*RRRIIIING*
Finally, the bell that signalled the end to the day's classes rang. Students were rushing to the door in excitement, ignoring the shouting teacher, desperately trying to fit in reminders to "Do your holiday homework! Remember! 5 pages at the least!" Amidst the crowd, was a tall, blonde boy, with blue eyes, glasses, and a cowlick. His name was Alfred Jones.
This boy practically ran out of the stuffy lecture theatre, to retrieve his bag and hurry home. It took him 3 attempts to open his locker; he was in that much of a rush.
You see, Alfred received a letter, not that long ago. It told him that, due to his exceptionally high grades in the math, science, technology and media areas of study, the board of education had decided to send him on an all-expense-paid trip to London, to a gathering of some of the most successful students from every country. Of course, he wasn't one of those students, only chosen to be part of a sort of moral support team for the actual chosen individual, but even so, Alfred jumped at the opportunity.
He was leaving tomorrow.
As he raced down the street home, something seemed off. There was smoke coming from somewhere nearby but he assumed it was a barbeque. Turns out it was not so.
As he got closer, he could smell burning wood and chemicals, hear sirens and people crying. Something was very wrong.
Alfred stopped in front of a scene of pure chaos. Jaw slack, eyes wide, he stared at the charred remains of his apartment block. Everything was burnt to a crisp. Only a few walls and timbers still stood, crackling and fizzing in the way that quenched fires do. Fire crews were pouring litres of water on the structure in an attempt to stop the blaze re starting. People were standing around, in shock, some crying, others hanging on to the few possessions they managed to salvage for dear life. A woman was being attended to by paramedics and Alfred could see huge angry blisters starting to form on the raw, burnt flesh of her leg.
What.
What is this?
My stuff.
My cat.
Comics.
Clothes.
Money.
My laptop.
Everything.
It's. Gone.
What?
No way.
This isn't happening.
Alfred collapsed on the spot, numb, face in his hands, overwhelmed and confused his mind a flurry, when the weight of the situation hit him. He had lost everything. Gone from a successful high school student, to a homeless man with no possessions in the blink of an eye. His parents were on the other side of the country, one hospitalized, and the other in rehabilitation, so they couldn't help. What in god's name was he going to do? How was he going to live?
But there was a sliver of hope, he realised. The trip tomorrow. All expenses paid until he decided to return, right? No longer than a couple of months allowed, but he could try and survive there for a bit. Of course, all he wanted to do at that moment was break down and cry, mourning the terrible loss in front of him, but at least he had some hope, unlike those other people who truly were left stranded.
Alfred spent a couple of moments trying to comprehend his predicament, and then slowly walked away from the wreckage, mind still a mess.
Need to get to the bus stop.
Where is it again?
Oh, I'm here already.
2$ for a ticket?
I think I have that much.
Maybe.
He dug around in his pocket for some coins, finding that he did indeed have the satisfactory amount to purchase a ticket, handing it over to the Italian driver. He then proceeded to make his solemn way to the very back of the bus, where he sat down for the hour long drive to the airport. Then and only then, Alfred let a couple of tears slip through. It was a relief to finally be able to pour the emotions out. The people on the bus were sparse, so nobody stared.
an hour later
"Oi, bastard, wake up, you need to get off the bus. We're going no further than here."
"Uuurg"
Alfred said groggily, forcing himself to wake up, the driver staring at him as if he were an irritating vermin, existing only to delay his break.
Where was he again?
Oh yeah, the airport.
Why again?
...
...
...
O-oh.
The fire.
Tears threatened to spill again, but Alfred managed to stay steady.
"Uh, ok. Give me a moment"
"Hurry up then, will you? I've got other stuff to do than sit around waiting for you to get your pansy arse off here"
"Rude Much?"
Alfred muttered. The driver overheard and gave him an even dirtier look.
He didn't care. But instead of provoking the driver further, he clambered off the bus and walked slowly to the entrance of the busy airport.
0o0o0o0o00o0o0o0o0o0o
Inside the airport was pure havoc.
The good kind.
Electricity, buzzing in the very atmosphere. People were shouting in all sorts of foreign languages and accents, running, walking, sitting, waiting. Some eating at cafes, some strolling through the no tax stores, some already boarding a plane or checking in. Some were even sleeping on the chairs or next to a wall, because their plane was delayed or not arriving till quite a while later.
It felt so alive; Alfred was caught up in it and almost forgot about what he was here for.
Almost.
He walked up to one of the staff to ask if he could borrow a blanket for the night. The Chinese man looked at him strangely, but nevertheless, brought Alfred a blanket, while muttering to himself and shaking his head. "Aiyah! These Americans, demanding such weird things!"
Alfred took the blanket, thanked the man and went off to find a place where he could settle down.
Turns out, there were a couple of free seats, right next to where he would be checking in tomorrow, so he laid down on them, propped his backpack underneath his head and fell asleep, lulled by the sounds of people chattering and going about their business.
0o0o0o0o00o0o0o0o0o0o
Alfred awoke to the sound of the loudspeaker:
"Last check in call for flight 3141 to London! If you're on the 3141 flight to London, please go to the check in immediately and prepare to board."
What?
He jumped up as if splashed with cold water, and ran over to the counter, panicked; if he misses this flight, he'd have nowhere to go.
"I'm here for flight 3141."
"Baggage?"
"Only this."
He showed the bodacious woman his backpack.
"A-aah, is that it?"
"Yes"
"Nothing illegal?"
"No. You can check if you like."
He handed over the bag, just in case. He didn't want to be kicked out.
"Okay, just a second...BROTHER! Could you check this bag please? That's all this passenger's bringing with him to London"
"Da Katyusha, I'll be right there."
A tall blonde man with a prominent nose came over to the counter and started looking through Alfred's bag. Everyone else in the proximity seemed to be shaking in fear at the sight of the man but all Alfred felt was some unexplainable annoyance. Maybe it was the accent...?
"Here you go! Nothing illegal. Have a nice trip~"
The lady said with a smile and handed back his bag.
Well, that was quick.
Alfred all but ran to the boarding gates, slipping in just in time. Phew.
As he and the other passengers got ushered down the tunnel to the entrance of the plane, he couldn't help but wonder. Who would he meet? What would he do? How would he live? How would he cope? What would happen?
These questions still in mind, he sat down in his designated seat next to a quaint Japanese man reading a manga, and waited for lift off.
After about half an hour or so, some staff appeared to demonstrate how to use the lifejackets and oxygen masks in case of an emergency, then the plane started to move.
0o0o0o0o00o0o0o0o0o0o
A/N: Hello! ^_^ Ak1k0l0 here, broadcasting live from the graveyard of unfinished stories that is my laptop's file system.
I hope you've enjoyed this first chapter.
You see, i've always written one shots and the like, never over 2,000 or so words, so I decided to set myself a challenge to write a longer story. Sort of an initiation ritual into the world of
Essentially, FIRST MULTICHAPTER, HUZZAH!
Also, I have no idea how long American in-between-term holidays are, when they are, or if they even exist, so if anyone knows, please tell. xD
Sorry if anything's innacurate or offending!
Long A/N is long, short chapter is short, virtual cookies shall be given to everyone, and reviews are greatly appreciated~
Thank