World War 2: 1942

Enlistment

Chapter One: Enlistment

10 December 1941

Kansas City, Kansas

Sean was dying. The bullet had ripped straight through his chest and now a burning sensation took its place. He placed his hand where the sniper round tore through and felt the thick, wet blood seeping out. Sean stared at the broken roof of the Parisian home that had just been recently hit with a mortar. It felt like the whole world was trying to destroy itself and the human race wouldn't stop until that happened.

"Stay with me, Sean!" James yelled. He looked away from his comrade and popped a few rounds of his M1 across the street. "I'm gonna get you out of here!"

Suddenly, James dove to the ground as bright yellow streaks started to fly inches from their bodies and collide with the building. The rapid gunfire was deafening and it made the edges of Sean's vision start to blacken. Maybe it was the blood loss, but that wasn't what he wanted to focus on.

"Sean, buddy? Sean, don't close your eyes. I'm gonna get you a medic, alright? Good? Say yes, bud," James quickly stated.

I think I said yes. Speaking made his chest explode with pain and he couldn't tell if he was losing all his feeling or if he even responded. Sean turned his head to the right and looked through the doorway that he came through when James and him had set up a flanking position. Little did they know that they had just been baited into a trap and now were cornered and threatened with the possibility of not being able to retreat.

"James..." Sean croaked. "Come here."

His friend pulled the pin of his grenade and chucked it at the enemy line. James slid over and placed his arm around Sean and started to pull him up. He screamed from the pain. His chest was being ripped apart with every move it made and at that moment he knew he wasn't going to have much longer.

"Sean, come on, I know you can make it," James ordered.

"No... no James, listen. Get out of here. You need to get out of here," he stated.

"If you think I'm gonna leave you, you're a dumbass," James replied. He looked across the street and fired a few more rounds of the Garand.

"You gotta."

"No, I won't!" James yelled.

"James," Sean asserted. "It's fine. I can be content with dying. We both knew that this could happen. But don't let it be the reason why you don't get back home." James didn't respond. Gunfire and exploding projectiles were the only thing that could be heard throughout Paris. "Now run."

Sean turned away from his life-long friend and took a long deep breath. Suddenly, he watched as a dark green and brown grenade fell near him and rolled in his direction. Then came the bright white blast.

***

Sean launched himself forward and took very shallow, fast breaths. Sweat had drenched his body and around the collar of his shirt. "My God..." he whispered as he ran his hand through his hair. Richards looked over at the clock and saw that he had almost three hours before he would be leaving for the war.

Japan's strike at Pearl Harbor was an American tragedy and it called for a response. A response from the United States Military. When Sean had heard what happened in Hawaii, he was furious. Americans had died at the hands of the Japanese and for some reason, they thought that would be a good idea. Now, Sean wanted in. And he wanted blood.

He went into his bathroom and took his last shower at home before he would leave for the military. The hot water rolled down his body and wiped away the anxiety, keeping him at peace for a moment.

Sean walked downstairs to see his family sitting at the circular dinner table. His mother was the first to stand up and she rushed over to her baby boy. He could hear his mom sobbing into his shoulder.

"I love you Ma," Sean said as he kissed his mother on the cheek.

Max and Tiffany then left the table and wrapped their small arms around Sean's legs. "We'll miss you," they said in unison. Sean smirked.

"I'll miss you both too."

Steven Richards got up from his seat and ushered his eldest son to the truck. His mother said her goodbye to Sean once more before he had hopped into the vehicle. The two took off past the farm and onto the main road.

The Sun hadn't risen yet, but a few streaks painted the deep blue sky. As the car sped by, Sean watched the blurring trees and houses pass. All the moments that he had spent running around his city would now just be memories that he would hold close to him.

The car came to a stop. Steven looked at his son and gave a weak smile. The two exited the truck and made their way over to the large crowd of young men and military personnel who would soon be in the midst of battle.

"Step forward, everyone!" A man in camouflage called. "Write your name on this piece of paper and then hop into the TAM."

"Son," Mr. Richards turned to look at his child. For a moment Sean's father didn't say anything, he just stared. "I'm gonna miss you."

"I'm gonna miss you too, Dad."

Steven pulled his son into a tight hug and brushed his hair. "Stay safe. I love you."

"I love you," Sean replied. He left his father's embrace and spotted James with his girlfriend, Heather.

"James!" He called.

"Sean! It's good to see you pal," He hugged his friend.

"Hi Sean," Heather said. He looked over at her and noticed that her eyes were red, most likely due to crying.

"Hey, Heather, how are you?" James cleared his throat and then shook his head at Sean. "Sorry... um have you seen Brooke?"

"I'm right here," she stated, walking towards him. Sean instantly smiled at the sight of her. Her light brown, wavy hair was flowing down the right side to her lower back. But then, Sean got lost in Brooke's eyes. They were dark brown and so pure as if all the kindness in the world had been captured in them.

"Hey Brooke," Sean smirked.

"Don't look at me like that Sean Richards," she replied. And then a small smile formed on her lips. Oh those lips.

"We're gonna give you some space," James started. He then whispered to Sean, "Just tell her how you feel, now." Then, he left the two of them.

"Sean, are you sure about this?" Brooke asked.

"Not in the slightest," Sean answered. "But I can't sit by on this. This is too big."

Brooke stepped a little closer to Richards and placed her hands on the fur of his jacket. "You and James have known each other for a long time, you're basically brothers, so please, just look out for each other. Make sure you tell James that I want him to look after you."

Sean laughed. "Brooke, we're gonna be fine. I'm gonna be fine."

"You don't know that."

"I do."

"You're the most stubborn boy I know, Sean Richards," Brooke grinned. Her white teeth brightened the dark morning and it brought joy to him.

"That's why I'm your favorite person," Sean replied.

"Um... Sean," Brooke began. She pulled out an envelope with his name on it and handed it to him. "Don't open this now. Open it when you need a... need a boost."

Richards pocketed the letter. "Thank you."

Brooke leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. "Stay safe." She held his gaze and gave a weak smile, but now her eyes were sad.

"Goodbye, Brooke," Sean turned away and then went over to James. "Let's go pal."

"Goodbye baby," James kissed Heather and then hopped onto the TAM. "We doin' the right thing?"

"Yeah," Sean answered. "We are."

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