Anywhere You Run Novels & Stories

Amie was in the kitchen, drinking some water. "I thought I heard you moving around, slow poke," she teased. "Five more minutes and you would have run alone." "Good morning to you too, wild thing." "Where's the best place to run?" she asked, stretching. I drank close to a quart of water, before I answered. "The side street outside goes into a closed neighborhood. Nice sidewalks and pretty sparsely populated, with big yards and a small park. I imagine it's a couple of miles around, so it should be a decent run."

She snorts. “And where exactly would you find such a mythical land?” I shrug, trying to sound casual. “Eh … somewhere far. Like … I don’t know … South Africa, for instance.” I take a breath as the thought lands. The idea settles more heavily than I expect. “Just think — my kid could grow up around monkeys and giraffes and … nature and stuff.” Yeah. Running has definitely crossed my mind. A place with no D. No Chloe. No chaos breathing down my neck. Just distance. Just quiet. Just safety.

I would have to make sure to say far away from them, seeing how I did not know what they did. Mr. Griffen stood in front of us as we stood at the starting line. With a cocky smirk on his face. He looked right at me as he spoke to the group of "newbies," as he called us. I smiled right back at him. "All right, as I said before, other students who passed in previous years will try to make you fail. Also, the five with the slowest times will be disqualified as well. So run fast and think fast. The first thing you do is you must army crawl as fast as you can and select two weapons or tools to help you with this then with the selected items you must scale the twenty-foot wall and make it to the o

I'll be a dead meat, when that happens. My legs are already numb from running miles. I even beat the marathon. I looked back to make sure they weren't following me. I was silently praying. I almost cried while running. I pity myself. Running in an unfamiliar place. Being chased by bad people. Don't even know where to go. There's no one to help. I wanted to cry. But I can't. I just can't believe I'm coming to this point in my life. Never in my wildest dreams that it would happen.

The best though, other than being an adult, was in the halfway houses; in there you were pretty much on your own as long as you checked in regularly. When I'm running, I'm free. I know that sounds simple, but it's really pretty profound. I'm free to move, to think, to just be. I have no masters, no responsibilities, no demands; it's just me -- putting one foot in front of the other -- and the road.

Life goes on. Mike's life also goes on, the wheel that had stopped is now spinning again on its axis. Mike's life is worse than ever. Not only did he mess up in Italy, but Mike also messed up in France. Yeah! There was no stopping whatever he was doing now. Going home in a clean body is an odd thing for Mikequel, he takes it out on anyone who gets in his way.

Sometimes, all we need is a little time and space to breathe and refocus. "Run to where?" I asked, feeling frustrated. "I don't know anywhere," she replied. The uncertainty hung in the air, and I could sense her desperation. Without a clear destination or a safe haven in sight, the idea of running seemed daunting. Yet, the urge to escape persisted, fueled by the instinct to flee from whatever danger or discomfort loomed ahead. “But I would be caught, and I don't think it's worth it for me to run now.” I wait, resigned to my circumstances, and focus on what's to come. Sometimes, it's not about fleeing or escaping, but about facing what's ahead with courage and determination. I'll wait and see

And this time… I’m not running to survive. I’m running to protect everything that matters.

I could shit on my pants right now. "This is where you die. You have nowhere to run." She says. I don't think she's capping. She means every word.

I just needed my own space where I could think. I kept running and running even though I had nowhere in mind to go.