Complications.
After all the big, fancy words the doctor said, Jinny's father died of complications.
After taking leave from school for the funeral, there were complications with her scholarship.
After fighting with the school, there were complications with the house.
For the first time in her life, Jinny ran away. She ran away from the school she had longed for, the house she grew up in, and the life her father had built for her. She ran from the word, 'complication', taking nothing but a backpack with a few essentials and a change of clothes. Her account had been devoured by lawyers and doctor's fees, leaving her with just enough for a bus far, far away from everything and everyone she knew.
When the bus stopped for the last time, Jinny had no idea where she was. She sat at the station until security kicked her out and looked around. The smell of the ocean was strong, and she could feel her hair starting to frizz from the humidity. A handful of people still wandered the streets, paying her no mind as they rushed to their destinations.
Jinny's backpack dug into her shoulder before she readjusted it, put her head down, and started walking down the sidewalk. She didn't know how long she walked before she noticed the rain soaking through her clothes. Her common sense started to wake up, telling her to find someplace out of the rain.
Jinny ran into the woods on the side of the road, using the overhanging branches as cover, not stopping until she was panting for breath. Lost and alone, Jinny leaned against a large oak, the rain on her lips tasting like salt as the sound of the bark being pulled from the tree by her backpack filled her ears. Her eyes were blank as she stared into the brightness under the canopy, her mind darker than the night of the new moon.
———
Even in a different world, a different time, somehow Jin Lu still ended up in the middle of a strange wood during a moment of emotional crisis. The irony wasn't lost on her as she pulled herself over a downed tree. Back then, she had stayed in the forest for a long time, foraging on plants and living off the land. She had escaped reality there, not bothering with anyone until her mind had finally cleared, her heart having time to balance with the help of being isolated in nature.
I may have run away, but I didn't give up. I survived that time. I fought through my cancer until the end. I will fight and survive this, too.
Jin Lu rallied her determination as she scanned her surroundings. There wasn't anything that seemed overly threatening, even if the wildlife hiding in the trees and bushes looked like genetically altered mutants; rabbits with eight legs and four eyes, foxes with lizard tails, and carnivorous deer with fangs hanging from between their lips.
All I'm missing is Toto… or a white rabbit carrying a pocket watch.
A tremor under Jin Lu's feet made her freeze on the spot. The wildlife she had been inspecting scattered in all directions, and she felt her heart stutter. Looking around frantically, Jin Lu hurried halfway up a nearby tree, scanning the forest floor for the threat. She tightened her grip to keep her balance as everything around her shook. The sound of several large animals stampeding toward her made Jin Lu's breath catch in her lungs.
Jin Lu closed her eyes, trying to make her presence disappear. Not only had the creatures running through the trees been frightening, the riders on their backs gave off a powerful sense of terror. Cold sweat ran down Jin Lu's back as she prayed that they weren't looking for her.
"Long Yin… help…"
Jin Lu couldn't stop herself from pleading for rescue as the forest became deafeningly quiet. Jin Lu squinted her eyes open, reluctantly looking down at the seven faces looking up at her. One of them was infuriatingly, welcomingly familiar.
"I'm here, my Yang."