Miracle City at 12:00 am.
A van came driving down the road in a haste with police cars. Inside the van are two young men, the one driving the van is extremely large, muscular, and somewhat dorky looking. The other sitting in the passenger seat is very skinny but good looking and attractive.
"They're gaining on us man! Pick up the pace!" The skinny one said to the driver.
"I'm going as fast as I can!" The driver said.
CRASH!
"Oh man! Where did you learn to drive you maniac?!"
"Hey this isn't as easy as it looks! Is he still in there?" The driver asked.
"I don't know! Hey buddy what's happening?" The passenger said talking into a microphone. "Hey man don't mess with us! Are you there?! Answer me!"
At his words a third young man with rugged features and a charming exterior came running across the roof tops, jumps off, and just before he lands on the roof of the van everything freezes.
...
Hi sorry to interrupt the story but um I think that before you continue rreading I need to explain some things so you'll understand it better. So I guess I should start by introducing myself. My name is Manny Rivera, I'm the guy who's running from the cops. No not the driver, no the guy on the left isn't me either. Look up I'm frozen in mid air at the moment. That's me, see I look nothing like those other guys. Much better looking. Anyway you're probably wondering what the heck is going on here right? Well to explain that I'll have to go to back to the very beginning.
Insert darkness and nothingness.
No, no, not the beginning of time! A little further.
Insert dinosuars.
No! Not when the dinosaurs were here! Okay a lot further.
Insert ending.
Not that far! Go back to the beginning! My beginning! My family's beginning! Geez who's running the flashbacks here? Okay now that we've got that settled I'm gonna start telling you the origins of this. It all started with my grandfather Jorge Rivera. A nice guy, good intentions, a little greedy and deceptive sometimes but..Okay a lot of times. Oh what the heck he was in the mafia so of course he'd be greedy and deceptive. What do you expect? Anyway my grandpa was the business partner of a very powerful mob boss. He called himself General Chapuza though I don't know why because he never fought in a war but those two pulled off hundreds of bank robberies, jewel hiests, and break ins. They were filthy rich and never got caught by the cops. But the two were getting older and they needed someone to carry on the business so they both got married to different women and had kids.
While General Chapuza's kids were excited about becoming mobsters my grandpa's son Rodolfo Rivera a.k.a my dad wasn't all for going into the family business. Actually Dad hated it all together and wanted nothing to do with it much to my grandpa's shame and disappointment. My dad wanted to do something honorable. Something for the people. So he joined the military and fought in Iraq where he saved fifty men from a bomb explosion unfortunately he got caught in the explosion and was in the hospital for months. That's where he met Nurse Maria Sanchez a.k.a my mom. Mom worked as a nurse for the red cross and was Dad's constant care giver while he recovered. Nutritng turned to friendship, friendship turned to love, and love turned to...Mom getting pregnant and Dad proposing.
When Dad recovered Mom begged him not to go back because she couldn't risk losing him especially now that she had a baby on the way. But my dad said he couldn't because he felt obliged by his honor and God to finish his mission and that was to infiltrate a shady group of men. Back in Iraq he exposed a huge terrorist plot with the purpose of blowing up Miracle City. When he came home he was given the medal of honor and would be known as Miracle City's greatest war hero. He then married Mom and I was born nine months later.
My childhood was interesting. I couldn't go to school because they would have to look into my background and if they found out my grandpa was a in the mafia it would land him in jail so I was homeschooled. Mom taught me all the academics, math, science, history, grammar, and her most favorite subject of all literature. In college she studied to be a teacher and a therapist, she was hoping to reform and re educate criminals but it didn't work out. My father wanted me to grow up to be a soldier like him while my grandfather wanted me to go into the mafia business. So after I finished my academic lessons with Mom, Dad began training me in hand to hand combat and agility, then Grandpapi would educate me on criminal records and conections, law enforcement schedules, and places that I could use as secret entrances and hiding spots.
They weren't your average, everyday, normal family but they loved me and took care of me so I didn't care. Our neighbors often whispered about Mom and Dad being unfit parents and Grandpapi abusing me but the truth was I was a very happy child. Key word WAS. You know some kids live happily with their family until they reached adulthood but that wasn't going to happen to me. I'll never forget it. To this day I can still remember every exact detail of that day. The day I lost everything.
