This story was inspired by the song 'If I Die Young' by the band Perry and is dedicated to a boy from my home town called Jean-Pierre, who died of cancer a few years back and had such an enormous effect on my community. I may not have known you, J-P, but I will always remember you!
I wrote this story between midnight and three in the morning, so I'm sorry if it isn't entirely coherent. I'll look it over in the morning.
Disclaimer: I don't own Austin and Ally, or the song 'If I die young'
-If I die young
Fame came with a lot of little things, things that Austin didn't expect. For instance, he knew full well that famous people had to deal with a paparazzi, but he had no idea that it could sometimes entail calling the police to keep away stalkers. It could really creep him out sometimes, despite the fact that he loved how successful his career was.
Of course, there were many good things that went along with being famous. He got to travel to places with his friends, perform in front of audiences, and do things that, once upon a time, he could've only dreamed of doing. But his absolute favorite part of being famous was how much more he could do to help people who needed it.
Austin was definitely a giver, anyone who knew him could tell you that. He was constantly donating to various charities, helping out with community projects and volunteering at the local food bank, whenever he had the time of course. But he had known, ever since he was a boy, that there were certain things the famous could do that other people couldn't.
The contest had been his idea, and his friends were extremely proud of him for it. The idea was quite simple: they'd get a magazine to send out a contest, getting people to send in their stories for a chance to sing with Austin and spend a day with him and his friends. It took a lot of string pulling, but the idea finally came through. Austin even got the honor of picking the lucky winner.
That had been a month ago, and picking a winner is exactly what Austin was doing, sitting on the counter of the Sonic Boom, surrounded by Ally, Trish and Dez as they shuffled through the top ten candidates.
"These stories are all so sad." Ally said, her brow scrunched up in sympathy. Austin gave her a small smile. She had such a big heart.
"I thought that was the whole point of the contest." Trish commented, seemingly quite undisturbed by the stories they were reading. Austin, however, wasn't fooled in the least. Trish may have a cold, tough exterior, but deep down she was a really caring person. And that's exactly where she'd be keeping her emotions in this situation: deep down.
"It is," Austin said, a little hesitantly. "But that doesn't make them any less…" Austin fumbled for the right words.
"Emotionally scarring?" Dez offered.
"Yeah!" Austin said, giving his friend a surprised look. He was really hard to read sometimes.
"This one's pretty sad." Dez offered, pulling out one particular sheet. "Dog died, parents' divorced, sick grandparent… sounds like she could use a day off." Again, Austin was surprised. It was looking like it would be one of Dez's off days, meaning he was uncharacteristically serious and sober.
"This one's pretty bad too." Ally said, showing them one of her own sheets. "Twelve year old boy, his dad died, his mom is sick with cancer, and he has to live with his aunt because there's no way to pay for his house." Ally frowned, looking at the picture of the boy that was on the sheet. "I can't imagine losing my dad… how awful." Austin, seeing how much the idea was bothering her, reached out and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. He knew that Ally had an overactive imagination; it's what made her such a great songwriter. But her imagination didn't always come up with pleasant scenarios. Ally gave him an appreciative smile.
"How are we supposed to choose?" Trish exclaimed, after reaching the bottom of another sheet. "How can we decide who deserves it more?"
Austin was troubled by the same thoughts, looking back and forth between the various sheets he was holding. He suddenly wished that he had left the decision up to someone else. How could he possibly pass judgement on these poor people? How was he to know who deserved to win the contest? They were all in such horrible states in their lives, and everything within Austin cried out to help them all. But he couldn't. He could only help one of them.
The real question is, Austin thought to himself, who will this be of the most use to. Which one of these candidates will benefit the most from the experience they were offering.
And that's when it caught his eye.
In his left hand was one sheet which had particularly touched his heart. He scanned over it again, reading the description. Yes, this is definitely one person who would benefit from what they were offering.
"Guys," Austin said, drawing his friends' attention. "I think I got a winner." The other three, intrigued, all gathered around the sheet he was offering and read what it had to say.
