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Everyone’s past catches up to them one day. It’s natural. You get comfortable, you get complacent, you get screwed. The trick was to never get attached, never settle down. Once you get happy, it comes back to bite in the ass. There was only one choice to him for when your past came knocking at your door: run.
He had a guide for this process, something he made as a cold hearted joke. But he used it and took it with him every time, even if he knew it by heart. The booklet had two rules, vital to leaving your past behind. Two rules he could never follow in the end.
How to disappear completely and never be found. A how-to guide to running away.
Step 1: Don’t say goodbye
Symbol had a curse. He’d hurt everyone he’d ever love. There wasn’t a way to break it, not that he knew of, so ever since he was a young man he lived his life in a cycle. Go somewhere new, settle down, fall in love, get a sign, run away. Lifetime after lifetime, love after love. In the beginning, he wouldn’t run away, he was stubborn, but in the end he’d lose them, one way or another. An accident that people blamed him for, an accident that really was his fault, and further along in the cycle they might discover one of his pasts and he’d lose them by his own secret keeping. So he stopped staying. When he got sign that his Past was coming again, he picked up his bags and left.
He’d been a teacher here at Stumlotts for many years now, and while he enjoyed work and his students, he felt safe here, not in love. Slowly but surely, people managed to sneak past his guard. Mitch, the friendly groundskeeper, who asked how he was doing every morning without fail, Christina Blackthorn, his fellow teacher, who dropped by his office one night with a bottle of wine and a list of complaints about her students. But mostly, he found he loved his students. In all his lives he never had kids, Chaos Sauce was the closest he’d ever come. Sure, they called him Splash, which was not and never had been his name, and that they seem to find trouble no matter where they went. But they were his students, and he only wanted the best for them.
So when Symbol felt the cold breeze that was his single to leave, he wanted to hesitate. The breeze was a harbinger, either he must leave, of his past would come to meet him. Both left him with a broken heart, but leaving at least kept his students safe. He’d pack and leave tonight, but first, it was time to get his affairs in order.
Symbol brought Mitch a tin of fresh baked cookies and a cups of tea. He left them both on his desk for when he took his lunch. It wasn’t much, he knew, but it was a way to say “I thought of you.” It would have to do. He left a bottle of wine and his favorite book for Christina. He’d been meaning to lend it to her anyway, and his favorite passages were highlighted for her. He she’d enjoy it and not resent it for what it really was, a half hearted apology for leaving. He left something for his students as well, hoping that they’d remember him at least a little fondly when he was gone.
He gave Randy a lock of Mitch’s hair, a red herring he already felt guilty of, and palmed the halflings collection of hair. Better safe than sorry. He also tucked a golden button in with the hair, a shiny thing from his favorite coat that he’d seen Randy consider as a replacement for his teddy bear’s worn and cracked eye.
He gave Raz’ul his prize basket. Most teachers had one, and he was sure their next would have in was well, but he had some good things in there, and he trusted Raz’ul to save them for when they counted. He also left him a rose, well preserved with magic. It smelled sweet, and each petal stayed fresh for almost forever. A relic from his fairy days. It would suit Raz’ul’s potpourri more than it suited this tired old man.
Yashee’s gift was easiest, but somehow made him feel worse. A pudding cup, his favorite flavor, and his pudding spoon, wrapped in velvet. He couldn’t take it with him, it had his name etched on it, no matter how much he treasured it. So he’d give it to her. His bards deserved someone who could actually be there for them, they deserved so much more than him.
It was time to leave. He never should have tried to say goodbye.
Step 2:Don’t get caught
He preferred to travel light, he was burdened enough by memories he didn’t need relics as well. Clothes, instruments, journal, and his treasure box. He’d had it sense he was a kid, changing the engraved name plate when needed, and it was the one thing he couldn’t bear to leave behind. What could he say, he had a soft spot and a sweet tooth. He hesitated at his Ira Glass. They’d call, he was sure of that. And he didn’t know if he was trying enough to not pick up. But if he didn’t take it he’d never hear their voices again. It rang gently as he deliberated, and on reflex he answered.
“Hello?”
“Hey Splaaaaash,”
“Raz’ul, it’s- never mind what do you need?”
“We’re almost back from our outing with Orfell, so we should be back soon, but we brought you a little something.”
He felt a lump in his throat, should he wait for them to get back? Or leave them waiting forever.
“Thank you, Raz’ul. I’ll make sure to stop by your dorms tonight to pick it up, is there anything else?”
“Nope, love you Splash!”
Symbol ended the call before his voice broke. “I love you, too.”
He made his preparations, he picked up rations from the kitchen, a horse from the stables, packed up everything he wanted, slipping the Ira Glass into his bag. The sun was setting and he was anxious to leave, but he hadn’t seen his students yet. He couldn’t do it, he just had to go. Never say goodbye, that was rule one. He got on his horse and started to walk it out of the stables.
“I’ll catch up with you guys, I want to tell Sandy goodnight!” Yashee stood a few feet from the door, waving goodbye at the boys as they went inside the school. She turned, catching Symbol by surprise. “Hey Splash! Going somewhere?” She eyed his horse curiously.
His stomach knotted as he tried to think of a good lie. “I-“
“Are you, leaving?” Realization crept up her face. Not many other reasons to load up your horse at dusk.
“Yashee, it’s not-“
“It’s okay, Splash. I didn’t mean to interrupt you. Are you-“ she swallowed and tried to maintain her voice, “are you coming back?”
Symbol couldn’t meet her gaze, “I don’t think so. It’s time for me to move on. I hope you understand.” Against his true wishes he edged his horse forward.
“I get it. Symbol? We’re gonna miss you.”
“Please, Yashee,” he couldn’t keep the tears from his voice, “please don’t make this harder than it already is. Please don’t come looking for me either.”
“This is not the first time someone’s had to leave suddenly, but I can guarantee we won’t. We love you.”
“And I love you, too. Goodbye Yashee.” He looked up to see her face one last time and saw his tears mirrored on her face. She was the last thing he saw as he sped away. As he rode he dropped his Ira Glass, letting crush beneath his stead’s hooves. Better this way.