text: (Sorry for low quality, super tired after school. Hope you like it. First time posting in this sub reddit. Any pointers/ opinions appreciated greatly.) Would any one care if I was gone? He wondered, the morose thoughts once again seeping into his brain. The wind whipped around him as he shuffled home, the bulging duffle bag swinging on his back. He didn’t want to go home, didn’t want to face the yelling and hurting and the smell. The smell was as intoxicating as it was addictive, clutching and dragging him down into the depths of alcohol dependence. He could never enjoy the beverages at parties as his friends did, lest get addicted and be thrown into the stereotype of white trash and nothingness that his family so proudly claimed. School was safe. There wasn’t fear at school, the smell of beer and cigarette smoke seemed to escape from his clothes as soon as he entered the wrought iron gates. For six hours he was free, even though the burden of home still shattered his spirit, it began to rebuild itself. Slowly. Yet it was ripped from him when the bell rang. As everyone exploded out into the streets surrounding the institution, eager to go home and relax, he was emptied once more. Sometimes he wished he could fly away, soaring on the breeze as birds did, diving and dancing with the wind as it ripped leaves from trees. Escaping. Free. The wind seemed to grow in intensity as he climbed the hill. He could see everything from the top. The dilapidated rows of worn houses seemed to shudder under the weight of the smoke and heavy hearted inhabitants. It appeared as though one gust of wind would knock them all down, one by one, like dominos. From the top of the hill, he couldn’t hear the swearing and yelling and screams, and for a moment he could forget. If he climbed one of the numerous trees on the hill, it seemed as if the sky was in reach. No smoke or pain covered his view, just the wide, empty blue. He shuddered. Unzipping the bag slowly, he felt an ache come over his body. The tightness present in his shoulders suddenly seemed to clench over him. Each breathe came heavier than the last. The shiny black object glistened in the afternoon light, it’s cold frame heavy in his palm. One shot. That was all it would take. He raised it slightly, wondering as he had a thousand times if this was his only way out. Breathes came ragged and desperate from his body as he plunged it against his temple. ‘Look at the sky’, he thought. ‘Just pretend you’re a bird. Just close you’re eyes and fly away’. Silence enveloped him. He was scared, but he would fly. (For L and C, I love you so much. I’m so glad you’re still here. I’m sorry I didn’t know, and wish I could’ve been there for you both.