Disclaimer: I don't own any of it etc. etc. etc.
Ok I'm a bit rusty at this writing thing, so bear with me people, please tell me what you think…
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The morning sun sparkled on the dewy lawn, shining as if it was reflecting off glass. The autumn air was crisp and bracing, the trees a peculiar hue of blood red. Michelle shivered slightly, and drew her thin jacket closer around her shoulders. It seemed ironic that the appalling atmosphere outside had to reflect what everyone was feeling on the in.
A considerable amount of her CTU colleagues were standing about, dressed in all black and solemn faced. Michelle felt a twinge of sadness as she realized that the only people here were her coworkers, there were no family members and no friends. "George deserved better than this." she thought "He gave his life."
She continued up the winding path that led to where the burial was going to take place. Michelle eyed the small crowd, searching for something, though she did not know what. She glimpsed Jack swimming along in the sea of faces; he looked the gravest of them all. Michelle had heard the story of how George had slipped into the plane and took it down, saving Jack's life. She knew she could not imagine the extent of what Jack was feeling.
Michelle made her way up the hill where the small funeral would take place. She knew, of course, that the grave would be empty and that this was really out of respect for him. She slowly rounded the top of the hill and looked around. It was a panorama view, and she was able to see the whole cemetery from where she stood.
People were gathering around the small gravestone, and no one said a word. The silence soon engulfed Michelle, surrounding her on all sides. She wished that someone would say something, anything just to break the stillness. Diminutive tears were soon running down some of the women's faces.
Michelle turned to see Tony, standing adjacent to grave. She knew that as the Special Agent in Charge at CTU, he would be the one giving the acclamation. Michelle suddenly felt a bit more placated as his voice quickly shattered the silence.
"As you all know, two weeks ago George Mason was exposed to radiation poisoning." Tony said, his voice carrying over the grounds. "He then saved hundreds of lives by taking over the plane carrying the nuclear bomb into the Mojave dessert." Tony paused to let the words sink in. "George was a hero." He said simply, and Michelle realized that anyone could say a say a whole half our speech on George's actions, but really the words that Tony had just said was all that was needed.
An unexpected grief came upon her, she felt her eyes start to well up and a few traitorous tears slip down. The brittle wind hurriedly dried them on her cheeks. The crowd was starting to dissolve, gradually she made her way over to George Mason's grave. The headstone had already been inscribed, the words were clear and unpretentious. It just read In memory of George Mason, Killed in the line of duty. 1959-2002. Michelle reached out her hand and lightly touched the gravestone.
"Hey." Michelle jumped a little bit as she heard the familiar voice behind her. She turned to see Tony's face.
"Hey." She said back, quickly wiping her face to hide the evidence of tears, and moving back from the grave. Tony followed her over.
"You okay?" he asked softly. Michelle started to nod, looking around. All of her coworkers had gone to the funeral luncheon that was being held. The only occupant that was left was a young boy in his early twenties, standing next to George's grave, tears flowing profusely down his cheeks.
"Tony, who is that?" Michelle asked quietly.
Tony's eyes swept over to the sobbing boy. "That's George's son."
Michelle nodded again, she hadn't know that George had a son. Another disloyal tear came tumbling down. The past events of the last few weeks piled on her heavily and she felt as if she couldn't take anymore of it.
Tony reached for her hand, and the warmth spread through her fingers. "Its alright." He drew her up in a tight hug. Michelle let herself be taken away for a moment, then again came to her senses.
They parted and he slowly let go of her hand. "We might as well go back to everyone." He said turning and making his way down the hill.
Michelle watched him walk down. Suddenly familiar words came back to her, as if out of some sort of dream. Don't wait around for your life to happen to you. For the first time that day, Michelle smiled. Don't worry George, I'm not.