AN: Erm... this is going to be a long story, I think. I'm going to try to update about once a week but I'm not going to make any promises.
Disclaimer: No. Just no.
The realization that I needed to get out of Dylan, Minnesota didn't happen in an instant.
It snuck up on me, eased slowly into my attention. I occasionally thought about it in the abstract, maybe while driving to work in Buffalo Lake one day and while doing my English homework a week later. It sounded like a good idea, but not exactly feasible and highly unrealistic. My family had lived in various small towns within a twenty mile radius of Dylan for generations, after all- what kind of Laine would I be if I left? Still, the idea stayed more-or-less firmly planted in the back of my mind.
I only started to seriously plan after the day my older twin sister had a fit of paranoia and I ended up locked out of the house, without shoes, because I happened to be taking the garbage out at the time.
Nobody else knew I was going to leave. I made a big show of job, home, and college searching within the state of Minnesota and pretended to send a college application letter to St. Mist State University. My efforts were, of course, caught up in my twin's college frenzy, which let me complete my subterfuge with little fuss or worry. I was quietly accepted into a New York City state university and received an even quieter job transfer to a law firm near my college that happened to be partnered with the one I worked as a part-time typist for in Buffalo Lake.
After much consideration, I set the date for my move as August 18. That way I had two weeks until my college classes started so I could get at least a little adjusted to living in New York City without being rushed. All I had left to do was count down the days until I lived under my own free will- and let me tell you, it couldn't come soon enough.