High Noon

Ch2

It happened, war is upon us, France and Britain declared war on Germany, and now we are officially at war.

Grandpa smoked his pipe angrily as he listened to the radio and then said, "Damn, those bastards, dragging us into another war, damn them."

I could feel the fear rise in my chest at the mention of war and I could tell Mama was afraid, too. She kept on looking at Papa and I knew what she was worried about. What if Papa had to go to war?

Our fears were confirmed later that night when we got a telegram telling us that Papa had to fight.

"You can't," Mama said, her eyes filling with tears.

"I have no choice. I have to fight," Papa told her as he reached for her hand.

She dodged it and quickly got up, leaving the table. Grandma went after her and I looked at Papa, not believing that he was leaving us.

"Sophie, come here." He told me patting his lap.

I walked over and sat in his lap as if I was a little girl again and put my head against his chest.

"Sweetie, do you remember the song I used to sing to you every night when you were little?" He asked me.

"Yes," I said the only word I could say without bursting into tears.

"It was about a man who had to go to war, to protect his country and family, and if he didn't then the enemy might win, that's why I have to go, to protect you and so that we can win, you understand?" Papa told me.

I didn't want to understand, I wanted to force him to stay. I didn't want Papa to leave me and Mama, I wanted him to stay and be like the way it always has been.

"Soldier boy, on the way to fight for his country, soldier on his way to defend his family, soldier boy will come home after the long war is over." Papa sang in a low but upbeat tune.

Then he kissed me on the forehead and said, "Don't worry, I'll come home, I promise."

I nodded and could feel the tears fill my eyes, then stream down my cheeks.

That night I stared at the roof, not wanting the next couple of days to go by knowing that in 4 days, Papa would have to go to war and Mama and I wouldn't be able to see him for a long time.

At school, Ruth had the same situation her Papa had to go to war too, and she was sad all day.

"I don't want him to leave," Ruth said, tears running down her cheeks.

"I wish our Papa's could stay, but if they don't fight, then who'll protect us?" I said as tears of my own streamed down my face.

She took a shaky breath and nodded.

"I know."

The days went by fast no matter how much I wanted time to go by slower, time didn't, and then I was by the gates of the train station.

Papa hugged Mama, who was crying, and he promised to be back.

I hugged Papa as tightly as I could, never wanting to let go. Maybe if I hug him long enough he'll miss the train and won't have to go to war.

"Honey, I have to go, but I'll be back, okay? I promise." He told me.

I couldn't say anything back, my throat was clogged up and heavy tears were streaming down my face.

He gently pulled me off and said goodbye to us, then left.

Me and Mama watched Papa walk through the gates and as the gate slammed shut, we continued to watch him until the crowd swallowed Papa up.

As we drove home, everything was blurry tears continued to stream down my face and I could hear Mama crying too.

When we arrived home, Mama composed herself, then she said, "I'll start making dinner."

I wiped my tears away with my hands and took a shaky breath.

Papa will come home, and when he does, the war will be over and everything will be back to the way it was.

I helped Mama make dinner, and we talked about things that we would normally talk about, avoiding all talk of the war or Papa.

Mama spent a lot of time outside, whether it was talking to a friend next door or just sitting on the porch.

She only came inside to make and eat dinner, then she would go back outside.

I walked to school and ballet practice, distracting myself by hanging out with Ruth and dancing on stage.

Mama came to every performance I had, and I twirled and danced on the stage with the rest of the dancers.

I looked out over the crowd at the end of the performance, and everyone cheered and I smiled.

Months passed the war continued on and it seemed as if Papa would not be coming home anytime soon.

Then the bombings started. I was walking from school when suddenly I heard a deep rumbling sound and everyone looked up to see Aeroplanes and then the air raid sirens went off.

Everyone screamed and me and Ruth ran, being pushed by the crowd as we heard the shrieks of bombs.

We went into the bombing shelter the ground shook violently and explosions and fires seemed to be everywhere.

My heart was pounding violently. Children and babies were crying.

I covered my ears, not wanting to hear the bombs, but it was useless. Even if I couldn't hear them, it wouldn't change the fact that the Germans were still throwing bombs at us.

It seemed like hours until they stopped bombing us and when we knew it was safe to come out of the shelter.

It was a disaster. Buildings were destroyed, collapsed, and fires were scattered around, and the sky was filled with black smoke.

Ruth gasped beside me and I looked and saw that she was pointing at a pool of blood and what used to be a little girl covered in it.

My stomach twisted and I could feel anger fill my heart.

"Damn them," I said furiously.

Then my eyes widened and I and Ruth seemed to be both thinking the same thing.

I tried to push through the panicking crowd, but I was thrown to the ground.

It separated me from Ruth and I scrambled up; I tried to run but couldn't.

Suddenly, I was pulled to the side of a building and I looked to see a boy staring at me.