Going Nowhere Fast

24. Turns

I couldn't believe it. I woke up the next morning to the news that they had released Billie. I didn't think he was fully off the hook but at least he didn't kill anyone. Yeah, that sounded bad, but it's best case scenario when you're accused of murder. I wasn't sure exactly what happened. Clara told me there was no word on what happened to him. It must've been really dumb. I needed to see him.

Clara had gone back home. It was Friday. I was lucky that we had a long weekend. Because Billie came home and they released him, I would've been forced to go to school.

I got my ankle bracelet taken off when I first woke up. The guy was literally in my bed room when my parents woke me. I felt slightly creeped out. He had this weird smirk on his face. Clara was in the room too but she had woken up before they came in. She left as soon as they got there.

I looked at the clock and it was eleven-thirty. Shit, a lot must've happened while I was sleeping.

I had slept in really late so Billie had already spoken to the police by the time I woke up. I didn't know if he went home or not. I decided it was worth a shot.

My parents had work that day but they took the morning off. They were about to leave and they wouldn't be back until five. My sisters had school that day so no one would be home

I put on my favorite, yellow T-shirt that I had been missing the last week and a pair of jean shorts. It was a really nice day out. The air smelt like flowers and the sun was inviting and warm. I grabbed my bag and threw on some sneakers. I realized that my mother would notice if I left because she would probably call the house phone. I could probably tell her that I went out to the pool and fell asleep outside. I realized that would be a lot of sleeping for one day to sound believable but I could pretend to have been out there the whole time.

I climbed out my back window and cut through some of my neighbor's yards in case there were any people lingering on my street, trying to get a glimpse at me or whatever weird people like that did.

I had missed the simple freedoms of my life before I ran away. I definitely didn't regret doing it though. It was a crazy adventure that I'd never forget.

As I was cutting through my one neighbor's yard, I realized that Billie's house was probably covered in reporters. I had to be super careful about how I approached his property.

As I zeroed in on his street I realized that I was right. There was a massive crowd of people with cameras standing in front of his house. I immediately cut over into the woods along the side of the road and walked a tad bit up the mountain that was parallel to his street. I had to stay back or my bright outfit would've given me away for sure.

I finally reached Earl's backyard where I noticed the tree that I usually went to.

--

I started climbing up when I heard, "I figured I'd run into you here."

I looked up and saw Billie staring down at me. He had a sly grin on his face. I quickly climbed up to where he was sitting in the tree. I stared at him in awe. I noticed how he had dressed himself. He was wearing a light-blue button up shirt and cargo pants. The scars still plaguing his arms and legs seemed to add a lot of contrast to his preppy clothes. His hair was brushed back under a dark-brown baseball cap with a rocket ship on it. I was pretty sure he was still wearing mascara though.

His green eyes had a sparkle that I had never seen in them before and his cheeks looked pink and rosy. I smiled when I saw how happy he looked.

"Are they at your house too?" he asked.