“pretending seems organic to you”

When she decided to start over, it was with a total and complete blank slate, or so she thought. She took nothing with her but her car, a new phone and number, which she gave no one. She essentially disappeared, changed her name, “started fresh.” And she thought she did it well.

She’d sold everything to have money to start over with, and she’d decided that rather than select a place to go specifically she would simply drive until she decided to stop. She let her music app choose her songs for her, discovering artists she never would have heard of otherwise. And she loved it.

She paid attention to signs telling her how much further til the next gas station, but otherwise ignored everything, even her speed thanks to her car’s speed control. She watched trees fly by, deserts, mountains and lakes. Building, buildings, buildings. Stretches of nothing but corn or wheat. She slept at rest stops, woken every few hours by a big rig pulling in or a cop telling her to move on.

“Why call it a rest stop if you’re not gonna let me rest?” She screamed at one officer, then ducked her head, ashamed and apologizing.

She was becoming someone new, pretending; the pretending becoming organic, natural, so that she no longer knew who she was trying to leave behind. Or why.

5 Minute Stretch Exercises are a creation of Laura Munson and were learned at Haven Writing Retreats. Write for five minutes, no corrections or stopping.
This prompt was taken from Blow Your House Down, by Gina Frangello.