*Splash*
"Damn it! Watch where your going you fucking retard!"
William shouted angrily as the car drove past him, splashing water from a puddle onto him.
He let out a defeated sigh as no amount of cussing would dry his clothes, he continued on his way.
The cold night air bit at William's skin as he trudged along the cracked sidewalk, his breath visible in the dim glow of streetlights. His office job had drained him once again, leaving his body heavy and his mind numb. Work, home, sleep—then repeat. The cycle had no end.
It wasn't a surprise to him, his life has always been like this unremarkable, dull and probably the most unluckiest being to have ever lived.
He was the kind of guy the world forgot existed, the kind that barely made a ripple before sinking into obscurity.
With a sigh, he continued his walk home, water dripping from his sleeves. The streets were empty, the occasional flickering streetlamp casting long, eerie shadows on the pavement. He barely noticed anymore. He barely noticed anything.
Making it back to his tiny apartment, he struggled to remove the keys from his pocket as he was constantly shivering from the cold.
The lock clicked, and he stepped inside, greeted by the suffocating silence of his one-room existence.
He peeled off his wet clothes, tossing them onto the floor with a damp thud, and collapsed onto his bed. His body ached, his mind screamed, but all he could do was stare at the ceiling, wondering if tomorrow would be any different.
Deep down, he already knew the answer.
It wouldn't.
William never had the luxury of childhood innocence.
He was abandoned at birth—left at the doorstep of St. Helena's Orphanage with nothing but a thin, tattered blanket and a name scrawled on a piece of paper: William Carter. No family, no past, no one waiting for him.
Growing up in the orphanage, he quickly learned that the world didn't care about kids like him. The caretakers were indifferent at best, cruel at worst. The other children were either too broken to form real bonds or too selfish to care. Survival meant keeping your head down, keeping your expectations low, and never—never—showing weakness.
By the time he was ten, William had already stopped believing in fairy tales. No one was coming to save him. No long-lost parents, no wealthy benefactor, no miracle adoption. He was just another faceless kid lost in the system.
Due to government sponsorships for orphaned children he was able to receive a basic education all the way till highschool. He neither had friends nor a girlfriend since no one wanted to hang out with a parentless loser.
At sixteen, he aged out of the orphanage. No support, no safety net—just a cold farewell and the expectation that he'd figure things out on his own. He bounced between shelters, took whatever jobs he could find, and scraped together enough money to rent the kind of apartment no one wanted to live in. It wasn't much, but it was his.
Then came the cycle.
Wake up. Work. Go home. Repeat.
Days blurred into weeks, weeks into years. Office jobs, minimum wage drudgery, bosses who barely remembered his name. He wasn't miserable, but he wasn't happy either. Just existing.
And that was the worst part.
"Sigh."
William reached behind him and pulled out an old packet of cigarettes and a lighter. Taking a small puff he let out a long exhale and looked out of his busted out window at the moon.
The moon hung in the sky like a silent guardian, a pale eye gazing down upon the world with an ancient, knowing glow. Wisps of silver light spilled across the sleeping earth, tracing the edges of rooftops and kissing the tops of restless waves.
it remained. A silent promise. A beacon in the dark.
Night time has always been his favorite time, it's silence, the cold glow of the moonlight and the fresh night air had given him peace in his troubled life. Like a mother embracing their child, encouraging them to take on the day's challenges.
William took one last drag of his cigarette before placing it out on the ashtray next to him. He covered himself with his worn out blanket and quickly fell asleep, he had an early shift tomorrow.
Little did he know that tonight would be his last.
Something was wrong.
The air felt thick, heavy. A sharp, acrid scent invaded his lungs, burning its way into his throat. His body stirred before his mind fully woke. Smoke.
His eyes snapped open, and panic hit him like a hammer. The room was hazy, a dark cloud curling toward the ceiling. Fire.
His chest tightened as he coughed violently, struggling to push himself upright. His head swam, disoriented from sleep, from the suffocating air pressing in on him.
Then he saw it.
The faulty wiring near the ceiling—the same one he had ignored for months—was a twisting serpent of flame, its hungry tendrils licking along the walls, spreading fast. The dry, rotting wood of his apartment was the perfect kindling.
Heart pounding, he swung his legs over the bed and stumbled toward the door. But as soon as he took his first step, the ceiling above him groaned—a deep, sickening sound of wood and metal straining against its fate.
Then it collapsed.
Pain exploded through him as something heavy crashed onto his legs, pinning him in place. His vision blurred, his body screamed, but the fire didn't care. It spread relentlessly, creeping closer, the heat blistering his skin.
William gasped for breath, but the smoke was everywhere, curling into his lungs, making each inhale more agonizing than the last. His fingers clawed weakly at the debris, but he was trapped. Helpless.
How ironic.
After years of enduring, of existing without purpose, this was how it ended? No grand revelation, no second chance—just alone, forgotten, suffocating in the very place that had become his cage.
His body felt heavier, the edges of his vision darkening. The last thing he saw was the pale, distant glow of the moon through the broken window.
A silent, indifferent witness to his end.
And then—nothing.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
This is my new book the other one was a trail run as it was my first time writing so I hope I receive support from my reader to keep me going. POWER STONZ PLZZZ!!!!!!