1 Abandoned

He tried... Charles tried so hard to not cry. But the noises would never stop, never.

His dad endlessly drank beer and threw the empty bottles against the wall. His mom yelled at his dad, blaming him for the suffering she endures and the terrible life she lives.

No matter what he did, the sounds would never stop.

He could hear every crash and every bottle, every scream and every word. Every night, Charles would awaken at the sound of his mom's loud screaming or his dad's angry yelling.

One night, my mom entered Charles's room and caressed his face saying,"Sorry, baby." It was silent that night. There were no noises. Charles was finally able to sleep peacefully without being awoken by an argument.

The next morning, some cars and a red and white van came to their house and a few men exited the cars. Charles tried to walk towards them but dad stopped him and warned him to stay in the house. He looked out the window and saw some men carry a body onto the red and white van. It was his mom's dead body. Apparently , she had died from overdose or something like that. Charles cried and was saddened by the death of his mom, but he was happy. From that point on, it was quiet at night.

One day, his dad picked him up from school and said that they were going on a trip. Charles was ecstatic because he never got to leave the house. His dad took him to the nearest bus stop and mapped out the bus routes they needed to take. Charles looked up at his dad in joy, thanking him for the surprise trip, but his response was a simple nod. Charles glanced at his eyes and noticed that they looked dull and lifeless. He was confused, but his excitement overpowered any suspicion he had and soon he forgot about it.

After a few hours, they finally arrived at Long Beach. Charles's dad told him to find an empty spot on the shore, away from everyone else. He went off, saying that he would buy some food for them and would return after half an hour or possibly more. He was told to wait until his dad came back and instructed him to not lose the spot.

Following what he was told to do, Charles discovered a vacant spot, devoid of any third parties. He created a small hole in the ground for his sitting area. Then, he used a washed-up stick to trace a box around him, claiming that area as his. He sat down and looked back at the direction he had come from, hoping to see his dad arrive, so that they could spend some time together.

So he waited. And waited and waited. And waited some more until a few hours had passed. The last streaks of the yellow-orange light faded as the sun disappeared across the horizon. The moon rose and stars dotted the sky. Charles gazed at the twinkling sky, counting as many number of stars he could see, and stared at the occasional plane that flew by.

Soon enough, it was nighttime. Everyone had left by now and the rowdiness of the beach dissipated. But, his dad never returned. The beach was silent and the howling wind only added to the eeriness of the night. Charles finally realized that his dad has left him, abandoning him at the beach.

Laying down on the wet sand, Charles curled up into a ball, trying to warm himself with his body heat. He desperately rubbed his hands on his shoulders, hoping to keep warm, but it didn't work. Eventually, the biting cold penetrated his skin. He helplessly fell on his back, bitterly laughing at himself.

He weakly reached out his shaking hand towards the sky, as if he's trying to grab the stars.

"Is this how it ends? Why me...? I wish I could've lived longer. I wish..."

Charles fainted and his body slumped onto the damp sand beneath him with his hand still tightly curled into a fist.

[Booting System]