All The Difference

In my World Government class freshman year, we had a free write assignment. We had to describe what the American flag meant to us. I decided to write a short story.

All The Difference

 

To yours truly, of the United States Government:

 

Some of our employees from The History Center of America have found a few valuable records from a journal that survived the Civil War of 2024 in the United States of America, between the two groups referred to as “The Unity” and “The Rebellious”. This young man who is the author of these entries was known as Tom Carter, and from our research, he was 14 years of age at the time. These journal entries discuss his families’ day-to-day tactics, on where he and his family traveled, and how they were trying to survive. These were most likely written a few days after the events that occurred. We also believe this is the person that led to the ending of the War in 2026, and led to the restoration of peace to our country. A hero, if you may.

 

 It is in our contracts and our head-leader’s orders, that we turn these files over to you, considering it is extremely important information and a piece of history. We would encourage you to eventually put the documents back in our hands. Then everyone can be aware of the importance of unison, and respect toward others and their opinions. The documents are enclosed.

 

Best regards,

The History Center of America

 

Tuesday, September 24^th, 2026…

I woke up this morning hearing John, my older brother, shout, “It’s time to get up, Tom!” from downstairs. I sat up, irritated. I looked to my right to make sure my shotgun was still there; it was.

 

I pulled it up on my lap, sitting the old-fashioned “criss-cross applesauce” on the makeshift bed on the floor. It was uncomfortable, but you get used to being alert during the war… frightened of being robbed, caught in the cross-fire, being injured, being killed. You don’t pay attention to the little things.

 

I examined my shotgun. I cleaned it thoroughly every so often; we don’t get supplies so much anymore. There are five of us in this beat up home. Mom, dad, John, William… William is so young, only 4 years old. Why are these idiots putting America through this? The War has been going on for two years.  Mom and dad are both 37 years old, John is 17, and I’m 14. We’re just the typical American family, just like everyone else. None of us deserve it. Millions are dead. It just makes me sick thinking about it. It is a time I will never forget. I wonder if it will end…

 

A war over politics? Of course. It is 2026. The citizens of the U.S. just continue to argue about the President. One side, known as the Unity, supports our President, Henry Jackson. The second side, being called the Rebellious, want anarchy. They have the belief that the President isn’t helping the country, they want him gone, but who knows where he is. Alive or dead, no one knows yet. Not like it really matters. The rest of us are called “Neutrals”. My family is part of this; we never take sides on anything, to be honest. The Rebellious and the Unity just keep going at it: bombing towns, burning them, shooting. Killing innocent people. Children, women, men; anyone who isn’t on their side. Cherished memories, hope, love, and trust, burned to ash and dust. Very little left to live for, I believe.

 

I stood up, taking my shotgun with me.

 

Every place we stay, whether it is a trench in the sorrow-filled soil, or an abandoned house or store, with holes in the walls, burns on the floor, charred remnants within… I take my flag with me. My American flag. I walked to it, placed on the wall in that burnt up home. I placed my hand on the stars. I ran my fingers over all 50, and the blue thread behind them. Then I ran my hand over the 13 stripes.

Red.

White.

Blue.

They are my favorite colors.

 

I still to this day believe that the American flag represents peace and hope. Unison, even though it’s similar to a free-for-all in the War, every man for himself when it comes down to it. Yes, there are three classifications, of us citizens, better to say barbarians, but fighting our own for different beliefs in politics? What’s the point?

 

The flag has been with us through a lot. Like when we have nothing to sit on, on the cold, hard ground. Or when mom was pregnant with William, I gave my flag to her to cover up with. It covers us up during rain or snow. Or when we need to hide from Unity soldiers or Rebellious soldiers, we can cover up with it. It was also with dad through some things, but I’ll get to that later. I tell you, no one cares about that flag more than we do. As beautiful as it is, no one has seemed to notice while we are in hiding.

 

I heard dad yell, “Everyone needs to come downstairs. It’s time to leave. Get your things together.” I don’t have much on me. I have my shotgun, my flag, my journal, some water,  (which is irradiated, but we have a few medicines to treat it) and the clothes on my back.  I have left nearly everything behind.

