Kayla

Chapter 7

Once the word got out about how I killed Don, everyone knew about it. I turned the television on and the news story was still on, there were people being interviewed about it and asked if they've seen me.

I wonder what everyone thought about it all; the murder and my disappearance. I bet everyone is still teasing me, or they're scared of me now. I bet the teachers are talking about me to the class, I bet Mrs. Young is making a prompt for the class about me.

I walked up the short flight of stairs until I found the bedroom I stayed in. I sifted through the closet until I found clothes, which were oddly small. They were kid clothes, actually. A little boy's. These clothes were sectioned off from all the woman's clothes.

Does this woman have a son? Or did she have one? I still didn't feel bad for what I did, if anything, I feel better actually for what I did. I grabbed the brown corduroy pants and striped white shirt. I went into the bathroom and cut my hair, even shorter, and I looked like a boy now. Just like how everyone said, I looked like a boy.

The small brown lockets fell into the sink. I looked into the mirror, I did resemble a boy. If I had a twin brother, this is what he would look like. I fished the hair out of the sink and threw it into the small trash can next to the toilet.

I left through the backdoor and I had no idea where I was. Jane brought me here and I just stared out the window daydreaming and ignoring the lady's million questions.

I wonder what Mrs. Ian is doing right now. Does she even care? Who am I kidding? Mrs. Ian doesn't care at all! About me at least. All she would do is yell at me and scold me for everything. Even things I didn't even do! And I was being bullied at school, what did she do? Nothing. She just yelled at me. I'm tired of it. I'm tired of everything.

I walked along the trail until I came up to a sidewalk leading up to a street hardly anyone was on. I didn't have to worry about being found, I looked just like any other little boy. I walked on the side roads until I entered the town.

I was sure to stay out of clear view, I can't be seen. Even if I looked completely unrecognizable, I would still be asked why I was wandering the streets by my lonesome.

I passed many stores and I reached one of the family restaurants that everyone goes to. It wasn't expensive and everyone could afford to go. I looked through the glass window of the place and stared at how packed this restaurant was. I saw many families, all happy, eating and talking and having a great time. Why? Why can't I have a family like that? Mrs. Ian would never take me to this place. She said the food we had at home was just as good.

I walked away and it seemed like hours of me walking. I had no idea what time it was. I trailed into a store and looked up at the wall clock indicating the time, it was noon.

"Pack of Camels," I heard a feminine voice say as I looked down from the clock.

I turned and saw a woman, she looked really young actually. Like a teenager. But she was wearing the sluttiest clothes, I was surprised people weren't calling her out on it. Her blonde hair was frizzy and tied up into a high ponytail. The makeup she had on was dark and it looked sloppy and rubbed-off and smeared.

"You look very young," the woman behind the counter pointed out.

"What? I'm eighteen." The girl shrugged.

After the woman rang up her cigarettes, she shoved them in her clunky leopard-printed purse and walked out of the store.

I couldn't stop looking at her, she reminded me of someone.

"Do you need something, son?" I heard the woman ask me and I jolted, I had been distracted for what seemed like forever.

There was a flyer hanging behind the check-out counter, it had me printed onto it and my name in big black bold letters, Kayla Parker, and a short description of what I looked like, and what I did.

"No," I smiled and walked out of the store.

I kept walking until I reached the place I would be coming to, and scowled.

The orphanage. The same place I was before Mr. and Mrs. Ian adopted me.

There was a little boy outside the front porch and he looked angry. His eyebrows were knitted together in anger and he chucked pebbles on the ground in front of him.

"What do you want?" He asked as I got in the way of his pelting.

"Why are you so mad?" I asked him, and he still chucked a pebble at my knee.

He continued to throw rocks until his small pile beside him was gone, then he swung his legs and jumped off the porch, picking up the rocks and sitting back down and chucking them again.

"This place sucks." He complained.

"I know," I tell him and sit next to him, chucking rocks with him.

"How would you know?" He snapped.

"Because I've been here before." I replied.

"Why?" He asked.

"There's a lot about me that you don't know, and you won't find out." I said as I looked over at him, throwing the last of his small pebbles.

It was silent and then he went to kick the rocks around.

"Why are you here anyway? Where's your family?" He asked.

"Never mind that. I think I have an idea that will help both of us," I suggested.

"What's that?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I can get you out of here." I said, and it all started to make sense.

"What? Your mommy's gonna adopt me and we'll be brothers? That's your idea?" The boy looked to be about twelve or thirteen.

"No. I have an even better idea." I said and whispered into his ear, so no one would hear my idea.