The Trick to Falling in Style

Alleviate

Logstedshire's best feature is the community college. For as underwhelming as the school is, one should not scoff at its existence. The people of the district fought long and hard to gain the right for this school. Seeing their determination, the district leaders signed off on the bill, allowing Logstedshire to create and maintain their own college. It lowered the unemployment rate, and it allowed more people to escape Logstedshire because they now had some sort of college diploma. The community college was ranked the worst of all the district colleges, but the people of Logstedshire refused to see it as anything other than a symbol of their accomplishments.

The people of Logstedshire thought the mascot should follow suit. It should be based on something that inspired the people and made them happy. A handful of people advocated for a phoenix, but when the votes were tallied together, the creature that had been chosen was an angel with blood red wings and theatrical red mask on their face. The Red Angel... an idealized version of Vermillion, the one person who refused to give up on them. If someone were to compare the mascot to the hero, they would notice many differences that honestly outweighed the parallels. The intention was conveyed, though, so people let it slide. They let this Red Angel represent their esteemed college and lackluster sports teams.

Even when Vermillion abandoned his people, they didn't change the mascot. The people of Logstedshire always held tight to the belief that Vermillion was missing, that he had disappeared during a mission. They believed he would return to them. Their hope was truly admirable, and it became all the sadder because only a few people knew that Vermillion was never supposed to return.

The college used to be a fire station. It was made from tanned bricks with metal doors that used to open up to reveal a garage of fire trucks. The garage doors had been tightly sealed shut, and there were graffiti paintings of the Red Angel pretending like he was playing different sports. Vermillion quietly laughed to himself. He did not know how to play half the games the Red Angel was playing. His smile dropped when the thought fully contorted in his mind. The Red Angel was meant to be him, and that made Vermillion sick to his stomach. Why did the people have to put so much faith in him? Why couldn't they realize that he had abandoned them and move on with their lives? They had been given absolutely no reason to hold onto hope. Everyone who tried to improve their lives or love them eventually left. Vermillion was just another long name on the list of people that had deserted Logstedshire.

Vermillion walked into the building. The front door wasn't even locked. Vermillion made a mental note of another thing he would need to fix before his time was up.

Vermillion looked around the first room. It's empty, as it should be considering how late it was. Vermillion walked right through the room. He knew that the college couldn't afford cameras, so he didn't need to worry about someone checking the footage in the morning to find him. Vermillion continued his way through the building, climbing up the stairs to get to the top floor. He was not stopped his entire journey, the college's lack of funds showing.

The college did not include a dormitory for the average student. It was only the ones who lived on the streets and happened to have incredible talent were given one of the few rooms that made up the top floor of the college. The other rooms were used for classrooms. Clubs were to be taken to a library in a different district or done outside in the street. The athletic and gym classes were done outside, no matter the weather or temperature. It was a wonder the district leaders still allowed this plan to run unsupervised.

Vermillion stopped at the end of the hallway. He checked out the window at the end to see the wall of the neighboring building and sliver of the night sky. He straightened up once he had made sure he wasn't being watched. He knocked on the door with his knuckles, light enough that only the person in the room could hear him. He heard someone shuffle around in the room, and he breathed in a deep breath. The doorknob jiggled, turning slightly as the person on the other side unlocked their door. The door swung open.