Kendall

"You stupid bitch." Craig, my boyfriend, screams and slams his fist into my face. "Craig, stop. I swear I did not look at him or say anything." I sob as I attempt to protect my head from the blows he continues to throw at me. I spoke up and tried to stop his hits, but he did not like that. He simply became angrier and continued to hit me as a result. I hit the wall with my head and back after he threw me across the room. I landed with a crash."Ahh, Craig, please." I cried in pain as I tried to get up, but I fell as a result. "What did I say about talking to other guys? Why are you unable to listen? He kicks me in the ribs while screaming. I yelled, "I am sorry, Craig," as he turned to leave.

"Clean this mess up. In two hours, when I return, this house must be clean. In addition to my meal." He says before he storms out of the apartment. I sobbed as I lay on the ground. He was not always like this. When we first met a year ago, he was incredibly kind and sweet to me. He would buy me flowers and take me out on dates. He would scream at me and break things, but he never struck me. It was not until I moved in with him six months ago that he changed into this state. But when he witnessed a classmate helping me carry my books and bag today, it was the final straw for him. When I stumbled down the school stairs, my books and bag fell all over the floor. And because of that guy helping me, Craig thought I was cheating.

After ten minutes, I finally stop crying and make myself get up so I can begin cleaning up. Upon finishing the task of clearing the shattered glass from the floor and replacing the damaged picture on the wall, I hurried to take a quick shower. I have to leave this place now. If I do not leave tonight, I will be killed. However, where will I go? I do not have any relatives. Who knows who my father is, and my mother was a crack whore, so I grew up in the system. "Wait," I think to myself. I quickly head to my room, turn off the water, get dressed, gather my clothes, and stuff them into a bag. I take my money out of the closet, which I have been saving since I was sixteen. I dash out of the apartment, go down the back stairs to avoid Craig's sight, and make my way to the bus stop. He will find me more quickly if I take a plane in New York, so I refuse to do that. I have decided to take a bus to Pennsylvania, from where I will catch a plane to California. I remembered the documents I received from the court system saying I had a grandmother who was there. They did not learn about her until I was eighteen, which is the only reason I did not go there as a child when my mom overdosed on drugs and died.

I go to the window as soon as I arrive at the bus stop. "One ticket to Pennsylvania, please." I make this request to the woman at the window. She looks up and down at me, and when she notices the cuts and bruises, I can see the sympathy in her eyes. I pull out a hundred and go hand it to her. She says in a lovely voice, "Oh, no dear, it is on me," and then she gets up to get the ticket and give it to me. I look at the ticket and say, "That is not my name." "Dear, it is for your safety. Now, move quickly to avoid missing your bus. I thank her and head straight to the bus.

I settle down once I am seated, but I will not be completely at ease until I am on the other side of the state. At last, the bus begins to move. I set my bag down in front of me on the floor. I only have three pairs of clothes, my cash, and my important documents. Once I am in California, I will buy new clothes and other items. Approximately two hours are needed to travel to Pennsylvania. When I get there, I quickly get off the bus, go to the airport, and purchase a ticket. I head to the small cafe across the street for a quick bite to eat before returning to the airport because the plane will not be taking off for two hours. The trip to Los Angeles will take roughly five hours. I am eating right now because I cannot afford to pay those prices for a plane snack. I quickly return to the airport after eating so I can get seated and checked in. I head to the plane after passing through security. The plane takes off after everything has been checked out and all that. This is going to be the longest flight ever.

I decided to take a nap to pass the time because I had nothing to do on the plane and would not be awakened until the plane was ready to land. The woman who looks after the passengers wakes me up. "Miss, excuse me, but we are about to land. I need you to buckle up, please." She speaks in a soft voice that makes me think of a mother speaking to her kids. I put on my seatbelt and smile at her. The landing went smoothly, and when it was safe to get out of the aircraft, I grabbed my carry-on bag—which is also my only bag—and went to hail a cab. I look at the paper with my grandmother's address and give it to the driver, and we head there.

My grandmother's house is about two hours away. When we get here, I ask the driver to wait. I will check to see if she is home before coming out to pay him. He promises to hold off until I return. I pick up my bag, go to the front door, and knock. A young woman with blue eyes and platinum blonde hair answers the door after a few minutes. She smiles at me and says, "Hello." "Is this the home of Silvia Wyatt?" I ask her, anxious. "Yes, I am Crystal, her granddaughter. Who are you, may I ask?" she asks.

"My name is Kendall Wyatt." Crystal gasped. "I think you should come here, Grand." She shouts. "There is no need to yell, Crystal dear. "Now, what is the issue?" asks an elderly woman. She approaches and opens the door. I cannot believe this woman in front of me is in her 70s; she looks like she was in her 50s. Despite having gray hair, she has a smooth face with few wrinkles. She has a lovely smile and blue eyes.

"This girl here claims to be Kendall, Grand." Crystals says. My grandmother looks at me as if she has seen a ghost, but she does not say anything. She finally says, "Kendall, as in Paula's daughter," after a few minutes. "My Kendall," she says, her voice wavering. I shake my head and give her a shy smile. "Yes, she is my mother," I say. "My grandchild has returned home, my lord. Come in, sweetie, please." She speaks. I say, "Well, I will be right in after I pay my cab fare first." As I head back to the cab, giving him what is owed and thanking him, I head inside.

The moment I enter the house, my breath is taken away. A stunning staircase that is entirely made of wood and exquisitely carved greets you as soon as you enter. In the center of the space is a stunning chandelier hanging, catching the light from the sun that shines in from a larger window. You can see the different shades of color coming off the gems and crystals. As I continue to enter the living area, sitting along the wall is a beautiful fireplace made up of magnificent quartz stone. The warmth that it radiates is soothing to the anxiety that has been building up in my chest. I smile as I hear the crackling and smell the amazing sweet floral scent of beech burning. "Come sit, dear; don't just stand there." My grandma says smiling. I walk closer and sit in the open chair next to her. "Let me get a good look at you." She says, smiling at me. I, as I turn to face her and remove my sunglasses that I had on. "Oh, my, who did this to you?" She cries when she sees my black and blue eyes and the cut under my eye. "I really don't want to talk about that yet. I say to her.

"How is your mother doing now?" Grandma asks, and I give her a startled look. Does she not know what happened? I start to feel nervous as I fumble with my hands and stare at the floor. My leg begins to bounce. "Kendall, dear, what is it?" She asks me. I look up at her. "You do not know?" She gives me a bewildered look when I ask. "Know what?" She asks. I take a breath and start to tell her.

"The state took me out of her custody when I was ten years old. I was in the car when she and her boyfriend were caught smuggling drugs into Canada." I say to her. I can see the tears welling up in her eyes as she looks at me. "Why did I not know about this?" She asks me. I start picking at my fingernails as I glance at my hands. "She told me and the courts that she had no living relatives, so I did not learn about you until she passed away from a drug overdose when I was eighteen." I confess, feeling bad that I told her about her daughter. She gets up and sobs as she exits the room. When I look at my cousin Crystal, her eyes are filled with pain and rage.

"So how are you, my cousin? I'm sorry for asking, but I'm just learning about my family I never knew about." I say look at her nervously. "My father is Paula's little brother. I live here with Grand since my father is always away for work. He is in the military. I'm also seventeen," she says, smiling. I start to look around, feeling like I'm being judged as she looks at my clothes and my face. "So, what happened?" She asks me. I look at her and then quickly look away. "I was beaten by my boyfriend, so I ran as soon as he left the house." I say under my breath. "Well, at least you got away, and now you are safe." Crystal says as she gets up and walks away.