She stood with a look of uncertainty painted on her face. The cashier repeated " four twenty two!". The man's patience was running out. I could see her struggling to comprehend what the man was asking for. I felt so sorry for the girl. She has Autism, and from just merely looking at her you couldn't tell.

She is five foot. Blue eyes and brown hair make up her perfect completion. She has lived here in Chester Georgia her whole life. First time I saw her I was almost





Photo credit: Julia R., Bethesda, MD


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Just a story inspired by a song.

envious. She is a senior in my high school. I never understood why her parents didn't move her to Cochran, they have a school for Autistic kids. Instead she had endured the torment of our class threw all of the years. The preppy girls were the worst. Their jealously fueled their hate for her. The guys were bad, not as bad as the girls, but they still had things to say. Except Ryan Jamison, he was the football team's star running back. He never said a word about Kacy. His friends would say things like " Kay..Kay.Kay.Kaycy how are are are are you you you...today?" then they would all howl with laughter, except Ryan he would just sit back in his desk and stare straight ahead like nothing happened. In my opinion I wouldn't call him a good guy, because like everyone else he did nothing.

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I wake from a deep sleep. I'm not sure what has woke me, but I'm p*passed. I go to my window looking around. Nothing outside except an empty street and a cold fall night.
I know sleep will not come to me if I lay down now. So I wander down stairs. My house is dark I'm standing in my kitchen when I hear it... a low grumble. I turn slowly and see my dad standing at the foot of the stairs wiping sleep from his eyes. I jump. " seriously dad!". He looks at me and says " do you know Kacy Marquez?". I feel like someone has knocked the air out of me. "um.. Yeah why?", I say trying to steady myself. " She is missing and I get to go find her.", my dad says grabbing his uniform from the closet. " She's missing as in gone?", I say. " yeah and she is retarded so it's a high risk runaway.", My dad says pulling his belt around his waist. " Autistic", I say wanting to punch my dad. Kacy has Autism, which is a disease that effects your brain, but doesn't make you retarded, Kacy was the furthest thing from retarded. " what?", my dad says. " She has Autism, she isn't retarded", I say knowing I have said to much. " you know her personally Ryan?", my dad looks at me like he is interrogating me. I hate this, since I was a kid my dad has been on the force and ever since I was a kid he has treated me like a suspect. " I just uh.. know her from school dad.", I say trying to lie as best I can. " Fine tell your mom I left if I'm not back by morning", my dad says retrieving a water from the fridge. As he was walking out the door I spoke without even thinking " dad if you find her will you call me?". My dad looks at me " just know her from school huh?", then he walks out the door.
I'm scared. I know Kacy and I know she wouldn't just runaway. I run to my room. Searching for my phone in the endless comforter that surrounds my bed. I find my phone and go to Kacy's number. I call her house. When a women answers I have no idea what to say. " is Kacy there?", I say trying to sound casual then I realize it is three in the morning, sounding casual is so far gone. " No she is missing.. who is this?", the women says sounding scared. " uh.. Jake Davis, I am a friend of Kacy's from school.", I say. " she has no friends, who is this? And why are you calling so late?", the women yells. I hang up not sure what to say after that. I can't breathe. Kacy is alone outside in our town. Our town has three hundred and twenty people in it, however that does not include our large population of homeless people. They started coming to Chester a few years ago and over fifty have been arrested. Their crimes have been escalating. One was charged for rape and murder six months ago.
The more I thought the more angry and scared I became. Then I remembered it. I knew where she was. I put on my jacket and put my sliders on. I grab my keys and get into my truck praying she is where we first talked.

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Cold wouldn't even begin to describe me. In Georgia thirty degrees is pretty cold and its windy. I'm confused. I know I am in the right place, but he isn't here. I don't understand, he is always here when I am. I can feel it already. The anxiety attack of change will send me into a whirl and I will not be able to find my way home. I begin to cry. " RYAN?", I yell. He has to be here, he just has to. I wander around our spot. We first spoke here. It's our place and he isn't here. I trip over my feet and fall into the cold wet ground. Rain begins to soak my jeans. I lay on my stomach face in the dirt. I lift my head and begin to get up when I hear a voice " Girl give me everything you have in your pockets and give me that coat". I'm scared. I shake my head trying to speak, but nothing comes out. " Don't make me hurt you.", the voice yells. I cover my head with my hands. I'm to scared to look up. My eyes begin to cloud with tears. " Ryan?", I say. All that I can say is Ryan over and over again. " No it's not Ryan its a man that will hurt you if you don't give me your money!", the voice screams. I feel hands on my back, then I'm being flipped over. I lay on my back staring into the face of a man I don't know. His features are covered in dirt. He smells of alcohol. I can't move. He speaks " are you gonna make me hurt ya?". I look to the sky beyond the man, I know Ryan is awake. I can feel it, but I can also feel that he won't make it in time. I speak and the mans eyes grow with anger " I'll miss you Ryan."


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I heard the sirens. I was already awake, due to a women's scream I heard. It was coming from outside. When I looked out the window all I saw was an empty street and an empty park across the street. Even after lying in bed for an hour I couldn't return to sleep. Then when I heard the sirens, I knew something was very wrong.

