The Youth of the Nation

[julia]

Call me blind, but I didn't see it coming.
Everybody was running, I didn't hear nothing except gun blasts.
It happened so fast.
I didn't really know this kid, though I sat by him in class.

---

Everyone who knew Marcus Cummings couldn't say it was a surprise when the tortured, broken teen brought his dad's gun to school and blasted through the halls. Sure it was a tragedy, but no one could say that they didn't see it coming. There were over 20 deaths, and many more injured, all from a boy who was tired of being beaten and tortured. The last gunshot echoed the longest through the halls. Marcus claimed his own life, right there in front of the Chemistry lab.

The nation heard of the pain, the loss, the fear... but they couldn't really understand it. They couldn't fathom the feeling of watching your best friend, your sweetheart, your teacher being shot by a teen who had been pushed too far by too many. They would never feel the fear of being hidden away in a classroom, praying the boy, who wouldn't hurt a fly just a few days ago, would pass by and ignore the room. Not even a parent could realize the overwhelming regret of a life lost for a life saved.

First day back at school since the shooting. It's lunch, and the whole school is silent. No one dares speak a word, and there is a thick heaviness that hangs like dense smog in a large city. You have agreed to meet after school with a few other students to talk about something that no one is really sure about. But, it gets you out of counselling, and it sounds promising. You decide you've got nothing left to lose.

---

Leonard straightened out his sleeves then cracked his knuckles nervously. He was put together, as usual. He was wearing a black suit, a white dress shirt, a blue tie, and nice, black dress shoes. He looked different though. He seemed hard, like there was a shell around him now. The Leonard you would have met just a week ago was a happy, handsome young man who would work his hardest at everything. But on Friday, when the shooting happened, something changed in Leonard, and it was instant. He leaned against a tree and crossed his arms, then turned his face to the sky, taking in the last of the suns rays.

Aspen looked up at the tall man leaning against the tree. Her hair had been combed recently, thanks to the local church, but it was starting to get tangles. Her big, blue eyes blinked slowly, and she opened her mouth to speak, but no words came, as though her words were afraid to break the fragile silence. She looked over to the horizon, able to see a storm moving in from the east, and she sat in the dry, brown grass. She folded her hands in her lap, then looked at the boy.

"Where is everyone?" she asked, the silence suddenly gone. Leonard opened his eyes and looked at the dirty girl who was here. She was the first one here, besides Leonard.

"They're coming, or they chickened out and went to counselling," he explained, his rich, deep voice making little noise in the quiet of the empty park. Leonard then scratched his chin gently and tapped his pocket, feeling the cash in his pocket. It was a hefty sum, and he sighed lightly, covering his eyes with his hand.

Aspen nodded thoughtfully, then looked around at the empty park for signs of life.

[Platinum cobra]

Jack walked around a corner slowly, his eyes were pink from crying almost all day. He was almost ashamed he didn't have anymore tears to give. He looked up and saw 2 more people over where they had decided to meet, he had almost not come but he just didn't know if he would come to regret it or not. He sighed sadly and finally walked over to the other 2 people, "Im Jack." he said sadness in his voice. He went and laid down on the grass, he was wearing a leather jacket, with black jeans. His hair was in disarray cause he had not really seen the point in trying to look his best anymore. Their was almost nothing left for him, the only reason he had even come here was cause he thought it would hurt Samantha's memory if he stayed couped up in his house all day and he knew she wouldn't have wanted that.

He turned his head and looked at the girl sitting on the ground, "You know where everybody else is, I thought I was going to be late." he said sitting up and wiping his face. He went and looked around seeing if he could see anybody else, he could almost picture Samantha walking towards him while he was sitting their and telling him to stop crying that she was their for him now. He quickly shot back to earth though when he fell over to the side not realizing he had lost his balance. He sighed and looked up, hoping that what he saw hadn't been a dream but knowing in his heart it was.

[Raddum]

Matthew sighed, walking along towards the park. He was in his usual brown sweater with rolled up sleeves, this revealing the braces around his wrists made of iron to prevent him from cutting himself. Although his parents demanded he keep them down, it never stopped him. He always kept his sleeves rolled up in hope one day somebody would find a way to unlock the braces and allowing him to do as he pleased. The same going for the braces around his ankles, which were able to be seen below the end of his navy blue jeans. The cut across his face finally starting to heal since he inflicted the wound upon himself out of spite.
Nobody cared, nobody would ever care. He didn't even know why he agreed to talk to these other kids... He didn't know them.

He scurried into the park, looking around. It was certainly quiet, he liked silence. But maybe that was because he always had to deal with being alone at home, in his room... It was always quiet. Sometimes he could hear his parents having fun with his little sister, dolls, cooking, stuff like that. There were three kids here; he figured more would be coming. He silently sat down, making sure to keep a fair distance from the other two, he figured once everyone was here he'd hear everything he came to hear, smalltalk wasn't all that necessary to him. He curled up, resting his chin on his knees and silently starring blankly forward. To them it might've looked like he was starring at them, but he wasn't, in truth. The smell in the air... Rain? A storm was coming? He didn't care for getting soaked, so hopefully this wouldn't take long.

