Death Doesn't Wait

Contains blood, death, war, guns, etc. I was unsure if this was considered sensitive content so I figured I would put the warning in here just to be safe.

Atlas had been halfway to the aid of his general when he heard the scream of his best friend, Carson. His head whipped around to face the other man, the one he had come here with. Atlas had known Carson since both of them were little boys with neighboring houses, and so his immediate thought at the sight of his best friend screaming for help was to run back. Yet, when he heard his general scream again, he second-guessed himself.

He turned to face his general, the man screaming angrily at him as if he had done something wro—

“Atlas!!” He turned and ran, his feet heavy on the ground beneath him. He couldn’t leave Carson behind like that. His ears rang from all the noises on the battleground, but he never stopped running. When he tripped, he didn’t cry or whine about landing on his knees. Instead, he kept running. When he was close enough, he dove, not even worried about his ripped uniform or the cuts and scrapes now adorning his skin.

“Carson—” Atlas spoke quickly, trying to catch his breath.

“Atlas... I—I thought for a minute that you were gonna leave me.”

The ringing in his ears dulled just enough to hear his every word. “I would never. I promised that if we were gonna die, then we would die together. So don't you ever think that about me again.”

Atlas had been forced to yell the words out as the battleground was far too loud with the bombs, gunshots, and cries of other men.

“I'm sorry— I know I shouldn't—” His voice cut out into a scream. Atlas's head whipped around, a slight crack from his neck.

What he now saw he hadn't noticed before, or maybe it just hadn't been there before. Carson held his bloody hand to his abdomen and pressed hard. It made sense to Atlas now why the blonde boy before him had called out his name.

Atlas tried to scream for a medic, but his voice came out a weak, pathetic mess, and instead of trying again, he opted to help his friend up. Atlas pulled Carson's arm over his shoulder and tried his best to find one of the small medic-labeled tents set up around the battlefield.

“Atlas, please stop. It’s not worth all this. You know I’ll die!” Carson was yelling in the other boy's ear.

“Don’t say that! You can’t die without me. We’re gonna get you help, and you’ll be perfectly fine, so don’t you ever think that!” Atlas yelled back. He truly wasn’t having this. Where hope faded from Carson’s paling face, determination began to set on the dirt-covered face of Atlas.

As they reached the tent, Atlas finally found the voice to call out for a medic. It was a matter of seconds before Carson was pried away from his friend, though Atlas followed close behind the medics and helped in every way they allowed him. This mostly involved staying out of the way in the front corner.

Within minutes, they had stopped Carson's bleeding and bandaged the wound. It felt like hours had passed as Atlas finally moved forward to speak with his best friend.

“Hey... Carson... you awake? Can ya hear me, bud?” Atlas's throat was dry, and he sounded like he hadn't had water in days, though maybe he hadn't.

Carson, in reply to his friend's words, grunted and turned his head. His bright, icy blue eyes were now visible to Atlas as Carson spoke.

“I'm awake. Still alive, I suppose.”

“More than supposed; you've definitely earned the right to say you faced death and lived to tell about it,” Atlas gave a small laugh and gently nudged his friend's shoulder. “But you don't have to worry about that. You're alive NOW, and that's what matters to me.”

The peace the two boys felt was like the eye of the hurricane, surrounded by ongoing hell, and short-lived. In just one word, it was all ruined. One word to pale faces, the only reaction they would have time for before they died.

“Grenade!” Some soldier yelled it from outside the tent.

Atlas had almost missed it, but when it processed, he was diving for the cot Carson was still sprawled out on.

A loud, thunderous sound came from the opening of the tent just as Atlas got hold of Carson. Both boys tumbled to the floor, Atlas with his back to the explosion as he shielded his best friend in an attempt to save him.

For a moment, everything went black. When his eyes fluttered open, his ears had a harsh ringing sound, which was all he could really make out. Next to him lay a rather pale Carson. As he turned to face his friend, he let out a loud, piercing cry.

Looking back, he noticed the large piece of shrapnel lodged into his back, and he felt his blood dripping onto the floor. Atlas looked back to Carson and gently shook the other boy awake.

“Carson, wake up. C’mon man, open those eyes. Please!” He knew he was yelling, even if he could barely hear his own voice.

Carson didn’t move, and for a moment, Atlas thought he had died, but a moment later, the other boy's eyes fluttered open, and his eyes widened. What Carson saw was worse than what Atlas had seen of himself. The shrapnel had gone straight through his chest.

“Atlas—stop moving. Stay still until help comes... Don’t move.” Atlas didn’t hear a word of what Carson was saying. Instead, he made the mistake of moving to try and give his friend some room. What followed was a nasty choking sound, followed by the light beginning to fade from his eyes.

Carson moved forward in an attempt to help. He wouldn’t have been much help even if he wasn’t shot. Neither of the boys had been trained in medicine.

All he could do was move closer and hug his friend, trying to keep him awake. That plan failed as Atlas spoke to him.

“Please don’t leave me... Carson... Please.”

“I’m right here, Atlas... I won’t leave. Neither of us are going anywhere. I’m here with you all the way. It’s just you and me together.”

Atlas knew he had made the correct choice then and there. With no thought behind it, he should have known sooner that he had taken the correct option. Now, instead of dying alone, he would die side by side with the one person who had been there through thick and thin.

Time doesn’t go by slowly; death doesn’t wait until you’re ready. Even then, Atlas and Carson wouldn’t have had it any other way.

“Me and you together...” Atlas muttered the words as the world around the two boys faded into darkness.