The Red Balloon (Complete)

The Red Balloon

This is a repost of the same short story. My friend said this way it'd be easier for her to nominate this story for The Literacy Award that's been going on Wattpad. Thank you so very much to you guys who have nominated me and my stories!💗💗 I can't express how moved I felt!💗💗

This story deals with a different subject: Asperger Syndrome. This is NOT a disability fic because people with Autism of any kind are not disabled. In fact no one with one or other impairment is. They are differently abled. We all are in our own way. That being said, my knowledge about Autism and Asperger's stems out from the limited readings I've done on the subject and my experience of spending some time with an amazing kid with the same syndrome. The flaws you'll find in the story are partly my lack of knowledge and partly the liberty I took for the sake of the plot.

I did not know there is a movie by the same title before I began to search for the cover pic. So, this story is not based on the movie. I don't even what the movie is about.

The word count is 12k. It was very difficult to beta it. I apologize for any error or typos.

Comments/votes are very much appreciated, especially when I'm not feeling well.😞

Wish you enjoy the read. I'm actually pretty nervous about this fic. *fingers crossed*

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The Red Balloon

JingYu's pace faltered and he slowed down looking at the ruckus going on in the distance. Some people were gathered around a balloon seller. He could hear a shrill female voice yelling something. And there were some school kids too. Really tiny kids. Curiosity piqued, he bee lined for the scene instead of entering his seaside bar.

His initial assumption of the balloon seller being the centre of the problem was apparently wrong as he now saw whom the yelling was directed at. It was a boy, looked sixteen-seventeen, in his pajamas, thin, shorter than JingYu but tall for his age, hair a tangled mess. But what got his attention most was that the boy had his ears covered with his hands and his face was scrunched up. JingYu found the gesture odd, but the way this lady was shrieking, it was not that of a wonder. Though, that was not all. JingYu also noticed how the boy's eyes were skittering everywhere, at the sea, on the sand but never once meeting the eye of the woman, or of anyone, in fact.

"If you don't go away immediately, I'll call other people! You're scaring the kids!" She turned to the seller, "Why aren't you telling him to go away?"

"I already did! What can I do if he doesn't listen? Hey, you, go now, na? Why are you ruining my business?"

"Balloon," the boy mumbled and pointed his finger towards the red balloon one of the kids was holding, "balloon."

The woman shrieked again and tried to swat at his hand but JingYu jumped in to stand in front of the boy.

"What's going on here? What's the problem?" He asked.

"Oh, thank god, someone came at last! Please make him leave. He is crazy, a lunatic and scaring the kids," The woman informed him. There were other two women standing behind her, who looked at him apologetically. No doubt ashamed of their companion's unnecessary melodrama.

JingYu turned to the boy who had retracted back a few steps and staring at the ground intently.

"Hey, is anything wrong? You can tell me. I promise I won't yell. Do you need anything?" JingYu asked, softening his voice considerably.

Before the young boy could respond, the kid with the red balloon chirped up, "He wants my balloon. But Miss doesn't wanna give it to him cuz she bought it for us."