Runaway

The smell of asbestos hidden within the walls always fills the lungs of teenage Edinplam as he sits in the attic/ his room in a haunted house like mansion. The attic had very little light since the widow was the exact size of a mobile phone. If it where up to him, he would step outside & breathe fresh air, but he was locked in his room by his parents. Ever since Edinplam’s sister Anilese had run away from home years ago, Edinplam remembered that day very well as if it happened yesterday. It happened when she went out on a date with a sophisticated boy from school. She wasn’t madly in love with him, but he sure didn’t know that. To make a long story short, my mom & dad spied at Anilese & her date in the movie theater. At home Edinplam could hear her & his parents arguing, this was before he moved to the attic. Then he heard a slap, his mother had struck Anilese;  all Edinplam could hear next where Anilese & his parents rushing up the wooden stairs. Grumbles & insults could be heard through the walls & doors slammed like any other argument between loved ones then there was silence when Anilese shut the door of her room. In the following morning, she was gone, she had run away & did not leave a trace .
   The authorities weren’t very much helpful since Anilese was 18 at the time & she was legally dependent. After that day, Edinplam’s parents ,who grew a paranoid mindset, decided to move him up to the attic since they feared he may run away soon or he may be exposed to innuendo & sin they disapproved of, but that was not the case.
Edinplam was a nice boy who received straight B’s & loved to make others happy with a witty joke or with his neat finger tricks that he once learned from his father back when he was fun, outgoing & young. Along with moving up to a place he barley noticed in his home, they took away his reading books, his television, his desk & his comfy bed. Edinplam slept in a pile of pink cotton substance which didn’t give him an itchy feeling or a rash which meant it was not asbestos, he named it fairy cotton since it sparkled.
    Throughout the end of his adolescence & into the beginning of his teen hood, he had never been to a park or a beach & he was forgetting how they both looked like. It had been ages since he’s been to one, but his parents forbid him to go to a park or beach since they fear Edinplam might be exposed to what they see as ‘Partial Nudity’ or ‘Demon practices’, but it seems that his parents have never seen or heard of a picnic. Edinplam was not allowed to walk to school alone or even hang out with his friend by any chance with the set of rules his parents had given him. If he where to ditch home after school, his parents would go to great lengths to set up an ‘Amber Alert’ or a lockdown until his son was found. To Edinplam, it felt as if he was a creature who could never be exposed to sunlight or fun, he always reminded himself that he was human & did not deserve a life of solitude. He felt like a hermit & what makes it more depressing was that Edinplam was about to become an adult in a year or two. His teen years have been used up reading, reading literature, counting the holes on a clump of wood he found with termites , talking to people who were not really there, listening to Edith Piaf on his sister’s old record player, feeling depressed & reading his older sister’s diary.
       At school, Edinplam was too isolated from other people as he sat in the far corner of the A.P classroom, away from the other classmates who conversed about weekend plans. He listened to some of the popular kids talk about bon fires, camping trips & parties. Edinplam could imagine himself being friends with other people his age, walking, talking, enjoying a film with others his age & laughing with joy. His train of thought was  disrupted when something tickled his nose, Edinplam sneezed. It was Mariette & her fluffy pen with a cute Japanese cat painted on, she gave Edinplam a purple envelope.
“What’s this?” asked Edinplam curiously & kindly.
“It’s an invitation silly goose.” replied Mariette
It always made him blush when Mariette  made cute girl responses like that.
“Well Mr.Echo, open it.”
Mr.Echo was a small nickname he was given when he met her on that rainy day sophomore year. Edinplam opened the envelope, confetti popped & made a mess around his composition notebook. It was an invitation with bright pink, white & yellow. Edinplam didn’t know weather to be surprised he was being invited to a party or to be blinded by the bright flourecent colors.
“It’s this Saturday, here’s the phone number to R.S.V.P. This party is gonna be dope.” she said as she pointed her blood red nails onto the phone number printed on the invitation.
“Dope?” Questioned Edinplam
 Edinplam knew his parents would disapprove of him going to a party, especially if it’s hosted by a girl. Every time he mentions the word ‘Party or Celebration’ in front of his parents, their veins pop & cringe in pure hate as they never want to be associated with such ‘Vulgar Rituals’ as they call it. It’s funny to hear them bash out on parties in general since throughout their childhood my rich grandparents gave them the biggest parties known to the man, but Edinplam never had a birthday party, nor a cake, nor a ‘Birthday Greeting’ by any chance.
