A Taste of Freedom

Out of all the ways I expected myself to move out, sneaking out the garage past my curfew on a bike in the rain at 16 definitely wasn't my first thought.

Theoretically speaking, running away should have been a piece of cake. Dorthy and Connor were out on another one of their "work days." but I've lived with them long enough to know how to translate their excuses.

Work day just means that theyre going out to "Organos' ' to spend two hours eating fancy steak and pasta while Dorthy takes social media pictures of the food. This isn’t something they do often since they're constantly busy with they're rich and famous lives so this was the perfect time for me to pack a backpack with essentials and run off.

I was sick and tired of this place. Being held captive in this mansion for seven years made me feel like Rapunzel, without the happy ending. Every day felt like an endless loop of working on my perfect image.

 I was sick of it.

I decided to only pack the important things so my bag didn't carry weight on the bike. I know how to ride a bike but it’s been 10 years so I’m a little rusty. Dorthy and Connor never bought me my own bike, so my plan is to steal one of the many they keep in the garage. I started with the main essentials which were a couple outfits, snacks, water and my phone just in case. However I did steal two 50’s from Dorthy’s purse right before she left. Add that to my allowance and I was pretty set on my budget. 

I spent all night writing down my plan: pack all my things and be ready by 9:30 so I can take off before 10. That way, they have no chance of tracking me down when they come home. I slipped in a bag of Oreos from the counter and went to test the bikes. This was going to be a long trip so I needed the best functioning one. Nobody in the house ever bikes but Dorthy wanted her house to have a so-called “image'' so they bought bikes just for show. I grabbed one of the bike handles when I was startled by the sound of the front door opening.

"That waitress had the audacity to disrespect me like that! Like does she know who I am?"

I recognized that dirty sophisticated nagging voice the moment I heard it and I crouched behind the wall. Everything else in the house was silent besides the conversation noises and footsteps. I listened closely.

"They're lucky I didn't call my lawyer to sue them." I heard her drop the keys on the floor and rolled my eyes. Dorthy was always such a brat around people whenever she’s not on the news. She's like a spoiled teenager in a woman's body.

"Isabelle. We're home!" I froze. I forgot that I hadn't even opened the garage yet. I looked at my black wristwatch frantically. “It’s only 9:20. They were back earlier than expected.

"Isabelle?" he called again. I wiped the sweat off my forehead as I bit my lip to remain silent.

"Maybe she's moping in her room." I could sense the irritation in her voice as she said that. Dorthy never understood me like mom did. Mom could take one glance at me and instantly know what's going on. Which makes me question why she left me the way she did. I heard footsteps going upstairs, meaning they probably went to check on me. I took this as my last opportunity. I sprinted from my hiding spot and opened the garage door. What I didn't realise was that Dorthy was still standing at the front door, meaning she heard the garage door open. I panicked, grabbed the closest bike to me, swiped my bag with one finger off the ground and heaped it over my shoulder. By the time Dorthy opened the door, I was already pedalling out of the house. 

"Isabelle! Get back here!" Dorthy screamed, attempting to run after me in her fancy black heels. I pedalled faster and faster without any sense of direction, escaping her sight. My heart was beating as fast as it could. I've never felt fear like this ever in my life. I didn't hesitate to think of where I was going. Infact, it took a solid five minutes of speed pedalling all over the place before I stopped in my tracks to realise where I was.

I didn't have a clue.

I looked around at my surroundings. The clouds in the sky were turning shades of grey and were slowly coming together. The highways had cars going crazy speeds. The wind breeze was pretty quiet but gave me chills. I Crouched down next to my bike and felt the grass with my index finger. Nature is delightful to see outside your window but it always feels better in person. I tried taking in a deep breath of fresh air when my phone buzzed.

I unzipped my bag to find an anonymous voicemail left on my phone. I should have known better than to check it, considering that I was on the run. But my curiosity said otherwise. I pressed on the voicemail and listened to what played back to me.

