Short Storys

The Ghost of You

"Mikey!" Gerard shouted to his brother that was moving in closer and closer to enemy lines. Mikey didn't hear him. He continued his way to the position where his brother told him to go. 

Gerard realized his mistake when he saw his brother fall to the ground. He started to scream his name, "Mikey! MIKEY!" He was going to get up to help his fallen brother, but two of his soldiers held him back; trying to keep him safe.

"Let me go! MIKEY!" Gerard shouted at them, trying to get loose from their grips.

"Gerard," The soldier on his right grunted. "We have to keep you here in cover." The one on his left finished. 

The medic finished on one of the wounded soldiers, then looked around the field for another. He ducked from the bullets that were coming his way and started crawling to the injured soldier. 

"Shit," The medic shouted over the fire of guns as he saw who was wounded; the commanding officer's brother. He repeated "Shit" over and over again as he tried to get the wrap of gauze out of his medic bag. Mikey was screaming in agony as the medic was fumbling with the wrap.

"Ray," Mikey gritted through his teeth. "Hurry the fuck up. It fucking hurts." He finished, blood making him choke between his words.

"Don't worry, Mikey. You're going to be okay." He replied in a panic. With no second thought, he placed all the gauze on Mikey's bullet wound. He pressed down on his would trying to stop the blood that was coming out. 

"Okay, Mikey. I need you to press down on the gauze for me okay?" He asked as he looked through his medic bag for the morphine. When he didn't get a response, he asked again. "Mikey?"

It was too late. Mikey's cries of agony died down. His mouth hung open with no screams or words coming out. His eyelids stayed open, showing his eyes starting to gloss over with greyness.

Ray couldn't believe it. He let go of the gauze and slouched. He sighed as he looked around the battlefield for the next fallen soldier that he should help.

An explosion happened behind the barricade where Gerard and two of his soldier, Frank and Bob as he found out, were hiding behind. They held down their helmets to protect themselves from the explosions around them. 

Gerard looked over to where Mikey had fallen to see the medic crawl away from his own fallen brother to see him move to another. With all the bullets flying by and explosion happening around them, Gerard couldn't see his brother let out a breath. He started panicking.

"Mikey! MIKEY!" Gerard shouted as he tried to get up; but, once again, the two of his soldiers held him back. Gerard kept struggling against the soldiers, but then realization hit him. Even if he gets over to his brother, that would do nothing to bring him back. 

Gerard's screams for his fallen brother has calmed down and turned into heavy pants. His pants turned into low sobs. He leaned his head back against the barricade, the explosions covering his now heavy sobs. Frank pulled Gerard in for a side hug as he sobbed into the air. 

"Gerard, pull it together," Bob said to him from his other side as he shot an enemy. He ducked back under the barricade to reload his gun. "I understand you're brother died, but you have to continue the fight." He shouted over the bullets.

"Your brother would want you to continue," Frank whispered next to Gerard's ear. 

x ø x ø x ø

Gerard rang the doorbell to the house that he and his brother grew up in. He remembered how he and Mikey would run out the front door and out to the streets playing tag. Or how they tried to keep a stray cat in the house for a pet, but then their mom grounded them for a month for it.