I rushed out my bedroom door, down the stairs and to the front hall. I had one flat on and one flat off, when the Goddess asked me "can you run in those?"
"No." I whispered, holding a flat in my hand. I moved quickly again, dropping the flat in hand, and peeling the other off my left foot before I put on running shoes over my bare feet and lacing them up. Now was not the time to worry about blisters.
I rushed out and closed the door behind me. I stood still for only a moment as I heard her say "You need to leave the street; leave the subdivision." And I ran.
After having ran for a while, I observed we were heading the exact same way that I took so regularly to get to the National Park. 'Is it coincidence that the National Park is also this way?' I asked.
"Yes, it is." She answered. "That is not where you are going. Let me be concerned with that, and you with your feet." She added, as my footing slipped in the dirt and rocks at the side of the paved country road.
A drawback to the dress, was not having a clear line of sight to your feet. Plus, I had to hold the dress up a bit while I ran, and so that made running slightly awkward.
'I'm worried.' I told her.
"Oh?" She asked, with surprise.
'We only have so long until sunset, and I am not as quick as I normally would be…'
"Oh, Sinead, dear!" The Goddess interrupted. "You already know I have thought of everything! You aren't going the whole way on foot."
She laughed her warm, musical laugh. "All I have to do is get you to the crossroads on time. You will be picked up by a truck there."
I suppose my confusion was either seen, felt or both.
"You know!" She told me. "The next road ahead that intersects with this one."
Knowledge and understanding dawned in my brain as I realized I did know what she meant. That spot was not too far from here. In fact, I could see it in the distance.
As I got closer, I noticed the old 1940's style pickup truck, with its iconic solid metal framed body cruising down the road that bisected the one I ran on.
It may have only trundled along at 75 km/hour, but I couldn't run fast enough (even if I hadn't been wearing the dress), and with a sinking feeling, I tried to push myself to run faster.
"Don't worry, he will stop." The confident voice of the Goddess reassured me.
I watched as the truck slowed slightly and went straight through the stop sign and the intersection, the older man behind the wheel not even noticing as he stared at me on his way by.
Ten meters past the intersection the truck came to a stop. I had almost reached the intersection. He looked over his right shoulder, I saw the truck begin to slowly reverse backwards.
My feet came to a stop at the passenger side door of the truck only a few moments after it came to a stop and I saw the man put it in park. He reached over and shoved open the passenger side door. He squinted a bit when he peered into my face.
"Hanna?" He asked. His eyes looked a mixture of sad and far away.
"I am sorry, no." I replied.
"No. No, of course not." He said so quietly I almost didn't hear him. The sense of loss and longing were easy for me to pick up on. This man had seen hardship in his life.
"No. She would be beyond your age now." This time he spoke a bit louder than before. "Sorry about that, miss."
He looked me in the eyes, and I held his gaze for a long moment. He had very lovely green eyes, of a rare hue, not easily forgotten, as they were flecked with gold.
I felt as if he could sense my hurry and my silent plea.
"Do you...do you need a ride somewhere?" He asked carefully, like his words were sharp glass that could cut me.
I simply nodded a "yes".
He harrumphed and motioned for me to get into the passenger's seat. As I got in, he asked the second question, which really wasn't a question but a statement.
"You're a runaway."
This time I said "Yes." As I again nodded my head, my mouth a grim line. As I fastened my seatbelt, I realized that he really wasn't an old man, he couldn't be more than 50 at the very most, and that it was only stress, worry and circumstance that had taken their toll.
"Where are you headed to?" he asked me. My left arm moved of its own accord and surprised me by pointing to the south-west.
"No exact point in particular, huh?" he asked with a chuckle in his words. I gave him a small smile and said nothing more as I didn't know how to answer him.
"You know," he began, trying to make me more comfortable as he drove, "My daughter, Hanna...she...she ran away from home one day, many moons ago. It probably sounds crazy, but although it has been years...I still catch myself...searching for her. Sometimes, I see beautiful young girls who remind me so much of her. Once in a while, the resemblance is close enough- like with you- I almost think it is Hanna. It is foolish for me to have any hope." He ended bitterly. "It has been so long."
"Do you know what I think?" I asked him. He didn't answer.
"I think that it doesn't sound crazy at all." He gave me a quick glance of surprise. "I think it sounds like you love your daughter very much, and you never want to give that up. The fact that you occasionally think you see her, is a sign that you do indeed have hope. Hope and love are both very powerful and very precious. I think Hanna, wherever she is, is very lucky to have a father who loves her so deeply and unconditionally."
I paused to smile at him, and I placed my left hand on his right shoulder momentarily.
"Something to keep in mind: just because someone leaves does not mean they won't come back. Just because someone does not return, doesn't mean that they don't want to."
I could feel emotion begin to knot itself in a ball, creating a lump in my throat. The tears threatened to prick at my eyes.
"Hey." He said. I looked at him again. "If you have someone who loves you, who is waiting for you, wherever you are from, then you should return. If they really love you, then I am sure you can work through the reason you left- together."
"Thank you. You are right about that. But I don't know if you would believe me if I told you I am currently working my way back. It is just that the distance is so far, and the journey bound to be long. Home is on the horizon, to be actualized in the near future." I smiled dreamily to myself.
"Oh." He said suddenly. "I am five minutes from home. I mean, I was on my way home when I saw you."
"That's ok, you can let me out wherever!" I heard myself say with a flip of my right hand.
"I could drive you farther if you want. Drop you off at a nearby town or a bus station or something?" He kindly offered.
"No thank you. The end of your road will do just fine." I heard my voice say, with no instruction on my part whatsoever.
"Well, alright then." He said.
The truck stopped at the edge of a heavily wooded road. A tire trail marked what I supposed was his long driveway. I unfastened my seatbelt and opened the door.
"Are you sure…" He began, but I cut him off.
"Yes." I jumped to the ground. "I will be fine. Thank you for the generous ride, I really appreciate it." I started to walk away. He still hadn't moved. "Goodbye and good luck!" I called over my shoulder and waved. He turned the truck onto the tire trail and disappeared from view.