"WE SHALL FIGHT ON THE BEACHES, WE SHALL
FIGHT ON THE LANDING GROUNDS"
It was right there. It was right in front of them, teasing them by sitting just beyond their reach on the horizon. It was like you could blink and you would be th...
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IT WASN'T DARK. You know when you're reading about something terrible that's happened, and it describes everything as dark? 'It's dark, raining, and the weather in general seemed to resemble what thundered in the lost man's mind.' That wasn't what it was like.
The sun burned the skin on her face, as there was no cloud in the sky to shield her from the heat. Kris could feel herself burning, but there was wind that cooled her down whenever it blew. She was at least thankful for that. It wasn't hard to find little things to be thankful for – not after what she'd been through. At this point, she was at least thankful for the clothes on her back. Some of the soldiers around her had barely that, and most had nothing at all – not even their own life.
She walked along with the few other men she was stationed with. The streets in Dunkirk were silent, but that didn't mean the enemy wasn't watching. Kris knew that they were surrounded, but none of them knew when their attack would come. She hoped that she could at least make it to the beach before any Germans found them, but she wouldn't be so lucky.
The sound of their boots hitting the brick road echoed throughout the street. It was a hollow clap that made it seem like the squadron was alone. Kris held her gun close, but the others were not as prepared as she seemed to be. They were loose, dragging their feet as they continued their long trek towards the beach. Kris glanced behind her to find that not even Tommy was holding his gun in case of an attack. He was usually the one to be cautious about every move the group made, and Kris knew that without him, none of them would be alive.
She didn't bother telling him any orders. It wasn't her place, and frankly, they all deserved to rest. They had been running for days, trying to get to the beach where the boats were coming in. They were originally stationed in Coudekerque-Branche, but then the Germans came. Kris was lucky to be alive. They ran until they got to the outskirts of Dunkirk, where they heard on their single radio that the British were retreating.
Kris could practically hear the ocean from where they were. And with it, she could hear her brother. He was stationed there, and he was the whole reason Kris was there.
Not one of them spoke a word as they continued on. The silence is somewhat known as uncomfortable and yet to be filled, but the war gave silence a new meaning. It was the absence of unbearable death and misery. As long as it was silent, there was peace within her imaginary walls – she would still be sane.
Tommy came up on her right, his eyes staring ahead in a stupor of some sort. If Kris hadn't known him or known his battles through war, she would have thought him to be a dead man walking. Of course, in a sense, all of them were dead men walking. Nothing in their situation promised that they would survive this war at all.
