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The Wonderful World Around MeChapter One - Runaway
Weddings are meant to be a joyous occasion, though for Blake it would be the day she signed herself into slavery as the young wife of Marshall Lewis. As she sat next to her betrothed in the middle of the town hall she looked out at her friends and family, there to support her in celebrating the announcement of their union. The wedding would be the following morning, and though she laughed and pretended to be excited for the future her family had lay out before her, she could only think of one thing: Her escape. In her village, the reception was the day prior to the ceremony, they believed it gave the newly wedded couple privacy after their big day. She straightened her dress, and her sweater and looked to the man next to her, Marshall would reach the age of fifty in the next year, he was heavy set, with tired eyes, and a couple patches of white hair on either side of his head. He grinned over to her, and rest his hand on her leg, his big hand could nearly wrap around her leg as a whole, she shifted uncomfortably.
The town hall was a large white building in the middle of the village, the only building in the village with electricity, with beautifully stained wooden floors, waxed to perfection, and enough chairs and tables to easily seat five hundred, though, there weren't that many people living there, yet. "May I be excused to the restroom?" Blake tilted her head to the side as she asked, her hair fell loose from its ponytail and fell over her shoulder.
The older man nodded and pulled his hand away, Blake was visibly pleased. "Hurry back, dear, I think we will be starting dinner soon."
Blake nodded her agreement as she stood, she gave a slight curtsy after she pushed in her chair and calmly walked towards the hall on the other side of the room. Her plain black shoes clacked against the wood as she walked along and through the swinging door to the women's restroom. Slowly she peeked at all the stalls to ensure she was alone before she confidently walked to the window and slid it open. The night was cool, more so with fall having started just a few days before. Blake hopped out and onto the gravel below, the window was only a few feet from the ground, and closed the window behind her.
Like all the women in her village, Blake carried the genetic blood disease that not only shortened the life span of those that had it, but was also one of the reasons young girls were forced into marriages days after reaching maturity, sold like cattle to the highest bidder. The village couldn't carry on if there weren't a lot of babies born; if not by the disease, many died in child birth. Though Blake's hand was put on the market much later than the rest, she still wanted nothing to do with the tradition. Several months prior her older brother Adrian had escaped the walls of the village, and she planned to do the same.
Blake walked as quietly as possible back to her home, just a few buildings over; despite the town hall being extravagant to their standards, her people prided themselves on not being materialistic, and even with having seventeen brothers and sisters, they didn't have much in the way of toys or entertainment. The house was silent, dark, and from memory, she navigated up the short flight of stairs to her room. With the door shut behind her she pulled the curtains closed and lit the oil lamp on the bedside table. She crouched down and fished a cloth sack from under the bed and emptied its contents on the bed to, once again, check to be sure she had everything she thought she needed. It had crossed her mind several times what she would really be leaving behind, all her sisters would ultimately be subjected to the same fate she was, though, unlike them, she chose to do something about it.
Blake tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear as she looked over the items scattered on her bed, a couple cans of beans, a pocket knife, a box of bandaids, and the small box of her medication – the injections she needed to stay alive, once they were out, she'd need to find another way to get it, and of course her other two dresses, and a pair of socks. Though she had no idea where she was going, how she would get there, or how long it would take her to do so, she would rather starve to death in the wilds than bear the children of a man more than twice her age. Anywhere was better than where she was.
As she hurriedly stuffed the sack again she couldn't help but jump at the quiet click of her bedroom door and she froze, eyes wide. With the sack clutched tightly in her hands she spun on her heel, ready to bolt if need be. A quiet sigh of relief escaped her lips at the sight of her frail mother, Johanna Taylor. For months her mother's condition had been slowly deteriorating, it was at the point where she could hardly walk. Blake couldn't help but look at her mother and see herself in ten years. They both had brown hair, a thin frame, and soft blue eyes; Johanna wore a long white nightgown, she had been too sick to attend the celebration. On one hand, leaned heavily on her cane, and in the other she held a well worn backpack, that seemed to be heavy.
"M-mother.." Blake started, she stuttered, scared that her mother would be angry that she wasn't in the hall with the others. "I apologize for-"
Johanna shook her head slowly, and closed her tired eyes for just a moment. "Blake." Her soft voice cut Blake off before she could finish her apology. "I know what you're doing, and I know I can't stop you from leaving.. just like your brother." As she spoke, Johanna hobbled into the room, slowly.
Blake had expected her mother to be furious that she was trying to leave the village, her parents had waited years for the perfect opportunity to marry her off, all their preparations would have been wasted. "You're okay with me leaving?"
"I want you to go." Her mother answered as she finally reached the bed, she set the backpack down on top, and, slowly, lowered herself down to sit on the bed just next to it. "Did you think I'd let my little girl be married to a perverted old man?" She chuckled and began to unzip the different compartments of the bag she'd brought with her.
"Mother…" Blake didn't know what to say, she wanted to cry, but knew she'd be wasting time if she did. "W-what's in the bag?" She quickly wiped the tears from her eyes before they could fall.
"Some things you'll be needing." Johanna answered as she began to pull items from the bag's open mouth, almost all of which seemed foreign, but her mother pointed to each and explained. "A flashlight to light your way, maps to help you find the last city, and, this.." The woman reached into the front pouch and produced a small hand gun. "It's loaded, and there are some extra bullets in the bag." She looked up from her hand to meet Blake's stunned gaze. "It was mine when I first arrived here." Blake had always thought her mother was born and raised in the village, the thought of her having been raised outside was flooring. "I wish I could come with you… and bring your sisters with us, but you know that would be an impossible task." At her mother's words, Blake nodded, there were a million questions buzzing through her head. "And you must have so many questions that we don't have time for."
"I can't believe you're not from the village.." Blake said quietly.
"And I wish I had time to explain…" Johanna said as she handed the gun to her daughter, who, with shaky hands accepted it. "I hope one day you'll return to save us all, Blake. Find your brother. Rumor has it that he's found the cure for the disease." She set to stuffing everything back into the bag, save the gun. "I was told he's holed up in the last city, doing bounty missions for someone in the government there." Johanna paused to look her daughter in the eyes. "There's.. one more thing in the bag. An orange card, take it to a bank once you arrive in the city, it's linked to an account I had back before I was trapped here, it will get you by."
Blake nodded her acknowledgement and bit her lip as she pushed the sack she'd packed before her mother arrived into the bag as well, and zipped it shut. "Thank you.. mother."
Johanna nodded, it was a bittersweet moment to see her daughter setting out on her own. "Take care of yourself, Blake.."
Goodbye was the hardest thing Blake had ever said to her mother. They exchanged a hug, and with tears in her eyes, Blake set out into the night. For the last safe city on earth.
Chapter Playlist:
Lazarus – David Bowie
Time In a Bottle – Jim Croce
La La La – Naughty Boy
Runaway – Bon Jovi