Once Upon A Time in Europe..

A story of a dreamy soldier....

2^nd February, 1940:

He was once again caressing a blue heart shaped locket in his hands. The locket seemed to hold too many beautiful reminiscences for him. A dazed smile spread across his face which was quite a rare sight in the dark smoky haze and nauseating smell of munitions in the battlefield of Italy. World War II was going on without any sign of culmination.

Abele was a shy and introvert type of person who, from the time of his birth, had opened up to a very few number of people who were either his family or those who tried their best to get acquainted to him. Many times, there were people who, despite their utmost efforts could not get Abele to talk to them or even receive any friendly gesture from him. Thus because of this reason, he had remained nearly friendless in his 25 years of life.

But now he had found something worth living for, worthy of his smile and his attention. That was the owner of this locket. The world had become a cheerful place for him since it seemed to him that he had at last found someone who understood his heart better than anyone else. Becca was his distant cousin whom he met at the wedding of their mutual relative. It may be called love at first sight for Abele. From the first impression that he got from Becca, he found her a pure and innocent damsel.

Soon the two young people started to grow close and anyone who saw them could conclude promptly that they were betrothed to each other. Unfortunately their sweet moments together could not last longer than three months since government had declared the recruitment of young soldiers from all around Italy to take part in World War II.

(A recollection from 1^st December, 1939):

Abele (coaxingly): Oh Come on Darling, It’s just a matter of few months and then I will be back and we will live happily ever after. Now wipe your tears good girl.

Becca (hysterically): Why Oh why do you have to leave so early? What am I going to do without you, Abele? I will feel so lonely. Please don’t leave me Abele, I will die without you!

Abele: My Dear, it’s really hard for me too but I know you also don’t want to hold me back when my country is calling me at this hour, hmm?

Becca remains silent, still crying in her handkerchief. After a minute, she jumps recalling something important.

‘Abele! I want to give you something, here take this and keep it with you when you are far away’, said Becca with a sweet smile.

Abele looked at Becca with surprise.

‘Hey why are you giving this to me? It’s your favorite, girl!’

Becca (smiling): Abele darling, promise me you will keep this locket forever with you. This locket will make you feel close to me and I will soothe you through this from far.

With that, she placed her most precious locket into his hands and with a gentle pressure closed his fingers over the locket. Although both of them were uncertain of their days ahead still they looked at peace as their young faces glowed in the full moon’s light. Because they were young, they were hopeful and they had dreams…

10^th April, 1940:

World War II was going on at full peak. Both sides were facing severe repercussions from war. Italy being a strong ally of Germany was also in the midst of war and Italian battalions was facing quite a large number of casualties and injuries.

During just three months of his recruitment, it seemed like Abele had aged quite a lot. His face which was once fresh, bright and youthful had gained a mature, somber look which made him look quite older than his actual age. However, there was an increased grace in his personality and he had become a source of aspiration for the other young soldiers. Everyone looked up to him for consultation and comfort. Still being an introvert person, he had just become more helpful and caring for others in those times of hardships.

While recollecting memories from beautiful old days which seemed like ages ago now, he also dreamt of a happy sweet future with his own family once the war was over. He dreamt of happy days ahead with sweet Becca, his children and his parents. Only that was what kept him going in such depressing hours of warfare. He dreamt of victory, of a sound sleep and of a happy heart.

 

11^th April, 1940:

Sound of explosions woke him up from his two hour sleep. He hastily got up and started to get ready to charge forward with his comrades. He was excited because it would be his first on-the-field operation as the leader. Picking his rifle, straightening his uniform, he sat in the vehicle with others and off they went to the main battlefield.

His eyes were gleaming with enthusiasm. He knew that because of his wonderful accomplishments in battlefield, he will be honored after returning to the base camp. He had destroyed enemy’s camp with perfect command to his juniors.

He was now preparing his battalion to charge towards the enemy’s major camp. Abele knew this was going to be the most crucial of all.

They were having upper hand since two hours. Twenty of the enemy’s soldiers had been killed while there was just one casualty on their side.  Abele was high spirited because of their success. At this rate of success, he thought, the war will end soon and he will peacefully return to his home to his loved one and family.

They had now charged inside the enemy’s camp. Since they were more in number, they knew that victory was going to be theirs. Abele was leading the operation, so he was one step ahead of his comrades. They had thoroughly searched the camp and made sure that the camp was now completely wiped out. Once completely satisfied, they decided to leave the place and return to their own.

Abele ordered everyone to get out and at the last; he also started to follow them out. Being relaxed and eased after a tiring operation, he was not on his guard now. What he did not notice were the hidden enemy soldiers pointing their guns towards him and pulling their triggers simultaneously. With his back towards them, he felt a little movement but before he could turn back, five bullets hit him hard on the back. He was shocked because he was not expecting that. But as he fell back, what surprised him was that he was not feeling any pain. It was just like a much needed sleep after long hours of exhaustion.

 He know he was going to miss Becca later and she will wait for him don’t know for how long. He also knew that his parents would yearn for him; he knew that his younger sister will wait for him to bring candies for her. However, he was calm because he had accepted the fate. More than anything, he knew that this was his fate and nobody could change their fate no matter how much someone desires. With his hand tightly grasping his much beloved locket, he silently whispered goodbye to his loved ones and closed his eyes for a deep sleep…..

 

 

Author's Note

Kindly read this new piece of mine and share your thoughts and opinions.. :)

Reviews

[xansizi]

What a sad story, all the more so because it is based on real experiences. You set the scene well and give a good grasp of the characters.

One thing that i think could have enhanced the story a little would have been letters between Abele and Becca, whoch could have described their experiences in their own words. I would be very interested in knowing more from Becca's POV- how does she feel, how long does she wait?

If you get a chance could you please tell me what you think of my story? Thanks

[Noor.92]

Thanks for your kind review Xansizi...
yeah sure, I will read your story as I get some time .. ;)

[Rudi J.P. Lejaeghere]

Very good story, Noor, but it was heartbreaking. Such a sad ending. But I have to admit, I wanted to read until the end, so that means it was good for me. Well done. :) Rudi

[Noor.92]

Thanks Rudi..Means a lot to me.. :)

[Aiben Aero]

I don't have much experience in romantic writing so I don't really want to talk about something I know nothing about, so here's what I think about the other aspects.

For a short story it's hard to really give enough personality to your charchters but you did give enough detail to form a first impression on Abele, which is good, but I felt a contradiction in the way he speaks, he didn't sound like a shy person in those few lines between him and Becca, it felt out of the character I imagined.

Referring to what I said about giving enough time to short story characters, it didn't feel that anyone existed in the story other than Abele, to be honest I was more intrigued about the relationship between him and his sister more, from the line you wrote they seemed on good terms and maybe she was his very first friend or one of the reasons that made Abele more open to people, though the main focus should have been Becca, so try and give Becca more scenes or descriptions so we can get invested in their relationship.

I like the simple time seperation it fits a short story like this, and your writing seems to be more on the novel side, which isn't done badly, if you're trying to be full on novel style then you should write the dialogue using "...." Rather than :....., if I'm not mistaken they stopped using it for a while now, and try to add the way the characters talk in the line itself, for example.
"Some of Becca's line." said Becca hysterically. "Continued line."
But if you're writing by a style you feel comfortable with then it's OK.

Sorry for being lengthy and if I upset you, I hope I helped you and to see you get better.

[Noor.92]

Review nicely done. I appreciate it :) However, in a short story, I think that there must be some points where the reader has to make assumptions by himself. Some details are left unexplained for their own imagination and thinking. That's my opinion but maybe I am wrong..
Still Thanks a lot.. :)