[Banba]

Kelly sighed, glancing up at the group of now four people. She had hidden behind a tree to gather herself after a surprise wave of saddness washed over her. She bit her tongue and smiled, letting out a breath as if she was letting go of her feelings. She walked up the hill to the rest of the group, smiling slightly but more somber than she usually was. If anyone were to look, they could eaisly spot the saddness in her eyes. She didn't feel like hiding it, but it was almost reflex for her to smile by now. She raised her hand in greeting, knowing most of the faces.
"Hey, guys. Hope I'm not too late." She said, sitting down.

[Storyboy]

Listen to one of these

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=5fhSNKJnVK8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=uGGZkdPbLwI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=kdYcQ_k0zyE

Lint. That flaky stuff that gathers in your pockets. Yeah, lint. It was deadly. Dakota had been gathering it in a trash bin next to his dryer in his apartment. He could have walked with the filter to the trash can but that seemed like a lot of effort for something so small. So he put a small bin next to the dryer. Luckily for him when he needed to hide the evidence of his part in the shooting he had just what he needed. He took the bin and dumped its containments into a plastic bag with which he stuffed into his pocket.

Standing outside of the Cummings' house he pondered. Was he really going to do it? Was he really going to burn down this family's home? Yes. He had to. He shook his head and walked over to the side of the house. He could see the vent from the laundry room sticking out the wall and into the drive way. He kneeled over by it and looked around. He was fairly visible but there were some thick bushes along the edge of the driveway to prevent the neighbors from easily seeing him. He put on gloves, not the finger-less ones he were at times but normal, disposable gloves. He removed the cap from the pipe and pulled the bag from his jacket pocket. He coughed as some lint and dust flew out from the pipe. "Yep, needs cleaning. Good." He said quietly to himself.

The parents were gone, likely dealing with the aftermath of the incident. Police had been through the house multiple times but they had yet to check the floor boards below the carpet where Marcus had stored the guns. If there were any left, which from what he could tell from the news, there likely was. He continued on. Opening the bag he carefully stuffed the pipe with lint without touching the sides of the pipe. He couldn't afford to leave any evidence for the fire department to find when they did their investigation later on. That's also why he brought a magnifying glass instead of a match or lighter. See if he had used those they would leave a chemical residue on the surfaces around where he started the fire. No he had to make it look natural.

When the bag was empty and the pipe was full of lint placing the plastic in his pocket; he then took out the magnifying glass and held it up to the sun. The beam cast down and blackened the lint he aimed at but it did not catch fire. "Shit. Shit, shit, shit." He moved on to another well sized chunk of lint and the material just melted. "Come on. Come on." He whispered. Then finally a piece ignited and smoke began to rise. Yes! He yelled in his head. He took the lid and twisted it back on the vent careful not to put out the infant flame. Slowly he backed away and waited to make sure a flame started. When the smoke turned from a gray to a black he was satisfied and walked out of the driveway and onto the street as if nothing had happened.

-----------------

Now he was walking towards the group of people. Whom he had only met recently. How he could hardly remember. The days following the shooting were a blur of sadness and regret. Perhaps one of them had talked to him at the funeral? No, he remembered that he hadn't went. He had wanted to. Marcus had grown to be the closest thing he could consider a friend. Now he was dead and he couldn't say goodbye. No one went besides the parents and the media, if he had went it would only lead to questions. He couldn't afford that.

Someone caught his eye. Another kid with a leather jacket with his eyes pink from sobbing. It doesn't even fit him. He thought self conceded about who he thought should wear leather jackets. He approached the group with his hands in either pocket. To break the silence and perhaps to make him get some of the stress off his chest he said something to the guy. Something he knew was cruel but at least now if people were looking at him it was for being an ass and not wondering who started the fire. "Hey quit crying like a bitch. We all lost someone. People die, get over it." They don't even know about the fire, forget about the fire. THERE IS NO FIRE! "If you want someone to feel bad for you go see a shrink, it's their job, not mine."

[ChristyKey]

Anastasia walked around the park for a while to look for everyone, until she spotted them. She didn't remember any of their names, since it has only been less than a few days since they met. She walked towards everyone, gradually showing a simple fake smile, until she heard something unpleasant from one of the guys. "Hey quit crying like a bitch. We all lost someone. People die, get over it. If you want someone to feel bad for you go see a shrink, it's their job, not mine." Anastasia wasn't sure whether to respond back to someone who acted as an ignorant ass, but she ended up saying something. "Do you really have a right to say that? Now I'm not exactly sure who you are,but if you are going to be a dick why don't you escort yourself away from us." Anastasia shot him a glare and looked at the guy with pink puffy eyes. "Just let it all out. We're here for you if you need us" she gave him a small smile, hoping it will make him happy to know he isn't alone.

[rileylovespanda]

With a bag slung over his shoulder, sixteen year old Elliot Coldwater took one last look at the apartment complex that he called home. In that moment, his resolve nearly faded and he almost ran back inside. He stopped himself though. Why would anyone want a coward like himself to stay around? Matt would, he thought to himself. He shook his head. No, there was no going back now. This was something that he had to do. Closing his eyes tightly, Elliot swung himself around so that he was facing away from the building when his eyes opened again.