“Okay, I’ll make sure my parents will let me Mariette.” Said Edinplam trying to give a satisfied smile.
“Alright, I really, really, really, really want you to come.” replied Mariette cheerfully. “See ya Saturday.”
“See ya.” Edinplam stared directly at Mariette’s picture in which she sits in a chair smiling & making a peace sign with her fingers while surrounded with Korean words printed in pink, “I hope so.”  He knew that with belief in miracles & a little hope, he may be in that party in no time.
      At home, Edinplam & his parents had a very quiet dinner in the mansion’s dinning room. It was silent, too silent he didn’t hear the chewing of food, the clashing of the fork against the glass plate or the fizzing of the apple cider. Edinplam’s heart was thumping out of fear, he was nervous about asking his parent’s permission.
“……um.” Said Edinplam, silently like a mouse.
“Yes son.” Replied his mom & dad at the same time.
“……….Can…..I…….go………..to a…….Well there’s this………I’d love too……um, I’ve been a good boy all these year &……….”
Edinplam hesitated to go on so he gulped down a glass of his cider.
“What is it son, cat caught your  tongue?” Asked his father
“Calm down son, take deep breaths. Take as long as you can & tell us when you’re ready.” Said his mom
Edinplam suddenly felt surprised, his parents where calm & smiling, it made him feel less nervous & more confident that he asked for permission with a smile & pride.
”There’s this party & I was wondering if you would let me go? ”
 Silence suddenly  fills the room again.
“PARTY.” Said his father with great emphasis.
Whenever his father said something with great emphasis, it meant he disapproved of the idea.
“But pappah, it will be chaperoned.”
“CHAPERONED!!!” Said his mother with great emphasis.
She dislike other people looking after her son, which is why she never leaves home or hires a babysitter. “I am not letting some flaky kid look after my baby boy.”
“I’m not a baby boy, I’m becoming 19 next year & her parents are chaperoning, not some flaky kid.” Replied Edinplam with a raised voice.
“I don’t care, I still do not like anyone looking after my baby boy.”
“But mummah, they went to Harvard, they studied child studies there , they raised eight kids & they’re child psychiatrists, I think they know how to take care of kids.”
“I don’t care.”
“Who’s this PARTY for?” Asked his father with emphasis on the word ‘Party’
“It’s for a girl &..”
“GIRL!!!!!!” Replied Edinplam’s father.
“She’s not like the other girls. Here’s her picture.” Edinplam pulled the invitation, folded it out & showed his parents Marriette’s photo.
“Look at her….She looks like a prostitute. All that pink & purple.” Said his father as he passed the invitation to his mother.
“He’s right, she looks like a bad influence. My word, she’s showing off the sensitive part of her body!!” Shouted his mom with rage while pointing at the sensitive part of her body, her elbow.
“Mummah, it’s just her elbow, lots of girls show that off without even knowing.”
“It’s sin!! I forbid you to see this…hoochie again!!”
“She’s not a HOOCHIE!!!!!” shouted Edinplam with eye bursting anger. “She is a nice, sweet, kind girl who makes me feel noticed unlike you two, incarcerating me in that attic full of asbestos.”
“How dare you.” Said his mother shocked. “How dare you talk back to me in that tone of voice. You know how much I sacrificed to bring you to life?”
“I don’t want to hear it.”
“Listen  you you’re mother!” Shouted Edinplam’s father.
“You know I spent four hours  of pain trying to get you out in the delivery room, I bathed you, fed you, clothed you & this is the thanks I get for sacrificing my perfect slender body to bring you.”
“Oh shut it mom, I saw pictures of you at the beach, you don’t fit in a two-piece.”
“Well, you can forget about going to that party with that no good marrielle or whatever her thug prostitute name is.” Said Edinplam’s mother strictly.
“It’s Mariette! & she’s part of the ‘Leadership Club’!!!!!”
Edinplam’s father crumpled up the invitation & tossed it into the fireplace.
“NOOOO!!!” cried Edinplam as he saw the picture of Marriette burn into a fiery  ash.
“That picture is nothing but an image of female sin & debauchery, that woman was no good.” Said Edinplam’s mother sternly
“She was not a woman of sin, she was my….love! That‘s something you don‘t understand!” Edinplam stormed off into the attic & slammed the door, causing the window to shake & rustle.
    Later that night, Edinplam laid on the floor, remembering Mariette’s facial features as he lied on the dusty wood floor while listening to ‘Edith Piaf’s La Vie en Rose’ on his sister’s Vinyl record player which was stored in a suitcase. To ease his mind he read his sister’s leather diary, He read a passage from March 8th 2004.

