From the Shadows
To Get Out
The hallways of high school were wide and noisy. Cliques of students traveling in packs like emboli, the metal clanks of lockers being slammed shut. The obnoxious bell clangs as a warning for students to hurry and get to class. Their feet scamper and their bodies pour out of the classroom when it's time to leave, and their feet become lead when it's time for class again. Six classes a day for the average student; 8 AM to 3 PM, and a measly thirty minute lunch. Today was an important day for attendance: midterms. Less despised than finals at the end of the year, for if you screwed up now, you had a slim chance of recovery. Everyone who needed to be there was, except perfect-attendance Teagan.
She was a sophomore with two and a half years left of high school, which also meant two and a half years stuck at home with her regretful step-father and whatever sleazes he brought home. If she could live somewhere, anywhere else, she would. She had no friends. The two she thought she made in middle school didn't last. Not to Teagan's knowledge, they made a bet as to who could be her friend the longest. Only one of them actually started to like Teagan and wanted to legitimately be her friend. That friend had to move at the end of summer, for her father's job relocated. It was a lot easier to remain anonymous and invisible in high school. Torn jeans, t-shirts and clunky leather combat boots carried her every day in high school. She liked it, though. The only time she seemed to not be incessantly bothered was ironically gym class. The girls tried to tease her for her boyish figure, but she kicked almost everyone's ass when it came to fitness. She was a fast runner with a lot of lean muscle and endurance. She needed that physical strength to remind her to stay strong in other aspects of her life, and to give her some slim chance if she got attacked. She secretly carried around a pocket knife, too. Her school didn't allow them, but she never had to take it out while at school, so no one ever found out about it.
Teagan was fed up with trying to cope with things out of her control. Instead of high school, she opted for a more promising endeavor: GED. If she graduated early, she could leave home. She wouldn't be missed. The problem was, she had to sneak around to do it. Her counselors brought her in to talk about her sudden disappearances, yet she still maintained As in all her classes.
“Teagan, please sit down.”
“What do you want?” She grew bitter and tired of the same damn questions and meetings.
“You've had perfect attendance until recently. What happened? Is everything alright at home?”
The concept of 'home' stung in the back of Teagan's throat. “Everything's fine.”
“Are you sure? We can help you.”
“There is nothing to help.”
“Why have you been missing class?”
Teagan would sigh intentionally obnoxiously every time. “Because, I'm testing out.”
In freshman year, she started to test out early. Towards the beginning of sophomore year, she was almost done, but now she needed a follow-up plan. What was she going to do after this? She needed a job. She decided to take paramedic/EMT classes alongside her sophomore year. Luckily, they didn't require proof of high school graduation. They never questioned her age, and at the time, the classes were cheap. She'd do odd jobs for neighbors and borrow books from the library for homework. By the end of sophomore year, she'd be ready to get out. When the time came along, she still had to do the hardest thing yet: actually leave. Her step-father had no idea as to her plans. He hardly paid any attention to her, so it wouldn't make a difference. When she got home, she went into her room and packed her big backpack with anything she'd need. Cash, clothes, some books, hairbrush, tooth brush and paste. Bare essentials would get her where she needed to go. As she was leaving her room, her step-dad stood in front of the door.
“Where do you think you're going?” He staggered; with all he drank, Teagan wondered if his legs would ever keep him steady again.
“Sleepover at a friends house.”
“I found this in the mail.” He showed her the GED completion recognition letter. “Want to tell me what's going on?” He hardly asked questions. They were demands in disguise.
Before Teagan could talk, her step-father threw her to the ground and pinned her arms under his knees.
“What did I tell you about lying to me!” His voice shrilled and shook the entire house. Teagan felt if he screamed any louder, his eyes would burst from his head. He punched and slapped her face repeatedly. Normally he'd never hit her face, for it showed. He didn't care this time. Ever since her mom, alcohol wasn't enough anymore. The harder drugs made him crazy on top of already being angry. He hit her so hard on the temple, her vision started to fade black.
“You ain't never leaving here, you hear me? I won't let you leave me!”
