Hi guys! How are you doing?
A late Happy Christmas to everyone and everyone's family.
So here I am again with a new story. Me and everything_grey21's story!!!! It's a pleasure to write a 3 chapter story with someone so creative and hardworking and we hope you like it.
Quote: Jay in 3x17 (a kind of adaptation)
So what about starting a new adventure? Yes? So what are we waiting for?
"Ladies and Gentlemen, flight 11491 from Kabul International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan to O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, United States of America. Immediate boarding through gate 4." The robotic female voice of the airport's speakers increases exponentially his headache while he transits in his military uniform around the airport where he passes through hell. Former Sergeant Jay Halstead is glad he can return home. He could be happier, however, if he was safe and sound and in Jeff Manning's companion, his childhood friend and Army's captain.
"Attention!!" Jeff's authority screams make everyone jump from their bed and stand in sense position at the end of the bed. An impeccably uniformed Captain Jeff Manning walks between the two male lines of soldiers, one of them, his longtime friend and almost brother Sergeant Jay Halstead. "Today our vigilance will be into the most recent abandoned village 8 kilometers away." He completes the first part of his circuit and returns. "Downhill, Hammond, Trenton, Uribe, humvee one. Halstead, David, Simpson and I, humvee two. Let's go!" He was about to leave when he turned around and said. "Halstead, I need you for a second."
"Yes sir!" All the soldiers scream at the decree, dressing up with their tactical uniform, helmet, flashlight, night vision glasses, bulletproof vest, guns, sniper rifle, radio, extra ammunition, military hearing aid, first aid objects, everything necessary for an expedition, and heading up to the tactical cars.
"Captain Manning?" Jay says when he arrived at the boss' tents.
"Close the door!" He obeys.
"What have I done wrong, Captain?"
"This is an informal conversation, Jay, please, don't use my military name, it's bro talk." Jay reliefs instantaneously and Jeff chuckles. "Otherwise, I love to make you embarrassed, if I were to get your attention, I would call an event and press!"
"Little funny!" Jay rolls his eyes. "So what do you want to talk about?" The man approaches and puts his hand on his shoulders, squeezing with excitement.
"Natalie called me a few minutes ago." He does eye contact. "She's pregnant. Two months. I'm going to be a dad!" He says with exciting tears rolling his face and radiating to his childhood friend and battle brother. They hug tightly each other like they used to do in many situations before.
"That's so fucking amazing! Congrats, man! You deserved it, man! Send my congratulations to her too next time you both speak. You two are going to be the best parents ever, I feel it."
"Thanks, bro! You know, if something happens to me here, because it's unpredictable and dangerous here, promise you will take care of them for me."
"Nothing is gonna happen to you, we are returning alive, but no matter what, I'm looking out for them and you." They hug one more time for what seemed an eternity. "Now let's go. Otherwise, they will get suspicious of us."
"Yeah, let's go. I don't want to even think about the jokes they might be creating now."
After 30 minutes, they arrived at the location. Jay remembered the first impressions he had through the tight and crowded streets and alleys of what was a commercial city named Alvaiázere, eight kilometers south of the third battalion where they belong to and twelve kilometers from Kabul, Afghanistan's capital. Now, it is none other than a ghost city like the fifteen others around the country he saw. The crowded streets with the entire family selling products in tents or inside the buildings; others buying; the children playing football or running freely and wildly between cars and talking to the military. Men and women or in groups or at the windows gossiping or chasing their sons and daughters to avoid accidents. No giggles or whispers would be heard today. Everything is ruined. The people abandoned it, the buildings collapsed and there is still a risk if the concrete that has just fallen to the ground is an indication that the pumps have finished their work and the happiness that energized the place has evaded. The only sound that flowed through the roads was the whistling of the wind and the uncaged shouts from soldiers. Doors were slammed as they left their humvees, sand crunching underneath their combat boots.
"Are you sure this is it?" Hammond whispered, his voice was soft as it carried to Manning's ears.
"This is it," Jay replied easily, the response rolling off his tongue as it had many times before. Hammond asked that question just about every time they rolled out. They set out in standard two by two formation on high alert. They had gotten intel that enemy insurgents were scattered throughout the area. They had not walked seventy feet into Alvaiázere when Jeff's radio buzzed to life. The static message it sent out would forever be ingrained in Jay's memory.
