for a moment, sizing him up. For the first time, she saw the true significance of his backpack. He was running. Her eyes darkened, vibrant color dulling slightly.
"...What are you running from?" she asked after a brief pause, her voice quiet.
It was a reeeallly bad idea. The kind of idea that could get her into a lot of trouble. But, she remembered being in a similar place. Fight or flight. Marie had always been a fighter. She would scratch, claw, kick, bite, and scream before she ran. Mostly because she had people to protect. But this kid...he'd been driven here by something. And, if she was going to go through with her stupid plan, she had to know.
Shane visibly tensed yet again when asked what he was running from. He didn’t really know what he was doing. Should he tell her what he was doing? Why he was doing it? On one hand he had the instinct to say no. But at the same time, he felt like he was probably going to get this question no matter who happened to stop for him.
With a thoughtful look to the side, he thus thought quietly on what to say. He wasn’t about to spill his whole life story. He hated recounting it to himself, let alone to anyone else. So with a deep sigh, he shifted his feet a little and looked down at the ground. “Stepdad.” Was all he finally managed to get himself to say.
Marie waited patiently for the kid to tell her. If someone was running, it usually meant that they were leaving something painful behind. In fact, because he was a kid, and because of his attitude so far, she really expected him to tell her to screw off and mind her own business.
But he didn't.
Nothing else he could have said would have had as much impact as that one word. Marie sucked in a sharp breath through her nose. Stepdad. The word seemed to echo in her mind, bringing with it a rush of memories. The shouting, the demeaning comments, the demands, the one time he raised his fist as though to hit her sister, how it'd felt when she'd gripped his wrist in a vice-hold and threatened to call the police. And that desperate need to get away.
After a long pause, she sighed.
"I am going to get in so much trouble for this..." she muttered. Then, louder, so the kid could hear, "Hop on. I'll take you to the bus stop in the next town over. That'll at least give you a bit of a lead on him."
She crammed her helmet on again and started her engine. Then, she patted the space behind her, which was just big enough for a passenger.
Shane looked up at Marie in a bit of surprise. It almost sounded like she understood what he was going through? Of course it wasn’t like there weren’t other abuse victims out there. Back when he was a little younger he remembered a huge scandal of some sort involving the police chief’s son. It had been a big thing that had really freaked out his stepdad especially as he wondered if he would then be investigated because of what that guy was doing to his kid.
Slowly, he got onto the motorcycle, hardly believing his luck if he had gotten lucky enough to find someone who understood. Though he was hardly about to ask her how or in what way of course. “I’m Shane, by the way.” He managed.
Marie glanced back, ready to help him if necessary. When he introduced himself, she gave a nod, expression hidden by her helmet.
"Marie," she said, voice muffled, "Nice to meet you."
As soon as he was securely on the motorcycle, she revved the engine and set off. Hopefully, he'd be smart enough to hold onto her.
It was about a fifteen minute drive over to her hometown through the nearly empty desert roads. Marie made it in ten, wary of being spotted...or chased. She definitely didn't want to deal with an angry stepdad running her down.
Keeping to the backroads, she pulled up on the block that the bus station sat on, out of sight of the casual pedestrian. They were at the edge of town, a town around the same size as Jasper. She cut the engine and removed her helmet.
"The station's up around the corner..." she paused, "Here," digging around in her jacket pocket, she withdrew a scrap of paper, an old receipt. From her other pocket, she took a pen. Quickly, she scribbled down a phone number, "This is my cell. If you get into trouble, call me, alright?" she was more than a little worried about sending the kid off alone, but, she knew from experience what he might be running from. And his situation might be worse, "I'll be out of the country all during the Fall, but, I know some good people who could help you out of a tight spot if necessary."
She paused, looking at him for a long moment.
"Be careful, okay? Especially of who you hitch rides with. Try to stick to public transportation, and watch your back," her expression turned thoughtful, "Here..."
She carefully got up from the bike, opening the subspace in the front seat and digging into her purse. After a moment, she withdrew a small aerosol can. It was only big enough to fit into her palm, no more than two ounces. She'd gotten the pepper spray as a suggestion from her sister, who worried about how often Marie went out on her own during her summers at home. She'd only done so to placate Sophie, and really felt no sorrow in giving it away. Besides, if she needed to, she'd buy new.
"Take this. I've never had to use it, so it's full. Should have a few good sprays in it. If you get jumped while on the move, go for the eyes, kick 'em in the balls as hard as you can, and run like hell. Got it?" she held out the canister and paper to him.
Shane took a deep breath and let her drive him to the next town. It was a long ride and though it, Shane was mostly quiet, obviously very nervous about the whole thing. But when they finally arrived, he got off rather calmly. Turning to listen to what Makre had to say. And boy did she have a lot to say, if he hadn’t been sure that she knew what he was going through before, he sure as heck did now.
Still he took the items with a slight nod.
After a moment of staring at them, his eyes raised to look at her. And finally ask what was on his mind. “You Uh, you’ve done this before haven’t you?” He asked honestly. His voice a little shaky.
Marie sighed in response to his question, picking up her helmet to cradle it in one arm. Well, wasn't she obvious. Good grief, Sophie was right. She had to reign in that weird maternal streak.
She shook her head.
"No. I stayed for my sister," she replied.
She knew he would know what that meant without further embellishment. That their situations had been similar, but that she had remained and weathered it because she had to. Sophie had needed her, and mom had decided to play the victim. She looked toward the bus station.
"I thought about it a lot though...just...riding off and never looking back...never dealing with him again," she paused before looking at him again and smiling just slightly, "I have been a lot of places around the world, though, and it's pretty much a general rule to be careful when dealing with strangers while traveling," she shrugged one shoulder, "You should be fine if you watch yourself."
Around the corner, the hissing of a bus settling could be heard. Marie nodded toward the sound.
"You should probably get going, before too much fuss can be raised. Good luck, may the Force be with you, and all that jazz."
Shane nodded his head slowly, at least somewhat understanding. He’d been lucky enough to be born an only child, so that his stepfather couldn’t hurt another kid, he supposed. He doubted his mother would have ever gone and had a child with that man. He shuddered at the thought. “That has to be hard having a sister, I think I’m lucky I’m an only child sometimes,” he noted rather honesty.
“Anyways, uh, thanks. Try and take care of yourself wherever you’re going.”
And with that, Shane took off down the street, hoping to get going as fast as possible. Who knew if his stepfather already had the police out looking for him, after all.
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