It was my eighth birthday. My family always cancelled all my lessons on my birthday, my grandfather would buy me any expensive toy I had wanted, my mother would bake me the most delicious cake ever, and my father would rent me any action or horror movie I wanted from the store as long as he remembered to cover my eyes during the really scary or violent scenes. At the end of the day when I would go to bed my parents would tuck me into bed, Dad would read to me, and Mom would sing to me. This year my father had a very special birthday present for me.
"Can I open it now?" My eight year old self said shaking my wrapped up gift while pressing my ear against it as an attempt to figure out what it was.
"Be patient hijo." Dad said. "You can open your gift after dinner."
"And after you've had some birthday cake." Mom said.
After dinner she placed a square chocolate cake with blue frosting and eight birthday candles on the table. Dad lit the candles, then he, Mom, and Grandpapi sang the birthday song, a blew out my candles, and devoured as much cake as my mother would let me. Then Grandpapi gave me the new, expensive, toy laser gun I had been begging for all year followed by my special present from Dad. It was a belt with a buckle made of pure silver with a T engraved, an antique.
"This belt has been in our family for generations." Dad said.
"What's the T stand for?" I asked.
"True strength and courage. Something that every member of our family has even your grandfather surprisingly."
"Hey!" My Grandpapi said.
"As long as you wear that belt you'll always be honorable and courageous. "
"It's so cool. I hope it fits." I put the belt on. It was a perfect fit, like it was made for me. "I'll never take it off. I swear."
The four of us then sat down together to watch the movie Dad rented. As usual five minutes into the movie Grandpapi passed out on the couch, Mom asked Dad repeatedly if I should be watching that movie, Dad assured her that I would be fine then shielded my eyes whenever the intense stuff came on. Finally when the movie was over like always Mom and Dad tucked me into bed, Dad read me a story, Mom sang me a lullaby, and they both kissed me goodnight before I fell asleep thinking that I was the luckiest boy in the whole world. Thinking that every birthday would be just like this one for the rest of my life. But I was wrong. So very wrong.
I woke up in the middle of night to hear someone knocking rapidly at the door.
"I'll get it!" I heard Grandpapi say. I listened to his footsteps as he went downstairs, I heard him open the door, and that's when it happened. I heard a gun shot which snapped me awake immediately. I got out of bed and went to see what was happening. Before I could even touch the door nob the door to my bedroom was opened by my mother. She grabbed me and put me in the closet of the hallway.
"Mommy what's going on?" I asked.
"Manny listen to me." She told me. "I need you to stay here and keep quiet."
"Why?"
"Just do it. Don't make a sound and don't come out of here no matter what." She looked like she was about to cry, like she was never going to see me again after this. She then hugged me and whispered. "No matter what happens Manny remember that we love you. That we'll always love you."
She gave me one last kiss before she closed the door. However I could still see through the cracks and I saw her and my father standing across from a group of people.
"Please! It's me and my father who ruined you! Do what you want to me! Kill me even! But please spare my wife! She's innocent!"
"How touching." I heard a sinister voice say. "You love her so much that you would die for her. Beat you wouldn't do the same for me!"
It happened so fast. A shot rang out, several shots. I heard my mother scream and watched my father struggle to fight them but in the end I saw both my parents fall. In that moment I couldn't move, I couldn't think, I could only sit there and watch and listen. It wasn't until they left that I heard my father say with his dying breath.
"Manny if you can hear me listen very carefully." He coughed. "Life is full choices and you'll have to make a lot of them to become the man you're meant to be and I know...I know your grandfather and I...Tried to force you into who you would be...You...You should choose who you are...But promise me something son...Promise me that no matter what path you choose, no matter what kind of man you become...Promise me that you'll be a man of honor and courage...Promise me."
I wanted to go to him so badly but I couldn't move. I could only say these words.
"I promise."
Hours passed and I remained frozen until at last the police arrived.
"Any surviors?" I heard one policeman ask.
"No the man, the woman, the old man, they're all dead."
I knew it was true but hearing the police confirm it finally made me break down in tears.
"Hey I think I heard something." The closet door was opened by a police officer. I recognized him as the Chief of police Emiliano Suarez. A big, tough, and scary looking man who was every criminals worst nightmare. "Oh my God there's a kid back here."
"Is he alive?" Another cop asked.
"Yeah though I don't know if he has any injuries. You hurt anywhere kid?"
I just shook my head. He had one tough exterior but I could tell by his eyes that he pitied me and wanted to help me.
"Come on kid let's get you cleaned up and something to eat huh?"
He picked me up and took me to the hospital to check for injuries. But my injuries weren't physical they were mental and no amount of medical help could heal those wounds.
What do you think? Should I continue this story?