"Manning! Get your men out o– th–re! No t—e! I repeat. Get y— men o–t of ther–!" Almost instantaneously after the garbled message, shots began ranging out and bullets whizzed past the men's bodies.
"Shit!" Trenton yelled as David began screaming, having caught a bullet in his abdomen.
"Move! Move!" Manning yelled. Jay throws his rifle to his hands to get a position shot and distract the enemies, giving time to the team to back off securely. "Halstead, stop shooting and go to the humvee."
"You are way too far, Captain. Trenton is carrying David. The rest is there. Just misses us. I'm distracting them. Approaches and we are getting out of here together!" He screams on his radio, blocking the team's screams. He can see through his glass Manning running and finding moments to fire back.
Slow-motion.
For a millisecond, their eyes meet.
Jeff is sad, a single tear, a sad smile.
Jeff whispers 'I love you, bro'.
Jay doesn't have the opportunity to reply.
A shrill noise from the bomb.
The explosive glow of the bomb.
The force of the explosion pushes the air with force and speed and, everything around, including Jay, is sent to the ground.
Bomb shrapnel fly.
Shards of Captain Jeff Manning fly.
"NOOOOO!!!!!!" Jay jumps back to where Jeff was in principle.
Jeff faded away.
Jeff disappeared.
Jeff was blown up in front of him.
Jeff is dead.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, last call for the flight 11491 from Kabul International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan to O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, United States of America. Immediate boarding through gate 4." He squeezes his captain's dog tag in his palm so strongly his knuckles are white, his facial expression is agony and pain, the passengers creating a major distance. He fakes an encouraging smile, wipes his tears from his face, and heads up to gate four, humiliated for crying in public. After much walking, he finds the gate and enters the line.
"Next!" The young blonde flight attendant says to him to approach the balcony. "Returning home, soldier?"
"Yes, ma'am." He says respectfully, putting on his sunglasses so the young lady doesn't perceive his watery ocean green eyes.
"What a gentleman!" She stamps the passport and boarding pass and returns them to the owner.
"Thanks for your service, soldier. God bless America. Have a nice return." She offers a genuine smile. He smiles back. Weakly but smiles and boards the airplane. In less than 10 minutes, the boarding is over and they land, towards Chicago.
20 hours later
If compared to the trembling in the desert sands with the turbulence of the twenty-hour plane is relaxed but the few brief naps filled with rough nightmares didn't help at all his accelerated mind to perceive he is safe: never let your guard down; shit can happen. The military mantra is real and for life: once a soldier, always a soldier.
He waits for all the other passengers to get up and pick their baggage in the trunk above the seats, he does it himself and leaves the airplane, before the flight attendants shake his hand and appreciate his service to the country; he nods. Protecting his country was his dream since he was a kid but he would never have imagined this protection would cost him too much harm, enough to not protect himself, his soul, his health, his body, his sanity anymore. Tears filled his eyes when the cold wind of the Windy City hit his face after a year of being hit by sand particles and hot wind. Tears filled his eyes when he looked to his side and didn't see Jeff. Bye Chicago, in one year we both are returning! Right, Jay? Jeff's last words in Chicago before they board to Afghanistan.
"You should have been here with me, Jeff." He whispers while looking at the dog tags, putting on his sunglasses, and going downstairs to enter the airport itself. "Hi, good afternoon!" He greets the first ground attendant he saw on the mats to pick up the bags, the old male seems annoyed and bad-tempered today by the fake smile he emits, examining him from head to toe with disdain. "Where can I grab a cab to Gaffney Hospital?"
"Up these stairs, turn left; right on the first. You are outside the airport and at the taxi stand." Simple and explicit.
"Thanks for the coordinates." He nods and follows the orders straightly until he finds the cabinet. He buys a cab for him that arrives twenty minutes later.
"What's the destination?" The old male, as bad-tempered and direct as the attendant, asks.
"Hi...Gaffney Hospital, I don't know the specific address, please." He requests. Gaffney Hospital is a 3-year-old hospital without an Emergency Room - a hospital without an emergency room he will never get over this fact. Gaffney Hospital is where Natalie Manning works as a pediatrician. Natalie Manning, pregnant and wife of Jeff Manning. From what he was told and imagines, she doesn't know about her husband and father of her unborn child's death. Yet. He will be the one to deliver this news, won't he? What a disgrace!
"Soldier?" The taxi driver asks. He nods. "You are from the Rangers Unit, right?"
"Yes, I am. How do you know that?"
