Sincerely, Emma

When I knew that Samantha and Harold Evans had left the house, I rolled out of bed. First things first, I knew, and I went to the bathroom to take a quick shower. I rushed through, though still getting as clean as one can get, and stepped out while drying off quickly. I brushed my teeth, and then returned to my spacious bedroom, decked out in my favorite color combination - orange and blue - and I lay across my canopied bed, pulling out the suitcase I’d shoved under it. Already partially packed with six pairs of jeans and a several of the vintage tees that my mother hated so much.

I hurriedly went to my closet, opening the door and flicking on the light as I walked straight to a dresser that held all my undergarments. I pulled out an armful of underwear and bras, looking around and tossing them into a wicker basket that was in there for some reason. Then I swept out several pairs of socks and added them to the mix. I grabbed the basket and rushed back out into my room, tossing them haphazardly into my suitcase before returning to my bathroom to seek out the new toothbrush I had bought just for this. I put it in my bathroom bag, along with a new toothpaste and a brush, hair ties, hair clips, deodorant, a small Pert travel-sized 2 in 1 shampoo and conditioner, and, because I couldn’t leave them behind, two pairs of earrings, a necklace, and a three bracelet set that I’d gotten from my best friend.

I took the bag back to my room, tossing it on top of my socks and undergarments. I grabbed the picture of said best friend, Madison Thomas, and I, and added that to my suitcase. On a whim, I returned to my closet and grabbed two everyday dresses, a pleated skirt, and one nice dress. I put those in the suitcase, too, and noticed that I still had some room. Good. I went back into my bathroom for the third time, this time to pull out a brush and pull it through my shoulder length auburn hair, taking a look in the mirror as I threw it up in a kind of sloppy ponytail. I noticed the slightly mischievous twinkle in my periwinkle blue eyes, but returned my gaze to my hair. It looked fine, so I returned to my room. I added my iPod to the suitcase, and put my laptop carefully in my laptop bag, along with it’s charger and my digital camera.

One might think I was packing heavy, but looking around my room at all I was going to leave behind, they’d know differently.

“Emma, Emma, Emma,” I muttered to myself, “what in the world are you doing?”

The answer was quite simple, to me. I was simply doing what I should have done the minute I turned eighteen - I was getting the hell out of here. And I was rushing because, in an hour and a half, the maids and housekeepers and gardeners and everyone else who took care of the Evans Estate would show up to do their jobs, and I intended on being long gone by the time that happened.

Some people might call me crazy for leaving a million dollar mansion, and refusing to marry each and every one of the men my parents had introduced me to. So sue me - I wasn’t going to marry just to further my father’s business triumphs. If and when I get married, it’s going to be because I’m in love with the guy, and not because Mom and Dad want me to marry him. I’m sure any other normal girl out there wants the same!

Okay, maybe they don’t. Especially if they could have seen some of those guys! There was one - granted, he was twenty-three, and that’s when I was seventeen, so he’s twenty-five now - but he was hot.

“Emma,” I scolded myself, nervously, “that was off topic. Packing. You are packing.”

I didn’t usually make it a habit to talk to myself, but I had to get all this done. And I still needed to stop at the bank to make sure my parents couldn’t withdraw my funds - after all, I had made a good portion of that money myself, in an internship at Dad’s company.

Finally, about a half an hour before anyone was due to show up to take care of the house, I was ready. I lugged my suitcase out, threw it the back of my Vibe, and went back inside to take care of my ‘last minute business’. That went as follows:

Dear Mom and Dad,

This might be the last time you hear from me for a while. I’m going traveling for a bit, to get away and see the world. I just wanted to let you know that you can’t control my life anymore, and if I do marry someone, it will be because I love him, and he loves me, and we’ve met each other more than three times. I’m not going to get married off just so Dad’s company can get bigger.

I know you don’t want to read this, but I’m just not with you in your attempts to find me a husband. I love you both, but I’m not just a tool to further your success. Which is why I’m using my right as a free adult, and taking a trip. I might be back in a few months, maybe a year. I’ll send letters, and postcards.

I really do love you. I just wish you had seen that I can make my own decisions.

Sincerely,

Emma

I wasn’t quite satisfied with my letter, but it would have to do. I was running short on time and if I didn’t hurry, I would be caught in the driveway when the help started arriving.
I locked the door as I headed out, and left my cell phone on top of the folded up letter, looking dismally alone on the small, circular table in the otherwise spotless kitchen. Eloise, the maid, didn’t really even need to be there today.

Before it really had time to sink in that I had left home, I was on the highway, looking to make New York state by the time I got tired that night, and unaware that when I stopped in a town near the state line, I would come face to face with someone I least expected.