The Purge: Savior In The Shadow

21 - The Long-Awaited Reunion

Her mind was at an absolute blank. Seeing him... coming back alive in one piece... no... no. Seeing how her life has been going downhill since the Saviors came up into their life, she just thought this was just another cruel trick her mind was playing on her. Melanie was tired of hallucinating. She rubbed her eyes harshly, tears threatening to come out of her eyes as she couldn't comprehend what she was seeing in front of her. Opening her eyes, she was expecting Brian to be gone. But he was still there, looking at her like happily.

"B-Brian..." she whimpered, not being able to speak further from the shock. She tried moving her limbs closer to Brian, but she kept shaking, like a dam was threatening to break in her body. She tried harder, reaching out her arm to him, but she failed. Finally, she saw Brian move.

Brian opened his arms into an open hug, smiling warmly at them as he also tried to hold back his tears from coming out. Still, Melanie couldn't register what he was doing as she felt like her whole body went numb from the shock. "A-Aren't you gonna hug m-me?"

Like a dam, her tears finally fell as his words snapped her out of her stupor. Quickly, she stood up from her spot and ran to him as she flung herself towards him with her arms open wide. He was back... her friend was finally back. She dug her head in his shoulders, crying happily as he hugged her tightly while also letting out a tear from his remaining eye. 

For several long minutes, both of them kept hugging as they cried, fearing that if they let go, one of them would never see each other again. The sight made Millard feel happy for them, knowing this was a reunion Brian and his friend wished for. As they were crying, Gaden was smiling in the back, happy his friend came back to them alive.

After a few moments, the both of them let go. Melanie calmed down and she can bring herself to speak clearly. "W-Where have you been? Why didn't you t-tell us you were still a-a-alive, idiot?!" she reared her arm back and punched him in the chest lightly, hating the fact he didn't remind them of his status the past 4 years.

"Oww," he whispered as he rubbed his chest to relieve the pain, "s-sorry about that. But I'm here now." he said, rubbing her shoulders comfortably. Glancing behind her, he saw Gaden standing up from his spot who also looked like he was in need of a hug. Smiling happily, Brian walked closer to him. Finally, after 4 years, they hugged each other tightly, both whispering comforting words to each other.

As they were both in each other's arms, Brian glanced at the side, seeing Rafi staring at the wall with an emotion that made him concerned; emptiness. Gently getting out of the hug, he walked towards Rafi with one goal in mind, and that is to help him. "You alright, man?" he asked, concern leaking out of his voice. Still, Rafi didn't snap out of his state. 

Brian isn't gonna be able to help Rafi if he isn't going to look back. Like an adult to a child, Brian knelt down to put himself in Rafi's eye line, Rafi's eyes now fixating on him.

"You feeling okay, man?" he asked, hoping for some answer. Rafi didn't say anything, instead he shot eyes towards Emilia's corpse. Brian followed to where Rafi was looking at, and he stared at the corpse that was Rafi's wife.

"I-I couldn't protect her. If only I w-was... quicker... I could've..." Rafi whispered in a whimpering tone, pursing his lips to keep himself from crying, with Brian staring at him in sympathy. "Hey. She wouldn't want you blaming yourself. She wants you to continue smiling and be happy. Even though it's hard, we'll be right here with you." Slowly, a faint light came back from Rafi's eyes as he stared at Brian with a look of wonder and admiration. Brian smiled and stood up as he reached out his hand, waiting for Rafi to take it.

Without even thinking about it, Rafi had already grabbed his hand, standing up from his grip. "Oh yeah, I haven't introduced myself. I'm Brian and you are..." Brian paused. "I-I'm Rafi."

"Nice to mee-" Brian paused, hearing some shouting get closer to them. "-ooooOOOOHHH!" Behind him, Jake was running closer towards him as he's screaming like a maniac, planning to tackle him. Brian only sweat dropped from the incoming impact. Finally, Jake landed on Brian's back, wrapping his arms harshly as Brian slightly shook from his weight.

"Payback time, motherfucker!" Jake mischievously chuckled, not letting go of Brian's back. The sight made all of them smile from amusement, even drawing a slight smile on Rafi. Brian spun him around before dropping him gently on the ground, his back slightly aching from the impact.

"Be careful, man! I do have a spine, you know." Brian tried his best to look angry, but he couldn't stop letting out a wheeze from his friend's antics. Seeing Brian failing to contain his laughter made Jake laugh. 

Not long after, all of them began laughing as well, even drawing out a quiet giggle from Rafi. 

As time passes, the sun started to come out of the horizon. After a few minutes, the siren blared around the city, signifying the end of bloodshed.

To be continued...