"Angeline Rose." Trish read out loud. "15 years old and living in a hospital in order to monitor her cancer. Leukemia. Spread everywhere. Little to no hope of recovery. Father left three years ago, mother working desperately to help her daughter. Wow…" Ally was actually moved to tears. Austin himself was working to keep his face neutral. Dez offered Ally a tissue, seeing as he always had some in his pocket due to his obsession with romance films.
"Why her?" Trish asked, trying not to sound mean as she did. It still earned her a hard stare from Ally, which she chose to ignore.
"Because," Austin said. "Everyone else is in a bad situation, but at least they'll get over it eventually. Angeline is dying. She doesn't have much longer to live. She deserves to have some dreams come true before it's too late." It took all of Austin's control not to pull an Ally and shed tears as he said it. Such a sad story…
"You're right." Ally said, having wiped away her tears. "She may not deserve it more than the others, but she has a lot less time to make it happen. I think we should pick her." Ally shot Austin a smile, which he returned in a heartbeat. He lived for the smiles she gave him.
The other two nodded their consent slowly, agreeing to their friends' reasoning, and also knowing that neither would be swayed once they'd made a decision. After that, it was just a matter of gathering up the papers and sending in their decision. The group parted after that, all of them going home to retire for the night, each of them with a certain amount of anxiety.
Austin just hoped that they'd be able to make a difference.
On the day when Angeline was arriving, Austin woke up with bags under his eyes. Sleeping had been a bit of a difficult matter. It could be so elusive sometimes, especially when one was anxious about something. And Austin was nothing if not anxious about meeting Angeline. Well, he was a little excited, to be honest, but mostly anxious.
He met up with Ally, Trish and Dez at the airport, all of them looking tired and anxious. It actually made Austin feel better, knowing that his friends felt the same way. None of them mentioned their feelings, and instead chatted aimlessly over coffee and hot chocolate, waiting for Angeline to arrive.
Thankfully, they didn't have to wait very long. Within ten minutes of their arrival, the plane Angeline was on landed, and the three got up, ignoring the small crowd that tried to follow them, and went to go meet her at the designated area.
There was no conversation anymore as the foursome waited. They barely looked at each other, although Ally did hold on to Austin's hand, something she'd recently started to do and which made Austin stomach do back flips. He squeezed her hand back regardless, drawing comfort from her presence, even though she was a bundle of nerves.
Angeline was easy to spot when she came along. For one, she had an escort of about five people, and at least two of them were reporters. Also, there was a certain air about her that made her seem sick. Perhaps it was her pale skin, which was such a contrast to her dark hair (which was probably a wig), or maybe her small frame. Whatever it was, it caused Austin's heart to fill with sympathy, and chase away any last remnants of anxiety. He walked up to the girl with confidence and offered his hand.
"Hi," He said, putting on a smile. "I'm Austin Moon. These are my friends, Ally Trish and Dez." He pointed them out as he said each name. They all gave her a wave and a smile.
Angeline ducked her head slightly, smiling and blushing furiously. "Hi." She said back shyly. "I'm Angeline. But I guess you already know that."
Austin smiled wider, deciding that he liked this girl. "You ready to have an awesome time?" He asked.
Angeline looked up, her blush fading slightly. "I sure am." She said.
"Great" Austin said. "Then we better get going."
It was with a fair bit of difficulty that they managed to leave the airport and get rid of most of their followers, but they finally managed to sneak away in a cab, something that Angeline found was pretty funny.
"You have to hide from people a lot?" She asked, as they sat in the cab they'd flagged down, on their way to the Sonic Boom. It was actually more of a van, what with the four friends, Angeline and her three escorts, who were doctors trained for an emergency.
"A lot?" Trish answered her, warming up to the girl quickly. "Try all the time. It's hard to get moments of privacy, now that Austin's famous." Angeline giggled, and Trish beamed, glad to have brought on laughter.
"Oh, it's not that bad." Ally said, looking back at them from where she sat in the middle seat. "They don't follow Austin into the shower."
"Nope," Austin argued, smiling. "There was that one girl who wired my whole house, remember? I had to get a restraining order."
"Oh yeah." Ally said, remembering the moment. "Tamara Morgan. Not the craziest girl we've ever come across, but she was a close second."
