There was a time when I was alone, nowhere to go and no place to call home

My so-called father has laid his hands on me for the last time, Ryker swore to himself as he shoved his meager belongings into his backpack. For now, a couple changes of clothes, toothbrush and toothpaste, and a bit of nonperishable food would have to be enough. He could get anything else he needed on the road.

On his way out the door, he paused just long enough to look at himself in the mirror. His eye was already beginning to blacken - though, with the dark circles under them from lack of sleep, it hardly made much difference. The present injury didn’t matter anyways; all that mattered was that there would be no more black eyes in the future.

He paused at the broken door leading from his room to the hall, listening. The door itself hung half on and half off its hinges; that particular casualty was from one of his dad’s rage’s a few months ago. When Ryker had dared to ask if he would fix it a week later, he was rewarded with a fat lip and an accusation - if he was a good kid, if he wasn’t hiding anything, then why did he need a door that closed all the way?

He shuttered, pushing the memory away. All seemed quiet in his little home. Finally, his dad had blacked out. His mom, of course, had been pretending to be asleep for hours; she wouldn’t risk her husband’s ire by dropping the act now, not as long as Ryker didn’t make too much noise on his way out.

He tiptoed carefully down the hall, through the living room, and out the front door. As he stood there on his front porch, breathing in the fresh night air, he felt a sense of peace that he hadn’t known for a long, long time.

He was free.

---

As we soared above the town that never loved me, I realized I finally had a family.

The Lost Children all have stories like Ryker’s. They all left home to escape some horror, with the belief that being alone on the streets was better than their current situation. Some were alone for a long time, and some found the Community almost right away.

The Community is where the Lost Children live. Camp moves from time to time - especially when police seem to be on to its location - but right now it is located in Texas, between Houston and Sam Houston National Forest. The inhabitants vary from newborns to 19 years old - though most are teenagers, there are a few youngsters, little siblings of the older kids and a couple children of these children.

Life is hard on the streets, especially when you’re on the run from the law, when you’re not old enough to legally hold a job, but there is one thing the Lost Children all agree on: It’s better than where they came from. The Community is an open, accepting place. A place where you can forget the troubles of your past, where you can redefine yourself.

A place where you can heal.

---

Lyrics from Lost Boy by Ruth B.

Hosted and narrated by: Shea (Ott3r)

Started 08/04/16. Scenes played: 1

License: Host License

18+