‘It was a cold day, my mom is having her monthly woman thing again. Everyday is her monthly woman thing again. I should run away, leave home & never see them again; but I will miss my baby brother. I cradled him & I though about his future. I hope he doesn’t grow up dull & mean like my parents.’

   He was sad, but didn’t cry since his father taught him to never cry; even though he wanted to, he didn’t , all of his sorrows where held inside which isn’t very healthy for anyone.
“Only if you where to take me with you, Anilese.” said Edinplam by himself
Suddenly a glow appeared inside the suitcase, it was a crystal which released a rainbow glow like a glass prism shunned against a bright light. Edinplam grew shocked at what he was seeing, he wasn’t dreaming nor was he hallucinating since he pinched himself & felt the pain, this was real.
The Crystal began to float up to Edinplam’s frightened face, the glow dimmed so it can avoid blinding him. The crystal began to whisper something to Edinplam, reassuring the crystal itself means no harm.
“What do you want?” asked Edinplam scared.
The crystal whispered to Edinplam, “I want to help you escape.”
“How & why?”
“Your sister used a tunnel to escape this mansion.” whispered the crystal
“This sure is a mansion, but I highly doubt there’s a tunnel. If there where a tunnel, I would have known about it.”
“Maybe you didn’t look hard enough. You’re parents blocked the doorway to the tunnel using a mahogany bookcase.”
“Mahogany.  The living room bookshelf.” Replied Edinplam
“I spoke with your sister back when you where barely young. She wanted to escape this place, just like you. I was summoned by her when she spoke to me, she was trained as a gypsy.”
“She loved to wear silk. I should have known.”
“I remember she bought me at a shop & brought me back to life using herbs & remedies. She told me to awaken from suspended animation when you became of age.”
“Of age? When I’m nearly ending my youth? Why didn’t she tell you to awaken before I turned 14?” Asked Edinplam
“She didn’t want you to experience the hardships & suffering of the real world. Not at a young age Edinplam.
Edinplam still felt somewhat saddened that Anilese’s crystal did not awaken sooner.
“May I ask a question.”
“Yes you may.” whispered the crystal
Throughout the remainder of the night, the crystal began to talk about Anilese’s whereabouts & Marriette’s inner thoughts, Edinplam blushed by the fact that She thought fondly of him since she met him.
“Will you guide me through the tunnels & help me escape?” Asked Edinplam
“Yes” whispered the glowing crystal, “It is at my service to help you escape, it is one of the objectives Anilese told me to accomplish & I will guide you to Marriette if you want to see her.”
Edinplam thought hard, wondering if he wanted to see Anilese in her grown up state or if she would even recognize him since he was seven when she left home.
“I do not want to rush things, I want to start my escape tomorrow at the peak hours of the morning while every living creature ,except the nocturnal, are asleep.”
“As you wish Edinplam.”

