SandmanOfTexas
Gold Sparx
Gems: 2334
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#75 Posted: 03:27:59 18/11/2014
Leon couldn't feel his fingers anymore as he pulled himself into the window. He felt his arms burn from the exertion and although it was cold and his hands where practically frozen, some sweat dripped from his brow due to the exercise. Once inside the window he took a peek outside. The sun was just coming over the horizon. He looked down a dizzying six stories, far more than he would have ever climbed when he first came to Chinatown. Even now he wished to push upward, even higher to the very top but stayed his hand.
Although he had lost a lot in his youth, there was still a reason not to walk the razor edge between life and death. He did not fear dying, in fact at times he welcomed the idea of seeing his family again, but he had to stay alive for his grandfather's sake. For now he will play it safe.
Leon opened the door to his apartment room. He entered to find his grandfather smoking and watching TV, when it would work. "Mornin'" Leon said somewhat cheerfully as he walked to the kitchen to eat an old roll. It would have to suffice for both breakfast and lunch, but he didn't mind. Nor did he mind the fact that it was a little old. Food never made much of a difference for him, perhaps that was why he was so slim, but the climbing kept his muscles ready for anything.
After he finished him and his grandfather talked awhile. Stories about the old days when his grandfather was a young. And how much they missed the old land, even the hard labor that came with it. But in a city there wasn't much labor and it was far to cold to be outside anyways. Now everything was just the same repetitive motion.
Time passed and Leon went out for supplies. Upon his return he opened the door to a dark room. He turned on the light to a wide eyed man laying still. His heart stopped, the cigarette was still burning in his grandfather's hand. He watched for a long time but did not see him breath. He finally went over to check his pulse and found none.
Leon closed the old man's eyes with his fingers. He looked towards the ceiling and suppressed tears. Death was familiar. Hearing his father wasn't coming was hard, having his mother die as he held his her hand was even harder, this was painful but nothing compared to when he was a child. "Fabulis vestris , et manete in me." he said as he stood "bene vale."
Leon was not strong like his grandfather in his youth, but the Keane had a certain warrior culture of their own. Each first born son was a fighter, Leon took pride in this and always tried to live up to this, feeling often like he failed. His father died in a war and his grandfather fought in the war before that. Leon took bottles from the top shelf and poured the contents over the ground and his grandfather whom lied lifeless on the chair.
Finally he grabbed the matches from the front pocket of his grandfather and walked to the door. He lit one "a real viking's funeral" he said dropping the lit match on the ground. He watched it ignite the room and stood for a moment and then exited through the door. He threw his hood over his head and walked up several flights of stairs.
Leon knew the fire could spread to other rooms and even harm others and perhaps if it went unchecked collapsed the entire building, but he didn't care, not right now anyways. He walked up to a window and and opened it before backing up and slamming his forehead against the wall. He suppressed the urge to scream. He looked back at the window. 'I am probably somewhere between 10 and 12 stories high, what could that fall do to me' he thought 'I really don't care anymore'.
With that thought in mind he leaped through the opening towards the next building and closed his eyes. He felt something hit him, hard. It then gave way and he crashed into another room, it was empty. "damn, those windows are cheap" he said. 'but I survived' he thought a little shocked.
His hood over his head Leon exited the door of the building and walked onto the streets wondering what he would or could find in the real world, on the razor edge.
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At this point, life is just one hell of a ride!
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