Cole left the city lights far behind and trotted through the tall grass, hoping he wouldn't step on a snake or something. The stormy noise of the city gradually faded away into the distance, until nothing but a faint hum could be heard. The tall, dry grass poked and prodded at his legs, swishing quietly at every footstep.
He slowed to a stop and took a deep breath. The annoying little voice chanted no more. The only voice in his head was his own, crying out triumphantly. 'I did it! I escaped! I really did it!'
He lifted his head to the heavens above. Only five or six stars twinkled down on him now, for the sky was a shade lighter than it was, midnight blue slowly turning into an oil paint-like mix of gold pink and deep blue. A soft breeze picked up and gently played with his hair, humming a tuneless song. Not a creature stirred, save for a lone Bush Warbler, chirping its twittering call off in the distance. All was was still.
Cole felt as if a huge weight on his chest had lifted, and he could breathe again. He stood there, enjoying the smell of the wind whistling across the plain.
He sighed, then got his headphones from his backpack. He slipped on the headset, which muffled the sound of the quiet morning, and pressed a button. A rock song started playing, and a masculine voice sang.
I'm not falling for anymore of these tricks,
I'm so tired of everything here,
The sun is calling me to the west,
Everyone's having fun out there!
My bags are packed
And I'm looking out the window,
Everything is so outdated here!
I want to move west to where the sun is shining,
I want my friends to all be there!
As the rapid beat of drums and guitars fired, the world faded until there was nothing left but the rocking, jumping music. The beat sped up for the chorus, becoming thunder.
After wandering aimlessly in the lone fields for some time, Cole turned off the headset and stuffed it into his backpack. His stomach growled. He no longer felt sick; in fact, he felt hungry. He headed back toward the city, whilst dawn was just beginning to rise, and more birds began to sing and call to each other. He left behind the serene peace of the plains and followed the sound of the city.
Around over half an hour later he found himself in the midst of the town, walking down the sidewalk on the main street. He blended in with the crowd, mixing in with the swarm of people bustling about the concrete and spilling over corners of brick buildings. The odor of the city was harsh and rank, and he wrinkled his nose at the stench. That is, until a delicious smell hit his nostrils. Something smelled heavenly, and it smelled like...cake.
He traced the warm, mouth-watering scent to a large building standing on one of the main roads. A sign spelled out in pink, fancy letters. YOKAIVILLE MALL
Inside the he found small restaurants nearby the clothing stores, where several people who were on their way to work were eating breakfast. After inspecting the amount of money he had, he decided to order some eggs and bacon.
He spent around twenty minuets enjoying a hot meal before he suddenly felt something tug on his dark jacket. Looking down, he was surprised to see a little girl staring back up at him. She looked to be around five or six years old, with short blond hair and bright blue eyes, along with a chubby face. She wore a cute pink sweater with a Hello Kitty stitched to the front, and rainbow colored boots to match her leprechaun green leggings.
She tugged on his jacket again and asked in a little voice. "Are you my escort?"
Cole blinked, confused. "Am I your what?"
"My escort. I need somebody to escort me through da mall."
"Uh...why?"
" 'Cause I can't find my momma, and I nobody else will escort me through this mall."
Cole shifted uncomfortably on his stool. "You lost your mom?"
"I didn't lose her, I just don't know where she is!" The little girl snapped.
"Uh-huh." He sighed. "Kid, do you need help finding a mall cop?"
"No, I need an escort!"
Cole thought for a second. He made a reluctant decision. "OK, I'll be your escort until we find a mall cop to find your mother. How's that?"
"Yayy!" With that, the child raced away, crying. "Let's go to da toy store! Weee!"
"Wait, stop--!" Cole groaned and shook his head. "Looks like I'm playing babysitter."
While Cole stuffed his breakfast trash into a garbage bin and threw his backpack over his shoulder, the little blond dodged past some people in the wide hall and ran to a store with a sign saying. MARTY'S TOY STORE
With her rainbow-colored boots making loud clump clump noises when meeting the shiny tiles, she ran in and shrieked. "I want all your toys!"
The young cashier sitting at the counter jumped at the sound of her high-pitched yell. "I'm sorry, what?" He asked.
"Gimme all your toys!"
The young man stared at her. "...You want me to give you all the toys in this store?"
The girl stomped up to him, grabbed the counter, and swiftly hauled herself up. "Every single one for free!"
He blinked uncertainly, tried to bite back an amused grin, then said in what was supposed to be a soothing tone. "Ah...I don't think I can do that, Annie Oakley."
The little girl grabbed his shirt, twisted it forcefully in her little fists, and slammed him against the wall behind him, knocking over a few books and cabinets. "Listen here, bozo," She hissed. "You know what I'm going to do? I'm going to--"
"NO!" At that moment Cole raced in and grabbed the child, picking her up by the waist and pulling her away. "Kid, OK, that's it, we're leaving, we're leaving right now! Leave the nice man alone!"
"Let go of me, you potato!" The girl struggled against his grip, but in vain.
The cashier looked a bit shaken, and yet slightly amused.
"Babysitting your little sister, buddy?" The cashier chuckled. Cole ignored him and dragged the squirming child away.
