Xscape

story & illustrations

by Becky Pan 

Life with my parents sucked long before I realized it.

  Dudes, I think you will surely agree with me that there is a kind of animal species dangerous to us six“teens”─parents. They are unpredictable, uncontrollable and worst of all─they are always right. Always. I mean, no matter how hard we try to convince them of something, if they already have a so-called “wonderful” plan for us, none of our ideas matters to them.

  Anyway, as I was saying earlier, my relationship with my parents was horrible. Every day I’d wake up into the same nightmare, as if I’d accidentally pressed the replay button too many times. I’d see my mom looming before me screaming the “What-are-you-still-doing-in-bed-do-you-have-any-idea-what-time-it-is-you’re-so-going-to-be-late-now-get-out-of-bed-and-go-eat-your-breakfast!” part over and over again like a VERY annoying high-pitch alarm clock. 

  “Mom,” I would complain, “no one eats breakfast at home. It’s so lame! All the cool guys hang out at the cafeteria. Do you want me to look like a loser? I’m eating out.” 

  Okay, so perhaps I had spoken the wrong thing because my mom then erupted into a volcano. Well, not literally, but it was no less deadly. You could almost see the lava flowing out of her eyes, the steam hissing from her mouth and worst of all─the thunderous roaring.

   “Olivia, HOW MANY TIMES HAVE I TOLD YOU NOT TO HANG OUT WITH THE DRUGGIES? IT’S BAD INFLUENCE AND YOU WILL END UP IN JAIL SOMEDAY!”

Really? Is that so? I thought, you’ve just woken the whole neighborhood, mom. “All I want, is some of my personal space. I can’t stand that you’re always buzzing around me and interfering with my choice of friends.” I grumbled. And yes, as you can predict, the volcano just transformed into a nuclear bomb. 

  But hey, don’t judge me so harshly! I am already 16! Surely I am capable of handling my own life. There is no reason for my parents to rudely butt in and ground me every time I request to hang out with friends. 

  Little did I know that it was this thought that led me to the biggest disaster of my life.…

It was another normal day at school. My friends Katrina, Natalie and I hung out as usual in the hallway, peeking and squealing as guys walked by. Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you that Katrina and Natalie are the party type─they go around flirting with guys they meet, especially Katrina. You should’ve seen how “hungry” she was. On the contrary, I am the “goodie good” kid, thanks to my mom.

  They only came over to my place once, which turned out to be a total nightmare. My parents found neither of them “appropriate friends” and told me to break up with them; on the other hand, Katrina and Natalie saw my parents as “ridiculous creatures.” I was never allowed to mention their names again, and was “separated” (or so my parents think) from them. However, I never listened to my parents. Who wouldn’t want to be friends with such cool girls? 

  Anyway, we were standing and chatting there in the hallway when suddenly a deep voice from behind us said, “Hey, Kat.” We whirled around. Leaning on the wall was Chad, the football captain with a crooked smile on his face. 

  “Wanna go to Rick’s on Saturday? I heard that they’re holding a party, and well … I think we could have a little of our ‘private time.’”

Katrina’s gorgeous eyes gleamed. “All right then, sexy, see you on Sat.”

Chad shifted his balance to the other foot, then with a sly smile he said, “Oh, and don’t forget to bring your two cute babes as well,” motioning at me and Natalie. “they’ll sure know how to hype up the party.” “O’ course,” Kat replied, looking at us, “surely you girls will come, you can’t miss Rick’s.” Natalie nodded eagerly, “Definitely, I’m so going to be there.” 

  By this time, my palms were slippery and my forehead was coated with beads of sweat; anxiety and uneasiness settled inside of me. Oh please no, don’t ask me. I pleaded silently. I knew only too well how my parents would react if I ever brought up the topic, much less attending it, and yet I didn’t want to look lame and stupid in front of the boy of my dreams. 

  Well, apparently the odds weren’t in my favor that day because Chad then turned to me and asked, “What ‘bout you hun? You coming?”

  I cursed viciously in my head at my parents and answered in a quivering voice, “Well … I … umm … I’m sorry, can’t go.” Kat and Nat stared at me in disbelief, as if I’d just dropped in from outer space and hissed, “What are you doing, Liv? Do you have any idea what you’re saying?” Instantly, I felt the blood rise to my cheeks and I blushed with embarrassment. “I’m really sorry, but … but my mom she … you know … ” I wasn’t even able to finish the sentence. “Oh no, your mom again?” Kat said in a disgusted tone, “Seriously, when are you going to outgrow the ‘mommy’ thing?” “Well, well, let’s not be too hard on her.” Chad said in a mocking voice, “Everyone has their own issues with parents.” 

That was it. The smirk on Chad’s face was the last straw. “All right! I’ll go!” I blurted out. “As long as I sneak out quietly … I guess I could….” A broad smile grew on Chad’s face and he winked at me. “Seems like our little girl’s grown up. Well done, I’ll be expecting you on Sat.” With that note, he strolled away. Kat turned to me, “I can’t believe you were so stupid, Liv! You made us look like total losers! When Chad says something to you, you simply don’t say no. You just don’t, but at any rate, I’m glad that you’re finally coming. We’ll let you know what a good time you can have, and … uh ... I gotta go, see ya!” She turned and walked away with Natalie. 