Everything went black and she felt like she was suffocating, drowning in darkness. She tried to claw her way out. She felt a vibration through her body, a faded, warbled sound trying to reach her ears. Is that my name?
“Teagan! Hey, wake up. You alrigh'?”
She was a sophomore with two and a half years left of high school, which also meant two and a half years stuck at home with her regretful step-father and whatever sleazes he brought home. If she could live somewhere, anywhere else, she would. She had no friends. The two she thought she made in middle school didn't last. Not to Teagan's knowledge, they made a bet as to who could be her friend the longest. Only one of them actually started to like Teagan and wanted to legitimately be her friend. That friend had to move at the end of summer, for her father's job relocated. It was a lot easier to remain anonymous and invisible in high school. Torn jeans, t-shirts and clunky leather combat boots carried her every day in high school. She liked it, though. The only time she seemed to not be incessantly bothered was ironically gym class. The girls tried to tease her for her boyish figure, but she kicked almost everyone's ass when it came to fitness. She was a fast runner with a lot of lean muscle and endurance. She needed that physical strength to remind her to stay strong in other aspects of her life, and to give her some slim chance if she got attacked. She secretly carried around a pocket knife, too. Her school didn't allow them, but she never had to take it out while at school, so no one ever found out about it.
Teagan was fed up with trying to cope with things out of her control. Instead of high school, she opted for a more promising endeavor: GED. If she graduated early, she could leave home. She wouldn't be missed. The problem was, she had to sneak around to do it. Her counselors brought her in to talk about her sudden disappearances, yet she still maintained As in all her classes.
“Teagan, please sit down.”
“What do you want?” She grew bitter and tired of the same damn questions and meetings.
“You've had perfect attendance until recently. What happened? Is everything alright at home?”
The concept of 'home' stung in the back of Teagan's throat. “Everything's fine.”
“Are you sure? We can help you.”
“There is nothing to help.”
“Why have you been missing class?”
Teagan would sigh intentionally obnoxiously every time. “Because, I'm testing out.”
In freshman year, she started to test out early. Towards the beginning of sophomore year, she was almost done, but now she needed a follow-up plan. What was she going to do after this? She needed a job. She decided to take paramedic/EMT classes alongside her sophomore year. Luckily, they didn't require proof of high school graduation. They never questioned her age, and at the time, the classes were cheap. She'd do odd jobs for neighbors and borrow books from the library for homework. By the end of sophomore year, she'd be ready to get out. When the time came along, she still had to do the hardest thing yet: actually leave. Her step-father had no idea as to her plans. He hardly paid any attention to her, so it wouldn't make a difference. When she got home, she went into her room and packed her big backpack with anything she'd need. Cash, clothes, some books, hairbrush, tooth brush and paste. Bare essentials would get her where she needed to go. As she was leaving her room, her step-dad stood in front of the door.
“Where do you think you're going?” He staggered; with all he drank, Teagan wondered if his legs would ever keep him steady again.
“Sleepover at a friends house.”
“I found this in the mail.” He showed her the GED completion recognition letter. “Want to tell me what's going on?” He hardly asked questions. They were demands in disguise.
Before Teagan could talk, her step-father threw her to the ground and pinned her arms under his knees.
“What did I tell you about lying to me!” His voice shrilled and shook the entire house. Teagan felt if he screamed any louder, his eyes would burst from his head. He punched and slapped her face repeatedly. Normally he'd never hit her face, for it showed. He didn't care this time. Ever since her mom, alcohol wasn't enough anymore. The harder drugs made him crazy on top of already being angry. He hit her so hard on the temple, her vision started to fade black.
“You ain't never leaving here, you hear me? I won't let you leave me!”
Everything went black and she felt like she was suffocating, drowning in darkness. She tried to claw her way out. She felt a vibration through her body, a faded, warbled sound trying to reach her ears. Is that my name?
“Teagan! Hey, wake up. You alrigh'?”
♠ ♠ ♠
I like using dreams as a way to learn about a character's past. Tell me what you think! Comments and questions are welcome.