Towards The Horizon: A Short Story

Towards the Horizon It has been six days since my team left me out for dead. The shot barely grazed my shoulder. Anybody would be knocked unconscious with that much blood leaving their body. But they left me there, and they had good reason to. With the Reds trailing them on one side, and the harsh, unforgiving Vietnamese jungle on the other, they didn’t have the time or strength to take care of a WIA. I sort of feel bad for them. I could only imagine the guilt of leaving behind a fellow soldier. Lucky for me, they took the time to patch up the wound.
Memories of the moment keep flashing through my eyes like it happened not more than two seconds ago. I still remember the enemy soldier staring at me, fear in his eyes. He looked more scared than I did as he pulled the trigger. These were regular people: fathers, teachers, mailmen. Their …show more content…
I could hear the river loud and clear but could not see it if it weren’t for my dying fire. I went back into the cave and laid down. This was not the most ideal situation, but for me, it was way better than being shot at every second of every day. I got my food, water, shelter, and the relaxing sound of a flowing river. What else does a man need? I thought about my squadron once again. I have no idea how they are, or even if they are alive. But I can only hope that they are thinking of me just as I am thinking of them. Maybe if I survive, I can go grab a drink with the boys again. Maybe we could go to a baseball game. I’m sure they didn’t leave me on purpose, and I forgive them for it. It was the right thing to do. If they had carried me with them, all of them would have died. I remembered the look on the enemy soldier’s face again. He thought about it before he pulled the trigger. He knew what he was doing, and he was scared to do it. But his blind loyalty to his country forced his hand. I fell asleep thinking about the past, not knowing what was coming in the future, on the start of day