  It was Friday morning, Edinplam did not recive his daily breakfast & was driven to school by his angry father. At school he couldn’t stop thinking about his escape today at midnight, his heart did not beat as fast as when he smuggled candy into his house & ate it in the privacy of his attic room.
“Hey Echo.” Said Marriette loudly & cheerfully
“Oh wow, hey.” Edinplam was a little frightened by her surprise cheer, “You scared me a little there.
“So….Can you go to the party?”
“Yeah, my parents are cool about it, or as everyone says ‘They’re chill about it.’ Do teens still say that?” Asks Edinplam
“I don’t know. I just want to see you there, okay.” Replied Marriette smiling
“Okay” Edinplam smiled a little & gave a thumbs up.

 It was a rainy night as everyone in the mansion was asleep, all except for Edinplam. Edinplam was sitting in the corner of the attic until the glow from the crystal illuminated the dark attic.
“Are you ready Edinplam?” Whispered the glowing crystal.
“Yes.”
Edinplam stored his school uniforms & the Vinyl LP on the suitcase. He used Knitting needled he stole from his math teacher’s desk & picked the lock of the attic door with extreme concentration. The door opened after he heard two clicking sounds; he walked down the stairs with his shoes on his hand without making a sound. The Crystal guided Edinplam to the living room where the mahogany bookshelf is located.
“Behind this wall lies the doorway to the tunnels. You must push the bookshelf quickly, without making a sound.” Whispered the glowing crystal
Edinplam nodded in agreement. He began to grab all of the books from the shelf & place them on the floor gently. As more books where removed , the bookshelf was easier to move, but he could not reach the two trophies above the bookshelf without a ladder. Edinplam moved the bookshelf & could see the door with no doorknob on it.
“I see it, I see the door.” Whispered Edinplam as he tried to push the bookshelf away from the wall but suddenly there was a loud crash. On the floor lied a broken glass trophy his father won at a real estate ceremony.
“We must go, Quickly, before you’re parents find you.” Whispered the crystal loudly
As Edinplam panicked, he began to push the bookshelf which ended up crashing to the floor. “There’s no point in being quiet now, let’s go!” Shouted Edinplam as tears dripped from his eyes. Both the crystal & Edinplam ran into the open door & into the dark tunnels which would be illuminated by the crystal.
Edinplam’s parents rushed down the living room as soon as they where awaken by the ruckus.
“My trophy,” said Edinplam’s father in a sad tone “I won that last year, Edinplam!!!”
“He’s gone.” Said his wife as she pointed at the open door in front of the fallen bookshelf.
Edinplam ran faster as soon as he hear his father’s muffled yell from the middle of the tunnel.
“Just a few more steps & you’ll be free in no time. Turn right.
Edinplam’s parents grabbed a flashlight & walked into the cobweb filled tunnel.
“Look here. Footprints.” Said Edinplam’s mother
“I’m coming to get you boy!” Shouted the father
They began to follow the footsteps Edinplam had left & ran through the dark tunnel
“Turn Left & go straight from there.” Instructed the crystal
Edinplam suddenly heard his parent’s echoed yells from a distance.
“It’s them!” Edinplam began to run faster than a spanish matador from a raging bull.

“It can hear you son!!!” Shouted his father as drips of saliva ran our of his mouth & ran, following the footsteps until he saw a dead end. It was a wall full of cobwebs & candles around a picture of Lenin.
“He’s gone!!” Shouted Edinplam’s mother.
He followed her voice & found her standing in front of an opening. It was a door leading to the stormy forest which was located outside the mansion gates. There was nothing but silence, “Let’s go back, set up an Amber Alert.”

 Edinplam stood in front of a 24 hour donut shop full of prostitutes & lone men who look like survivors of a post-apocalyptic world.
“It’s be ten hours till the party at Mariette’s begins.
“Yes, until then, let’s explore. There’s so much I’ve never seen like a river, parks, beaches. I never felt warm sand on my feet or caught trout on a desolate lake. There’s a whole world out there for me to explore & one girl I need to look for.”
“What are you gonna tell Marriette at the party? You can’t tell her you ran away from home.”
“I guess I’m a tell her my feelings.”
“Are you sure you’re up for it?”
“Yeah, of course I am, I just sure hope she won’t feel grossed out.”
So they walked to the barley lit streets of this criminal infested city; but to Edinplam, these where the streets of his freedom.