I watched for an hour, maybe two before I saw him. There was an ambulance park directly across from my bedroom window, but nobody was loaded into it. I heard sobbing of a boy when I saw the Medical examiner van pull up. The man carried a black bag, he walked down to the river and disappeared among the trees.

When dawn finally came I saw the man with the bag and four paramedics carrying a big black body bag. I knew what had happened tonight would change our little town forever.


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When I pulled into Grey-son Park something didn't feel right. I jumped out of my truck and started jogging towards the spot among the trees that Kacy and I had first spoke. I was mad one day, just broke up with my girlfriend. She had cheated on my with my best friend. I was beyond hurt. I was looking for a place to hide when I saw the trees surrounding the bank of the river. I climbed in between two trees and sat on the river bank. I was there for a few minutes when I heard the most beautiful voice I had ever heard say " Hello". It startled me at first. I turned and saw a familiar face sitting in a tree overlooking the river. She was wearing a red sweater and jeans. " What?", I said to her tyring to not sound as angry as I was. She didn't respond. She just sat there. I thought maybe I offended her so I said " whats your name, I know you go to school with me.", but she still said nothing. I was becoming more and more angry. " Fine", I said and sat quiet for twenty or so minutes and finally couldn't take the silence anymore so I stood up and said " You know what I was trying to be nice, I don't remember your name, but I know everyone makes fun of you and I know why now, because you are so d*mn rude!", and I walked off. A few days went by and I received a call from a number that I would remember forever. It was Kacy. She said " I have Autism. I don't I didn't I wanted to talk to you, I can't don't know how to No, I try to talk, but sometimes it doesn't come out like at all.". I felt like a complete *asshole. We talked for hours that night. She listened to me ramble about being hurt by my ex. She told me her dad had died three years ago and she had a hard time. He was her best friend. I asked to meet her that weekend in the place we met before. She called it our place and for the next eight months we hung out everyday, but nobody knew. My friends made fun of her everyday and I was to scared to say anything about it. I was to chicken to help the girl who had helped me. She was the greatest person I had ever met. She wanted to be a writer, because that's the only way she could express herself, threw written words. She was not on smart, honest, sweet, but she was absolutely beautiful. Not hot, not sexy, but truly beautiful from the inside out. Some days she would have problems talking to me. So I would do most of the talking.. Then some days she would talk the whole time.
In the short eight months we hung out I fell in love with the girl in the tree. And she had fallen for the boy who wouldn't stand up for her.

I walked threw the trees and what I saw would forever leave me broken. It was like a scene from a bad movie. She was lying on the ground, It was dark, but the moon light seemed to make the pool of blood that surrounded her body shimmer. I fell to my knees beside her. she wasn't breathing. Her pulse was gone. I cried knowing I had done this. I hadn't returned her phone call. I had ignored her and went to sleep. She came here expecting to find me and she found death. I picked my phone up and called my dad.. " hello?", he said. " Ryan??". my dad said. " I found her dad, I found Kacy, she.. shes dead..", I said tears running down my face. " What??", my dad gasped. " Where Ryan Where?", my dad pleaded. " Grey-son park, between the trees by the river..", I said hanging up my phone. I topassed my phone down the bank and heard it plunge into the water. I wouldn't move. I wouldn't budge, even when they took her, I wouldn't leave. I couldn't. If I stay maybe she will know it wasn't supposed to be this way. I was so sorry. I would forever be remembered as the boy who can not be moved.

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The next day at school we heard the news. Kacy had been stabbed twelve times in the stomach. The man had been caught that night. He would be convicted of first degree murder. When I went home that day there was still police at the park. And Ryan's truck also. I was confused why Ryan? I dropped my bag in my room and went to the park walking the trails. When I neared the spot between the trees I heard Ryan's voice. I stopped short of the opening and listened. " Ryan get up now! She isn't coming back son! She is dead.", the officer said. " please leave me. I'm not leaving her. She waited for me, I'm waiting for her dad you don't understand I was supposed to be here. I had met her here almost everyday and when I didn't answer her phone call she did what she usually did, came here. and I... I let her die..I loved her dad and I let her die..", Ryan began to cry. I was shocked. The boy who never stuck up for Kacy was in love with her. " Fine stay here as long as you want son, but she isn't coming back.", the officer said and with that he walked away, climbed out of the trees and walked to his car. I didn't know why, but I walked into the trees. Ryan looked at me. His white shirt was covered in blood, his jacket lie next to him soaked in blood. I could see tracks of his tears running Dawn his face. " why didn't you stick up for her in class if you loved her so much?", I said. Ryan shook his head " I didn't want to believe I loved her. I wanted to pretend we were just friends or not even that.", Ryan said. " so how long are you gonna stay here, because I doubt that your dad will let you stay here very long.", I said sitting next to him. He looked at me for a long time then said " I don't care what anyone wants I'm not moving, I'm not leaving her. I will not be moved.".
Somehow I understood Ryan. He was finally standing up for Kacy. I would forever remember him as the boy who can not be moved.