She ran into her dimly lit room, found a bag and quickly put her necessities inside it, put on her favorite hoodie, and ran out the front door without any hesitation. She heard police sirens in the distance, or was it ambulance sirens? They sound alike. Either way someone was coming to that house. She sprinted for another minute before she started to walk. As she saw the flashing lights grow bigger and brighter, she threw the hoodie over her head, put her earbuds in, and walked amongst the shadows.

Naomi Monet, as of now, no last name. She’s been walking since she left that house last night. Well very earlier that morning. She ran out that front door around 4 o’clock. It was now 6. She has no destination, but all she knows is that she’s not going back. Not. now, not ever. Her feet were hurting, no doubt, but she had no place to rest. And plus, it’s not safe to rest out in the open, and she’s pretty sure that her name and face is out on the news by now. ‘Top headliner in Miami right about now’ she thought. Naomi needs a new look, ASAP. She walked for a while, until she found a hair salon but saw that it doesn’t open for another hour, considering that she peeked into the window to look at the wall clock.

“Oof”

Naomi let out a sigh as she fell to the floor of the door, waiting for the hour to pass, so the salon can open. She didn’t know whether she was hungry, exhausted, or relieved. Maybe all three put together. She dug through her bag to look for some snacks. Luckily she had plenty, along with water and a wad of cash in her wallet. She had credit cards too, but it’ll be too risky using them. Not that she did anything wrong, in her defense, anyway. To make time go by, she’d listen to music, but her phone is dead, and she isn’t getting up anytime soon. So she sat there.

Struck with boredom, Naomi decides to look around to see where she walked too. Different stores, several hotels, they look all too familiar. She smelled the air, it was salty in a way. ‘Miami Beach!’ she thought. A place she knows, but no one knows her. She saw one those famous topless jeeps, pull around the back of the store. She waited for someone to walk back around to the front to open the store up, before she got her hopes up.

“Hey sweetie, sorry I’m usually here early, but I didn’t know I had an appointment this early, I am so sorry for having you wait.” said the hairdresser with a hispanic accent. She had long beautiful and.. colorful hair, that went down past her waist. She wasn’t young, but she wasn’t old either. Light brown skin, blue eyes. Were they fake? Naomi couldn’t tell, but she didn’t want to stare in her eyes like a creep.

“Um..” Naomi paused as the hairdresser put the key inside the lock. “I don’t have an appointment.”

“Oh, that’s okay, my first appointment isn’t until 10 anyway, it’s only 8, come on in”

Naomi hurdily gathered her stuff and stood up, but winced in pain halfway up. She scrunched her face, but made it relaxed before the hairdresser turned around.

“ Aw man, I get those too. Trying to stand after you’ve been sitting for a while. I take it as you were sitting for awhile, considering how comfortable you looked ”

‘Yeah, if you walked for two hours then sat down for an hour’ Naomi thought. As she walked in the salon, she made sure to dodge every camera’s view.

“Okay sweetie, what can I do for you today?”

“I just need to have my hair colored and cut.”

“Where’s your parent? You’re too young to be coloring your hair! You’re like.. 12.”

“Um, excuse me ma’am,...”

“You can call me Lucia” She interrupted Naomi.

Naomi took a deep breath. One, she doesn’t like being interrupted and two, she just needed for her hair to be colored, cut and to leave… quickly. “Lucia... I am actually 17, and I technically don’t have a parent, or any guardian at that.” Naomi caught herself. ‘Shutupppp Naomi’ she sung to herself.

“Mmm, okay. Um. Uhh, what color do you want to change your hair to?”

Naomi has the lightest brown curly hair, filled with curls for days at a nice medium length. Her curls were very stretchy. “Um, maybe a red, I don’t really care.”

“Ooh, I know just the color for you. Mahogany Red. Yes, yes, yes. Ooh I promise you’ll love it.”

“ Okay, um Lucia, not to be rude, but I kinda am in a rush, do you need think you can hurry up a little?

“Ahh of course, let me just turn on the news really quick. There’s always some crazy things happening around town and neighboring cities ya know”

As Lucia went and turned on the television, Naomi overheard the news and about what happened back at that house. A picture of her was about to pop up when she dashed out of the seat, ran up to Lucia, snatched the remote out of her hand and shut off the television.

Panting, Naomi said, “ um, no TV please. Just quietness”

“Um, okay darling, uh, I mean Naomi…” Lucia tended to Naomi’s hair. They sat there in silence for the next 20 minutes or so.

Naomi paid Lucia in cash, of course, headed out the door, and down the street towards the beach where she found a cheap, old, broken-down motel. ‘This’ll do’, she thought to herself.

Inside the motel, it reeked of cigarettes and old beer. Spanish music was playing in the background. The man at the front desk has crooked glasses, a big mole under his chin, a beer belly and was as golden as the beach sand, maybe around his early thirties and was half asleep with a non-lit cigar in his mouth. Name tag read Enrique “Pepe” Ramirez.

‘DING’. Naomi was tired of looking at the man sleep so she rang the bell. The man gasped and almost fell out his chair, which looked as if it was going to collapse any minute. He stood up rubbing his stomach, and fixing his glasses.

Stammering he said, “ Oh, uh,  hello little miss, how can I help ya.?”

“I need a room for two nights” she replied dryly, trying not to make eye contact.

“Uh, well okay, you seemed old enough, I guess, so it’ll be $40. Breakfast is from 6am-10am. You’re in room 1K, down the hall, all the way down to your right.”

“Thanks” without another word being said, she took the key card and went her room.

At this time it was still only the morning. What someone in the motel will discover about her will either help her, or hurt her.

TO BE CONTINUED ……