11:58pm
April 14th, 2001

"Okay, kid," Zeppelin sniffed, unfolding the crinkled map across her weathered green bedspread. "Once it hits midnight, I want you to close your eyes, stick your finger someplace on the map, and that's where we'll go."

Her younger brother scrunched his nose, hesitation muddying his crisp blue eyes. "Why me?" His hair flopped over his face with that boyish innocence most twelve year olds seem to have, the dark brown, almost black color one of the few similarities between the half siblings.

  "Because I don't really give a shit where we go," Z admitted, crossing her legs and leaning back against the cheap plaster wall. "As long as we get out of here, Benji."

  He rolled his eyes, mimicking her position against the wall as they stared at the alarm clock perched on the nightstand. Zeppelin's best friend Veronica had given her the hot pink box that also served as a CD player, knowing their parents would never have cared enough to buy her something she might actually need and enjoy.

  That was eight years ago, and it's been weeks since she'd seen or spoken to her old friend..

  "When I'm eighteen, will you stop calling me Benji?" Her brother interrupted her thoughts as he leaned forward and squeezed his eyes shut, preparing himself to play pin the tail on their escape plan. "I'd like to think I'd be the type of man who goes by Benjamin. Full names are baller."

  "Fat chance," Z snickered, her gaze lingering on the clock. Just a few more seconds, and she'd be old enough to get an apartment somewhere, find a job and put Benji in school or do it herself if she had to. Whatever it took to ensure they would escape this hell of a home and never look back.

  "You ready?" She whispered, watching his small finger hovering over the map, arcing in wide circles.

  "Ready," he breathed.

  12:00pm

  "Now."

  He slapped his finger down, softly enough as to not rip through the thin paper, almost cringing when he opened one eye to peer at the location.

  Z would've burst out laughing if she didn't fear waking her mother and stepfather.

  "Atlanta? Seriously?" Her shoulder shook with the silent giggles, shaking her head as she shoved Benji on his arm playfully. "I tell you to pick anywhere on this map of the United States and you end up two hundred miles north?"

  He sighed, his shoulders sinking as he stared at the map in disbelief. "I can do it again," he mumbled.

  "Oh, no, no," she argued, folding the map back up and tossing it next to the alarm clock. "Atlanta's fine. Plenty of work there and hey, makes our drive that much easier!"

  He nodded slowly, thoughtfully, twisting his head to gaze out the thin, glass windowpane. The moonlight illuminated the plains of his face, which had already shed the roundness of youth a long time ago due to the lack of stable meals until Z was able to find odd jobs around town. His sharp cheekbones and angled nose were the other features they shared, though their eyes were wildly different. Both framed by thick, dark lashes, his were the color of a glacier in the ocean, while hers were the same green as a forest in spring.

  "Any thoughts?" She murmured, twisting a lock of her dark curls around her finger. "Regrets?"

  "No," he answered immediately.

  Z nodded, not fully convinced his answer wasn't just practiced poise. "Okay.. need to say goodbye to anyone? We can delay a few hours if you want to."

  His brow crinkled as he finally turned to look at her. She knew there was some girl at school he'd looked at with doe eyes for months, every time Z dropped him off or picked him up, she'd watch as his face searched for hers. But when she asked him about the girl, he groaned and told her to butt out, so she respected it.

  "Nope," his lips popped on the syllable, his face expressionless. "I'm ready to get the eff out of here."

Z smiled at that, twisting it into a smirk as she hopped off the bed and reached underneath, sliding out the black duffel bag. Another gift from Veronica, back when she was obsessed with getting Z to try out for every sports team possible with her, particularly cheerleading.

That one never latched on, while Z had the body and athleticism for it, there was a certain something she lacked. Those were the coach's exact words, though Z knew that really just meant she wasn't a perky blonde and never would be. Veronica made the team, fitting into the image seamlessly, and yet they never let that create space between them.

Her disappearance a month ago took care of that.

"Come on, you know the drill," she whispered, waving waved her hand in the air as Benji grabbed his own bag from under the bed.

This bag she had managed to get from Mrs. Collins down the road when she mowed her lawn, casually mentioning that she'd be going on a trip soon and didn't have any luggage to take with her. The ninety two year old woman crooned and nearly jumped at the chance to give her something physical, as in her mind that meant she wouldn't have to give her as much cash.

Whatever.

  She passed her reflection in the foggy mirror and paused, gingerly pressing the pads of her fingers into the black and blue flesh circling her left eye. She'd made the mistake of coming in past eleven the night before, and consequently awoke her raging asshole of a stepfather. He had marched down the stairs, not caring that he'd then woken up the rest of the household, screaming about how she needed to show him a little more respect.

  Her answer was a curse spat through gritted teeth, and he'd struck her with the back of his thick hand before the words had fully left her lips. It didn't matter that she was late because Benji had a field trip to the science museum coming up, and she refused to send him off without anything to buy a decent lunch with so she'd picked up some hours washing dishes at the bar down the street.

  The owner was an old friend of her mom's, though they parted ways when she sobered up while Z's mother deteriorated more and more. Though Rachelle couldn't technically let her work on the books as a minor, she'd cut Z some of her tips every now and then when she was real desperate for cash.

  Z decided then and there that they would leave. When she hesitantly brought it up to Benji, he'd agreed with hardly a second thought. When she asked why, he simply said he needed to leave too.

  Most of the time, she was able to shield Benji from his father's wrath or their mother's stupidity, often taking the blame for whatever bullshit they decided to fixate on while they were cracked out of their minds. But she had to go to school, and work, and couldn't always be there to lock him in his room and take the beatings for him.

  They had to leave.

  Now.

  She caught his reflection in the mirror, his gaze locked onto the bruise just as her own had been. Her cheeks flushed, in both anger and embarrassment, and she looked away, slinging her duffel bag over her shoulder.

  "You ready?"

  Benji nodded, carefully sliding open her window and letting the dewy night breeze twist through the room. He tossed his bag out first before throwing one leg over the windowsill and jumping the few feet to the grass below.

  She paused for a moment, taking a moment to look around her room. Minimal, almost bare, with a simple bed frame, nightstand, and vanity with a few Polaroids scattered over the top. She snagged one of her and Benji, grinning in the tent she set up in their backyard, then one of her and Veronica at a pep rally with their arms wrapped around each other's necks, and shoved them both in the side pocket of her bag.

  Benji blew a soft, inquisitive whistle and she smiled, heading over to the window and sticking her head out. "I'm coming," she whispered.

  She mimicked his movements and hopped out into the night, her hands and knees damp from the dew on the grass as she tumbled. Benji pulled her up by the elbow, stumbling himself as they raced over to their bicycles.

  Their plan was simple. Ride the bikes to the bus station, then ditch them at the racks and grab the first two tickets to Atlanta.

  They pedaled as hard and fast as they could, quickly weaving around each other on the empty roads, their breathless giggles a mirrored harmony with each other's. The cool night air whipped her hair around her face, and she tossed her head back and truly laughed for the first time in a long time. The taste of freedom was so sweet, enough to make her teeth chatter.

  Atlanta was it.

  That moment, the one instant she'd always been waiting for that would change everything.

  Forever.