Post by hollowsaber on Feb 23, 2012 12:40:31 GMT -6
Coming Home
Corporal Jake Furrow
Earth
Corporal Jake Furrow
Earth
"Welcome home Trooper.” The words struck Corporal Jake Furrow like a knife.
As he stepped off the pelican, the man stared off to the city all around him. The crystal blue sky was as calming as it was saddening. Furrow had been out on the front lines for years, fighting to keep his home safe... And now, the sight of it almost made the man shatter to pieces. Tear loomed in the back of his eye sockets, and his hands quivered.
Earth... The crystal blue orb never looked so beautiful in his eyes. He had fought for it with every breath, and it was still here. Waiting for him to come back. The Covenant war machine hadn’t made it through the UNSC yet, and Furrow was glad... If only his family were here...
Most of the others had families waiting. Girlfriends, wives, mothers, daughters, brothers, fathers... But not Furrow. His family was on him. Marked on his forearm and forever engraved in his soul. They never left his side, and he would fight to keep their memory alive. Furrow pulled his uniform’s sleeve back and gazed down at the three hearts, and smiled at the names inside them.
“I’m home...” Furrow thought, lightly rubbing his thumb over the tattoo. A tear dripped from the corner of his eye, and streak down his cheek until it dripped off his jaw. The drop fell and fell into the center of the hearts before splitting over all three of them.
The pelican behind him lifted, and pulled away from the drop off, leaving those who were on leave with their families and friends. Jake wished he didn’t have to come back, but HIGHCOM had ordered him to go on leave. He didn’t have a choice... So he decided to come to New York for a few days...
Jake hefted his pack up, and looked around again. The air looked different without a helmet on, and the gentle breeze through his clothes made him feel a little awkward. Furrow couldn’t remember the time he had actually walked around in regular clothes. His free right hand felt even weirder, as the weight of his sniper rifle was missing. It would take a while getting use to... being away from combat... but even so, it felt good to be home.
The trooper turned his back to everyone else and walked down the street, heading towards where he remembered to be where he grew up. But a light tug on his pants made the soldier freeze. A glance down revealed a little girl looking up at him. She held on tight and simply stared up at the face of the Trooper.
“Why are you crying, Mister?” The girl said.
Crying? Who? Him? Jake looked down at her weirdly, then noticed a few drops fall from his face. He was crying and he didn’t even feel it. Had he really turned that cold? The chatter between families behind him had gotten quiet, and most of them were looking towards him. Furrow wiped his face and knelt down to the girl with a smile. He simply patted her head and kept that smile on his face.
The girl giggled and let him go. Her mother walked over and gently picked the girl up into her arms. Furrow stood up as the woman looked at him. He didn’t say a word, but just nodded then continued to walk. The families behind him began to whisper, but eventually returned to their conversations.
Home... A word he had dreamed about for years. Ever since he left, he wanted to go home. He wanted to stay at his old house and live peacefully. He wished his family was with him. Their faces were still painted in his mind, and he remembered them clearly. He also remembered what had happened that day. They day he signed up...
Furrow walked for several hours until the surroundings finally became familiar. His old neighborhood was still standing. Kids played soccer in the street, parents sat on their porches watching, and passers-by watched the kids play. Furrow stood silent on the corner of the street, looking down with reminiscent eyes as he remembered playing in that same street... The thudding of the soccer ball on the inside of his heel, the rush of playing chicken with oncoming cars, and even the days where he never stopped until he fell asleep on the sidewalk.
He was the only one who played in that street when he was younger. The others were to worried about playing games inside. So Jake played soccer outside by himself on a daily basis. He had used trashcans as goals, cars as obstacles, and used the alleys as hiding spots from his parents when they called him inside.
Seeing the kids play together in the street made him feel almost joyful... They played with the same ideas. Trashcans as goals, cars to dance around, and alleys as places to hide for their games. The ODST had never felt so vulnerable before.
As Jake began to walk down the street, some of the family members to his right looked at him awkwardly. Their faces glued to his figure as he marched down. At first, many of them didn’t recognize the soldier. Some didn’t even look at him. They had no clue. Until one older couple that was sitting in their rocking chairs, stopped their rocking. Jake looked up at them and instantly recognized them... Even as a child, they sat on their porch with their own youngster.
They were the Smiths. Their daughter was Furrow’s only friend as a child, and he sometimes would go over and play with her when she was lonely. She never liked soccer or any of Jake’s favorite games, but he enjoyed the company so he would go over. Her parents were always nice to him, and were close family friends, as well as neighbors. Mrs.Smith always had candies and sweets for the two of them, and Mr.Smith always had a story to tell. They were like Jake’s second parents...
As he walked towards them, the couple instantly recognized the young face. Mr.Smith stood out of his chair and Mrs.Smith grabbed his hand tight. Jake nodded to the both of them, and slowly slid his eyes to the next house.
Jake stood in front of it and stared up at the front of it. The door and windows were boarded up. Some of the windows were shattered from people trying to get it, or just vandalising. It looked old, but still in a decent condition. Jake’s father had worked on the house and had fixed it up to last, and it had. Jake looked to his neighbors, and smiled at them with a sad face.
“I’m home...” Jake mouthed, setting his bag by his feet...
“Welcome home, Jake...” Mr. Smith whispered as Mrs.Smith began to tear up at his side.
