"You're gonna stay in here until I let you out, shitbag!"
The smell of cigarette smoke seared the man's voice who held Jeremy's arm roughly. Jeremy, just over 16, knew not to fight his father and let himself be cramped into the small closet.
Against the boy's pleas, the adult sneered and slammed the closet shut. He heard the door lock, and the key being thrown lazily onto the ground.
Inside, Jeremy felt as though he may suffocate through the smell of the musty closet. He looked around the dark area, looking for a light source, but turned to be unsuccessful. Inside the small room, he felt like a little kid instead of the shy teenager he'd been raised up into.
He knew this closet well ever since his father began locking him within it for "punishment", which was a very rigged system. Although Jeremy tried his best to behave, his father decided to lash his anger out at him at random.
The brunete locked his knees to his chest, rocking himself slightly. A day hadn't gone by since he thought about someone saving him from this abusive home. He hated it there. The house was old and creaky, and his parents didn't care for him much anymore, ever since they started with the alcohol. He could almost remember the house as a child, filled with the smells of home-cooking from his mother, along with the cologne of his father.
About an hour came and gone, and his father had not returned for him, which only spooked the boy more.
Jeremy slowly stood up, feeling for the doorknob. Locked, of course. It suddenly occurred to him that he also heard the keys fall. He kneeled down, looking through the door crack. There, he saw the key to the closet door; his escape.
Using the tips of his fingers, he fished for the ring. Jeremy barely managed to grab it, and reeled it back into the closet. He stood again, carefully opening the door using his new tool.
Opening the door a tad, he made sure the cost was clear of his father. After seeing no sign of him, he left the closet. Jeremy realized this didn't mean he was free quite yet, and snuck out of the room.
After arriving downstairs, he saw his father's hand hanging off the side of the living room couch. Instantly, he hesitated, feeling his heart thumping loudly in his chest, knowing he would be caught. Though, he became aware after a few moments, that the man hadn't turned to him. Quiet snores were heard from the seating area, and Jeremy soon realized that he was passed out drunk.
He let himself calm before contemplating whether or not he would go through with leaving this house forever. Jeremy gazed the chipping walls, the cracking ceiling, and the piles of garbage on the ground from his parents. It was true they couldn't live in a clean home without him constantly picking up trash and empty wine bottles from the floor, but that was simply their own fault. That's it. His decision was made.
He would run away that very night.
Jeremy crept upstairs to his old room, where he grabbed a worn-out backpack. He shoved everything he could fit in there; clothes, socks, underwear, his phone, and wallet. For someone who was thinking hard about this topic for so long, he shook like a scared puppy. It's for the better, he reassured himself, though he couldn't bring himself to believe it.
He snuck to the front door, letting himself out, not daring to look back at the life he was leaving behind as he trudged forward.
My first story with a nightguard! Who knew?
Also I've been gone forever, sorry,
This will have a part two, so don't worry.