the runaway

Nothing really stood out about Marlene. She was an average looking girl with long wavy brown hair and almond shaped brown eyes. She was impulsive at times and as headstrong as they come. Marlene was adopted at a young age but that didn’t end up being a good fit and she eventually ended up back in the juvenile system. Trust never came easy to her and Relationships were even harder to come by.
All Marlene ever really wanted was to be left alone. Moving around was something she was used to, but people asking too many questions was something she didn’t like. It’s not easy explaining that your mother didn’t want you and your adopted family was all too willing to place you back into foster care. Marlene was a loner, a failure, and a delinquent in the eyes of society. So when she was told she was being sent to a girls group home in Lower Michigan, she wasn’t very surprised. She prided herself as a chameleon of sorts, with the ability to adapt to any situation. She didn’t know it then but this move would be a major milestone and turning point in her life and a game changer about everything she thought she knew.
Murchie House was a group home in Lower Michigan for delinquent girls. A split level home set in the middle of absolutely nowhere. It was always the hope that the girls would exit the group home with some sort of life skills or at least a better attitude. Unfortunately that wasn’t always the case. More often than not the girls would end up being sent to different juvenile facilities throughout the state. The group home was had several bedrooms with bunk beds and a couple bathrooms for the girls to share. There was a large kitchen and dining area that looked out onto a patio. The staff on duty had an office on the same floor as the girls. Downstairs is where they had the directors’ and therapists offices. There was also a conference room downstairs where the girls were required to have group therapy. Everything was set up and run so that it was as normal of a transition as possible. They had indoor and outdoor activities alongside their daily therapy. The girls were transported back and forth to public school in a fifteen passenger van by whatever staff member happened to be on shift at the time so they still had access to the real world. This is where Marlene would experience so many new things in her young life. Marlene grew up in a predominately white middle class town in upper Michigan. Her adopted parents were pretty hardcore bible thumpers, so most of what she was taught was bible based. Her reality was very different from the reality of the real world.
Marlene was always quiet and reserved at first but once she assessed the situation she had no problem making friends. A handful of these friends would remain in her life even after she left Murchie house.prior to Murchie house marlene had only seen black people on television. But that was to no fault of her own. Where she grew up there weren’t any. Her adopted parents would make her and her sisters watch documentaries on the mistreatment of black people in the world and had always taught them they should never be prejudice against anyone. Which is quite ironic because later in life marlene would have a biracial daughter and they clearly did not approve, but believed she should marry the father because the bible stated so. But lets stick to the story at hand. Marlene had made friends with the girls in the group home but she also had a handful of friends at the school. They spent most of their time hanging out at the corner store off school campus, smoking cigarettes and getting high. Of course this caused her to have detention a lot, but she also spent that time getting high
But for now we will focus on two friends, Julie and mickie. Julie was short with a bob style haircut. She reminded Marlene of the rock and roll groupies she would see in the videos on TV. Tight ripped jeans, t-shirt off the shoulders, bracelets filling her arms and thick dark eyeliner. Julie had attitude. Marlene knew she wanted a friend like that in her corner. Mickie was taller with a short bob haircut. Mickie was an odd looking girl, sunk in face with buggy eyes. Mickie also slathered on the thick dark eyeliner.
Even though she wasn't alone Marlene was scared walking down that long dark road, the trees looked like tall dark demons with long boney fingers wanting to grab her soul. She was afraid of the dark even at age fourteen. Evil had always existed in her world and she definitely believed in the "boogie man." Danger could be lurking anywhere in the dark forest that lined both sides of the road. Little did she know then, but she was going to meet her boogie man soon enough. Every noise in the woods terrified Marlene. Her heart was beating so hard she could hear it in her ears. As Cars passed they would stick out their thumbs out in an attempt to get a ride. Of course there was always the fear that the one car that would pick them up would be from the group home, but even that wasn’t enough to make them turn back.
After many dark miles of walking a couple did eventually stop and picked them up. They asked Marlene were they had come from. They said they knew of the group home that the three girls had run away from. They had picked up girls from there before. Knowing that this couple had done this before made them feel more comfortable somehow, but overall they were happy to not be walking any longer. The couple brought the three girls to a trailer where Marlene assumed the couple lived. They quickly offered Marlene and her two friend’s marijuana, alcohol and a place to crash. This was an offer that the girls did not want to refuse. Honestly what other options did they have at the time? It was the middle of the night and they were on the run. Plus the guy who actually lived there was very handsome.

The girls were still young enough to not know any better
.so the drugs and alcohol rendered them unable to make logical choices.

Looking back on it all now I realize this man was a predator. However at age 14, being a runaway, and under the influence of drugs and alcohol, I was enamored by him. Many of the evenings events have been forgotten over the years, but when the partying had reached its peak my friend and I found us in the bed with Tom. I was a virgin. I believe my friend was also. At age 14 I lost my virginity to a 21 year old man! When he was done with me he rolled over and proceeded to have sex with my friend. This back and forth session happened throughout the night. I remember cleaning the blood off me wondering if I had started my menstrual cycle or if it was from my first time with a man.

Growing up in the State system I often learned things through trial and error, as there were no examples in a home life to follow. The next day I remember thinking foolishly that this guy was now my boyfriend. Foolish thoughts of a very foolish 14 year old. Instead of him being my "Prince Charming" I found out that day that Tom had a fiancé'. Also later that day we were discovered in that same trailer by the local police and returned to the group home from which we had run away from only days before. I had a phone number though; I tried to call a few times after I got picked up. Tom never answered. Years later it dawned on me, I lost my innocence to a predator. I consider myself very lucky that my story didn't end worse than what it had. I ended up in a drug treatment center with a new "prince Charming" in my sights.