Away

Chapter 1, The Escape

'It always seems to happen to me….' Roberta thought, picking up her textbooks and folders from the filthy middle-school floor, ' all because of my horrifying name, if ONLY my parents had given me an ordinary name, like Alexandra, or Maxine…no, never mind, they would call me Alex, or worse Max, well, if I were as, good, I mean POPULAR, like Pricilla, I guess I would not… but that's nearly IMPOSSIBLE for me, I can't be good.' Roberta stuffed the falling apart books and folders in her older-than-dirt bag. Roberta Cerība Lya Clemens was a 13-year-old girl who attended 7th grade in Westborrow Middle School. Her mother and brother had died when she was 5, so she lived with her drunken father who lay around in bed watching their ancient television. The only reason they had been able to survive was because of the money Roberta's rich mother (her mother was a successful business owner) had saved in the bank before she passed away, 8 yrs ago when Roberta's father drank a large amount of alcohol, and came in a severe car accident which led to her mother's and brother's death. Anyway, most of the fortune was used up anyway, as Roberta's money killing father finished, and started a new bottle of Whiskey each hour.

"Well, at least Pop remembers to call me Lya…. sometimes." Roberta mumbled fingering the little jeweled bag hanging from her neck with $5.34 in it, and a picture of her and her mother, a gift from her mother. "I really ain't wantin' to go home…. Lord please, nobody there treats me well either…. Well. Lord, milady, you know one day I ain't gonna go 'ome, I'll run 'way. I sure as heck will, you count on that Lord!"

"Talking to yourself there Robert?" asked, Pricilla "What, ya'll got no friend? How 'bout ya drunkin' pa? He ain't wantin' ya'll either?" Pricilla laughed, brushing off imaginary dirt off her fresh clean shirt, "Or he too drunk?"

Roberta jumped violently. "Ain't none of yo business, stop talkin' 'bout my pa like that, you little creep! Yo mama no betta!" Roberta shrieked, ringing her hands in the air.

"Oooo, touchy aren't we." Pricilla snapped, no humor in her voice anymore. "Well I wouldn't be talking so much Bert you drunkin' pa's here." Glancing at the fat man lumbering there way, " Well, I better go, incase someone acc-iden-ta-lley kills me, like he did to a loved one." She ran away while looking back and screaming, "AND HE AIN'T LOOK NO HAPPY!"

Roberta sighed, " Run away ya scardy cat you…" Roberta looked away to the man she called, 'father'. "Hello father, ya'll are well tonigh'?" Roberta called. She looked at him 'kindly'. The man she called father stared at her too, but with bloodshot eyes and a foolish look at his fat head. He had dark brown wispy hair covering his head, his once kind eyes were bloody red. His used to be handsome face was now beet red and was as big as a never inflating balloon. His once attractive body was now blown up to full size, and his expensive clothing was ripped in some areas, and was definitely wrinkled.

"ROBERTA!!! YA'LL LIL' TYKE!" Pop bellowed, his chest ripping open his shirt. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING AT THIS HOUR?!? YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO COME HOME AN HOUR AGO!! I AM SICK OF GETTING' OUT OF MY PALACE, AND COMIN' TO THIS DUMP FOR YA! IF YOU MOTHER WAS ALIVE……"

"I would no do what I am doin' now." Roberta whispered, cutting him off for the first time for…. A while. "I ain't knowin

"Hey, Roberta, wait!" Two voices cried from behind her, Alex and Chanelle. "I'll, I will go too." They both said. ' why sweet mother married you…… BEAST!!" Roberta screamed running away into the distance, "Good-bye!"

"Ya'll little idiot! Roberta! Come back here this INSTANCE young lady, OR ELSE!" yelled Pop so that you could see the veins on his face itching to pop out, but Roberta was not there anymore, she was racing toward freedom, far, far away. " Roberta Lya Clemins ya'll betta come 'ere you rascal, you hopeless scum Roberta!! If you mother ain't dead, boy what she'd do!" he shouted racing toward the sunset, "Come back you!" but as his fat, clumsy legs pushed him no farther than another block until he starting panting, he called a taxi to take him home, in a rather in a huffy mood.