Our Last Kiss

"Sara..." He takes my hand into his. "Sara. Oh, Sara. I'm going to miss you so much."1

My eyes were filling up with tears.2

"Don't leave," I manage to choke out in a whisper. "You don't have to; many other men are willing to risk their lives on the field. You don't need to."3

Jake sighs. He lets go of my hand. It feels cold without his warm touch.4

"I have to, Sara. I can't be a coward and tremble in a dark corner while the war rages on. I need to be in it. I need to be brave....And you do, too."5

A single tear trickles down my cheek. My lip trembles, and I close my eyes tightly. I don't want to look at reality a second longer.6

"We were going to get married," I say suddenly. "We were going to live happily in a little suburban house on the outskirts of the city. We were going to have four kids, remember? And....and...Jake, please, don't leave!"7

Jake runs his gentle fingers through my silky hair.8

"I'm not going to die, Sara," he says softly. His eyes search for anything familiar in my grief-stricken eyes. But nothing's familiar anymore.9

The jet that was going to take him to his camp starts to whir.10

"I have to leave, Sara," he whispers. "I'll be back. We'll see each other again, I promise." He takes my head in his hands, and kisses me passionately. My heart thumps loudly in my chest. I'm surprised to discover tears were forming in Jake's eyes as well.11

Our last kiss.12

He walks toward the jet, and disappears into it a second later. Tears flow silently from my eyes. My heart feels like it's been ripped in two, and the other half is flying on the jet plane, accompanied by Jake.13

The jet takes off. I breathe in deeply, but my heart still feels empty.14

He'll be back. He has to. He promised.15

A jet flies over my head. It wasn't Jake's jet - this one was a deep shade of violet. Something drops out of the window of the violet jet.16

My breathing nearly stops.17

It's a bomb.18

It flies straight towards the earth, about 10 feet from where I'm standing.19

I'm sure Jake's witnessing all of this already. He's probably weeping in his seat right now...20

Jake...21

I fall to the ground, the sound of screams in my ears, and the smell of smoke and flames. Blackness engulfs my vision. I try to stay awake, for Jake, for the tiny, little house near the city, for the kids we were going to have.22

But sleep seems like the only sensible solution right now.23

I allow the cold fingers of death to sweep me off of Earth. I feel dizzy, sick.24

And then I can't feel anything.