Angeline was now in peels of high pitch giggles, which brought everyone else to smiles. "Who was number one?" She asked between her laughter.
"Tilly Thompson." The four answered in unison. Trish continued "She was a complete wacko. Held a serious grudge against Ally after something that happened in kinder garden and tried to ruin Austin's career."
"I think she's in a mental institute now." Ally offered.
"'Bout time." Austin said, thinking back on the butterfly song incident. He'd never known until that day that one person could be so mentally unstable.
They were all in a very good mood by the time they made it to the Sonic Boom. Thankfully, they showed up before any reporters or fans, so Ally managed to lock the store and avoid any trouble from the start.
"So this is the Sonic Boom." Angeline said, looking around with wide eyes. "It's beautiful."
"Thank you!" Ally said, beaming. She was the one who took care of the store, after all. Her father was often away on various conventions.
"How about we go up to the practice room?" Austin suggested. "We need to work on our song, anyways." He added a wink to that, and her blush returned. She mumbled a very quiet 'okay' and the others led her up to the practice room.
All of her shyness was forgotten the second she entered the practice studio. Angeline's eyes immediately went wide as she took it all in: the various instruments, the recording equipment, and the big letter A on the wall.
"It's amazing!" She exclaimed, moving around the room. She ran her hand over the piano, and her face split into a wide grin. "I love music, you know. But I haven't had much time for it since I got sick." Her smile faltered very slightly, but it stayed. Everyone else, on the other hand, suddenly had faces filled with sympathy. With her energy and enthusiasm, they'd almost forgotten why she was there in the first place- the reason they'd picked her.
"Well," Austin said, looking for a new topic. "Do you know what song you wanna sing?" part of the contest deal was that the winner would be able to choose what song to sing with Austin.
"Yep!" She said. She quickly rummaged through her jacket and pulled out a piece of paper. She unfolded it quickly and handed it to Austin.
Austin took in the title, then the lyrics. His heart melted as he read through it. He knew the song, of course, and it often touched him, but the fact that Angeline had picked it out and wanted to sing it made the song so much stronger. He gave the girl a soft smile. "You sure?" He asked.
She nodded enthusiastically, taking back the lyric sheet. "It's perfect." She said. "It describes everything so perfectly, you know? And I can sing it pretty good." She smiled sheepishly at the last bit.
Austin smiled back. "I'm sure you do." He said. "Okay, if that's what you want. Actually, it makes it a lot easier for me. I already know the lyrics, so we don't have to spend time learning them. We'll have to rehearse later, of course, but now we have more time for some fun stuff!"
"Cool." Angeline said, pocketing the lyrics. "What are we gonna do?"
"How about the beach?" Ally suggested. They all looked at her with their eyebrows raised. Ally wasn't known for her fondness of the beach. She just shrugged at them, and Austin smiled at her. It was a really good suggestion.
"Great idea." He said. Turning to Angeline, he added "Is that okay?"
"Yeah," She said. "I just can't go in the water."
"Okay then." Dez said, clapping his hands together. "Let's go!"
And so the five of them, plus the three medical escorts, made their way to the sunny beaches of Miami. They played Frisbee, made sand castles and ate ice cream, enjoying their time out in the sun. Angeline in particular seemed to be keen on making the most of every moment.
"It's not very often that I feel good enough to go outside and have fun." She told them. "Might as well make the most of it while it lasts, you know?"
Team Austin was finding out pretty quickly that making the most of things was a huge part of Angeline's motto. She was small and sick and weak, but she didn't let any of it get her down. She was determined to have a good day, and she wasn't afraid to let out her enthusiasm. Her good mood was extremely contagious, and as the day dragged on, Everyone was coming to admire the girl more and more, until finally, some questions burst through that everyone had been dying to ask.
"So," Trish said, as they all sat down under the shade of an umbrella, sipping drinks. "When did you find out you were sick?" She said it gently, but it didn't mask her curiosity, earning her another sharp look from Ally.
Angeline, However, didn't seem at all offended or even put down by the question. "About a year ago." She answered with a small smile. "My mom's been doing everything ever since to help me out. She'd be here, you know, if she'd been able to get the time off work. But she really needs the money, so I convinced her to say behind." She took a sip out of her drink.