"The brooch on the side of your uniform." He says obviously and ironic the fact that the man didn't know the aspects of his uniform.
"Sorry, dumb question, makes enormous sense."
"Where?"
"Afghanistan for a year."
"My brother died there in 2010."
"My condolences."
"You had seen terrible scenes over there to look so lost like you are now, kid! You lost someone special I see over there right?" Nods. "My condolences."
"Thanks." After a long time in profound and disturbing silence, he speaks. "The thing is, those scenes never scared me as much as coming home, having to look into the faces of the wives and the families of the guys that didn't make it back." He vents as a lonely tear stream down his face. A box of papers is thrown to his side by the motorist to him wipe his face. "Thanks. Sorry."
"No needs to apologize for crying. That's what you are doing here in the hospital, tell the bad news to a familiar?" He looks outside, sees the white building with a plate in blue letters Gaffney Hospital and he nods to the man in return. "Good luck and thanks for your service, kid." He pays for the drive, leaving the change behind, emits a sad small smile, gets out of the car, and enters the reception hospital.
"Sir?" Someone says. He looks at the balcony and interrogatively points to himself. "Yes. Come here." The female brunette receptionist gestures to him approach the balcony. "Good afternoon, what is your need?"
"Good afternoon. I'm here to see Doctor Natalie Manning, please."
"For what reason?"
"Personal issues, sorry." He says sensibly, he doesn't want to bring up the topic with a sympathetic stranger. "Please." She types at the commercial phone and after a second in line, she is attended.
"Nurse Lockwood? It's Teresa Jane here, a very handsome man called Halstead is here to talk personally to Doctor Natalie Manning. Can you send her to the reception? Thanks." She turns the phone off. "She will be here as soon as possible. Be your guest and sit down."
"Thanks, ma'am." He obeys her and sits in the closest chair near the door. Anxiety takes over him. His eyes circle the white-blue ambient, the visitors and patients, the tic-tac irritable of the clock and the door. With every opening and closing, his heart beats faster than Formula 1's cars in the possibility of being the brunette young woman. At any time, the pregnant wife of his childhood friend, brothers from different relatives, and the Army's brother who died by an IED right in front of him will be right in front of him and he has to deliver the heartbreaking news.
You know, if something happens to me here...promise you will take care of them for me.
He is a goddammit soldier and Sniper, he has faced impossible and rough situations overseas and is terrified to speak with a known woman. That's why they say that cases hit most when hits home, right? It's hitting extremely close to home.
I love you, bro.
After at least thirty minutes of pure agony of wait, the brunette resurges through the automatic doors. Her brown hair with highlights is stuck in a high ponytail, her cumaru brown eyes navigate through the room in looking for the man who is looking for her until they land on him, a genuine smile building in her face as she goes in his direction, stethoscope around the necks and her hands slightly leaning above her 7 months belly button. "Jay!!"
"Natalie!" His voice becomes emotional but he hides for more time. "How are you? And this little human being here?"
"I'm fine and It's a boy. We are naming him Owen."
"Hi Owen, here it's your uncle Jay."
I'm going to be a dad!
"It's been a while since we last saw each other, didn't know you were back. I'm so glad you are back and good. Have you talked to Jeff?" That's it. The bomb is about to be thrown at her.
"Natalie, you want to go somewhere private? I have something to say."
"No, unfortunately. I'm working still, can't get out of here. You can say now." She squeezes encouragingly to go ahead. "Jay, I don't like surprises and I'm anxious, you can't keep silent or keep secrets from me!"
"Jeff is dead, Natalie." Her smile fades away to a worried face, the chip didn't fall immediately.
"No. You are kidding me, right? Where is he? Outside and send you to fool me right? That's not fair!" She laughs nervously and looks outside searching for her husband.
"I'm not kidding. He is dead. Sorry, Nat." He can't keep his tears inside anymore as he delivers her his dog tag. The chip fell immediately.
"NOOOOOOO!" She screams her lungs out and she starts crying copiously as her knees transform into jelly and she doesn't fall on the ground because of Jay holding her and hugging her. "JEEEFFFFFF!!!!!" NOOOOOO!"
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry." He can't say to her that he witnessed the blow-up at all. That he couldn't do anything to protect him. It's not like he is keeping secrets from her, just hiding the whole truth of her sanity. It's part of the process of protecting her. Jeff would want this, right?
That's it for chapter 1! What are your opinions on this chapter? See you next time! Bye!
