Chapter Two: Moving On

Upon returning home, Mary immediately began brainstorming. She knew that if she was going to be able to follow through with her plans, she needed to move far away. Her parents didn’t need to know where she was, and Mary couldn’t stand the feeling of being watched from the windows of the houses next door. Her parents were everywhere in Sunset Valley even when they were miles away; they had made their mark there.

Mary hoisted herself up onto the countertop and then began to think. There were only three places she could go where her parents wouldn’t find her: Twinbrook, Appaloosa Plains, or Riverview. She thought long and hard about which one to go to. “Twinbrook is too swampy and humid, Riverview . . . the houses are much too close together to get away with anything . . .” Mary thought about Appaloosa Plains. She didn’t know much about it, but she did know that the houses were spread out a little more than in Riverview. She sighed, “I suppose I have no choice.” And with that, she packed up her furniture and moved on. She knew she would return to Sunset Valley, it was practically her hometown, but right now it just wasn’t safe.

A few hours later, she arrived in Appaloosa Plains. She was still on an oversized lot with nothing but her rusted utilities, but at least she didn’t have the feeling of being watched looming over her. Mary sighed and looked around. It was quiet, that was for sure, but as long as she had her privacy, she didn’t care.

After moving her furniture into place very carefully, Mary left to go fill out some paperwork at her place of employment. As she was filling out the necessary papers relating to her transfer, a little voice spoke softly to her. You can always take a different path. You don’t have to do this, Mary. This is your chance to start anew. Don’t do it, Mary, don’t do it. But she ignored the voice. She knew what she had to do. This was only one of the major stepping stones that would assist her in giving back the love her parents gave her, and without it, things could go wrong. Terribly wrong.

The paperwork was finished. Mary gladly strolled out of the dark building and looked around. This place really was quiet. There was hardly any activity on the streets or in the heart of the town. Not that Mary was complaining about it. She called a cab and returned home. Upon returning home, she was greeted by a little surprise.

Mary looked down at the cat. It looked back up at her. “Well, hello there,” she said quietly. Mary had always been partial to cats, but her parents refused to let her have one. “Animals are filthy beasts!” they would say.

Mary looked around and saw that no one was nearby. “You really shouldn’t wander far from home. You could get lost, er . . .” the cat had a collar with a tag, but all it read was ‘Gigi’. “Huh, well if your owners only bothered to put your name on your tag, I suppose it was probably a good idea to run away,” the cat meowed, as if it were trying to agree with her. Mary scratched the cat behind its ears and grinned slightly, “You can stay here as long as you want, but if someone comes looking, don’t expect me to hide you.”

As much as she would have liked to bond with the cat, Gigi, some more, she needed to get started exercising. She had to go to work the next day, and she hadn’t even begun to start exercising.

(Yo Mary, your Pose Player is showing.)

Reluctantly, Mary began to build some muscle, but never had she dreamed that she had become this unhealthy. She was able to exercise for a little less than an hour, but even then she had to take periodic breaks. Mary hunched over with her hands on her knees and breathed heavily. “Okay . . . that’s enough for to today.” She turned her stereo off and then went and showered. The cool water felt like Heaven against her boiling skin.

For the moment, Mary had nothing to do. She played with Gigi and relaxed until it turned dark. Mary felt her stomach growl intensely, and then the thought returned to her. “I have no idea on how to cook.” She was stumped. Gigi meowed loudly behind her, and Mary knew she had to be hungry too. Mary took a deep breath in and then walked slowly over to the refrigerator. The moment of truth had come. She cautiously opened the door and peeked inside. In the very back, a black blob of something lay motionless, and from the smell of it, Mary knew it was not a vegetable. She quickly grabbed the first few objects she saw and then slammed the door shut.

Trying to keep her mind off the dead creature that lay in the back of her fridge, Mary observed what she had grabbed; lettuce, tomatoes, and bell peppers. “I could make a salad with this . . . I think I can do that.” She quickly prepared a small salad for her and Gigi. Mary grabbed herself a plate and then left the rest for the cat. She frowned when she took the first bite of it. The salad was nothing like what she was used to eating. Juicy streaks, wood smoked salmon, and chicken of the finest degree . . . this was like eating cardboard. Mary knew that she couldn’t be picky. It was either die or eat, and she chose the latter.

After finishing off her paper salad, Mary put the leftovers away and then approached the sleeping bag. Her nightwear was nothing but underwear, and the night air was chilling her to the bone. She sighed and then rolled out the sleeping bag and crawled inside. It was damp and it smelled horrible, but she felt much warmer, but at the same time she felt miserable. Her life had gone from seemingly perfect to miserable and now her only acquaintance was a lost cat. Mary refused to break down. She plugged her nose and waited patiently for sleep to come to her. Sadly, it wouldn’t come soon enough.

The next morning Mary woke to find that her shower had completely broken down and one of the metal beams had snapped. She sold off the scrap metal, and with the little extra money she had, she bought a bath tub for her and Gigi. But that was the least of her problems in her mind. On this morning, she had to come face to face with her greatest fear: the toilet.

Mary peered down at it. It was so revolting . . . she couldn’t bring herself to sit down. She searched her mind for a possible solution and found one. She took some newspapers and lined the seat with them. It wasn’t the best solution, but it was better than sitting on unidentified brown substance.

Mary washed up and then ate a small breakfast. Today would be her first day at work, and deep inside, she was nervous. Would she completely fail? Would she accidentally give herself away to the cops? Would she possibly do alright? She hoped for the latter.

Soon she heard the honk of her coworker’s car. Mary timidly climbed in and then they were off.

Work wasn’t too bad. Mary did some simple things. She got to know her boss and coworkers better, she exercised a little, but she also caught wind of the police planning an investigation. She told her boss and was instantly promoted . . . only two hours after she began working. Mary was a bit astonished, but she kept her composure on the outside.

Mary returned home after her promotion and replaced several items, namely the toilet. She also got a new bed and a ceramic sink. It wasn’t much, but it was a start. With her left over money, she bought Gigi some furniture. It was apparent that the cat had no intention of leaving, and so long as her owner didn’t come around, Mary was glad to give the cat a home.

Mary exercised a little and then prepared to go to bed. As she was brushing her teeth, she felt a very ominous feeling fall over her. She looked around and saw nothing. She shrugged and continued brushing her teeth, finished up, and then crawled into her warm, sanitary bed, but no matter what she did, the feeling wouldn’t leave. Later that night, while she was deep in sleep, the sleepy town of Appaloosa Plains proved that it wasn’t as quiet as it appeared