Year One: Austin's Actions by Lydon Colston

So this is a short story I wrote not long after first arriving at Uni. Sorry if it's a bit too long.

Austin’s Actions

Clouden Town was quiet that night. That put Austin at rest.

Austin looked up at the sky, covered in thick black smoke distorting the horizon. It was beautiful. He sighed and released a small smile – a calming smile. A reassuring smile. Everything was okay now. Everything was going to be okay.

19 years old and Austin had never really fit in anywhere. He wasn’t picked on, he wasn’t particularly ugly, no one really bothered him. But still he didn’t fit in. You may consider that sad, but he didn’t mind. He liked the peace and quiet that came with never being disturbed.

If you were to ask anyone about Austin, they probably wouldn’t be able to give you more than just a basic description.

“He has… um… ginger hair, or was it more auburn? No I’m certain it’s ginger. Some freckles I think. He usually wears a blue plaid shirt, a pair of jeans and basic blue trainers. Uh… That’s it really.” Is what you’d probably get in response. “Oh but his smile is so sweet!” Ah! Austin’s smile. His only noticeable feature.

“When Austin smiles you can’t help but feel at peace… like everything’s going to be okay, everything’s going to get better. Sadly, when he stops… you just seem to forget he’s there, his existence sort of… fades away.” His mother had been known to say this time and time again. To family, to friends, to anyone that ever remembered Austin enough to ask about him.

Austin wasn’t sad, never misunderstand that. Emptiness had claimed him long ago, and he’d lost every time a battle against it began. He wasn’t strong enough. But he was not sad, never misunderstand that. To say that he was “sad” would be an insult. To claim that he was “sad” would be to take the eternal torment that he faced and turn it into something incredibly laughable.

Austin may have lost every battle and war that emptiness had waged upon him, but he was not dead yet. Austin is not a ghost, do not think that. He had simply been defeated every time. He had tried to fight back and simply retreated or been beaten into submission.

The world is a cruel place, never forget that.

There are only a certain amount of battles any one person can lose; there are only a certain amount of times any one person can smile when they want to do nothing but curl up and disappear, there is only so long any one person can go being unable to feel anything. Everything has its limit. Everyone has their limits.

This story is about Austin. This story is about how Austin felt nothing for too long. This story is about how even being invisible couldn’t save him. This is Austin’s story.

The day that he stood on Clouden's tallest hill, the one that over looked the town, and looked up at the sky as black smoke infected the clouds. That day was the first time in a long time that Austin had felt something, anything. That day he felt anger.

Anger is a dangerous emotion no matter what - but to someone who for so long hadn’t been able to feel anything, anger was a fuel, kerosene lurking in Austin’s veins. All it needed was something to ignite it.

What had angered him? No one can really say. He just awoke that day filled with a burning rage, a desire to destroy everything and wipe the slate clean.

This isn’t a normal reaction. Austin understood that, but when you have lost as many battles as he had, you don’t care anymore; any reaction you can muster the energy to give is suitable.

So Austin got ready. With swift speed he effortlessly floated between every destination he had mapped out in his mind, acquiring everything he needed. Gasoline, matches, flammable sprays, Zippo lighters. Anything and everything that could cause a fire he acquired. Then Austin’s mind went blank. The ocean, he can remember a calm ocean flowing through his mind, keeping him cool. Sea breeze, sedating his mind. However the town was not so calm. As the flames spread the screams got louder. No one had anticipated this, how could they? So everyone was slow to react. And slow reactions cost lives.

No one survived.

The smell of searing flesh infiltrated Austin’s nostrils, so he inhaled deeply through his mouth – nothing was going to stop him now.

Eventually he made his way to Clouden’s tallest hill, the one that overlooked the town. He stared into the abyss of flames, listened to crackling embers, felt the warmth of the fire on his face… and he smiled. The same reassuring smile he was known for. The one that let everyone know everything was going to be okay. But this time Austin smiled for himself – he was going to be okay. He may have lost his final battle, but he was going to be okay.

Austin took a deep breath, held onto his reassuring smile and began to slowly walk, further and further until there was no more hill – until his feet succumbed to gravity and he slowly fell.

Austin’s smile stayed fixed all the way until he hit the bottom. Even as the blood escaped from his body through the exits made in the fall, his smiled stayed sure, his eyes wide open.

Austin was no more.