In sociology, the third place refers to the social surroundings that are separate from the two usual social environments of home and the workplace. Examples of third places include churches, cafes, bars, clubs, libraries, gyms, bookstores, hackerspaces, stoops, parks, theaters, among others
Stealing the answer because I'm nowhere near as articulate on this matter:
The basic (and simplified) idea is that gender--what we think of as masculine and/or feminine--is performed in the ways we act, speak, dress, move, etc. and doesn't really exist outside of that performance. We learn how to perform this way from dominant culture and conventions--what someone might (incorrectly) call "normal male" or "normal female" behavior. But these "normal" qualities (and genders themselves) don't actually exist--rather, we are all repeatedly mimicking them and are rewarded for doing so (or punished for not doing so). We merely impersonate the qualities we've been taught match the gender we've been told we possess (like females being demure or males being aggressive) until those impersonations (and gender itself) become belief and seen as something natural and assumed.
Given that he was valedictorian at his school, I find that unlikely to be the option.
I think you're missing a 4th option:
He did it, and believed it not worth the anxiety/suffering of living the rest of his life as a wanted man, so did what he could to get away from the immediate scene but ultimately turn himself in so to speak.
And there are almost certainly more nuanced options out there.
Been using this for a while now. For my needs, it's the best distro out there.