I. The Runaway Orphans

August 1st, 2017

The next day came quickly, and the sunlight shone through a few of the windows in the bedroom. Viper suggested that she and Ivory lock the windows and the door because she didn't want Noah and Andy entering. Ivory agreed.

Ivory was sitting on her bed, playing her violin, practicing a song she wrote so that they could get money while roaming the streets of Manhattan. Money doesn't come and go; it had to be earned, sometimes the hard way.

"That's a nice song," Viper looked up from her book.

"Thanks."

"You've really worked on it, but what will I do to earn money? You can't do it all on your own."

"Viper, you can sing. Don't tell me you can't because I hear you singing all the time. You can write a song and perform it while I play a nice tune for it."

"Okay, let's get going. The faster we get out of here, the better," Viper anxiously replied.

Ivory packed up her violin while Viper packed up her songbook. They both have old, worn-out backpacks prepared with necessities, food, and water. They quietly climbed out the window and jumped, trying their best not to sound too loud. As they started to walk away from foster care, Noah and Andy suddenly appeared. The boys looked at the blonde and brunette, seeing they were up earlier than usual with backpacks. They knew right away that the girls were escaping.

Ivory wondered what else could go wrong as she glanced at Viper, who looked nervous.

"Noah, get the boss. I'll deal with them," Andy smirked.

Ivory felt her heartbeat out of her chest.

They might get into massive trouble for this. Both girls gave one another a quick glance before running off with Andy right on their trail. As he caught up with the girls, he grabbed Viper. Ivory looked at the two as Viper started to holler and try to hustle Andy off of her. Ivory then looked down at her violin case, and Viper caught her best friend's eye as the two looked at one another. Viper knew what Ivory was about to do. Viper ducked as Ivory quickly lifted up her violin case and threw it at Andy. He fell to the floor, holding his face.

Viper sniggered.

"You'll pay for that!" he threatened, standing up while holding onto his face.

"I'd like to see you try and catch us, then," Ivory challenged.

They sprinted without the violin and kept running until they lost the love-struck boys and saw no sign of the foster house. They saw a nice looking but abandoned car in the middle of the road. They decided to hop into it, and Viper took hold of the wheel, even though she didn't know how to drive. Not only would it get them to the city in a less amount of time, but they have the advantage of getting a jump start just in case the boys and the owner come looking for them.

"Hold your horses, young ladies—" an older gentleman with grey hair and wrinkles, who popped up out of nowhere, walked over, stopping them, observing their tattered outfits, "that is my car." He looked them up and down again, seeing that they don't come from a place of money. He looked down the vast field that they ran by and saw two boys' running toward gated buildings. "How about this—for ten bucks, I'll take you to your destination."

"Manhattan, please," Viper and Ivory each split the cost amongst themselves and handed him five dollars each.

"Here we go," the gentleman got in and turned the engine on, looking near the quiet, enclosed area one last time.

The car began to move, then steadied at the maximum speed: 55 mph. As they left, Ivory was annoyed because she didn't get to grab her violin, but living was worth more than a violin. She'd get another one sooner or later. Right now, all that mattered was that she and Viper get to Manhattan. Ivory hoped that Ms. Campbell, "the wicked, old, widowed, foster homeowner," wouldn't find them, because knowing Chad and Lawrence, they'd beg for her to search. Ivory liked the foster care owner, but she wanted to find her own way.

***

Back at the foster house, the owner was furious with the news she was told after Lawrence came in sulking while Andy slowly made his way in, holding onto his face, yelling in pang.

"What? What do you mean they escaped?" The foster house owner, Ms. Campbell, shouted at Andy and Noah from her desk in her office. Her cat-shaped glasses hung lower on her nose.

"Gee, I don't know. They had bags with them, and they ran off!" Noah replied in a smart-aleck tone.

"Don't get nasty with me, boy," she threatened with a snarl. She turned her attention over to Andy. "What happened to your face?"

"I grabbed Viper and Ivory retaliated by throwing her violin case at me," he removed his hands away from his face, revealing a huge red spot on his right cheek and on the right side of his forehead. The right side of his face was slightly swollen.

"Oh, my goodness! We must put ice on that," Ms. Campbell said.

Ms. Campbell worried that her boss would find out. She knew that her boss would not be happy with Ivory's departure.

"Well, now what? Aren't you going to send people out to go and find them?" Andy asked.

Ms. Campbell shook her head and leaned back in her chair. "You see Andy; if those two want to run away and take care of themselves, then so be it. Besides, they don't have much money, at least I don't think they do—and they have no experience for a real job. Those two will get what they deserve," she closed her eyes and sighed. "Viper and Ivory will get themselves into trouble with the outside world, but it's their problem since they decided to leave."

"But Ms. Campbell—"

"That's enough, Noah!" Ms. Campbell hissed while banging files onto the desk, shuffling them together. "I don't want to hear about it. Many kids run away from foster homes with free will. Those two are old enough to make their own choices. I'm not their mother, and I'm most certainly not their babysitter. Once they're outside the doors of the workhouse with no supervision, they can do whatever they please. Now, get out."

The two boys sulked and left the room, upset that the girls they love ran away and wouldn't be returning. They began to wonder why the two girls ran away, and where will they run off too. They decided to forget about it, knowing that what Ms. Campbell said was true. The girls would face a lot of problems in the real world.

Ms. Campbell hoped her boss wouldn't be angry with her about their departure. He wasn't the nicest man, but he paid well. She sent him a quick and urgent email, hoping that she wouldn't be punished. Ms. Campbell felt her heart pounding, nervous about the response. She wished that the girls waited until next year; Ivory would have known the truth. She sighed, knowing that Ivory was no longer under her care and that she wouldn't be able to protect the young girl.