 

I took my flag off of the wall with the four saved thumbtacks I found. I folded it up as neatly as I could. It was kind of difficult; because I remember falling off of a drop that I’d say was fifteen feet a couple of days ago. Dad said I broke my left hand and fractured bones in my right one. It hurts extremely badly, but I have to keep moving forward for my family. My hands are swollen. They appear to be a blue and strange purple color. I have nothing to complain about though, because of what happened to dad just recently, like I was talking about earlier.

 

 I remember dad telling the story… He is still recovering from a broken leg and broken collarbone. He started telling his story, “I was out looking for water, when all of a sudden, Rebellious soldiers jumped out of the blue and started attacking me. There were three of them. Two were kicking me and the other was beating my collarbone in with a gun. I managed to pull myself up off the ground and pull out my M16 and shoot two. I had to run away from the other; the pain shot up through my leg every time I took a step. It was a true miracle that I could run. When I got far away enough, I ripped off a piece of my flag and wrapped it around a gash I had. It’s been a week or so, and it hasn’t got infected. The flag was there with me, helping me survive.”

 

That was originally where I received the flag. It has been sewn back together since then. Dad was out of the country during the Russian War in 2016, and he came back with several medals and the flag. He’s a fighter. I plan to be like him.

 

After I got my things, I walked down the creaky steps of the stairs. I looked and saw mom, dad, William, and John, looking exhausted. I have seen them like this for too long. A feeling of pain and rage sweeps through me every time I see them like that. It’s as if their expressions are permanent.

 

“Okay, take my hand William. We’re leaving,” said mom. “But mommy, I’m tired of leaving. I just wanna stay here mommy. Can’t we stay here? Why do we walk so much?” said William, sadly. Mom said, “I’m sorry honey… there isn’t anything I can do.” She picked him up and kissed him on the forehead.  William wrapped his little arms around mom’s neck. John turned his back to us. He wiped his hand across his face. I cried too. I saw his sniper draped down his back, the extra shells we picked up along the way placed in his pouch.  I saw a tear hit the floor. I still remember the way it shined… the sun hit it perfectly, shining on the wooden floor. William had a little flag. He jumped out of mom’s arms and ran to John. “Don’t cry John, I love you,” said William. John bent down and picked him up. William wiped John’s tears away with the flag. John replied, “I love you too buddy.” This made mom cry, but she was smiling too.

 

“Okay everyone,” dad said. “Let’s move. I’ll stay up front with my M16 in hand. Your mother will stay in the middle of us with William. Tom, stay close to John, lag behind a bit to watch the distance. “But honey, your leg…” Mom said. “Mariah, I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about me,” Dad said. Mom exchanged glances with John and I. “Mhm,” I replied. “Gotcha’,” said John. “Don’t argue with him, Mom,” John muttered under his breath. Mom looked at him harshly, then turned away.

 

Dad turned the knob of the door, and it swung open with a creak. With that, we left.

 

***

 

It was chilly and gray outside. I walked beside John, through the debris and lost memories, never to be recovered. I picked up sticks along the way; I wanted to make a pole for my flag. “Do you think things will ever go back to normal, John?” I said. He slowed down as he walked beside me. “Tom… I really don’t know what to think. I just… I’m not sure about anything anymore,” he said. That was the first time I think he’s ever been unsure about something. He always helps me with my problems; he’s my best friend. If he doesn’t know, neither do I.

 

“Maybe things will clear up soon,” I said. “We’ll find a good place to stay, and you, dad, and I can hunt, and mom can home school William. We can be happy again_”

“We can only hope Tom. You all are my hope for surviving, and eventually being able to thrive, perhaps. I want to see William grow up happy, not in this mess. How about you?” “You guys are my hope too, and you’re right about William,” I said. “I want to make a difference. I want things the way they used to be.” “Like going to school,” said John. “Seeing our friends again,” I said. “Your turn.” I felt a grin coming on for the first time in a very long time. Then he said, “Taking the car for a spin? I wish we could’ve afforded one of the hover car ones. Watching the cartoons on TV. A hologram TV would’ve been cool too,” he said. “Yeah,” I said. We laughed. Then I sighed, lurking in my old, long ago memories.

 

It felt like we were walking for what seemed like hours. I don’t know.

