A Solder's Return

Something I wrote a few months ago. A friend suggested I add the bit at the end, although personally I don't like ending stories on a sad note. I hope you enjoy this piece, even though it is short...

A lone solder stood in the terminal, a bag at his feet and across his back. Some passing by eyed him carefully, others ignored him in their rush to their flights. A few stopped to ask if he needed help, either in catching a cab or finding a bus, but he declined each time, politely explaining that a friends was coming for him. No one pressed him further, nor did they stay to converse, which suited the solder fine.

As time dragged on and the sun sailed across the sky, the solder didn't become anxious or worried. He knew how long he'd have to wait, and he knew the growing anticipation would be worth every second. He was coming, he'd promised.

The sun was well into it's decent when a familiar SUV could be seen coming around the curve. With an abnormally loud screech; the vehicle came to a sudden stop in from of the solder. He watched the vehicle with interest, feeling fatigue creeping into his body.

Then, without warning, the driver-side door was flung open and a welcomed body raced to embrace the solder. Neither said anything for a long time, saying more in the embrace then their words could. When they did pull apart, the solder wiped a tear from both his, and his companion's eyes, kissing his lover's forehead.

The bags were carried to the vehicle and both passengers took their respective seats in the front. The solder said nothing about his wait, he was right after all wasn't he? He wanted the moment to last, some good after a lot of bad.

As the airport grew smaller in the mirror, exhaustion creeped further and further into the solder. He wanted to sleep, but he wanted to watch his lover, the one person to stand by him while he fought.

"Go to sleep, Love. We can make up for time lost when we're home." Came the soothing voice of his lover.

With a tired smile, the solder kissed his companion's cheek, reached for his hand, and slowly drifted into the first peaceful sleep in what has seemed an eternity.

…/*..

Paramedics and firefighters swarmed the scene of the wreck. Both the driver and passenger of the SUV had been extracted, one with minor injuries while the other's were much more severe. The driver of the semi, the cause of the accident, had died when the truck ran off the road. The paramedics worked as fast as they could to get the solders stable enough to transfer to the local hospital while the other man watched, silently praying his lover would be alright.

Reviews

[mikerich]

The typos were distracting, particularly the constant "solder" for soldier"; every time I read that word, I thought of welding. The middle part of the story - how they get from the car journey to the car crash is missing - and that, for me, would be the most interesting part. Can you provide that? I loved what you wrote, beautifully evoked and finely phrased. But, as I say, the best part is missing.

[Hivathi]

Apologies about the typos, I try to catch them as I go but some escape me. And I must thank you for clearing up how "soldier" is spelt, my word program would always tell me "soldier" was incorrect so I kind of gave up and just went with it. I also must thank you for your kind words, and writing about their journey from the airport to the car crash shouldn't be any trouble. Without anyone to ask I didn't think to write about the journey for fear of making the story drag, but now I will most definitely write it out.

Thank you for reviewing "A Soldier's Return". :)