Ally offered a neutral comment. "Your mom seems really supportive."
Angeline smiled. "She's amazing." She said. "Sometimes, I wish I had more time with her, or that I could somehow take away her pain, you know? I don't want her to hurt because of me." This time, her smile did fade, and she looked down.
The others looked back and forth between each other, unsure as to what to say. This girl had been surprising them all day, but this definitely took the cake.
After a couple moments of silence, Austin took it upon himself to say something. "Maybe all her worrying will pay off in the end, if you pull through." He said.
Angeline gave them a sad smile. "Oh no." She said. "The doctors have done everything they can for me. Not much else to do. That's why I'm trying to live life to its fullest. I want to get as much in, while there's still time left."
Ally had tears in her eyes again. She reached out to touch the girl's hand. "I'm sorry." She offered, putting as much sincerity and compassion in it as she possibly could.
Angeline gave her a genuine smile. "It's okay." She said. "I'm not sad about it. I just wish everyone else wasn't so sad about it." She looked toward Austin. "That's why I picked that song. My mom will be listening, you know." She turned her gaze back to everyone. "It all came back to the same question; 'what would you do if you knew you only had a little bit of time left?' I've done what I wanted to do. I'm happy with how things turned out. I'm okay." And the thing was, Austin and the others could tell that she really meant it. She was happy with her life. The only thing about dying that bothered her was how much she knew it would hurt her mother. It was incredible- and extremely inspiring.
And it got Austin thinking. Had he lived his life to his fullest? Would he be happy with how things turned out if he were to die tomorrow? His dreams had come true, after all. He'd become a star, had helped people in need, and had a group of amazing friends. There wasn't much to complain about in his life. And yet… there was something missing. He knew, deep down, that he'd be unsatisfied if he were to die tomorrow. A part of his life was incomplete.
And as he watched his friends, particularly Ally, laughing and enjoying themselves on the beach that sunny afternoon, he had a nagging feeling that he knew exactly what was missing. He just didn't have the nerve to admit it quite yet.
It wasn't long after that the group made their way back to the Sonic Boom to rehearse. Ally, Trish and Dez had given them privacy to practice, so the two practiced alone (aside from the medical team). Austin had to fight back tears more than once as he sang along to the song. He was really only doing backup singing, but the song still held so much power. And Angeline had been right; she could sing the song beautifully.
The time finally came around, and Austin and Angeline prepared for their performance, their supporting friends and medical team cheering them on. Angeline looked pale and nervous, but she had a big smile on her face as she made her way through the crowd to the stage. Austin followed her with a wide grin, stopping only when he passed his friends to give them a box of Kleenex. When they raised their eyebrows at him, he simply said 'you're going to need it'.
Angeline quickly took her designated seat, and starting hooking up her guitar, which she had insisted on playing for the performance. Austin gave the introduction.
"Hey everybody!" Austin spoke into the microphone. "Today we're having a special performance. I'll be signing along with our contest winner, Angeline Rose, to the song 'If I die young' by The Band Perry. She chose it especially because of her own personal experience with cancer. I hope you guys like it." With that, Austin took his seat across from Angeline, and, taking his own guitar, signalled for the music to start. It was clear from the beginning that Angeline was, in fact, the star of this performance. She sang with passion and a beautiful voice that had everyone captured from the start.
