The Beauty in Being Free

Chapter 1

"I'm not doing it" You yell loudly.

"If you were a good girl, you would do as you're told" your  father barks at you.

"He's too old dad" you couldn't believe this, what your actual parents wanted you to do.

"You're seventeen, you are not a child Casey. This will help dad at work" Your mother pleads.

When you looked at your parents you felt disgust. They wanted you to give up going to college and marry one of your fathers business partners. The man was in his late thirties. It was utterly disgusting.

"No. It's not happening" you pant and look around.

You needed to get out of here. This crap town. It was draining living in a place so backwards that people believed women shouldn't work or have a life of their own. Proper ladies had children, raised them and took care of their husbands. You had always believed your parents were better than that, especially when they said you could go to college. But now, here they stood. Telling you, you had to marry an older man to help your father.

"You will do as you're told. No questions or arguments. Know your place" Your father rages at you.

Tears run down your cheeks, they were going to force you. No matter what you said. Your bedroom door slams closed and you sit and sob on your bed. It wasn't the first time you had heard about this, it was just the first time your father wasn't giving you an option. And because you knew how things worked, you had planned. You were smart and methodical, you had worked hard and hidden your money. Everything that you had been saving up for college was stored in an online bank account that your parents couldn't get their hands on.

You knew what you had to do, but you didn't know how long you had. You listen at your door, your mom is discussing the dates of your wedding with your father. Your eyes widen, you had two weeks. Two weeks to get the hell out of dodge. You needed to up your game, you had to move faster.

You were working tomorrow, your parents would expect you still to go. You could get clothes out under your uniform and you already had your documents hidden in a loose panel in your car. Two weeks to get everything you need and leave this hell hole.

You could do it. You were determined now. Not your parents, nor your family would stop you escaping. You smile, you just needed to make a list of everything else you would need. You grab your laptop and click open and encrypted file, your parents were useless when it came to computers so they had no clue what was on yours.

Your list so far had money, clothes and documents. You look around your room, there wasn't anything you really wanted to take from your parents. But there was the locket your paternal grandmother gave you. She had been a wild card, and she definitely didn't follow the norms this town set out. Your grandfather had apparently only stayed married to her because divorce was frowned upon. It hadn't stopped her up and leaving him, she told you once that she wouldn't divorce him because it annoyed him that his wife wouldn't stay home and do her duty. As soon as her son was raised and out of the house, she had left. And never looked back.

And you would follow in her footsteps, you wanted a life of your own. You had been accepted to college for a coding degree and your savings were good. So flee you would. You wouldn't even leave a letter to your parents, they didn't deserve to know anything about your life.

You went to sleep that night smiling, knowing you would get out and never look back.

                                  ***

"When are you coming back?" Melody asks tearfully.

"I don't know babe. I just have to go for a while" You say.