Building the Lost Boys

Star (Hypnotize)

She was kidding herself. This time she'd done it, really was going to be punished. There was no way her mother would ignore this.

Right?

Judith Star Abramowitz had officially run away from home. It wasn't the first cry for attention in her short life: she'd broke curfew, shoplifted from the corner store, cut school classes, gotten into a fight with another girl at school, and been escorted home in a police cruiser. None of it had gained her mother's attention.

Her mother was too busy with her newest flavor of the week. This time it was a younger guy, maybe ten years her junior, who whispered sweet nothings in ears and brought along cheap chocolates when he came to pick her up on dates.

Star wanted to puke. For as long as she could remember, there was constantly a new man in the house, sometimes two a week if her mom was depressed over a breakup. It would have been worse had she had siblings but she was an only child. Star didn't know where her father was, or who he was, for that matter.

All she wanted was attention from her mom, to be noticed, to be told she was loved. But her mother was off chasing her own desire for attention. Too busy for the girl child she'd given birth to when she was just a child herself.

So on her 16th birthday, Star used the cash the newest boyfriend had stuck in a tacky birthday card, plus what she'd saved up, and purchased a bus ticket West. The money ran out as she hit the very edge of the West Coast, right on the Pacific Ocean.

Santa Carla.

So let me make an offer
I'm only trying to help
You can make your load
Just a little lighter

Star wandered the streets of Santa Carla. It was a sleepy town, a tourist town really, with the humongous Boardwalk hugging the beachfront. Star wished her mom was looking for her. She made effort to go out of her way to walk past every cop she came near, hoping there was a missing persons notice and they would recognize her from the grainy photo her mother had provided.

It hadn't happened. Did her mother even have a recent photo of her daughter? Star couldn't remember.

The sun was setting. Star rubbed her arms, wishing she'd packed a jacket. Wasn't it always supposed to be warm in California? The money was all gone, and she was gonna need a place to sleep. Should she beg? She'd seen some very dirty street kids asking for change. Star eyed her own clothes. She had been going through a very gypsy-like fashion phase and the tie-dye and jeans the street kids were wearing were rags compared to what she was dressed in.

She turned and headed back in the direction of the Boardwalk. Maybe she could find a job that would give her an advance, so she could get a motel room. Or if she couldn't she could start begging there. There were tons of people crowding the Boardwalk.

One already had eyes on her.

It's time to see
You got to live if you wanna believe
You can be

Her first stop was at the ticket booth, to ask if there was a list of stores that were hiring. No such luck. She stopped in every store that seemed like it might need to hire a worker only to be turned away. She didn't even stop in the comic store. Ew! Comics!

Something ran smack into her legs, nearly causing her to trip. Tangled in her skirts was a dirty ragamuffin, a mop of hair, and grubby hands.

"Hey! You need to watch out!" she said, untangling what she discovered was a little boy no more then seven.

"You were in my way!" the kid complained back.

"What's your name? Where are your parents?" Star realized the irony in her questions.

"Laddie. And I ranned away." He pouted, jamming his hands in his pockets, not looking up at the dark haired girl.

"You ran away?"

"Yeah, I hated my parents. Always telling me what to do." Laddie looked up into Star's face.

"I ran away too, Laddie."

"Really?"

Star nodded. "Only now I'm out of money. Where do you stay?"

"Under the Boardwalk, though I'm thinking of leaving there. The bigger kids are bullies." Laddie wiped his nose on his sleeve. He wore a jacket much like something off the Beatles' Sergeant Pepper's album cover.

"Is that where most of the street kids stay?" Star hoped not. It looked cold out there by the water.

"Some. Some sleep in the park. Can't sleep on the Boardwalk anymore. Security guard is a big meanie. You hungry? I know where to get some food." Laddie suddenly brightened, realizing he knew more then a big kid for a change.

Star nodded, took Laddie's hand and was lead off down the Boardwalk towards the hot dog stand. Somewhere close by, the roar of motorcycles pierced the night.

***

"Lookie what we have here!" A blond with a slash of a mouth cackled. Star was picking at the remainder of the hot dog she and Laddie had shared. It was old, and the bun was stale, but it was food.

"A shy girlie and her little brother!" A bigger, dark haired boy with a well-defined chest followed the loud mouth blond into the alley.

"Leave us alone!" Star called back as she pulled Laddie closer.

"Boys, that's no way to treat a lady." The first two stepped back as a bleached-blond boy in a black trench coat came forward. He grinned, a hint of wickedness in his eyes. He was swallowed alive by the coat, and his hair glowed white in the dim light. "You're new. I've never seen you in town."

"Please, go away. We don't have anything to give you." Star put an arm around Laddie, who munched away on his half of the hot dog, seemingly unafraid.

"Like we would mug such a pretty face." David clicked his tongue and shook his head, and the Boys laughed menacingly. "Laddie, please do introduce your new friend."

"This is Star. She's real nice. She shared a hot dog with me!" Laddie jumped down from the crate they'd been sitting on. Star stared at the little boy.

"You know these guys, Laddie?"

"Yup," Laddie nodded and walked to the dark-haired boy, who gave him a low five.

"Star, huh." David grinned and walked towards the girl. "Tell me, Star, do you know the story of Peter Pan?"

Star stared at the blonde. "Uhhh... is this some sort of joke?"

"No."

"Well, yeah, I know the story. Why?"

"We're looking for a Wendy."

Well I know you got problems
I see it in your eyes
But if you want to live
To see the morning
Give it up to your brother