Adam started running. He wanted nothing more than to stay in that lovely town forever, living a carefree life. Everything there was just so amazing, and compared to the alternative, perfect. Though he knew that there was no way he could do that. If he were to stay put, he would be letting her down. Not to mention they would be catching up to him soon. So he ran away from that orphanage in the night, bringing nothing but his clothes, food, and water with him.
He had been through this before and knew what he needed to do, as well as how to go about it. He had been careful to only go to small towns, that way it would be easy to escape from them when the time came. He had gone through this procedure so many times by this point, though that never made it hurt any less. In fact the pain only seemed to grow larger within him, swelling like a pimple of pain, just waiting to burst.
He had tried getting close to people in the past, though he had learned that the warmth of their comfort could not even begin to compare to the flames that consumed him every time he had to leave them behind.
He would be getting close now. After two years of hopping from town to town, making his way to the coastal town of Melden, he finally was within arms reach of it. His feet smashed against the dirt, making for a wonderful, rhythmic pounding. This was who he was always meant to be. A free spirit, running towards a goal, that for so long had eluded him.
After running for a while he had to make a choice. If properly rationed his food and water he got from the last village would last for seven days. He knew that on the way to Melden there was a well established city that he could go to. They had a proper orphanage, and he would most likely be put there. He was sixteen and all. He had heard that it treated it’s members well, so he would get decent freedom and the rations he needed to make it to Melden. Though the main problem would be escaping. While he would get decent freedom, it was a well guarded city. Leaving could prove troublesome, should he choose to go there.
Though that wasn’t his only option. He also knew of a small village. While he didn’t know much about it, he presumed that it would be easier to escape from, for how could a small village compare to a giant city? However he did wonder about supplies and treatment. They may be too low to give them to some random boy, and they also might mistreat him. It would be a gamble.
However there always was the third option. He could just walk to Melden without stopping. Sure his supplies might not make it that far, but he could just eat and drink sparingly. The only feasible route would be a ten day walk through the forest though, and there are other dangers there besides starvation and dehydration. Though he wouldn’t have to escape, and he would get there faster, so that was a plus.
He sat under a tree pondering his choices for a long while, though eventually he knew what the correct choice was. What did he pick?