We fought our battles, we won our wars We fought through hell, then back again We took their lives to save our own But that was yesterday.
Our hardest battles have yet to be fought Our hardest wars have not been won There's a longer fight in store for us The one that takes place on the home front
We keep on fighting, that's our job But when we stop, who are we then? Our old wounds will open up again And bleed with new blood we never knew we had We used to be soldiers, who kept on fighting But that was yesterday.
I remember them. Do they remember me?
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xX The Home Front Xx
2 months later
"And with the brilliant leadership of General Brown, victory seems closer than it ever has before!"
The newscaster bellowed his line, broadcasted across the ancient television set mounted on the wall of the cafe. Steve rolled his eyes as he sat alone in a booth at the diner. The injuries and horrors he had seen during the war hadn't left him, while his friends had. Steve sighed as he stirred his coffee. That day on the battlefield was the last day he had seen Foxy and Michael , he had woken up in a hospital, covered with scars and pain. Steve sighed as he downed his coffee. His eyes flicked up to the television for a moment before rolling his eyes. Things had only gotten worse after the war. He was unable to find a steady job and now he was about to be evicted from his apartment. Steve payed no attention to the news anchor. He knew that General Brown was an idiot, and he also knew the war wasn't ending any time soon. Steve stood outside the cafe, sighing as he stared down the street, remembering a day before the war…
(this symbol means flashback)
"Well, this is it!" Steve smiled as he adjusted his uniform. It was their last day before deployment, and the past week had been a blast. To his left was his good friend Sam, a black bear. Foxy was on his right, also dressed in his uniform. "Come on lad, we're gonna miss th' boat," Foxy said impatiently. Steve laughed at his friend's remark. "He's got a point," Sam stated neutrally. He had decided to not enlist and hope he wouldn't get drafted. "Well, good luck," Sam said plainly. "Hey, if you ever need a place, or a friend… just call me."
Sam shut the door as he left the bank. He had spent the past few weeks working on a mural for the bank, depicting the scenery and history of the city of Chipperdale. He stopped at a newsstand to check the headlines. Nothing new, just everyone going crazy over the war. Sam rolled his eyes. In his opinion the whole thing was stupid. He didn't even know what they were fighting about, but they were always fighting. The whole country was going nuts over this. In his opinion, it was just a waste of good men. As Sam walked down the street, he heard somebody shout his name.
Turning, he saw Steve running towards him. "Sam! Hey, how are you?" Sam gave a wary smile. "Hey Steve! I didn't know you were back." Steve sighed. "I'm not fully back… none of us war vets really ever are."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Nevermind. Listen, do you think I could stay with you awhile? My landlord's kicking me out soon."
"Um… yeah, I think I could clear a space. Where's Foxy?"
Steve sighed and shook his head sadly. "I… don't know. I got airlifted out after I got hit by a shell… messed me up pretty badly. I haven't seen Foxy ever since the hospital released me." sam gave him a sympathetic look. "I hope he's okay." Steve nodded. "Me too." Sam sighed and checked the time on his watch. "We should catch up, let's head to my place."
A bit later, Steve was sitting on Sam's couch. "Yeah, I got messed pretty badly… Michael Afton, our medic, helped take me to safety. Sam sipped some tea from his cup. "Afton… isn't his father that one super rich CEO guy? He runs… Afton Entertainment or something?" Steve shrugged. "Yeah, I think so." Sam frowned. "He's opening a restaurant here…Might be a good place to work. I hear they have a crazy contract you have to sign though. Anyways, that was the last time you saw Foxy?" Steve sighed and nodded. "Yeah… He was pretty messed up. Took shrapnel to the eye I think. Really hope he made it out…" Steve picked up a newspaper, browsing the jobs section before giving up and tossing the paper onto the coffee table.
"Damn, no openings. Figures… no one would want to hire a lonely veteran like me."
A/n: I did it! Sorry for the delay, but I hit writer's block in planning the stor. I got over it and finally finished planning, so here's the first chapter! This story is set in the same universe as When December Comes and is set several months before. If you haven't read it, you can still understand this story perfectly fine.
If you have any feedback, make sure to leave a review! Thanks!