Chapter 3 Three

He ran through the ally at a really fast pace. Sweating and also heaving he decided to rest using a wall as support.

The tall street lights standing high and proud along the high way could be seen from where he was standing.

He heaved a sigh of relief. Finally, he could see a light at the end of the tunnel.

' I have to keep on moving' he thought for a while and after regaining a fraction of his strength he sprinted. Still looking back and checking if they were still after him.

He looked back and caught the shadows of some of his father's bodyguards.

'No,,,I can't go back to that house. I can't let them catch me'

"Hey,,, stop. Young master,,,,stop! Guys there he is...run, catch him."

"Shit" he cursed and ran with full speed while trying to evade obstacles that were obstructing his way.

"Don't let him get away!! Catch him!"

Due to the energy he had lost earlier and considering the fact that he had been running most of the day, he had begun to slow down as his lungs started to burn.

A guard had already caught up to him and almost tackling him but luckily for him he saw a trash can. Tossing it over, the guard had not expected it and thus, tripped and fell face flat.

More were still coming and yet catching up to him but he was not willing to back down. He could already see the road ahead.

With new found strength, he began tossing this over just to slow them down. He even pushed a begger at them just to stall them a little.

He felt a strong tug coming from his back strong enough to pull him back, glancing at his back, he saw that it was a guard who was tugging his backpack.

He pulled back and with a strong kick at the groin, the guard crotched and began holding his area. Pain latched all over his face.

Without sparing the guard anymore look, he sprinted again. With lights almost blinding him, he cringed and squinted his eyes. Not even caring his blurry vision, he ran down the highway.

Heavy footsteps were heard coming from the pavements. Silence, it was already past midnight and only a few cars were seen.

If anyone had seen this kind of scene, you would have thought that a notorious criminal was being chased by a mafia's gang. But it was all wrong.

He needed to find a cab, a taxi. Anything and fast. He didn't even know how longer could keep up with this running.

With luck shining on his side, he spotted a vehicle approaching from the opposite lane. Without even bothering to look sideways, he sprinted across the road and onto the next.

He flagged down the cab and it slowed down for him. He opened the door and quickly sat down without even minding the look of annoyance on the cabby's face, he yelled "step on it please. I need to get out of here fast"

"You can't just yell out at me? And do you know how late it is?" The man was oblivious to his environment and thus failed to notice the look on Jayden's face.

"Please, just get me out of here. I promise I would pay you, no matter the cost. Just please, drive." They were gaining on him and only a few meters away from the cab

"Fuck" he cussed and ran a hand through his hair. With one last resort, he went to the driver's seat and sat on his laps. He ignited the car and stepped on the gas.

"What are you doing? Get off me and stop the damn car this instant" the driver protested while trying to shove Jayden off him

Looking back and seeing the fustrated looks on the faces of the guards through the rear window, he sighed.

"Shut up man!" Clearly he was angry at this cabby "you almost got me caught and I said I was gonna pay. Didn't you see those men chasing me?"

Looking back, the cabby finally saw huge, burly men all dressed in blacks. They looked like elite bodyguards. With fear registered on his face he looked at the young man sitting on his laps back to the fading silloutetes of those bodyguards.

"W-who,,,are you?" He stuttered a little "you aren't involved in the mafia now, are you?" Fear was evident in the man's voice.

"Please don't get me involved in any of your business, please. I have a family to care for please." The man spoke again and this time with tears dripping from his eyes.

Confused by the words of this man, he glanced at the man he was currently sitting on. When he saw the look on his face, he couldn't help the laugh that came from him.

"Y-you,,, actually think,,am involved in the mafia?" He said in between laughs while trying his best to drive properly and not cash the car because he was laughing.

"Y-you are,,not?" Confusion was laced in his voice and evident in his face.

"Do I look like someone who is cut out to be in the mafia?" He snickered

The cabby was clearly embarrassed as his ears had turned red. He scratched the back of his neck while lowering his head in shame. He should not have acted like that, clearly, he over reacted.

Still chuckling from the man's earlier reaction, he got off the man.

"Hey, here are the wheels am sure that by now, they are far behind and they have gone back."

With the sudden exchange of wheels,the tires if the cars screeched and moved off the road for only a few minutes before coming back to it's normal route.

"Hey, don't kill me because you are still thinking. I am here for a reason and not here to die"Jayden lashed out at the poor man

"Sorry,,,but you didn't exactly give me a warning beforehand" the cabby snapped at him

"Sorry for lashing out at you. Was mad and all"

"It's okay, but can I ask one question since you know,,,you are not a mafia?" He raised and eyebrow asking for permission

"Sure, as long as I can answer it" he gulped

"Who were those men earlier and why were they chasing you?" He quirked. Curiosity was evident in his voice.

He breathed out a sigh of relief and thanking heavens that it was not the question he was thinking about before he answered "those guys were my father's men and they were meant to bring me home because I ran from home" sigh

"Really? Those were your father's men?" He gwaked

"Yes,,,and stop looking like you haven't seen men like that." He chuckled at the man's obvious behavior " I told Dad to change those men but he wouldn't listen" he muttered to himself

"If those were your dad's men, then that means...you must come from a wealthy home" he pointed out

He (Jayden) sucked in a breath sharply. This cabby was going to connect the dots. For once, he was thankful that it was dark.

If it was during the day, he was sure that this man here would have recognized him. He being a really famous person.

He took out a cap from the pocket in his pants and wore it in his head.

"If you don't mind me asking, why would you want to run from your home" he looked at Jayden like he was crazy for doing such a thing.

The man had not noticed when Jayden put on his black cap. He only noticed it when he looked over at him (Jayden).

"Look Man," he looked over at the man as if accessing him before readdressing him. "Sir, not everyone who comes from a rich or wealthy family are happy. Sometimes we pretend that everything is okay. But it's not okay!" He barked

"We Don't get to decide anything for yourself and it's lonely. Everybody wants to get close to you just because of your status. They don't even like you for who you are. They only like you because of what you have and I just want to get away from shits like that"

Never had he poured out so much emotion in a word before. Now he did and clearly, this was his first time.

Shocked by the young lad's outburst, the cabby went quiet only observing him silently and he could have sworn he saw a year drop down from the young man's face.

Not wanting to pry into his life he decided to ask him a different question. " Ok, but,,,where are you headed now?"

They had been driving in a straight line across the highway now for two hours. He had to ask.

Facing out the window he(Jayden) replied "far away from here and into a different country, a place where I can start a new life."

With a tired sigh, the cabby put pressure on the gas pedal and sped off...