24 Hours To Midnight Suivre l’histoire

Here we are again, again the last day of the year and the seventh year I'm doing this. With this I mean writing down the last 24 hours, don't get me wrong, I still won't write down every little thing I'm doing. Usually I'm sitting on my bed in the barracks while taking my notes, but the boys thought it's a good idea to head out and get some drink at the nearest bar. In their words it means to check out some Girls.

As soon as I left the car to follow my friends I wished to be back and simply do nothing but getting the hours done, but that changed the moment we were walking in, and I saw my best friends face lighting up. Her smile was filling the room with a warmth, and she didn't even know how many guys were looking just at her. Each one secretly hoped to be the one she is going to look at. She was choosing him.

Cameron, my friend since the first day of basic training. It wasn't a were friends now moment, it was the bunk bed that decided to break right when I wanted to lay down in the lower bed. And, exactly that guy decided to step up against five double sized men that were harshly approaching the woman he probably fell in love with at first sight. I don't have to mention that we felt the call, no men are left behind, right?

Minutes passing by fast when you try to keep idiots away from saying even more idiotic things. Anyway, we managed to get rid of them and got rewarded with a few cold drinks. Never thought my friends face could turn red until the moment she asked him to dance with her. Instead of telling her the truth about his non-existing dancing skills he sent me in. This dance was all, all I ever wished for or dreamt of, but there was this promise we all gave each other that one night, drunk, but that doesn't matter, promises are forever.

They really are, he made it very clear after he finished his beer. Around the bar in one of the darkest corners of the whole bar he made me renew the promise. Despite the darkness, his eyes were as bright as the smile he had when we entered the bar, but same time they were scaring the know what out of me. Usually I only saw this kind of look in his eyes when we were out there serving our country.

When we came back to the rest of our group we noticed the girls were gone, I would have left too already because it got quite early now, or late. I knew Cam wouldn't stop looking and asking for her so we left and after some social media research we found their dorm close to college. Luckily they didn't make it to their rooms yet so he got his chance to invite her for a walk at the beach.

I parked the car by the beach and while they took off to the ocean I decided to climb up on the roof of the car to finally write down the last hours. How was it already 6 A. M? Once I finished the first sentence someone pulled me off the roof with just one move. Looking up from the dirt I realized it were the guys we thought we got rid of earlier. I haven't been so wrong in a long time.

It didn't take them long to make me regret all the things I said back in the bar with my friends having my back. Now that I was alone I had no chance, and they seemed to get bored kinda soon. They left, and I decided that was the best idea for myself too. Cameron would be fine out there, enjoying the sunrise with the most beautiful woman.

I made it back to the base around 7 A.M. just to get called to our General who had the news that all of us getting deployed the very next day. Destination and orders would follow later is what he told me before I went back to our barracks. If you ever tried to maintain pose in front of your leader while dealing with pain, I salute you.

Right when I thought the painkillers would kick in, and I could take a short nap, the door to my room opened, and I had to listen to my friends romance novel he just created during his beach time. How on earth was I supposed to tell him that they would send us out to war?

Little did I know that our wingman would crash the moment by screaming the news into each and every corner. Again there was this look in his eyes and knew that we would start a very long discussion over it. I thought he was about to kill me with his bare hands when he sat back and took a deep breath.

After a few minutes of total silence he asked me to come with him to tell his family. I grew up in several foster families but never met the one I would call my family, so there was no one I could have visited. Of course, I would go with him, his family wasn't living far from base.

Shortly after sharing the news his family invited us to have lunch at the diner. I have to admit that I was starving even with the pain I was still feeling from the kicks and punches right into my stomach. I felt like the fifth wheel and that was exactly what I was at this point. Jealously I left earlier to sit somewhere and continue writing.

I saw Cameron and his family leaving a little time later, with his fathers arms around his shoulder. While focusing on their happiness I didn't notice the men that were cutting into the cars wheels, not just one, no, they slit each one open and made me walk all the way down the road to the base.

With my first step on the road I must have activated the rain and soon after I was soaking wet. It was only midday and I already went through more stuff than the last 18 months. At least I thought so. Occasionally a car was passing by, none of them stopped to pick me up and the next one driven by my friends from the beach was chasing me down the road until I slipped and decided to just stay where I was until the rain is over.

Did I forget to mention that once it's raining here it won't stop for a very long time? I guess so. All wet I decided to walk a little off-road to avoid other chases. My heart started running when I heard a car slowing down and a door opening. Surprised I made my way back to the road looking into the faces of the young women from last night. I was glad they took me to the base, even though I had to sit on a plastic bag the whole ride.

Yes she was with them and looked happy all over, and I was feeling a little bit proud to know that it was my friend who did that. A warm, no better hot shower was the right thing now. It was always calming my soul but not this time, somehow it makes me notice the small scars I got as a reward from the last two deployments and I wasn't ready to collect more of them.

Still I went to my dorm to pack my gear. Outside my window I could hear the rest of my division talking while playing ping pong and I happily joined them to get a clearer mind. Wrong again, why did they have to tell me that we got send to different locations, and why I didn't know. Why would they separate us.

I knew I had to talk to Cameron, the place they wanted to send him is the last one of us wants to be at, he shouldn't go there, especially after he met her. I wanted him to be happy and most of all alive. He thought different about it, it was his chance to be the hero he always wanted to be and I wouldn't be the one to stop him.

The day couldn't get any worse, but it did when I saw him leaving, since our truck was still stuck at the diner and I forgot to tell anyone about the wheels I decided to take the small motorbike we were working on in our free time. I followed him to her dorm and even though I didn't mean to i saw them crying in each other's arms. Did he really?

As soon as he was gone I turned back to the bike to do the same, but a hand on my shoulder stopped me. It was her, tears still running down her cheeks but still there was a little smile. Was it for me this time? I didn't think much about it because the pain they must have been going through went through my heart too. I invited her to a ride, and she took the opportunity to ride on a bike like that for the first time.

I took her to the hills, far away from the base, mostly to keep the thoughts and the fear off of my mind for just a few moments. She clearly noticed me flinching every time we were laughing about the things we were talking about, but she didn't ask. I would have lied anyway, something with sore muscle from training or things like that.

The sun was gone long time ago, this day is going by too fast. Faster than all the other journal days before. I don't know what came over me the moment I was leaning in to kiss her or what I was expecting. She stopped me before I could even reach her lips with mine. Her smile got replaced by a few tears again when she told me about her father and brother she lost to war and that she couldn't handle lose more people she cares for. She cared for me?

Remember the promise you made was hitting every brain cell as I took her hand and drove her back to her dorm where her friends were already waiting to get ready for the new years party.

Also, I went to get myself to the bar where for sure my friends were waiting for me since maybe an hour or was it two? Together we agreed on a few drinks just enough to feel free but not to feel hangover the next day. Just one more hour in this year, only one more entry in this journal? It got harder to read my own words, was it the light or my mind slowly disappearing down whiskey river? I sat down on a chair by the bar to finish my sentence when a huge guy pushed me off the chair, claiming it's his.

I don't remember what I replied, but it made him push me out of the bar right before midnight, where others were preparing for their midnight kiss and the fireworks. As if I haven't had enough pain he punched me into the stomach again. The pain made me stumble and walk even more drunk, I didn't notice I got closer to the road with every step. The next moment I saw her running towards me reaching for my hand when the huge guy pushed her harder, and she fell on the street. I saw the lights of the truck, but it took me a second to make a step and grab her and get her off the street. The usually loud sound of a truck hitting the brakes was disappearing in the explosions of the fireworks over us. I opened my eyes to look into hers before I saw my best friends eyes closing.