The streets were nearly silent and a little bit eerie. Being alone was something that Elliot really didn't enjoy, especially when his emotions were in such a tossed state as this one. The sound of his shoes hitting the ground was a slight comfort to him. He tried his best to stop thinking, and for the most part it worked. His mind was very close to that of a blank slate up until the moment he walked into the meeting place.

The first thing he noticed was that someone was in tears. Who, he really didn't know considering he didn't know anyone's name. He hadn't arrived soon enough to figure out why one girl was comforting him, but he could tell that something was amiss. Being the slightest bit confused, he gave nearly everyone a rather confused look.

[julia]

Leonard looked around, seeing Lola swinging on the swing set not far from where they were, then looked down at the wristwatch on his right wrist. He shot a glare at the kid who smelled faintly like drier lint. He couldn't tell why he smelled like that, but the kid was shady and cold. Leonard pushed off the tree and looked at the people who had gathered. He thought there should be enough present to begin, and he cleared his throat softly.

"We should be a little familiar with one another, but I'm Leonard Harding. It's nice to meet you all. Before we start to talk, I think I had better lay a few things down. I will not tolerate insensitivity. If you want someone to buck up, shut up and help. This goes for everyone, and we'll make you stay if you prove to be a problem," Leonard explained, then rubbed his face and looked at the fake smiles and puffy, red eyes of these kids. He sighed softly, looking up to where his baby sister Lola was. He whistled and waved her over, then watched as the cute young girl with bouncy black curls and bright green eyes ran across the park and jumped into Leonard's arms. She gently kissed her big brother's cheek then laid her head on his shoulder.

Aspen looked at the crowd, blushed, embarrassed that she hadn't been crying like some of them. She felt heartless, but she knew she cared about the shooting. It hit close to home for everyone. She spoke up.

"I'm Aspen," she told them, then looked up at the quiet boy who hadn't said anything when he had come. He had braces on his arms, and a cut on his face. He looked like he wanted to be off the earth, for some reason. She cleared her throat, then looked back up Leonard as he began to speak.

"Alright. I asked you all to come with a few possessions, and as much cash as you could scrounge up. I've thought of a plan, but it's really far-fetched. I, for my own reasons, don't think I can go one living in this town. I feel as though
I had pushed Marcus over the edge..." he choked, his eyes swelling with tears. Lola looked up at Leonard, wiping his eyes with her little hands. He smiled then continued to speak.

"This place holds too many memories. You guys were the only ones who dared to skip counselling, so I'll propose this to you all now..." his voice grew quiet. "We leave Rayton."

[Platinum cobra]

Jack was sitting on the ground his face in his hands when he heard somebody tell him to get over it and stop crying like a bitch. He looked up at the kid in the leather jacket and jumped up grabbing the kid by the collar and lifting him up. "What did you say, don't talk about shit you don't know." he yelled and tossed him backwards somewhat roughly before sitting back down. He looked up at a girl that had walked over and gave her a small smile, "Thanks." He stood back up though when Leonard started talking, when he proposed that they leave he sighed and didn't know if he would be able to. He had so many fond memories with Samantha here, but he knew that he had to leave cause of that one bad memory.

"I am Jack." he said loudly, "and I agree. I can't stand it here anymore, so I am in." he said and stepped over so he was standing next to Leonard. He let out a sigh and hoped other people would join, he shot a hateful glance over at the other kid in the leather jacket. He hoped everybody but him came cause if he kept on talking like he had before, Jack didn't know what he was going to do but it was going to be ugly. He went and leaned against the tree looking at all the faces, their were some he knew slightly but couldn't remember their names, other's he had seen just by walking in the hallway. He pulled a picture of Samantha out of his pocket and looked at her smiling and wishing she was their. He put the picture back when his heart started to ache and he sighed knowing he shouldn't be looking at the picture cause it caused his heart to ache but he just couldn't let go.

[Raddum]

Listening to the kids around him, they seemed much more confident than he was, stable, some of them looked depressed, one of them had quite an angry tone, most of them had introduced themselves, aside from Matthew himself. Was it really worth the breath? Hell, it was one less breath he'd have later, it didn't truly matter at this point. He noticed the girl who introduced herself as Aspen looking at him, he didn't think anything of it. He wasn't surprised he was getting looks, the cut on his face, the braces on his arms and ankles. "Matthew." He said quietly, still not that willing to talk. The boy known as Leonard began speaking again, this time with words he didn't ever expect, but Matthew had a faint smile because of it. He had a small notepad stuffed into his pocket, it was a small journal that was written by Ivan before he had died; his final wish was for Matthew to have it. It was the most important thing he had ever owned. He had a small sum of money as well, but he figured he should probably keep it to himself.

"Leaving, huh? Rayton is nothing to me; it's a void of misery as far as i'm concerned." He said in what probably was the most flat and dull tone you could imagine. He continued to sit in his curled up state, starring blankly forward. The braces... They were so painful, but not in the way he savored. This was the pain of prevention... Something he was used to.