Disclaimer: Pearl Harbor ain't mine, no duh.
Chapter 1
The Loved and the Lost
" Take cover ", Rafe shouted as the Japanese patrols approached, the bullets of their guns ricocheting of the ruins of the plane. Rafe shot back at them, accompanied by Red and the others. But they couldn't hold them off for long. The Japanese advanced and would've reached, if not for the plane that flew over head, shooting in rapid lines in attempt to obliterate the enemy. Rafe watched it gratefully as it glided above him and then disappeared beyond the trees behind him and crash. Rafe's face fell as the smoke rose up from where it hit the ground in thick clouds. He felt his heart stop for a moment.
" Danny ", he yelled as he sprang to his feet and started running toward the crash sight.
" Rafe ", someone from behind him called in warning. But he didn't care. He had to find Danny.
As he ran, he shot the Japs that popped up from the grass. The others were following, he sensed. Rafe neared the destructed plane in horror,
" Oh, my God ", he murmured. " Danny ", he called out. He quickened his pace, shouting his best friend's name.
" Ah, Anthony ", he said grimly as he came across the body of one of his friends. He checked for a pulse quickly and found none. He moved on frantically.
" Danny, Danny ", he cried and finally found him.
Danny was lying propped up on the nose of the plane, his body rigid in pain.
" Rafe ", he choked as his best friend stumbled to his knees beside him." Ah, I've had better landings." He joked but the pain was plain on his face.
" Yeah, well, you saved us back there ", Rafe told him truthfully, looking him over. Danny moaned. " I think I got something in my neck."
Rafe had never been more relieved than when he saw Danny was alive, but he looked grimly at the piece of shrapnel that was stuck in Danny's neck. He moved the collar of Danny's uniform gently away from his neck and tried to remove the metal from his friend's flesh with a tremendous amount of care. Danny winced and bit back a cry as Rafe worked to remove the shrapnel, and he saw how his friend loathed himself for causing him pain. Rafe sighed as he finally freed Danny of the metal but saw his eyes go wide in dismay.
A Jap struck Rafe in the head with a gun and suddenly there were Japanese patrols all over them, pointing their guns at the Americans and yelling in their own language too fast to seem coherent. Rafe was knocked unconscious for only a brief moment, before groaning as he came to.
" Rafe ", Danny cried, his voice drowned out by the loud ramblings of several Japanese. Red and his friend stood beside each other, their hands behind their head in signal to the surrounding enemy that they were not a threat. One Japanese soldier began to bind Rafe's ankles with thick, cruel rope. He grunted in frustration, as he could do nothing to stop them. And then he turned his head a strange angle to look back and up at Danny, who was forced to stand. They put a large wooden restraint upon Danny's shoulders, tying his wrists to them. He only stood rigid and shaking, staring at Rafe with eyes so scared and pleading it broke his best friend's heart.
Rafe had had enough. He turned his eyes away from Danny and reached for his gun, it's nose buried in the soil. He grabbed it and shot the Japs who had bound Danny before they even saw the bullets coming. He killed two around himself, but the other Japanese turned their own guns on Rafe, who pulled the trigger in vain. His gun was empty.
He let it fall back to the ground as he anticipated the bullets that would kill him. Danny moved swiftly and frantically, the fear in his face never more clear. He pushed his captor down and headed to defend his best friend. Rafe could have never foreseen what was about to take place. He waited for death, for bullets in his chest. But they never came.
Danny's eyes widened as two bullets lodged themselves in his chest, a pain he had never before felt suddenly shot through him. He staggered backward, his arms still bound to the wood upon his shoulders. Around him, his comrades shot and blew up the Japanese still left. Danny fell back onto the ground, his eyes locked on the sky above.
" Danny? " Rafe said almost inaudibly. " Danny ", he cried out louder. He got up, his legs now free of their bindings, and dashed to his best friend's side. He collapsed beside him, his face contorted with horror and he saw the two bullet wounds in Danny's chest.
" Rafe ", Danny choked.
" All right. Hold on now ", said Rafe as he freed Danny's arms of the wood and then took Danny in his arms.
" I'm not ", Danny struggled to speak, to breathe, " I'm not going to make it."
" Oh, yes you are. Yes, you are ", said Rafe in denial and pointless hope.
" Rafe ", Danny panted. " I'm so cold." He shivered. " I'm so cold." Rafe tightened his hold on Danny, trying to share his body warmth with him. Danny shivered and gasped for air, Rafe holding him close, holding his head to his chest.
" Rafe, can you do me a favor? " Danny asked.
" Yeah ", replied Rafe.
" Could you have someone else put my name on the tombstone? ", Danny said as he tried to laugh but burst into tears instead because of the pain in his chest and the fear he could no longer deny.
Rafe didn't answer, tears streaming from his own face which was twisted with pain and hopelessness. For a brief moment, Rafe only held Danny's head to his own as their tears mingled.
" Danny, listen to me. Look at me ", he finally spoke. For a second, Danny only stared up blankly as if he were gone.
" Danny, you can't die. You hear me? You can't die. You know why? Because you're going to be a father ", Rafe told him. " You're going to be a daddy. I..I wasn't supposed to tell."
Rafe choked on a sob and Danny only looked at him for a moment, before a fresh wave of tears and pain surfaced on his face. He didn't say anything for a while, but then he leaned closer to Rafe and said, " No, you are. "
And he lay his head down and was still.
Rafe only stared at him in disbelief.
" Danny? " he said. " Danny? " But he went unanswered.
Rafe still held Danny to him and began to weep uncontrollably, laying his head on Danny's chest and clasping his hand tightly.
" Danny, please.Please ", he whispered over and over in despair. He let out a moan and cried unashamed, his other comrades only looking on with the eyes of lost little boys.