"Listen here you brat! You better come back right now! We're at the police station with cops chasing after you so I suggest you end this now. You are so ungrateful of your father and I! We take you into our home, I welcome you and give you a makeover, we give you all the toys and gifts you ask for and this is how you repay us? You're lucky we even fostered you in the first place! Without us, you're nothing but a hopeless orphan with no family or future ahead of her. " She paused and took an angry breath after her long rant.

"Don't make the wrong choice Isabelle."

The voicemail ended.

My brain was trying its hardest but no part in my body could ever process what I just heard. I shoved my phone back in my bag, hopped back on my bike and started pedalling again. Now the clouds were getting darker and darker. The wind was getting slightly harder as I kept going.

Half an hour of endless pedalling went by and I still didn't have a clue where I was. I couldn't go home even if I wanted to. Suddenly, an image of Dorthy flashed in my head. Memories vividly went through my head. The day I met her, 7 years ago. When she held me close, telling me how I was going to love my new home! How she complimented my brown hair, telling me it was so beautiful. How she and Connor both held my hands and watched me skip out the door. 

How could I be so Naive?

I remember being seated in her dressing room. Where her maids, Lisa and Lily shut the door and went to work on me. A few hours of styling went by and I finally got a glance in the mirror. My face went pale that day. I was a whole new person. They had cut my hair and used bleach and hair dye to make it blonde. I even had blue contacts instead of my original green eyes. I remember being both confused and excited about my new look as I gave Dorthy a big hug!

How could I be so blind?

My last vivid memory was when Dorthy gave me a new outfit: a blue and white lace dress with black slippers to wear. It wasn't my regular style of Black t-shirts and jeans but 9 year old me was really hyped for a new change. I skipped outside into the backyard, twirling around in my new outfit when I smelt smoke. When I rushed to see what was happening, I spotted another maid standing next to a small fire in the corner. I ran up to her and tried pulling her away from the fire, until I caught a glance on what was burning: My stuff. Everything I packed including all my clothes, Toys and drawings were all being burned to charcoal. I let out a high pitched scream as Dorthy rushed to see what happened. Dorthys concerned face turned into a sinister smirk as she saw the fire. She then put her hands on my shoulder and fired the maid right there on the spot. The maid wasn’t at all devastated and walked away without reaction. Dorthy hugged me and had Connor buy me new stuff. And to think she was so innocent.

How could I have been so oblivious?

The anger rushed through my blood as I pedalled at sonic speed. So fast that my oily chain became loose and I lost control of the bike. The bike turned towards an empty field near another highway and sent me flying off. 

I tumbled to the ground and fell on my back.I layed there in silence, giving up every ounce of hope I had left. I almost believed Dorthy at this point. I was nothing without their charity. I can’t even ride a bike for goodness sake. 

My eyes slowly shut in defeat when I felt a cold drop on my nose. I could tell it wasn't my tears since it was aimed directly on top. I opened my eyes to see another drop land on me. I slowly got off the floor, holding my palm to the sky, it was raining. I never truly experienced Rain in a long time. Seeing the drops on my window wasn’t enough for me. I had to feel it. I took a deep breath, taking in the beautiful smells and sounds of the pouring water and breathed out. All my thoughts drifted away as I watched the rain come down, faster and faster. I felt a hard drop on my head and instantly covered it with my hands. Dorthy never lets me outside in the rain because then my hair dye will wash out in public. Everyone thinks my blonde hair is natural but I always have it redone at least five times a day to keep it fresh. It was at that time I realised something.

 Nobody was around anymore. No one was here to say no or punish me. Nobody was here to criticise me or prevent me from being here.

 I stood up and spun around in the grass, getting soaked all over my clothes and hair. The amount of rain spread like wildfire and soon, it was a whole shower! I twirled around and jumped like there was no tomorrow. The blonde hair dye started to drip off and my natural brown colour was coming back to life. I ran through the grass, doing unbelievable cartwheels as my hair became a soggy mess! I hardly noticed the sky becoming darker yet the moon shining in the distance was all I needed to feel content. My heart was at ease and my mind was at comfort. It was a magical feeling I couldn’t explain. I felt so amazing, so energetic, so alive…

I felt free.