When do your parents go to sleep? What time will be the absolute earliest you can escape without being noticed? Better yet, what time must you be back by? What exit will you use? What obstacles are in your path? Are you meeting a friend? Where will they be? How will you get to them? How will you get back?
If you are climbing out your window, take note of the surrounding terrain. For a first-story window, this is not an issue. But for sneaking out of a second-story window, be careful—being found on the ground with a broken leg in the middle of the night is not the start to the memorable evening you had in mind. Is there a tree or a terrace you could climb? If the get-away is in the daytime, this will probably be your only option (as done from your room). You will need to lock the door, turn on some light music or the television, and get your defenestration on. If you are climbing out a window that is not your own, make sure it is far away from your parents’ location. Choose a window that’s on the opposite side of the house. Make sure it isn’t noisy to open. Check the screen of your chosen window beforehand. Some screens are very difficult to work with and you may have to nix this possibility if it means damaging the window. Does it come out easily and can you put it back intact? If you are going out the door, can you unlock it at an earlier time? Can you leave the screen ajar with a doorstop? How much noise does it make upon opening and closing?
If it’s normal for you to ask about their day, do so. They may casually mention their workload or their post-dinner plans. However, if you are the go-directly-to-my-room-and-draw-skulls-on-my-notebook-all-night-long type, don’t bother. They’ll wonder what’s going on and it’ll just rouse their suspicions.
Experiment with different types of footwear. Maybe socks make the least amount of noise or maybe your tennis shoes/slippers do a good job diffusing the sound. The night of, don whatever is the most silent. [3] X Research source
Wear your going-out clothes under your bedclothes. If you’re sneaking around the house and the ‘rents wake up, you can say you were grabbing a CD or some water or simply couldn’t sleep so you were killing time till you got tired. Hide your going-out clothes outside. This can be in a grill (a clean one!) or in some area that won’t be seen or discovered—by humans or animals. An area of the garage may be your best bet. Keep your clothes in a bag. That way, when you change, the clothes you’re forced to take with you (unless you hide those in turn, too) are easily transportable. If you’ll be wandering around outside, consider camouflage. Not the army kind—just simply blending into your environment. That doesn’t mean wearing a black ski mask, a black sweatshirt, and black pants. Think about the colors of where you’re going. How would you fit in? Navy, dark green, brown, and dark gray generally mix in well with nighttime. Stay away from black (few things are actually black) and bright colors to avoid attracting attention to yourself needlessly. [4] X Research source If the streets you’re going to be on are poorly lit, wear light colors anyway. You don’t want to be hit by a car.
Where will the family dog be? If necessary, get him out of your trajectory the night before. He could cause a ruckus you aren’t otherwise expecting. If you’ll be wandering around in the dark, remove any objects that you think could pose a problem. Tripping over anything, breaking something, or running into your mother’s beloved wind chimes can all blow your cover.
You may want to put a note to your parents telling them where you are under the blanket with the items. That way, if your parents actually look and see you’re not there, they can at least know where you are. This strategy can help alleviate any penalty, because you were considerate of your parents’ worries.
Depending on your parents, this may only work once (twice if you’re lucky). Use this method sparingly as it may rouse suspicion if used often. On the other hand, if you do sleep there frequently, your parents may get into the mindset that falling asleep on the couch is a normal occurrence and it will arouse less suspicion. In that case, it would be to your benefit to sleep on the couch some nights even when you aren’t sneaking out.
Don’t concern yourself with being late for your friends. If it’s taking you longer to pry out that screen, they can wait. Text them you’re having problems. Do not get harried and wind up falling down stairs or breaking windows just to get there on time.
Many places have curfew laws; keep this in mind. While you may feel tax-free, you aren’t necessarily. Always keep an eye out for possible mishaps and lay low throughout the night. [6] X Research source
Be smart about it. If you’re carrying a purse or your wallet, that could be a dead giveaway. If your cell phone is in hand, you’re good as busted. Make sure your story is mostly believable, even if it is a bit strange.
Your story is up to you. What fits into your personality? Would a casual stroll be enough of an alibi? Do you have a tree house or similar place you could sneak away to that would lessen the blow? If they ask why you did such a stupid thing, say you were very stressed about an upcoming event like a test or talent show, etc. You may still get grounded, but it’ll be much better than being grounded for sneaking out.
Clear all of them. It looks less suspicious if you have an empty inbox than if you have all texts deleted from the last 24 hours. Most people do periodic sweeps through their phones to clear everything out, and you did, too.
Weigh your options. You may not want to call your parents, but it could be your best option. Your situation may get worse, the cops could eventually come, and all hell would break loose. Or you could just call someone to get you the heck out of there now. Your parents may be glad you called and lessen your punishment.
Only fabricate a story if you’re positive it would work. Sometimes honesty is the best policy in a situation like this—or at least sticking closer to the truth. If you say a friend was having a panic attack or was contemplating suicide, make sure your parents (or the cops) will not get a hold of the friend. Your story either needs to check out or not get checked out at all.
If you tell the police that you are on your way home and he lets you go, go home. If you are found out and about later, your punishment will be much worse. Take that stroke of luck you were just offered and use it.
If you are nearby, it’s possible you can come up with an alibi. However, your parents aren’t stupid. If you do come up with some outrageous story, make sure you look like what you said just happened, did. If you got into a brawl with a giant squirrel, look like you got into a brawl with a giant squirrel. If you spent the night stargazing, come in with grass stains. You know the drill.
Know what you have to work with. If you’re obsessed with biology, tell your parents your teacher got you on this kick about earthworms and their nighttime habits. And if you’re not obsessed with biology, put in the work (mentioning it in daily conversation) a few days beforehand to make your story believable.
If you have siblings, you may want to take into account their schedules, too. It’s a lot to juggle, true, but the investment will pay off in the long-run.
Caffeine should be part of your post-sneak out alibi, depending on your situation for the next day. You don’t want your own tiredness leading to your exposure. All that work for nothing! Some parents wait until morning and make you do a bunch of things when you’re really tired from sneaking out. You got yours, now it’s time for them to get theirs. Deal with it. . . it’s better than being grounded!