He dropped her on a bench between a pair of fake palm trees and crossed his arms. "OK, listen up. If I'm going to be your escort, you have to behave."
The girl glared at him with bright blue eyes. "What, I wasn't doing anything, that dummy was--" She sighed. "Fine. Fine. I'll behave."
"Yes, behave."
"Yes, I will behave." She glanced around. "Ooh, cookies!" She hopped off the bench.
"Hey, get back here!" He grabbed her and put her back on the bench. "Seriously kid, you have got to behave. I can't go running after you all day."
"Can we go to the candy store?"
He rolled his eyes. "Will you behave?"
"Yeah, sure."
"Mmph...fine. But you have to stay close--"
"Weeeeee!!!" She raced off, her rain boots clomping.
"Oh, for crying out loud..." Cole trotted after her and nearly passed by a window filled with TVs, where the news was showing. An announcer was saying on the screen; "...And that's why socks get lost in the laundry. In other news, there has been news of a young runaway trying to escape school!"
Cole froze, and stared at the many TVs lined up on the wall. He felt as if his stomach was sinking, and a cold shiver of fear ran down his spine. 'Oh, no....how did they find out so quickly?!' He thought to himself, on the verge of panic.
The male announcer continued. "The runaway's name is Lloyd Garmadon, and after being mysteriously absent at Darkly's Boarding School For Bad Boys, a resident of a nearby town reported seeing the young boy attempting to raid a ice cream truck in the town. Police responded to the call, and caught the child while he was..."
As the announcer droned on, Cole breathed a sigh of relief. He was safe.
"AAUUGGH!!" An ear-piercing scream reverberated throughout the mall. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?! YOU ATE ALL THE CANDY!!"
Evening eventually fell on Yokaiville, and Cole realized in order to eat, he would have to buy something cheap, for the damage done at the mall had snatched up much of his money, and he couldn't afford anything pricey.
He found a bar in the dirty dregs of town, where shady characters usually hung out in the shadows. Men in ratty jackets gave him dark stares as he walked by, and he tried to shake off the hostile heat of their glares on his shoulders. The bar he entered was a stinking, run-down joint, with only a few customers eating in dusty booths and drinking at the soda-stained bar, while a group of men played pool at the other end of the room. Faint country music played from an old stereo on a counter behind the surly barman, and people muttered in small groups, sharing stories or stale jokes.
Cole ordered a drink and a small meal, then seated himself in a booth off in the corner, trying not to draw attention to himself. After tasting the food, he wondered if he would have been better off eating a bag of trail mix for dinner.
A hand as strong as iron suddenly gripped his shoulder. "You lost, little girl?" He whipped around to see a huge, muscle-bound, dark bearded man leering down at him. He wore shaggy jeans, a leather jacket, a red baseball cap on his shaggy hair, and an unpleasant smirk on his face.
Annoyed at being caught by surprise, Cole shrugged off the hairy hand and snapped. "Go play in traffic, Tarzan."
The man swiftly grabbed Cole's shoulders and smashed him against the wall, sending a jolt of pain down his back. "Who do you think you're playing with, boy?" Cole grimaced at the smell of his breath.
"Buzz off, nobody needs to get hurt over this." He growled, trying to shake off a tremor of fear.
The dude's buddies at the pool table were watching eagerly by this time, grinning and jeering. One shouted. "Show that pup who's boss, Rick!"
Rick sneered, revealing yellow teeth. "I'll teach you!" With that, he swung at Cole.
After wandering aimlessly in the lone fields for some time, Cole turned off the headset and stuffed it into his backpack. His stomach growled. He no longer felt sick; in fact, he felt hungry. He headed back toward the city, whilst dawn was just beginning to rise, and more birds began to sing and call to each other. He left behind the serene peace of the plains and followed the sound of the city.
Around over half an hour later he found himself in the midst of the town, walking down the sidewalk on the main street. He blended in with the crowd, mixing in with the swarm of people bustling about the concrete and spilling over corners of brick buildings. The odor of the city was harsh and rank, and he wrinkled his nose at the stench. That is, until a delicious smell hit his nostrils. Something smelled heavenly, and it smelled like...cake.
He traced the warm, mouth-watering scent to a large building standing on one of the main roads. A sign spelled out in pink, fancy letters. YOKAIVILLE MALL
Inside the he found small restaurants nearby the clothing stores, where several people who were on their way to work were eating breakfast. After inspecting the amount of money he had, he decided to order some eggs and bacon.
He spent around twenty minuets enjoying a hot meal before he suddenly felt something tug on his dark jacket. Looking down, he was surprised to see a little girl staring back up at him. She looked to be around five or six years old, with short blond hair and bright blue eyes, along with a chubby face. She wore a cute pink sweater with a Hello Kitty stitched to the front, and rainbow colored boots to match her leprechaun green leggings.
She tugged on his jacket again and asked in a little voice. "Are you my escort?"
Cole blinked, confused. "Am I your what?"
"My escort. I need somebody to escort me through da mall."
"Uh...why?"
" 'Cause I can't find my momma, and I nobody else will escort me through this mall."
Maybe. You need to have more trust in yourself. 
She's even got me reading this positive-thinking book as part of my daily school routine now. 
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