The Soldier Made It Home

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The screen went black as the video call ended. Kenta let out a long winded sigh, knowing what he was about to go back to. He picked up his rifle and slowly made his way to the nearby window.

He and his squad had been pinned down by enemy fire and they had taken cover in an abandoned apartment building. Kenta took out a small periscope and used it to peek out the window without alerting the enemy. Six men were down in the streets armed with rifles. A further five weren't far behind them. He could see three snipers posted up on adjacent buildings. All of them were searching for him and his squad.

They had three injured and two dead. All in all, there was nine able-bodied soldiers left.

Before he could get up to start shooting, bullets ricocheted off of the window frame, or what was left of it anyway. Kenta ducked low as other members of his squad did the same, save for the one with whom the bullet connected. More bullets were then being fired in like a hail of lead. One of Kenta's soldiers stood to return fire, only for his body to be quickly riddled with bullet holes. He fired off six rounds before falling dead on the ground.

The door to the room then burst open and ten North Korean soldiers rushed in with their guns raised.

The muzzles of their guns flashed and Kenta shot up straight in a cold sweat, his breathing was heavy and laboured. He was no longer on the battlefield, but he was in Kuribayashi's room, sharing a bed with her.

Kuribayashi slowly sat up after turning the desk lamp on and placed a hand on his back in a comforting gesture. Every muscle on his back was tensed to the point that it felt like steel wires interconnected in a lattice.

Kuribayashi: "Kenta... It's fine. You're home. There's no enemy here."

Kenta's breathing gradually slowed as his muscles relaxed. He had fought the war on the battlefield, but now he had a whole new war to fight.

He slowly laid back as Kuribayashi held him. She knew as well as any other soldier how difficult it was for one of their kind to come home to civilian life.

She continued to hold him until he fell back asleep, gently stroking his head, letting her fingers run through his hair.

When Friday rolled around, there was a sense of tension in the air. Everyone arrived early and took their seats before the parents started to walk in.

The first to walk in was Reina's mother, Reika Kurashiki. She walked in adorned with a red suit jacket and a matching skirt over a white shirt and tights. Normally she would look down on others, however she had a modicum of respect for her daughter's classmates since they were the ones who would look after her whenever Reika was away on business trips. She walked over and planted a quick kiss on Reina's head before walking to the back of the classroom.

 She walked over and planted a quick kiss on Reina's head before walking to the back of the classroom

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Next in was Tsubaki Miyajima, Sakura's mother. She wore a lilac T-shirt and a simple pair of denim jeans, unlike Reika, she wasn't in some high-profile position within a company, but rather she was a simple housewife that worked at a nearby convenience store. Out of everyone, Tsubaki was the one that Y/n had never had to confront in any way due to her innately nurturing temperement. Rather, he often had to ask her to back up due to how much she treated everyone in the class as her own kids. It was a coping mechanism for her. Mr Miyajima had gone off to fight in Korea, and unfortunately, he was one of the many who never made it home.

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