Dimensions

Chapter one

The motion of the bus bumped me up and down making my stomach feel unsettled. For the past hour, I had sat in the same seat enjoying the feeling of numbness spread through me. I had never been on a bus before and after this life changing journey I planned on never using one again, ever. See I wasn't just travelling home from a long day at work, or school, or whatever it is people spend their life doing. I was running away. For years, over a decade, I had been waiting for my chance to escape. It took me three entire years to plan this day out to perfection and everything was running smoothly.

My plan was to ride the bus to the end of the route and then spend the night in any place, that I could find which was safe. Over the past few hours that's what I had been doing. Gradually, I had watched the stream of pedestrians trickle out of the bus, with their work bags or whatever it was they had with them. I had watched the light of the day sink from its bright yellow to a deep orange and then a mixture of pinks and blues. The sight mesmerised me for it had been a long time since I had properly got to see the light of day. I had sat for ages with my legs pulled up to my chest just watching the fluffy clouds drift peacefully across the changing sky.

After the first few minutes of my journey I had started to drum my fingers against the side of the bus. I had developed my usual rhythm, the tune that had kept me sane for the past eight years. My attention had flickered between the people walking onto the bus and myself, trying to judge whether I fit in with everyone else. I have no experience with people except my family and even with them I have trouble speaking out. I only ever really saw my father before I escaped. My brother wasn't allowed to see me after I turned thirteen. My mum passed away when I was five, due to a car accident, and because of that my father's face is the only one I had seen for six years. Until this bus trip. 

I had decided pretty quickly that it was crucial that I didn't stick out. So, the moment I escaped my room I ran to where my parents used to sleep. Sure enough, I had found my father's room and I knew that he had loved my mum too much to eliminate all traces of her from the house. After a few panicked moments, I had unearthed a box full of my mother's old clothes. My hands had sorted through the items quickly and I had managed to dig out her favourite clothes.

So, I sat anxiously on the bus wearing a pair of loose black jeans which mum used to wear and a plain grey top with some sort of stain, most likely from the endless cups of tea she always seemed to be drinking. I had thrown on a murky green jacket overtop which was like a thin coat with the hood tucked cleverly behind a zip. My feet wore a pair of her walking boots, a deep chocolate brown which still had clay-grey mud dried to the soles. I thought I fit in nicely and so I had relaxed into my new surroundings, trying to ignore the hum in the back of my mind telling me my father would be home soon and would notice I'm gone. 

Self-consciously, I occasionally rubbed the scars hidden under my shirt and the bruises on my neck. I had pulled my blonde hair around my front so it tumbled down my chest and obscured most of the marks. Still, I tried not to draw attention to myself, leaning against the window and letting my head bounce painfully against the glass as I tried to avoid the eye contact of the nosey people surrounding me.

"Next stop: Whitstable station." Some voice had said and I guessed it was probably the bus driver speaking through some kind of speaker. I knew very little about my hometown but the one thing I did know was that it was the small town of Whitstable in Kent which is somewhere near the south of England. 

I let my eyes close for a short second, breathing in the feeling of finally being free as we pulled up to the local train station. Then I tensed realising I'm still potentially in danger and my heart thumped a little quicker against my chest. My immediate response was to pull the collar of my coat up higher and pull my legs closer to my body before crossing my arms over the top of my knees. I let my fingers tap against the side of my thighs and dug my head into my arms as I tried to take deep, even breaths.