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Chapter 35: Glass

I raced to the man's side, wiping the blood off of his unconscious face. Trey raced to the bathroom to find bandages and disinfectant. Feeling along his arm, I felt a faint pulse, and judging by the glass and bottles, he must've passed out from drinking. I trembled in fear, scared I might loose him or let Emma down.

"Is he good?" Trey sat down next to me.

I nodded."He... He might have alcohol poisoning, and he might've fallen over on the glass..."

"Not sure about that..." Trey was now hunched over Hack's computer. A half played game of a The Walking Dead was closed, revealing a calendar editor. Trey looked closely at it, and the day circled caught my attention.

"He has May 30th circled..."I whispered."But why?"

"Birthday? Date? There's a thousand reasons Amber. None of them have to be Jacob's death."

"But..." I mumbled under my breathe."There's no way... That's gotta be a coincidence. I can't trick myself."

"No longer trick yourself. Jackpot."

"Jackpot?" I walked over, looking at the gmail. Hundreds of emails from military emails lined along the list. Trey clicked on one to open it up.

Hey... Hack... Hope your having an awesome day today. Wish I could be there to help you, but I'm back at base waiting for new orders. Totally would fly to help you and watch Netflix.

No homo though.

Hope you're having a good day and that you surround yourself with those you love, including Em. ;)

"Oh wow..." Trey rolled his eyes."So this guy and Hack were good friends..."

"You..." There was a loud groan, and I looked over at Hack who was stirring."Yeah..."

I slowly sat down in front of him. He looked sick, or on a high fever. He slowly reached out to hug me, but I pushed him away lightly."You're in a hangover Hack. You need to relax and lie in bed. I'm gonna get you a washcloth and some water."

Hack shook his head as firmly as he could, but it seemed more like he just threw it to the side. I sighed a little, feeling bad for the pain Hack must've been going through. I stepped over the sharp glass to get the washcloth. I wet it with the tap water and returned back to my friend.

"Remember how I hated you..." Hack breathed, his words quiet. I nodded slowly as I pressed the cold washcloth to his forehead.

He hugged my knees tightly, and I stopped in surprise. Trey blinked a few times, marveling.

"Okay." Trey picked him up by the collar, tucking him into the bed."You need to go to bed buddy. You are highly drunk. I'm not tolerating you hugging my girlfriend."

I bit my lip. The washcloth fell from my hand. I walked over to the computer, clicking on another email. Trey went to look up how to solve Hack's major alcohol problem. I read through the hundreds of emails that had piled into his gmail.

Hack still hadn't fallen asleep, and through in my reading session, I kept hearing him whisper,"I like goldfish..." Or, "I wonder where poop comes from..."

I came to the last email. It was only a few words, but I knew what they meant. I leaned over the keyboard, sighing. Hack whispered his nonsense. Trey's feet patterned in the hallway. My breathing fell into a constant rhythm.

The words read, Come back, soldier. Just for me, eh?

---

"Hack... Tell me what happened?"I asked. The three of us sat together, all sober, the moon slowly rising.

Hack looked almost reluctant to talk, too afraid he'd embarrass himself. A pink tinge spread across his face. I ran my tongue inside my cheeks, impatient and wanting to get to the point. Slowly, he opened his mouth.

"A few years before I met you guys, I was in the army... My best friend and I... We worked in the same base. We did everything together. We trained, we ran, we simulated missions..."

He went dead silent, his eyes glassing over with tears."We were doing a patrol... We went to check on something we heard... They ambushed us. We managed to get them off us... He was shot in the chest... I- I-"

Hack broke down sobbing, something I'd never seen anyone like him do. I hugged him tightly, scared and afraid. But he pressed on, choking on his words.

"They sent me home to Canada, scared that I'd shoot myself. I suffered from PTSD for a while... I moved to America for better treatment. There was a girl that was there too... She made me a bit happier... She had a..."

Hack looked at me."Remember 'Friend'?"

I smiled brightly."You're the guy from the clinic!! Oh my god!!" I hugged him even tighter, not wanting to let go."I've missed you so much!!"

Hack laughed a little."But then you moved away... I got sad again. I've felt like I've suffered since then."

He gave off a final sigh."My friend's name was Jacob."

Trey's eyes lit up and he looked over at me. My mouth hung open a little, before I grabbed Hack's hand.

"I was his fiancé..."

Hack and I hugged each other tightly, discovering this unknown bond.

But Trey.

He didn't know how he felt.

---

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