The Boy Who Once Lived in a Box

Have you ever felt as if you were a boat stranded at sea? No one there to help you and no one there to talk to. That’s how a boy named Alex felt. His parents, Amanda and Liam Robinson, were both very successful people. They were known for their co-owned A&G Company, an extremely successful record label. Their family was picture perfect to most, but the truth was his parents had total control over Alex’s life. They never let Alex leave their mansion, he was homeschooled, he couldn’t have anyone over, and the closest person he had to a friend was his personal butler. Alex was only 16 years old, like most kids his age, Alex was in the stage where he was curious, he wanted to know what the outside world was like. He knew that if he continued to live inside the box his parents created for him, he would never be able to find true joy. At that moment Alex told himself that he would see what the world was like, no matter the cost. Alex had constructed an escape plan. In two days time he was to leave the mansion at nightfall, so by the time his butler had realized he was gone, Alex would have already made it to town. 

The two days had passed and the day had come. As nightfall approached Alex began to feel more weary and anxious about his plan. He thought to himself, “What will my parents do if they discover I’ve run away from home, more importantly what would they do to me?” The butler had come to check on Alex one more time before heading to his room, “Mr.Alex is there anything I could get you before I call it a night?”, said the butler. Alex replied with, “No I’m fine, have a good night.” The butler responded with, “Well if you need anything you know where my room is”. The butler closed Alex’s door and Alex waited until the footsteps of the butler could no longer be heard. Alex quickly jumped out of his bed, leaving behind one of his many stuffed animals in his place. He quickly changed, put on proper shoes, grabbed his wallet, and carefully opened his door. He raced down the stairs, and rushed towards the front door, just as he saw the butler walk out of the kitchen, Alex hid behind a cabinet. The butler said out loud, “Is anyone there?” Alex just stayed there praying to not be caught by his butler. About 10 minutes later the butler finally decided to go back to his room, quickly Alex ran towards the front door, unlocked it, and rushed outside. He began following the road that led away from his home. Alex was nervous, he had never been outside, he had never even been beside a forest of trees. This was all so new to Alex, but he seemed to enjoy it. He quickly started sprinting down the path, smiling, he was enjoying every second he spent outside that tiny box of his, he called “home”. 

After walking for about an hour or so, Alex had finally arrived in the city called Greendale. As he walked around exploring what Greendale had to offer, he soon found an inn, Alex decided to spend the night there, paying with the money he had saved from all those previous years. Alex was so excited that he couldn’t sleep, he just looked out the window in the room he was staying in, and thought to himself how beautiful the moon was. Soon later Alex drifted off into a nice relaxing slumber. Morning had come, Alex was so excited to continue exploring Greendale. He marched out of the inn and started walking down the sidewalks of Greendale. He visited many stores, was friendly to everyone he encountered, and yet every time he turned a corner or accidentally bumped into someone he felt like everyone stared at him. He thought nothing of it at the time because he thought that they were just weary about why a 16 year old was out and about alone, without a parent in sight. As he walked down the street a boy with decently long blonde hair, and blue eyes approached Alex,“Umm hello”, said Alex. The boy replied with, “Oh my god, Daniel?!” Alex was a bit confused and responded with,“My name isn’t Daniel it’s Alex”. The boy responded with, “Oh, sorry you just looked like someone I knew from a long time ago, I haven’t seen him in years. Oh and by the way my name is Dilan”. Alex said, “Oh hi Dilan”. Dilan responded with,“Have you ever ever been to Greendale? You seem a little confused, are you a tourist visiting?” Alex responded with, “Ya I’m a tourist of some sort, I was actually just about to go get something to eat, if you wanna join me”. Dilan said, “If it’s not too much trouble I’d like that”. Alex said, “Great, maybe you can tell me more about your friend, you mentioned earlier”. The two boys walked towards a restaurant down the block. As they say down Dilan had asked for a Pepsi and Alex ordered a glass of water. “So, you said your friend's name was Daniel.” Alex said. Dilan responded with, “Ya that was his name, the last time I saw him we were about 6 or 7, we were best friends or so I thought. One day he just vanished, his parents never saw him again and neither did I. I’ve missed him ever since.” Alex replied with,“Oh that must have been hard.” Dilan had asked Alex if his birthday was May 23, 2005. Alex responded with, “Ya it is, how did you know?”, Dilan said, “Just a guess. Also is your favorite color blue?” Alex replied with, “Ya it is.” Dilan started telling Alex things that only he knew about himself, he had never told anyone else. Alex started to get freaked out by how much Dilan knew about him. Alex said, “Dilan you're scaring me, I think I should go.” Dilan asked one final question, “Don’t you have a birthmark on your right shoulder?” Alex stood there in shock, frightened of how Dilan knew all these things about him. Dilan responded with, “By your reaction, I guess it really is you, Daniel.” As a tear fell down Dilan’s face, he said, “I’ve finally found you.” Dilan tells Alex that his real name is Daniel, and that he was kidnapped many years ago. Alex then said, “No that’s impossible my name is Alex and I live in a mansion behind the forest of trees.” Dilan replies with, “No your real name is Daniel, and you’ve been my best friend since we were in elementary school. If you don’t believe me let's head to the Greendale police station right now, they have a picture of how you would look as a teenager.” They walk towards the police station and as they arrive, they ask to see the picture of the missing boy named Daniel. In shock, Alex drops to the floor, crying, and says, “That’s me, I’m Daniel.” The boy who had sworn he had never seen the outside before was actually a boy who spent countless hours outside as a kid. Everything his so called parents had ever told him was a lie, and the reason they never let him outside of that prison he called “home” was because they feared he would find out who he truly was. The Alex who once existed was a fake, he never existed not for one second, his true identity was Daniel. The boy who once lived in that box of a home was no more and just like that “Alex” swore to never set foot in that box ever again, he never returned to that place he called home. The truth was finally revealed, he was finally free, he could finally explore the world, like he wanted to for all those years, and he would do it with his best friend Dilan right by his side.