Frank had been sitting outside of the apartment door for over two hours now, listening to the conversation within. He had put his newly acquired cigarette packs in his new Jacket's inner pocket, after having it repaired and washed. All of the residents had fallen asleep, and Frank entered the apartment through the unlocked front door.
He saw his employees, some sleeping on the couch or on the floor and quietly took a chair and put it against the opposite wall. He sat down and closed his eyes, trying to fall asleep. But he couldn't stay asleep. Frank felt uneasy, and as his subconsiousness drifted away, he saw Jack.
[hr]
The fire progressed quickly. It caught on to the walls and continued to burn through them, moving upwards. Frank was lying on the wooden floor. Filled with holes, he couldn't even begin to try and heal himself, but Jack was on the other side of the room, hunching on top of another team member. He screamed at her in french, shouting she has to live on, for the sake of her art. For the sake of her memory.
Frank laughed. Blood came gushing from his gut. There is no memory. Their lives had been lost in war. He could hear the Germans scream orders outside. They are too scared to enter. They'd figured that the fire would do the trick, since they had already filled most of them with bullets. But something was wrong.
.
"We need to go", I scream at Jack. He doesn't look back.
That young boy, at the ripe age of 15, had been through unspeakable horrors, yet he managed to salvage himself and keep his sanity intact, saving the lives of others to boot. The french woman screamed at the boy. She ordered him to flee. She ordered him to at least try and help me. She knew that if I were to get on my feet, I could run out with jack in my arms and avoid the Germans. But then I would leave her alone.
I can hear new orders. The Germans are going to send in a squad to finish us off. I can barely move. I have no cigaretes left, and the fire makes me feel nauseous. She pushed Jack away, cursing his name. As she stood up, Jack walked over to me. Somehow, the fire didn't scare him. The bullets didn't scare him. The hounds didn't scare him. What did scare him was not seeing his mother again. He went down on one knee and looked into my eyes.
"I can see her again", Jack said. His green eyes mirrowed the strong flames in the room. The fragile boy only wanted to be reunited with his family. "The Rabbi told me...If I die, I meet my mom", Jack continued. He held his hand forward and opened his palm, revealing three pieces of butterscotch candy. His favorite. He got his left hand over my belt. He took my grenade.
I can't let him do it, but I can't move. He put the candy in my mouth. I can feel the energy. She tries to stop him, but he runs to the exit ignoring danger. As he walked to the door with the grenade in his hand and his eyes closed, he said something out loud.
Something I never understood. A language I had never heard before. I came to a man after the war and asked him for help. He told me it came from the bible.
.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
[hr]
A rude awakening expected Frank. Dawn came, and with it the end of his dream. He woke up screaming for Jack to stop and soon realized the mistake he had made. He stood up,walked to the sink and washed his face. The others will wake up soon.
"Jack... There was no place to go to", Frank whispered as he leaned against the sink.
"You just died", he could barely complete his sentence. A drop of salty water fell from his face and reached the sink. Just one.