 

Then all of a sudden, I heard William scream, and dad shouted something nearly inaudible. “Move!” I think. I’m pretty positive.

 

Then the explosion happened.

 

***

 

I flew backwards, and I fell, sliding across the ground. I could hear cries, gunshots, and the rumble of the explosion. “John!” I screamed. “John! Mom, Dad, William, where are you?!” I could finally hear William distinctly screaming, “Tom! John! Mommy, WHERE ARE THEY?”

 

I started crawling. I couldn’t see anything. There was smoke everywhere. I reached my hands out in the open, until I finally came across the grip of another hand. I knew it was John. “John! Are you alright?” I screamed at him. He said, “I’m fine! We have to find the others, now!” We crawled around on the ground, we could barely breathe. It was killing me. I pulled myself more forcefully, but my hands were saying “No,” to me. John said, “ I just heard dad. They’re close.” We kept crawling, I was exhausted, and finally, I saw them. “Okay, let’s get to them,” I said. We finally were all together on the ground.

 

Dad shouted, “We need to find a place to hide, we can’t stay out here, we’ll get killed. Idiots finally made it here,” I heard him mutter under his breath. We crawled a little farther and found a trench. “Mariah, stay here with William. Cover up with the flag. Tom”, he said. I reached in my bag and threw it to her. We three guys knew what we were going to do. John reloaded his sniper, I checked my shotgun, and dad reloaded his M16. We were going in. Mom didn’t have time to say anything, and I heard William crying. It killed me on the inside.

 

Dad shouted, “One! Two! Three!”

 

We ran out in the open.

 

***

 

There were gunshots flying everywhere. I saw John duck a couple of times, dodging the piercing bullets. I ran behind a car, looking for a building or tunnel perhaps. Just something we could stay in temporarily. I saw a sewer hatch. “Guys! I found a tunnel! Let’s go!” We ran back to where mom and William were. We were shooting soldiers along the way. I saw John looking through the scope of his sniper, and he pulled the trigger. Dad ran out in the very center and was shooting people up and down. Run, shoot a clip, reload. A procedure that is burned into our minds. I heard a voice I had never heard before shout, “HALT!” I looked around, confused. A soldier was in front of me. I took my gun, and shot him. It was a sight I didn’t like seeing. Then I kept running. I heard him make a thud on the ground behind me. We eventually made it back to mom and William. Dad said, “Tom found a place. Let’s move.”

 

We took an alternate route, cutting in between old buildings. We came to a stop in an alley. From our view, there were soldiers from both sides, everywhere on the ground.

 

“What are we going to do?” I said. “We can’t take all of them on. They’re sending in reinforcements!” “He’s right,” John said. We five exchanged glances. I noticed dad look at the ground, extremely concentrated. It bothered me, who knew what he was going to do. Then he pulled a grenade out of his backpack; it was a type I had never seen before. He pulled the pin, and threw it as far as he could throw it out there in the battlefield. We covered our ears. He shouted so we could hear him through our plugged ears,” Okay, we are going to run straight forward in the direction we’re facing. Do not turn or look another way, go straightforward. Run as fast as you can run! Stay behind me! Tom, come with me, you’re the one that found it. Thank you son. I love you.” I said, “I love you too.” We turned around and we all told one another we loved them. I saw William take Mom’s hand.  We didn’t know what would become of us. The grenade went off, and we ran. It was a smoke grenade, there was not as much shooting. “Here it is!” I said. Dad, John and I then pulled up the lid to the tunnel. Mom went down first. William then went, and then the rest of us took the ladder down in. Dad pulled the lid over us. It became dark.

 

***

 

Thursday, September 26^th, 2026…

Things are turning especially bad lately. The soldiers are in the exact same spot they were two days ago, still fighting away. We’re stuck down here, in this sewer. It smells terrible, and we have very limited light. It’s definitely not healthy for us to be down here as long as we have been. Dad said that where some of the bombs have went off around this area, the radiation has stuck by with it, and some of the chemicals inside of them have washed down into the sewer from the rain. William has become sick; it’s scaring me. Mom thinks it’s from the radiation, so she tried using some of the medicine we have. It’s helped a little, but it won’t last long down here, and we have one dose left… and dad’s wound is becoming infected now. He can barely move, he’s really sick. Mom, John, and I have been tending to them. Mom looks exhausted. I wish she’d let up, but she refuses.

