Hey guys! I hope you're enjoying the story. It's my first, so all suggestions are welcome. Just as a reminder, some chapter will be short and some long. It'll just depend on the message I'm trying to convey. Please try to review!

Thanks!

Chapter 2

As Thea turned the last lock on the front door, a dark figure appeared at the top of the stairway. It was a woman in her late forties with tousled blond hair, obviously neither brushed nor showered for days, and hungry green eyes. She wore a loosely buttoned shirt of a dark green shade to match her menacing eyes. Underneath the blouse was a white shirt stained due to lack of wash. Her jeans were just as stained, if not more so, and hung so loosely about her bony waist that it seemed they belonged to a man. However, that was not possible in this household. Thea's father, James Multon, had passed away seven years ago in the army, leaving her in, to much dismay, her mother's custody.

Now, reflecting back on all of the past, Thea realized that she forgot what it was like to have a man in the house, to love a father as much as she had loved hers. At ten-years-old, she was young and defenseless, and she still was, even at seventeen. These past seven years had spread themselves so quickly that it felt as if they lasted for a blink of an eye. Why this was, Thea did not know, because the past seven years in this dingy house were like hell to her.

"Girl, look at me when a talk to you dammit!"

Thea flung around, her red tresses whipping around her face. Immediately, beads of sweat lined her neck. She gulped in fear and sent her eyes on a rapid search for somewhere to escape.

"Oh, you're not going anywhere this time, you hear me? You'll be dead before you leave this house tonight. I'll make sure of it. And who the hell was that boy? I swear, if you're planning on pulling any tricks, you got something coming."

"I'm old enough, legally old enough, to take care of myself. And besides, I don't even know who he was. I've never seen him before," Thea stammered. Is that the best I can do?

"You couldn't survive in the real world if you wanted to, you little pain. Get your ass up to bed, and if I hear one sound, you're done for. No dinner, either. You don't deserve a crumb of anything you ungrateful pest."

And for one last act of revenge, Linda Multon spit down at her daughter.

"Get out of my sight before I cut that hideous heap of red trash on your head."

Thea, head bent, dragged herself up the staircase. She entered her room and changed from her jeans and sweater into a long tee-shirt comfortable enough to sleep in. She gazed from her window – the window - and noticed the sun still shooting magnitudes of light through the particles of ice which formed the clouds. It was at least 6:45 P.M. How could sleep ever weigh down her eyelids at a time such as this? Thea sighed and seated herself on the edge of her bed. Her eyes caught the image of her clothes on the ground. Her eyes of crystal blue lit up as she reached for the articles of dress in a pool of bland color on the ground. No, those wouldn't be sufficient.

After sorting through the little clothing she had, Thea chose to be more daring than she had ever been. She sported an orange sweater that, she could see from her reflection, seemed to be dangerously V-necked and a white skirt reaching to her knees. Where had she obtained these from again? Ah yes, from Aunt Helane, the one time she visited, two and a half years ago. Now, what would be sturdy enough to latch onto the window and be able to hoist her down to ground level? Thea looked to her bed, and before she knew it was stripping it of all its blankets. She tied them together and then tied one end onto the bedpost nearest the window. She tugged on her creation a few times to make sure it could hold her weight, but then again, she had a slim figure.

Before beginning her seemingly triumphant mission, Thea glanced at her reflection once more. The glass was dirty, but her locks of passion red stood out nevertheless. She admired the way its color blended with the sweater and was oddly contrasting with her ocean-colored orbs. The hair that fell to the bottom of her back framed her long face and pale skin gloriously. She couldn't imagine it being cut off, for it was a source of comfort and remembrance for her. Her father had loved her hair and had played with it from time to time. He teased her and told her that her hair was just proof that she was the flame in his heart. Thea's father taught her to love the vibrant red of her hair and feel unique about being the only member of the family with such a trait.

But once again, Thea's eyes fell to the V-neck of the sweater. Without paying attention, her reflexes were put to work as her arms flung to cover her chest. The little that was showing made Thea distraught and self conscious. However, it was the only way to blend in with the population and disguise herself from the few people she ever associated herself with.

After tugging on the tied blankets one more time, for cautioned purposes, Thea steadily balanced herself and placed her feet on the side of the roof that met her window. Thank goodness the sun was setting and dusk had arrived. Otherwise, her plan would have been seen by all passerbies. Her mother was most likely watching television in the basement anyhow.

Thea glanced below her. She felt vomit rising to her lips, but she continued to suppress her insides within her. She tightened her hands on the blankets, but the layer of sweat on her palms grew even thicker. Her whole arms became tremulous in their effort to hold onto the homemade rope for dear life. But then again, if she gently released herself, ever so slowly and quietly, she'd be independent to roam around her dream lands and become free of this world and the mortal body still weighing her down.

Thea felt her foot slip and she collapsed on the small bit of roof. Her cheek was cemented to the shingles and her fingertips and toes tensed, as a spider's would when trying to maintain its balance. She looked up, not daring to move her head too abruptly, and groped for the rope of blankets aimlessly. Finally, she felt her fingertips brush the fabric, and she was upright once again, lowering herself with each progressing step.

Would her mother find out about this adventure? Most likely not. She would fall asleep on the couch while watching her soap operas and forget fully about her duty; no, she the word "duty" did not even exist in her vocabulary…

Absentmindedly, Thea tried to take one more step, but she found herself on the carpet-like lawn. Without processing it through her mind once, Thea knew that the city was calling her and her dash towards freedom began; well, until the morning that was.