Chapter 1
The Loved and the Lost
" Take cover ", Rafe shouted as the Japanese patrols approached, the bullets of their guns ricocheting of the ruins of the plane. Rafe shot back at them, accompanied by Red and the others. But they couldn't hold them off for long. The Japanese advanced and would've reached, if not for the plane that flew over head, shooting in rapid lines in attempt to obliterate the enemy. Rafe watched it gratefully as it glided above him and then disappeared beyond the trees behind him and crash. Rafe's face fell as the smoke rose up from where it hit the ground in thick clouds. He felt his heart stop for a moment.
" Danny ", he yelled as he sprang to his feet and started running toward the crash sight.
" Rafe ", someone from behind him called in warning. But he didn't care. He had to find Danny.
As he ran, he shot the Japs that popped up from the grass. The others were following, he sensed. Rafe neared the destructed plane in horror,
" Oh, my God ", he murmured. " Danny ", he called out. He quickened his pace, shouting his best friend's name.
" Ah, Anthony ", he said grimly as he came across the body of one of his friends. He checked for a pulse quickly and found none. He moved on frantically.
" Danny, Danny ", he cried and finally found him.
Danny was lying propped up on the nose of the plane, his body rigid in pain.
" Rafe ", he choked as his best friend stumbled to his knees beside him." Ah, I've had better landings." He joked but the pain was plain on his face.
" Yeah, well, you saved us back there ", Rafe told him truthfully, looking him over. Danny moaned. " I think I got something in my neck."
Rafe had never been more relieved than when he saw Danny was alive, but he looked grimly at the piece of shrapnel that was stuck in Danny's neck. He moved the collar of Danny's uniform gently away from his neck and tried to remove the metal from his friend's flesh with a tremendous amount of care. Danny winced and bit back a cry as Rafe worked to remove the shrapnel, and he saw how his friend loathed himself for causing him pain. Rafe sighed as he finally freed Danny of the metal but saw his eyes go wide in dismay.
A Jap struck Rafe in the head with a gun and suddenly there were Japanese patrols all over them, pointing their guns at the Americans and yelling in their own language too fast to seem coherent. Rafe was knocked unconscious for only a brief moment, before groaning as he came to.
" Rafe ", Danny cried, his voice drowned out by the loud ramblings of several Japanese. Red and his friend stood beside each other, their hands behind their head in signal to the surrounding enemy that they were not a threat. One Japanese soldier began to bind Rafe's ankles with thick, cruel rope. He grunted in frustration, as he could do nothing to stop them. And then he turned his head a strange angle to look back and up at Danny, who was forced to stand. They put a large wooden restraint upon Danny's shoulders, tying his wrists to them. He only stood rigid and shaking, staring at Rafe with eyes so scared and pleading it broke his best friend's heart.
Rafe had had enough. He turned his eyes away from Danny and reached for his gun, it's nose buried in the soil. He grabbed it and shot the Japs who had bound Danny before they even saw the bullets coming. He killed two around himself, but the other Japanese turned their own guns on Rafe, who pulled the trigger in vain. His gun was empty.
He let it fall back to the ground as he anticipated the bullets that would kill him. Danny moved swiftly and frantically, the fear in his face never more clear. He pushed his captor down and headed to defend his best friend. Rafe could have never foreseen what was about to take place. He waited for death, for bullets in his chest. But they never came.
Danny's eyes widened as two bullets lodged themselves in his chest, a pain he had never before felt suddenly shot through him. He staggered backward, his arms still bound to the wood upon his shoulders. Around him, his comrades shot and blew up the Japanese still left. Danny fell back onto the ground, his eyes locked on the sky above.
" Danny? " Rafe said almost inaudibly. " Danny ", he cried out louder. He got up, his legs now free of their bindings, and dashed to his best friend's side. He collapsed beside him, his face contorted with horror and he saw the two bullet wounds in Danny's chest.
" Rafe ", Danny choked.
" All right. Hold on now ", said Rafe as he freed Danny's arms of the wood and then took Danny in his arms.
" I'm not ", Danny struggled to speak, to breathe, " I'm not going to make it."
" Oh, yes you are. Yes, you are ", said Rafe in denial and pointless hope.
" Rafe ", Danny panted. " I'm so cold." He shivered. " I'm so cold." Rafe tightened his hold on Danny, trying to share his body warmth with him. Danny shivered and gasped for air, Rafe holding him close, holding his head to his chest.
" Rafe, can you do me a favor? " Danny asked.
" Yeah ", replied Rafe.
" Could you have someone else put my name on the tombstone? ", Danny said as he tried to laugh but burst into tears instead because of the pain in his chest and the fear he could no longer deny.
Rafe didn't answer, tears streaming from his own face which was twisted with pain and hopelessness. For a brief moment, Rafe only held Danny's head to his own as their tears mingled.
" Danny, listen to me. Look at me ", he finally spoke. For a second, Danny only stared up blankly as if he were gone.
" Danny, you can't die. You hear me? You can't die. You know why? Because you're going to be a father ", Rafe told him. " You're going to be a daddy. I..I wasn't supposed to tell."
Rafe choked on a sob and Danny only looked at him for a moment, before a fresh wave of tears and pain surfaced on his face. He didn't say anything for a while, but then he leaned closer to Rafe and said, " No, you are. "
And he lay his head down and was still.
Rafe only stared at him in disbelief.
" Danny? " he said. " Danny? " But he went unanswered.
Rafe still held Danny to him and began to weep uncontrollably, laying his head on Danny's chest and clasping his hand tightly.
" Danny, please.Please ", he whispered over and over in despair. He let out a moan and cried unashamed, his other comrades only looking on with the eyes of lost little boys.