| General Fiction posted January 15, 2013 |
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This is the longer version of The Wall.
The Vietnam Wall
by justjo66
It was snowing again. Feathers were falling from the sky and turning everything into a white wonderland. Grace did not see the beauty in the snow. She had been dreading this day. Today she would go to the Wall and finally find his name. It was hard to believe it had been so many years since that dreadful day when she had gotten word that nineteen year old Sergeant David York had been killed while on a raid in the jungles of Vietnam. She had been unable to wrap her mind around it. Disbelief settled on her like a thick fog. Everyone had told her that the pain would get better with time but they lied. "Today", she told herself, she would "be able to move on with her life." Lonely days had passed in a blur. Yet, work was what she had and it was work that had saved her sanity. As a nurse at the Veteran's Hospital she had volunteered to work every holiday and extra shifts just to keep her mind busy.
The snow felt cold as it touched her face. The wall ahead was somehow overwhelming in the silence of the day. So many names...so many names. Where was his name? Where? Then she spotted it. She thought it would not affect her so strongly after so many years...she was wrong. His body had never been found or brought back home for burial. This was all that was left except the memories.
She had not noticed the tall man walking up to her and was surprised when he spoke.
"I know you don't know me, but I know who you are."
"I was David's best friend Jake. I was the last person to see him alive."
"I've been coming here for years hoping someday I would find you."
"David and I had a pact...if we didn't make it out of those damn jungles... we were to find each other's wives and give them one last kiss."
Jake leaned over gently and kissed Grace on the lips.
Tears flowed down Grace's cheek. Together they stood hugging and weeping in the snow.
Grace could only thank Jake for keeping his promise to her husband.
David had always teased her for insisting that he always kiss her before saying goodbye.
Grace touched the wall one last time.
"Goodbye David...I will always love you."
It was snowing again. Feathers were falling from the sky and turning everything into a white wonderland. Grace did not see the beauty in the snow. She had been dreading this day. Today she would go to the Wall and finally find his name. It was hard to believe it had been so many years since that dreadful day when she had gotten word that nineteen year old Sergeant David York had been killed while on a raid in the jungles of Vietnam. She had been unable to wrap her mind around it. Disbelief settled on her like a thick fog. Everyone had told her that the pain would get better with time but they lied. "Today", she told herself, she would "be able to move on with her life." Lonely days had passed in a blur. Yet, work was what she had and it was work that had saved her sanity. As a nurse at the Veteran's Hospital she had volunteered to work every holiday and extra shifts just to keep her mind busy.
The snow felt cold as it touched her face. The wall ahead was somehow overwhelming in the silence of the day. So many names...so many names. Where was his name? Where? Then she spotted it. She thought it would not affect her so strongly after so many years...she was wrong. His body had never been found or brought back home for burial. This was all that was left except the memories.
She had not noticed the tall man walking up to her and was surprised when he spoke.
"I know you don't know me, but I know who you are."
"I was David's best friend Jake. I was the last person to see him alive."
"I've been coming here for years hoping someday I would find you."
"David and I had a pact...if we didn't make it out of those damn jungles... we were to find each other's wives and give them one last kiss."
Jake leaned over gently and kissed Grace on the lips.
Tears flowed down Grace's cheek. Together they stood hugging and weeping in the snow.
Grace could only thank Jake for keeping his promise to her husband.
David had always teased her for insisting that he always kiss her before saying goodbye.
Grace touched the wall one last time.
"Goodbye David...I will always love you."
The snow felt cold as it touched her face. The wall ahead was somehow overwhelming in the silence of the day. So many names...so many names. Where was his name? Where? Then she spotted it. She thought it would not affect her so strongly after so many years...she was wrong. His body had never been found or brought back home for burial. This was all that was left except the memories.
She had not noticed the tall man walking up to her and was surprised when he spoke.
"I know you don't know me, but I know who you are."
"I was David's best friend Jake. I was the last person to see him alive."
"I've been coming here for years hoping someday I would find you."
"David and I had a pact...if we didn't make it out of those damn jungles... we were to find each other's wives and give them one last kiss."
Jake leaned over gently and kissed Grace on the lips.
Tears flowed down Grace's cheek. Together they stood hugging and weeping in the snow.
Grace could only thank Jake for keeping his promise to her husband.
David had always teased her for insisting that he always kiss her before saying goodbye.
Grace touched the wall one last time.
"Goodbye David...I will always love you."
My war was the Vietnam war. Many of my friends died over there and some never made it back home.
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