They simply continued laughing.
The train gathered speed.
The windows blurred.
And within moments, my entire family had vanished down the tracks.
I stood perfectly still.
The cold air moved across the platform.
Passengers hurried past me.
An announcement echoed overhead.
I barely heard it.
Because I was trying to understand how my own parents could deliberately leave me behind.
I was fourteen.
I had twelve dollars in my pocket.
No cellphone.
No winter jacket.
And no idea how to get home by myself.
At first, I convinced myself there had to be an explanation.
Maybe they planned to get off at the next station.
Maybe they would call someone to collect me.
Maybe they were simply trying to frighten me for a few minutes.
They had played cruel jokes before.
My father liked to call them character-building exercises.
Perhaps this was another one.
So I found an empty bench
