Take my chances in the park.

Christina only wanted to get home as fast as she possibly could, and the park was the fastest route. If it was as empty as it usually was, she knew she could hide in a few places and maybe avoid being seen.

The park was directly across from her, a run across a wide open soccer field but one she could clear quickly enough. The fence around school property had a large gap which led to the park, followed immediately by a short wooden bridge across a shallow dry ravine that ran through the park- in years with more rain it made a stream but usually it was dry. Immediately past the bridge was a thin offshoot of trees from the forest that wasn’t cleared away to make the park and school grounds.

She looked around one last time making sure it was clear- there was no one in sight but she knew the after-school sports teams would be coming out sooner rather than later. Covering herself with her hands she squeezed between two of the bushes before making a mad dash for the park entrance.

Christina bolted across the short sidewalk onto the soccer field, feeling the blades of grass on the soles of her bare feet, swinging her shoulders during the run but keeping her hands firmly in front of her body. She felt she’d never run faster in her life. She reached the end of the soccer field and made the short distance over the wooden planks of the bridge before darting into the thin line of trees and hunkering back down.

Okay, I’ve made it this far, she thought. No one around right now. That evergreen is the next closest step.

She carefully stood up, looking around frantically for any possible witnesses. The area remained clear. Christina stepped out from the thicket of trees and sprinted for the evergreen, ducking underneath the lowest limbs and huddling next to the trunk. The branches were close enough to the ground she felt tolerably obscured and allowed herself a moment to catch her breath. Ducking her head to glance around below the branches, there was still no one in sight.

The nearest tree was an old, tall oak. Christina didn’t like that idea, there were no branches shorter than her head so she could only hide behind the trunk of the tree. If two people came from opposite directions there was no way she could avoid being seen by at least one of them. At least twenty yards beyond that was a bush which she could hide in decently, if not quite well. She considered bypassing the oak and heading straight for the bush, but the longer run made her wary of how exposed she would be.

I’ll head for the oak, look around for anyone and go straight for the bush if I’m clear. Or if there’s more than one person I guess.

She made sure the coast was clear one last time before scrabbling out from under the evergreen’s branches and dashed for the oak. Reaching the tree she placed her hands on the trunk while she quickly glanced around, then darted the 20 yards to the bush. Spreading the branches she gingerly stepped in and ducked down. Several twigs poked and scratched at her arms, her legs and her back, but Christina felt securely hidden for the short term.

Behind her she could hear noise, and realized that one of the school sports teams had started practice. Likely the soccer team, she thought, they would be closest. She peeked behind her and was able to see several teens kicking a ball back and forth, across the bridge and on the school grounds. Christina felt they were far enough away that they wouldn’t notice her during her next short run to cover. Looking back forward she saw an older lady walking her dog come around a bend in a path. They were closer than the soccer team. Christina felt herself trying to shrink down, lower into the bush, to ensure she was hidden. The bush was a bit shorter than she would have preferred and she could imagine the very top of her head being visible if she wasn’t careful.

The dog walker continued on her way for what felt like an agonizingly long time to Christina. She knew it was her mind playing tricks on her, the desperation to get home and not be seen like this making any inconvenience feel like it lasted an hour. But after following the curving sidewalk path at her leisurely pace, the dog walker was eventually a good distance away and would be heading out of sight in a moment.

Creeping out of the bush and setting into a hard run, Christina felt a small stroke of luck as she realized three more evergreens dotted through the park would get her a fair distance closer to home in a relatively straight line. Their low hanging branches would make it more difficult to see her hunkering at the base of the tree and if necessary she could climb up onto the bottom branches to get her legs out of view. Obviously the trees wouldn’t provide perfect coverage but they all looked thick enough that she felt it wasn’t likely anyone would see her unless she moved.

She made short fast sprints to each tree, taking cover under each one long enough to make sure there was still no one around to catch her in this despairing state. Reaching the third tree she decided to pull herself up into the lowest branches and take a breather, as well as try to survey her surroundings and plan out her next moves.

Feeling the rough bark of the evergreen branches rubbing unpleasantly on her ass made her not want to stay long but she fought that feeling and settled in to work out her options. The avenue she had to cross to get home was at least seventy yards away, straight in front of her. There was only one tree she could head to for any coverage and it was another oak. To her left was an expanse of the park’s field, a few more trees and bushes littered across the grass but none that would get her closer to home very well- the distance gained towards the avenue would also equal distance lost from the road she lived on. To her right was the beginning of a parking lot- the various little league teams in town would set up impromptu fields for practice and the parking lot would fill with the cars of the coaches and parents of teammates.

Before she could descend from the branch she sat on she saw a gray, battered old truck pull into the parking lot and move towards her. Christina stayed as still as she possibly could, hoping that she couldn’t be seen between the branches- it was a thick tree and she felt safe. She wanted to move back another few branches for the extra difference but knew that motion drew the eye.

The truck approached at a casual pace then started to slow and make a turn, back towards the avenue before stopping. Christina recognized the truck- Frank Johnson, a man who lived a several houses away from her, was a quasi-celebrity in the neighborhood. He was a carpenter by trade, a very good one, and though he worked professionally but also did side business for extra cash. He was known for occasional dumpster diving, finding discarded lumber for free supplies or even the occasional piece disposed furniture he could renovate and turn into something people would pay good money for.

She watched the truck back up towards the two green dumpsters just off the end of the parking lot. He was on one of his “treasure hunts”, she supposed, but doubted he would ever find much in these dumpsters. The city mostly used them for their clean-up crews to have a nearby place to throw away trash bags taken from the various garbage bins scattered through the park, and so the little league teams would be less prone to litter, simply having to carry the trash here on their way back to their cars.

Wait, the back of his truck is already pretty full, she thought. It’s easily obscuring the window in the rear of his truck cab, he couldn’t see anything if he checked the rearview mirror. It’s late enough in the day he’s likely heading home. If I could hop onto his rear bumper without him seeing me, I could hold onto the tailgate, stay squatted down and I could get home much faster. He’d go right past my house, and I could hop off and run straight in. I’d only have to pray he doesn’t check his side mirror when I run to the truck.

I’d be completely exposed to anyone else though, and the avenue I have to cross to get home isn’t usually too empty. Cars driving by from the opposite direction might not notice me, but anyone walking would definitely see. And what if he’s not actually going back home? God I could be doing a mad dash in the middle of the road…