  Only then did I let out my breath. What was I thinking? I screamed in my head, I can’t go to the party! I just can’t get myself to sneak out late at night. I dreaded even more declining Chad, Kat and Nat. With guilt weighing heavily on my mind, I started to plan how I was going to escape from home as I trudged home warily.

  Tick tock, tick tock. 

  I bit my lip, hoping to hide my anxiety. My parents sat beside me at the table eating dinner and babbling something that sounded to me like this: “How’s the blah blah blah blah at school, blahhhhhhh blah blah blah homework and review blah bla bla be a good kid.” I didn’t hear a thing they said. The only thought rushing around in my head like a very irritating hamster was the event that was about to happen. Two more hours, I told myself, I’ll fake sick and go to bed early. After about another three hours, when my parents have long gone to bed, I’ll listen and see whether they’re asleep, then I’ll quietly tiptoe down the stairs to the back door and Katrina will be waiting in a car for me. I took a deep breath and exhaled, as I ran over the steps again in my head, fearing that something unexpected might occur. It’s going to be all right, I assured myself, stop scaring yourself with those stupid “what ifs.”

Tick tock, tick tock.

  “OH MY GOD! I can’t believe I did it!” I screamed in Katrina’s car. “Yeah, ya see? Natalie told you it ain’t that hard dealing with your folks. Now, let’s go off PARTYING!” With whoops and yells we sped onwards to Rick’s.

  Even from a far distance, I heard the deafening disco music and the beats.

  Above the entrance was a big banner with large words that read “ALL DRINKS ARE ON THE HOUSE!” The house was lit up with different colors of torches and large ribbons dangling from all the windows. People swarmed everywhere and the laughter and cheering noise they made echoed around the courtyard. 

  “Wow,” I gasped, stunned by the view. I could hardly take in the size of the party. “C’mon, let’s go look around and have some fun.” Katrina chirped happily, “Oh look! Here comes Chad.” I looked toward the direction she was pointing at and my jaw dropped. 

  Chad and a bunch of guys, all buff and ripped, strolled toward us. They all wore leather jackets and combat boots with black designer jeans that went surprisingly well with their “over-tight” stylish shirts. I had a hard time keeping myself from drooling over the eight packs that pressed out under their clothes.

  “Yo,” Chad said in a husky tone as he walked towards us, “seems like you all made it to the party, welcome babes.” He looked us all over with seductive eyes saying, “I’ve brought you some dance partners. Meet my bros, Tanner, Kyle and Dylan. You’ll have a great time at the party with them. Enjoy ladies!” 

  The first thought that popped into my head when Chad finished speaking was: Whoa, whoa, wait a sec bro. I don’t even know you that well, let alone your buddies. So why don’t we just all chill down, have a nice cup of tea like civilized humans and get to know each other a bit more? But instantly, I felt stupid for having the thought. Look at all the people dancing and drinking around you! I told myself, this is a place for fun, not a place for us to be lame little kids. Therefore, uncomfortable as I was with the situation, I forced a tight smile and joined them on the dance floor.

  It wasn’t long before the uneasiness churning in my stomach turned into wave after wave of nausea. The  strong odor of perfume mixed with sweat kept flowing into my nostrils, the thundering music was pounding in my ear, threatening to impale my eardrums, and worst of all, the constant rubbing and contact with so many people, with a lot of body parts exposed, made me want to puke.

     Finally I couldn’t stand it. “Hey guys,” I said to Tanner and Natalie, who were having a very good time making out beside me, “I’m not feelin’ very well, I’m going to the bar and get some drinks.” They were having such fun that they didn’t even bother to answer. So I made my way through the enormous crowd to the bar, ordered a drink, and sat down.

  Sitting away from the crowd helped clear my mind. For the first time, I started looking around the house. I saw people dancing and screaming, cheering and laughing, and as I turned my head, I spotted Chad. He was talking with another guy that I didn’t know and I saw cash and white powder exchanged between them.

  I was baffled. Partying at night may not be a good thing, but drugs? That was too overboard and I couldn’t take it. As I watched, Chad pushed his way through the crowd and handed some to Katrina. She went wide-eyed─with excitement and started to look for Nat and me.

  Panic welled up inside me. No no, I thought. There is no way I could agree on drugs! I looked frantically around to see if anybody had sighted me. Lucky me, Tanner was looking and pointing toward my direction. 

  I ran. 

  Through the front door, past the gateway and into the starless night. I caught a cab and got in before the front door was opened and Chad and his gang emerged.

  I was still panting hard after I snuck into my bedroom and hid myself under the covers. I was terrified about the things that happened and with dread I found no choice but to tell my parents the truth. After Chad saw my reaction, I knew that there was no going back. He would eventually come to me and do something horrible to keep my mouth shut, like I would even want to tell the police. I drifted into dreamless sleep as I wished I had listened to my parents and never would have ended up in this mess. 

  Tomorrow. I will face my parents and my punishment, for this is all my fault, I thought as the reality drifted away and I was washed into my dreams.