Nick Vaughn and Caroline Woods were high school sweethearts and had been dating since the 9th grade. Two weeks after their high school graduation, Nick enlisted in the Army and was sent off to war in Afghanistan.
After being gone for a year, he was...
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"Ladies and gentleman, I now present to you, Captain Logan Cook." The General announces, pinning a badge on Logan's uniform. The crowd erupts into applause as they salute. "Now, before we end this ceremony, I would like to say a few words on Logan's behalf." The General says, stepping forward on the stage.
"Logan is an outstanding young man. He takes his job very seriously which is part of the reason he's getting this title today. Many of you know that he's been a grief counselor for multiple years while he has served in the army. He actually retired from it about six months ago and then crisis struck his squad. I'm sure all of you have heard of Private Nickolas Vaughn. He was under Logan's command. Logan and Nickolas were great friends. A few months ago, Mr. Vaughn passed away in the line of duty. The last thing he asked Logan, was to take care of his Fiancé. And do you know what this man did? He came out of his retirement just to become her grief counselor."
This is getting a little too personal for my liking... Why does this have to be brought up?
"He stuck by her as he promised. Then one night, I had to call Logan and tell him that he was going to be promoted. But you see, in order to become Captain, he had to be relieved of his grief counseling duties. Logan here, wouldn't have it. He told me that even though all of this sounded so good, he had to keep his promise. Therefore, I left and told him his position may not be waiting for him when he returned. But something happened that night. Mr. Vaughn's fiancé was threatened and almost killed. But Logan was there to save her life. Ladies and Gentlemen, this man is more than worthy of this position and I am so glad to be the one to honor him today." The crowd erupts into applause one last time.
"Before we adjourn this meeting, I would like to take a moment of silence in remembrance of Private First Class, Nickolas Vaughn." A voice announces over the sound system. Logan and the General walk over to side stage as a screen lowers from the ceiling. The saddest song I had ever heard started to play as pictures of Nick appeared.
I stare blankly at the screen as Nick and I's personal pictures flash across it. How could this be? Why would they do all of this without asking me first? I lower my head quickly as I make my way out of the room. I make the mistake of looking back as I see our engagement pictures slowly fade off the screen. Logan's eyes scan the audience until he finds me.
A tear silently falls from my cheek as I turn and quickly exit the room. Once outside, I observe my surroundings.
Where do I go?
What do I do?
I fold my arms across my chest and head home. I knew Logan would be there soon, but I couldn't handle it anymore. I was usually pretty good at hiding my feelings but that was too much to handle.
As I enter the house, tears start flowing freely. I run into my room and get in my closet. I find a little cubby hole under my winter wear rack. I slowly slide to the floor and pull my knees to my chest. Why does all of this keep happening to me? Every time I think I'm going to be happy, something always pulls me back down. I look up and see Nick's army jacket. I pull it off the hanger and wrap it around my body.