If I die young, bury me in satin
Lay me down on a, bed of roses
Sink me in the river, at dawn
Send me away with the words of a love song
Uh oh, uh oh
Lord make me a rainbow, I'll shine down on my mother
She'll know I'm safe with you when she stands under my colors, oh well
Life ain't always what you think it ought to be, no
Ain't even grey, but she buries her baby
The sharp knife of a short life, well
I've had just enough time
If I die young, bury me in satin
Lay me down on a bed of roses
Sink me in the river at dawn
Send me away with the words of a love song
The sharp knife of a short life, well
I've had just enough time
And I'll be wearing white, when I come into your kingdom
I'm as green as the ring on my little cold finger,
I've never known the lovin' of a man
But it sure felt nice when he was holdin' my hand,
There's a boy here in town, says he'll love me forever,
Who would have thought forever could be severed by
The sharp knife of a short life, well,
I've had just enough time
So put on your best boys and I'll wear my pearls
What I never did is done
A penny for my thoughts, oh no, I'll sell 'em for a dollar
They're worth so much more after I'm a goner
And maybe then you'll hear the words I been singin'
Funny when you're dead how people start listenin'
If I die young, bury me in satin
Lay me down on a bed of roses
Sink me in the river at dawn
Send me away with the words of a love song
Uh oh (uh, oh)
The ballad of a dove (oh, uh)
Go with peace and love
Gather up your tears, keep 'em in your pocket
Save 'em for a time when you're really gonna need 'em, oh
The sharp knife of a short life, well
I've had just enough time
So put on your best boys and I'll wear my pearls
As she strained to the last note on the guitar, there was a moment of absolute silence. Then, with a gathering intensity, the crowd erupted in a huge cheer, many of them with apparent tears on their face, particularly Ally Trish and Dez, the last of which was holding an empty box of Kleenex. Angeline smiled intensely at the crowd, and Austin got up and hugged her. She hugged him back, that furious blush back on her cheeks.
"You were amazing." Austin complimented her, setting her down and leading her off the stage.
"Thank you." She said. Her smile shrank into something a little more personal. "So were you. And there's your girl, coming to tell you just how awesome you were."
Austin whirled around, and to his surprise took in the sight of Ally running toward him, a huge smile on her face and tears in her eyes. Actually, the sight itself was pretty common. What surprised him was that Angeline had referred to her as 'his girl'.
Was it really that obvious?
"You two were amazing!" Ally said, throwing her arms around Austin and pulling him into a hug. He hugged her back tightly, his heart beating a little faster than usual. She pulled back slightly, without letting go, beaming at him in a way that made his insides melt.
And it was then that Austin knew. Here was the missing piece of the puzzle that was his life: Ally Dawson. She was the reason the sun rose in the morning, the reason he bothered to get up when it did. She was his reason for living, the center of his universe. And she was the reason he wouldn't be satisfied if he died tomorrow: He would have never had the chance to tell her.
Out of the corner of his eye, Austin saw Angeline taking in the scene with a bright smile. He glanced at her quickly, and just caught her saying "There's no better time than the present."
Truer words were never spoken.
Without a second thought, Austin leaned in, closing the space between him and the girl of his dreams, and kissed her.
There was a moment of hesitation, a slight second of shock on Ally's part. But it quickly faded and she leaned into that kiss, returning it with a fervor.
They were never entirely sure how long they stayed that way. It could've been hours, or days, or mere seconds. But eventually, they did pull apart, both grinning at each other.
"Good God!"
The cry brought the couple back to reality. They both turned, taking in the sight of their two best friends staring in shock. It was Trish who had made the exclamation. "A little warning next time!"
They all burst into laughter, including Angeline. Austin broke away from Ally and she gave Trish a hug to express her happiness. Dez clapped Austin on the shoulder, with a 'good job'. Austin didn't have to ask. Dez had probably known about Austin's feelings for a long time- much longer than Austin had known, in any case.
The gang escorted Angeline back to the airport after the performance, all of them in a great mood. Austin and Ally held hands the whole time, neither wanting to let go of the other. It was only when they had to say goodbye to Angeline that they let go.
"It was really great to meet you." Trish said first, giving the girl a hug. She repeated the sentiment, and Trish stepped back.
"Yeah, we had a lot of fun today." Dez said. He offered his hand, and she took it, smiling.
"'Angeline'" Ally said, moving forward. "It means Angel. You really live up to that name." Ally gave her a hug, and Angeline hugged her back, traces of tears in her eyes.
Finally, it was Austin's turn. He stepped forward and offered his hand. She took it. "Thank you so much. For everything." He said. He glanced back at Ally, who smiled back at him encouragingly. "I promise I'll listen to your message."
"Oh Austin," She said, smiling gently. "You already have."
That was the last time they saw Angeline Rose. None of them had expected to meet her again in this world, anyways. And yet, though they had only known her for a day, none of them ever forget the little angel who had changed their lives in a single day.