I was a good kid. Honors student, varsity athlete. But I made a mistake and now I’m paying for it. My parents told me not to do it. I didn’t listen. I sat at that party, the party of the month, the party of the year, chugging cup after foaming cup of that fancy beer Johnny’s parents had in their basement. And look where it got me.

I walk down street after street after street. Dark alleys, well-lit neighborhoods. I’m a stranger to this world, this world where I do not belong because I was a good kid, a smart kid. One that didn’t get into trouble. One that had somewhere to go home to.

Baker Street. There’s a stray cat roaming the bushes on the side of the road. In a way, we’re not so different. Alone, scared. A mini-van drives past and I can see inside there’s a man and a woman with three young children in the backseat. Maybe they’re coming home from a birthday party. Maybe they’re coming home from soccer practice. Who knows? I sure don’t. And I wonder. Where will I go? What will I do? No one to help, no one to care.