Free Crash by Lesley Choyce

Chapter One
    It just hit me. I was at the New Year’s Eve party at Brian’s house. At first my plan was to get loaded. The usual. It had been quite the year. Busted for stealing a car, almost caught making a drug delivery for a dealer, and maybe a few more bad moves on my part. I guess I hadn’t found my focus yet, my path. I liked living on the edge a bit, and one thing kept leading to another.
    But there I was at Brian’s, feeling oddly out of place, watching everyone else having a good time.
    And suddenly it felt all wrong.
    I turned sixteen three days ago. Nobody likes having a birthday right after Christmas, but then, this Christmas had not been anything special. Some kind of new weirdness going on between my mom and dad, and things had been a bit tense ever since my dad lost his job. It seemed like no one cared about my birthday. Me included. I found myself staring into the mirror, wondering who was looking back at me. After that I just had this weird feeling in my gut. I felt unsettled. I was about to freak, I thought. I was about to do something really stupid.
    And New Year’s Eve at Brian’s was probably where it would happen.
    But instead of me freaking out, something different happened.
    I had only had one beer. Everyone else was way ahead of me. They were all laughing and having a great time. But I set the beer down and took a deep breath.
    And suddenly everything became clear.
    I knew who that person in the mirror was. It was the old me. And the old me wasn’t what I wanted. I swear I’d never made a New Year’s resolution in my life. I just knew that this was the year I was going to turn it around. I was going to get my shit together. No more messing around. No more talking. No more lies. No, this was not one of those half-assed New Year’s resolutions. This was the real thing.
    I suddenly felt clear-headed and weirdly happy.
    So I walked out of there and down the dark, cold street, sucking in sweet, clean winter air. I don’t think anyone even noticed me leaving.
    When I got home, no one was there. No one but my dog, Ozzie. Part Lab and part German shepherd, Ozzie was a good old dog. Always happy to see me. Always there for me. I tucked into bed with Ozzie sleeping beside me on the floor.
    I fell asleep focused on a new beginning.

Chapter Two
    I had a good night’s sleep, but nothing could have prepared me for what came next. I think it was about eight o’clock when my dad knocked on my door.
    â€œCome on in,” I said.
    He walked in and sat down on the side of my bed. He looked like something was bugging him. I thought maybe I was about to get a lecture for something I had done, so I decided to tell him about the night before. “I have some stuff I want to share with you,” I said.
    He held up his hand. “Not now, Cameron. I’ve got some of my own stuff I’ve got to tell you.” Man, he looked serious. I was thinking, Oh shit, what’s this about?
    He couldn’t look me in the eye. He just bent down and started petting Ozzie. “Cameron, you know things haven’t been so good around here with me out of work. And your mother and I have been having our problems.”
    I was feeling a little scared then. “Yeah, well, so that’s nothing new. Things will smooth out.”
    He shook his head. “No, they won’t. I’m going crazy around here. I’ve decided I’m going to head out west and get work. It’s what I have to do.”
    I felt like someone had smacked me in the face. “When are you going?”
    â€œToday,” he said. “Now.”
    â€œDad, you can’t just do that.”
    â€œI’m sorry, Cam. I’ll call you from out west.” He stood up, leaned over me and gave me a hug like he used to when I was a little kid. And then he left my room. Ozzie knew something was wrong, and he hopped up onto my bed.
    I heard the front door open and close, and then I heard