Chapter 1
Walk; nothing less and nothing more. Joey had been repeating the action of putting one sneaker clad foot in front of the other, and pushing her body forward for the past ten minutes or so; each step accompanied by a fluidity of movements that was at the same time mechanical and graceful… that was it: such a simple feat, much like all the infinity of other things most took for granted. Looking down, never ahead, or around, or up, or making a stop to stare into people's eyes – fearing what she'd find in them – then taking in a quick breath, and keep going. Another step and she hugged herself tighter, shutting the world outside, making it clear by her body language she was not up to chitchat or niceties, while secretly hoping against hope nobody would really care to see her, but at the same time, wishing to be somehow noticed and have her silent screams heard.
The soft breeze tried to whisper sweet nothings in the young woman's ears, whilst also attempting to remove the protective shelter of the dark grey hood, but slender fingers fought it by instantly grabbing the hems and putting the tissue cover back in place, concealing Joey's face once again. If anyone called her a drama queen she wouldn't complain: as of late, she felt there was nothing left for her. Nothing other than a void and broken pieces of the person she once was.
Maybe she just shouldn't have left home today, but in what today would be any different than tomorrow, or the day after? Stopping for a moment, she sighed and sat her body down onto the sand, lifeless brown eyes staring out at the ocean. 'Nothing will ever change, will it?' She thought moving into this small community would help; a fresh start, where nobody knew her and she didn't know anybody. A place where she wouldn't have to live with the constant fear of running into the shadows of her past at some random street corner. But none of it happened and yet again, realization sank heavily on her shoulders: she was just fooling herself, because the memories, the shame and the pain were engraved on her skin, on her heart, on her mind by now and they would always catch up to her, no matter how far or fast she ran.
She closed her eyes and breathed deeply, taking into her lungs the salty notes of the morning beach air. Joey tried to remember something, anything, that was worth the trouble of getting out of bed. Family? No. She'd lost her parents long ago and her brother preferred to side with the girl's rapist rather than defend her. Friends? The closer the had of a friend was Aden and even if she knew he was a nice guy, Joey couldn't really say she trusted him. To the young woman, it was only a matter of time before her crew mate got tired of her walls. What about work? Joey loved every single thing regarding boats, but wishing she had her own boat so she could get lost in the ocean was the most exciting idea she had about them at the moment.
Her eyes burned and they suddenly snapped open, unleashing the tears she was fighting so hard to keep at bay. 'This is it.' The brunette stood up and used one of her sleeves to dry any traces of crying. She felt like screaming and breathing had become difficult, as if no amount of air would ever be enough. Hands balled up into fists, knuckles turning white at the iron grip she had on the hem of the gray hoodie. But looking at the waves, bathing the shore over and over again, gave her a sense of peace. Slowly, growing confident at each step, she started moving and the closer her feet got her to those same waves, the clearer things seemed to get inside her troubled mind. Joey knew what she had to do: it was time to stop running.