Accidentally a Criminal

Chapter 2

9:45 pm, Just outside of Taylor, New Hampshire, 9/30/23

I don't know where exactly I'm going, but it's definitely not Taylor. I'm going to miss Taylor. That place was beautiful, with its trees and lake, and the little downtown area and all the houses, blooming with individuality.

Now, I don't know where I am. I'm scared to take out my phone because the cops could probably track it or something. I've been walking for about an hour now. Then, I saw an abandoned shed. My eyes lit up. I could stay there for the night. It was disgusting and old, but it's better than nothing. I peered inside it and I kinda had a mini heart attack. There was an old woman inside resting. She was in rags and looked unhealthy.

"Oh, hello." She said with a raspy voice.

I felt awkward about invading her space. "Uh... Hi." I replied.

"You can stay here if you'd like." The old woman smiled. I nodded and entered her domain. We sat together in silence and I was starting to feel hungry. This old homeless woman probably needed something to eat herself. With much thought, I then began to rummage through my backpack and then asked her: "Do you want something to eat?"

She gave no response, but I could tell she was hungry. I asked another question: "Are you allergic to anything?"

She nodded her head "no", so I gave her the best of treats among my snacks, Little Debbies Nutty Buddies. Obviously superior among all desserts. "Thank you." She replied and began to eat. I ate some chocolate Hostess Donettes alongside her. After a while, I started to feel sleepy, and so did the old lady. She dozed off first, and I was stuck with no one but my own thoughts. What would become of me? Will I ever live a normal life again? How long will I be in prison if I get caught? I mean, I'm a juvenile and I killed Russell out of self-defense. I started to nod off, cutting off my thoughts from continuing to torture me.

8:12 am, 10/1/23

I surprisingly slept well that night, considering I killed a man and was sleeping on the floor of an abandoned shed. I thanked the homeless lady for letting me stay in her humble abode, gave her some Pringles, and then bid her farewell. She's a nice lady. Then I set off on my journey. I plan on maybe leaving New Hampshire because the story of Duncan and Russell's death will probably come out soon. I miss Duncan.

I was walking along the side of the road now, not daring to hitchhike. I tried to look for possible places to stay, a nasty motel, another shed, maybe sleep up in a tree for the night. Guilt still invaded my thoughts as I tried to do this. I just murdered someone the night before. People were staring at me as they passed by. Do they know? Do they know that I'm a murderer, or do they just think it's weird to see a 16-year-old boy walk alongside the highway? I would think it's weird, so other people probably think so too. So I agreed with myself to go walk in the woods instead.

It was about 5:30 pm when I decided to set camp. The New Hampshire woods are beautiful. Early fall makes its beauty even more tempting. Fallen leaves covering the forest floor, and towering trees surrounding the entire landscape. I wish I had brought a blanket though. And a tent. All I had on to protect me from the cold was a Wrangler jacket ( and other clothes of course). It eventually began to get dark and after having dinner (barbeque chips), a realization came to mind. I was out alone in the woods with nothing to defend myself but a Swiss army knife.

There could be wolves, bears, raccoons, moose, etcetera! If I were to fall asleep, I could be eaten alive. Guess I just won't fall asleep, I thought to myself as darkness swallowed up the sky. By 11:00 pm, I was still awake, on the lookout for potential danger. I was freezing to death and the slightest sound from the movement of the forest scared me out of my wits. Every wind rustle, fallen leaf, and cricket chirp made me whip out my knife.

7:34 am, 10/2/23

I somehow fell asleep that night. I don't know how, but I did. I sat up groggily. Did I fall asleep on a rock? My back hurts and so does my entire body. I think today is Thursday. Yes, that's right, I remembered, I left the convenience store on Tuesday, slept in that shed on Wednesday, so today is Thursday. I then gathered my things and left the woods.

I've decided that I'll go and travel to Vermont. I've been there loads of times. Once I took a hiking trip with my dad that crossed over there. This would be just like a hiking trip. Except that I don't have proper shoes or clothing, and I'm running from the law. Easy, Right?

Wrong. Not easy. By the time I had left Millberry ( just west of Taylor), It had started pouring. Mud covered every surface of my shoes and I was sopping wet. Not to mention miserable too. I needed a fresh pair of dry clothes and I needed a snack refill too. Luckily, convenience stores exist. How convenient. I ran to the nearest gas station, a run-down place that if their neon sign wasn't flickering so bad, would be called Gibsy's.

The inside of Gibsy's was cozy and contained aisles of junk food galore and an assortment of souvenirs, toys, clothing, and other supplies. I grabbed a fresh t-shirt, a hoodie, and a beanie, all of which said New Hampshire, The Granite State. While scanning the other aisles for other necessities, I stumbled upon the holy grail among all other items in my situation, an umbrella. I immediately snatched a blue umbrella and cried with joy. Not actually though, only in my head. Within the maze of snacks and trinkets, I also found a sleeping bag and a tent. Then, after stocking up on snacks, I halted in front of the counter for the cashier to ring me up. The cashier girl with short, pink hair and an unreasonable amount of black eyeliner began scanning my things. After a while, she said:

"That'll be $103.34."

I sighed. Welp, that's all my money going down the drain. I swiped my card and-

"Sorry sir-" she said with fake sympathy, "You're five dollars short."

Instinctively, I booked it. Was I being dramatic? Could I have put a single bag of chips back? Yes to both of those questions. I don't know why I ran off, but I did. I don't think that girl cared about her job enough to deal with me though.

After I had left the tiny town of Eagleston (Population: 472), I had reached the border of Vermont. I celebrated my tiny victory with a handful of birthday cake flavored Oreos. It was getting darker by the minute and I decided to set camp.