 

I wonder why people can’t get along. It’s so irritating, running constantly. Becoming sick when we don’t have to be, barely getting any sleep, starving. We’ve been going along with this for too long. William is going to grow up and have a happy life. So will everyone else. Things are going to be the way they used to be. I have a plan.

 

But I may not come back.

 

***

 

Interview with William Carter, Saturday, June 16^th, 2036…

Q: So William, could you tell us what happened to your brother, Tom Carter on September 26^th, 2026?

A: Yes. I’ll be telling you through my four-year-old perspective though.

Q: It has been ten years since the war ended. You were four at the time, and you are now fourteen years old. So this means you were two years old when all this started?

A: Yes.

Q: My my my, that’s shocking. It’s a shame that all of that happened. But anyway, please start discussing Tom’s heroic approach to the end of the War.

A: Alright. So we were in a sewer at the time, it had been a couple days. The soldiers were still fighting above; they wouldn’t stop. I was sick from the radiation I suppose. That’s what our mom, Mariah, said anyway. Dad, his name is Jack, was sick too. John, Mom, and Tom were taking care of us, and we were running out of medicine. We were also running out of food. I think we were all low on hope then. I didn’t really know how bad of a state we were in. I was so young. I still am. It was getting late though, and we all decided to try to get some sleep. Before I fell asleep, I remember seeing Tom write in his journal. I woke up, it was really early in the morning the next day, and I saw him climbing up the ladder to the surface. I yelled at him. “Tom! What are you doing?” I woke up everyone else. Mom said, “Honey, what’s the matter?” Then she realized what was happening. Mom tried to stop him, but just our luck, a bomb hit again. Debris fell all around us. I could still see him. “Tom!” I cried. He shut the lid when he went up. I then noticed he had a flagpole for his flag. I hadn’t noticed he even made it before. He had it on his back, the pole being in the loops on his small backpack, and the thread of the flag flowing with the wind in the sewer tunnel. I climbed up the ladder after jumping through all of the debris, and everyone else followed behind me, having a tough time.  Mom yelled at me. “William! Stop!” She cried; but I didn’t listen.

 

By the time we all reached the surface, he was so far away. We were running towards him, but it was like we were running through water; we couldn’t reach him for nothing. “Tom!” I remember screaming. He didn’t turn our way. He stopped, right in the center of the battlefield while both sides were still shooting. He started yelling at them:

 

“STOP! Don’t you see what you’re causing? For the past two years, look what you’ve put America through! Millions have died, women, children, men and all! Look at this flag! Look at it! It symbolizes respect for others and unity! What have we come to?! Respect your brethren! Please… Stop…”

 

We kept running, astonished that no one was listening to him. He placed that flag in the ground with all his might. Then suddenly, he fell with a thud to the ground. He was shot in the back. He died… He was gone with the angels. I try to block out the other events that occurred after that, events that occurred with the rest of the family. I am truly, a heart broken, lonely child. Now, ten years later, America is still recovering from the bombs and gunfire and lost dreams. People started getting back in the groove of things, after the War ended. Rebuilding homes from scrounging for any supplies left in the barren, innocent wasteland, trading, and making friends and new alliances. I do wonder if there will be an actual government again. Who knows. There is now a memorial where the flag still stands. I think people will think twice about causing something like that again. The people of America from ten years ago were selfish and still are in present time. They don’t care about other people. Just themselves. People are just starting to get out of those old habits, and learn about my brother, Tom Carter, the hero.

 

But until they learn who the cause of this ending was, know this, for it is true:

That sweet American flag… The flag that shows unity, respect for others, protected us in weather, gave us hope, the flag we once pledged our allegiance to, gave us warmth, shows our pride and patriotism, wiped away tears, and made us brave…

 

It has made all the difference.

Author's Note

I JUST proofread the story for the first time in months. Tell me what you think. Thanks. :3

Reviews

[Kiari Sabon]

just saying Amy you are a killer writer you should never give it up keep writing