The Cancer Town (*DISCONTINUED*)

Chapter One

Austin closed the door to his room to conceal the stinging tears in his eyes and the small envelope in his hand. It was back again and he knew it. He rubbed his bald head and shook to try to contain the sobs inside. He could hear his mother and father talking downstairs about why he was so upset. His baby brother, Shawn, was crying in the cradle next to him.

"Ok, OK," Austin whispered, "one second Shawn." Shawn went quiet and Austin pulled out his phone to look at what his girlfriend Maddi was texting him about. Some of the text read Hey, why did you freak out like that, You can talk to me, Where are you, Are you ok, What's happening Austin after about forty text messages he shut off his phone. He wanted to sit and weep for his horrible life, but he had family to worry about. He stood up slowly, feeling light-headed for having skipped lunch and stumbled his way over to Shawn's cradle. After have gotten there he sat back down and slipped his hand through the grates and put it on Shawn's stomach. He just sat there looking at Shawn for what must have been about an hour when he finally mustered up enough courage to open the envelope. It read in twisty letters,

Dear Austin,

We are sorry to announce the return of your cancer. Please take in consideration the risk of your life, due to the massive spread of it. We are very sorry to have to tell you this unfortunate news but, after all the treatment we have done, we are unable to do anymore. We estimate you have around 6 more months to live before it will consume your whole body. With the right type of medicine we believe we can prolong your life by approximately 2 months but that will be all. We are very sorry to have to deliver this news to you.

Love,

Dr. Edin

Austin dropped the letter and pulled his one free hand to his face. Why did this have to happen to him? What did he do to deserve this type of punishment? Austin couldn't even muster the words to say as his parents knocked on his door to figure out what was wrong. They entered as  tears ran down his face and as he grabbed the letter off the floor and tore it to bits. He screamed in rage and went barreling out of the house and up towards the Colorado mountains. Hot tears ran down his face and the chilly wind pierced his skin. He was drenched in sweat but he was away from home and from everything bad that had happened. As he walked along a dirt trail that he used to hike when he was little, he heard a low growling behind him. He stopped and picked up a big rock that he found and got down in a low position ready to strike anything that came at him. The growl grew closer until he could see the sharp yellow eyes that he had been dreading. Scared to death of the terrifying beast that stalked him and far away from his home he sat cold, dying, and defenseless on the ground. The rock in his hand was shaking as he listened to the low growling getting louder in his ear. When he finally stood back up he could see a brown object low to the ground. The muscles in its back tense and its golden eyes sizing him up. The brown object leaped through the air toward his face when he screamed in terror. Swinging the rock towards the animal's face he struck its side hard and it went grazing past him. Freezing with the edges of his fingers getting purple, he turned sharply to stare the foe in the eye. It made a low hiss, that remind him of his cat named Darwin. The beast lets out a small yelp and turned towards the woods and took off. Austin shook with the cold. A sticky substance stuck to the rock and was slowly dripping on the ground. The air was hot and thick making Austin sweat through his graphic t-shirt. He felt sick to his stomach as he looked at the blood red liquid covering the rock. He dropped to his knees and threw the rock as far as he could. Shaking now with more than cold his mind felt clouded and he could feel the color leave his face. He listened to the wind blowing through the trees and slowly started to lay down when he heard voices call his name off in the distance. No, he thought, standing up suddenly and bolted farther in the woods. He couldn't face his own parents, he couldn't tell them that their son was going to die. He could live out in the mountains, he thought, eat berries and bathe in streams. As he continued down the trail his head became more clear until he ran out of breath. Collapsing out of exhaustion he realized he didn't know his way back. He. Was. Lost. All alone. After hours of laying there thinking he finally drifted off into a dream filled sleep.