𝑺𝒖𝒈𝒂𝒓 + 𝑺𝒑𝒊𝒄𝒆 (B.o.B. Fanfic)

𝟹. 𝙻𝚘𝚜𝚝 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙲𝚘𝚗𝚏𝚞𝚜𝚎𝚍

It felt like we'd been walking forever, but I know it couldn't have been more than 15 minutes. I was a couple of steps behind Mr. Winters. (Still feels weird to call him Grandpa). I eventually looked up, and for a split second, I didn't see the back of an 87-year-old man. I saw the back of a young man, ready to sprint into action at any second.

While lost in my thoughts, I heard him speak.

"You know, I had a cousin. He's actually the one who inspired not only me, but many of our family members to enter the military." I didn't really know what to say. It just came out of nowhere, so for now, I didn't speak and waited for him to continue.

"He was quite a bit older than me. But that didn't stop me from seeing him as an older brother. He inspired so many people throughout his life. His name was-"

Before he could continue, a loud bang went off. Then another. It sounded like bombs going off. It caused the ground around us to shake. It was close enough to do that but not close enough for either of us to immediately start running. It kept going. Then it would stop. Then it would go on for a while, then it would stop.

I looked over at Mr.Winters and he looked at me. We both stood as still as we could be. Then, it stopped and it didn't continue.

"W-what was that?" I finally questioned after none of us spoke. Mr.Winters shook his head.

"I'm not sure. If I'm being honest though, and I don't want to scare you, but it sounds like an M2 mortar or an 81 mm caliber. We used them during the Vietnam War. They were also used during World War II and Korea. But, they've been improved since then and the 81 mm calibers haven't been used since Vietnam." He looked at me questionably. Although many members of my family served or were in the military, I'm not that knowledgeable on military terminology or the type of weapons that are used.

"So, what are you suggesting?" I asked, noticing his staring off in the direction of where the bombs sounded like they came from.

"I really couldn't tell you. I guess it's possible that there's a nearby base or camp where they brought them out for practice, but even I don't believe that. Not to mention, the strange and mysterious circumstances in which we got here in the first place." His accent sounded deeper. It was a mix of Pennsylvania and Georgia Southern. My accent has more of a Georgian drawl to it compared to his. This makes sense of course since I was raised in Georgia. I have a friend at college who is from Pennsylvania, and she used to make fun of how strong my accent got when I became angry.

Then, without warning, he began walking towards where the bombs went off.

"Wait! What are you doing?" I whisper-yelled at him.

"You'll never get anywhere in life by just standing there." He said over his shoulder.

"Yeah, but you're literally walking straight towards the bombs! Isn't that, I don't know? A bad idea!?!" I yelled at him again.

Instead of responding, he just kept going.

"Oh my gosh, you've gotta be kiddin' me." I covered my face with my hands. Then, reluctantly I ran up to him. "You're crazy old man."

"Well, that's the thing. I'm old, I've got nothing to lose. You've gotta grow some balls."

"Well, for one thing, I'm young, so I've gotta lot to lose, and for two things, kinda hard to grow balls when I'm a woman." I folded my arms across my chest and looked away. He let out a hearty laugh. It was actually kind of soothing.

~~~

Not 5 minutes went by when-BANG! Not only more bombs but what sounded like gunfire went off. It sounded like chaos. Me and Mr.Winters quickly ducked behind some trees. It sounded closer this time and was much louder because of the extra gunfire. I ended up covering my ears because of the noise. And then, just between the split seconds of silence between the gunfire and bombs, I heard yelling. Men's voices. If this was a base or men from the military practicing, it certainly sounded aggressive. In fact, I don't think that's friendly fire. It sounds like men fighting with the intent to kill.

I lifted my head to see Mr.Winters gesture to his right. I nodded my head and began following him while ducking. We were still heading towards the loud fighting, however, we were coming around the side.

As we inched closer the gunfire became evermore ear-piercing. Eventually, we rounded some brush, and beyond a few trees were some buildings. Buildings that seemed to belong to a town. We got a little closer, crouching behind some brush. What we saw were tanks firing at buildings and men running and scrambling all over the place. I watched one man get blown up into the air after being fired at by a tank. When he landed, he didn't get back up. And that's when it slowly hit me. This is real. This is real gunfire. Not a mock battle or some practice or a recreation. I began trembling at the thought. I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked to see Mr.Winters giving me a sad but understanding look. I nodded my head in understanding and he removed his hand as I faced the battle taking place a few hundred yards in front of us. I looked for any landmarks or indications that would allow me to gauge where we might be. The buildings had signs, however, they were all in a language I didn't understand.

"Do you recognize that language?" I looked over to Mr.Winters with my question. I didn't even know if his eyes allowed him to see that far anymore.

After thinking for a minute or so, he began speaking. "I'm not positive, but it looks like French."

"French? But, how is that possible? We're in the United States right?" I didn't understand this at all. Not only did we wake up in a strange place, but it seems we're not even in the US anymore.

"I'm not sure. But we'll have to worry about that later. We need to find our way around this battle. Getting caught up in it now would mean our deaths. I recognize that tank over there. It's one that was used by the US in World War II. I don't know what's going on right now, but I'm willing to bet that Americans are fighting in this battle. There's a shack over that way, a ways from the town. Let's fo wait out the battle hope to God the Americans win so we can see about getting some help." I was hanging onto his every word. How can someone, especially at his age, be so concise and coherent in a situation like this? I guess when you are his age, you try to not let anything faze you and move on with your life.

We made our way to the small shack he was talking about and made our way inside. It was close to a nearby barn, which wasn't too far from the town, but far enough. We crouched down near a window to observe the battle.

"We'll wait here till it seems over. Till then, rest, but be on your guard." He said, and that was the only verbal exchange between us for the rest of the long and loud battle.

I couldn't even hear myself think. I felt like I was losing my hearing more and more as time went on. The whizzing and clanking of the bullets and mortars were so clear, it was like I was watching a movie. But this was no movie. That much was clear. All we could do at this point was sit, watch, and wait. And that's exactly what we did.

~~~