Until Then

Chapter 29

Chapter 29

Kenneth

When my eyes open I'm sitting in my truck outside my old house. I'm watching the flag waving in the breeze from where it hangs above my porch. Juliet is crying as Liam walks away from her, back in my direction. What's he doing? I lean forward and I can see the agony on both of their faces. They don't' want this, but neither of them are doing anything to stop it.

I'm staring at him as he swings the door open and climbs inside. His fingers grasp the key and turn it, firing up the ignition as he takes one last look at the girl he's left on the porch, the one we both know is perfect for him.

"What are you doing?" I ask him out loud. He can't hear me, but I say it again, "What are you doing?"

He throws the truck into reverse and pulls out onto the road. I'm at a loss for words now. I need him to stop. I need him to pull the car over and give himself a moment to realize he's making a huge mistake. His hand is brushing over his head and I can practically feel the regret already radiating from him as he pulls in breath after rigid breath.

"God, please," I beg. "Do something."

The cab of my truck lights up blue and then red. I watch the colors dancing over the upholstery. I turn and find a police cruiser behind us. Liam curses under his breath, "Fuck." He might see this as a terrible turn of events, but I see this as a miracle.

Now I just need him to find the letter.

The police officer is at his window. "You blew a stop sign back there. Can I see your license and registration?" he asks. I recognize his voice and move so I can look past Liam. Neil Long stand outside the window in a crisp new uniform. We went to school together. He's a few years older than me, but we played on the high school football team together one year. I'd heard he wanted to be a cop like his dad, but I didn't know he'd actually done it.

Liam looks worn out. I can't imagine what it must have been like to put me in the ground only days ago and then spend the next few days driving my little sister across the country so she could burry my dog tags with my father. He manages to keep his cool with the officer. Maybe he doesn't have any fight left in him.

"Yes sir." He opens his wallet and pulls out his license. I'm suddenly hopeful again when he leans for the glove box. I remember the letter I left for him inside it. I can see the moment his fingers find the worn envelop. They stop, along with his intake of air and maybe even his heart and I swear for a minute I worry the letter alone will have the power to allow him to slip into the space between. It takes a full ten seconds for him to move on. He grabs the registration and hands it to Officer Long.

"Wait a minute," Long said, taking a step back and looking at my truck. "Is this Kenneth Pine's truck?"

"Yes sir. It's his sister's now. I just dropped her off. Her and her mom are going to come pick it up in a little bit." Liam sounds defeated. I can't help but wonder if he's really going to let them go. I bring my attention back to the glove box. He'll open it. I tell myself he'll open it and if he doesn't do it on his own, I'll figure out a way to do it for him.

"You a friend of his?" Long asks.

"Yes sir." The words are said with such conviction. There is no room for explanation. He won't take the time to tell him that we were friends but now it's not possible because he's here and I'm gone. No, our friendship will be a forever friendship because there is no end when you're willing to die for each other. Death can't stop that kind of bond.

"Sorry for your loss. You have a good evening and pay better attention." Long lets him go.

"Yes sir." Liam takes the paper and tosses it on the seat beside me. He doesn't make another move until Officer Long has pulled his cruiser out onto the road and we can see nothing but the tail lights like little specks in the distance.

"Read the letter," I tell him. I know he can't hear me, but it's worth a try. I say the words over and over again, focusing on them. A few times Liam glances over to where I'm sitting as if he would sense I was there, but he never says a thing. Finally, he opens the glove box and pulls out the letter.

I poured my heart out onto the piece of paper. I explained to him why I had waited to introduce him to my sister and why I thought that he was worthy of someone as wonderful as she is. And when he is done reading it, he chuckles, letting me have a glimpse of the marine I have always known and would always miss.

Then he screams and cries, letting me see the hurt and damaged marine I know is inside of all of us now, the one I hadn't known before, but I'll miss just as fiercely and respect with all of my heart and soul. I wrap my arms around him as tightly as I can, not caring if he can feel me or not.

And when he finally weeps his last tear, I speak commandingly, "Go to her."

With a slight nod he throws the truck into gear and turns around to go and get his girl. It will be hard to watch my truck pull up into my drive and another man pull my girls--my mom and my sister--into his arms for a hug I've been promising them since the day I was deployed. But I'll leave here at peace knowing I'm passing the torch to a good man and my girls will be in extremely capable hands.

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