They sent us to another city with the same objective: push them back. Aachen, September 1944. They said something about taking the first bit of German land, but I couldn't have cared less. I just wanted to get it done and over with. I lay down in my foxhole, clutching the picture of Sally back home in New Jersey. I promised her I'd come back in one piece. I had saved enough for a ring and planned to surprise her with a proposal when the war was over.

"Artie, two minutes." Pippy whispered from the adjacent foxhole. This was it. I folded the picture and kept it in my pocket. Clutching my cross, I recited a short prayer before being interrupted by a booming voice.

"Give ‘em hell boys, go go go!" Lieutenant Livingston screamed as he led the platoon's charge towards the pillboxes up ahead.

I threw my helmet on and stumbled out of the hole. "Artie, come on! We're waiting on you!" Sparky yelled as he knelt behind a tree to take cover. I frantically ran towards him, staying low as the bullets whizzed above my head. Lou and Pippy were ahead of me, sliding behind the tree where Sparky waited. I jumped towards them, landing in a prone position to avoid getting hit.

"You're a damn snail, you know that, Art?" Lou quipped with a chuckle as I lay there panting.

 "Alright, Livingston wants us four to take the second pillbox on the right. Pippy, I want you to go alone on the left side and draw fire from that MG. Two of you, follow me. We'll storm the box. That clear?" Sparky commanded as his voice drowned in the sound of gunfire and shelling. It was surprising how his cigarette still managed to stay in his mouth the entire time. 

"Yes sarge." We replied.

"Good. God bless you, Pippy. Go!"

"I'll see you on the other side!" Without hesitation, Pippy leapt from his position and ran into the open. We heard the German machine gun rattle as bullets flew all around him. If there was one good thing about Pippy, it was that he was braver than a lion. I had known him since our days in Camp Blanding. He inspired me to push myself when I struggled through Basic, shaping me into a warfighter. He always planned to join the police force when the war was over as he had a moral obligation to protect the community. "I will change the world, and you will be there to witness it!" He used to say. That was Pippy.

"Alright boys, let's go!" Sparky darted towards the right-hand side of the pillbox as Lou and I followed closely behind. The occasional small rounds struck the ground around us as we charged. One almost took Sparky's foot out, causing him to jolt. His half-smoked cigarette finally dropped to the ground. Sparky continued running towards the objective. Weird. Sparky wouldn't waste a cigarette even if it had one puff left.

After what felt like the longest two minutes of my life, the three of us managed to scamper towards the bottom of the pillbox. The machine gun fire suddenly stopped. It was as if they knew we were right under their noses.

"...beeilen! Beeilen!" I heard a German commander roar as the sound of footsteps scurrying around echoed. 

We rushed towards the back of the pillbox to prevent their escape, but the Germans were two steps ahead of us. Cowards. Lou managed to catch a glimpse of a retreating soldier in the corner of his eye. He sprung into action and aimed his rifle towards the soldier's direction.

Boom!

My ears started ringing as Lou continued firing. He had finished an entire magazine without a single round hitting the target.

"You couldn't hit a barn from five yards out, you useless muck." Sparky chided as Lou laughed it off. We entered the pillbox and found an entire stash of ammunition, maps, grenades, and the machine gun that was firing at Pippy. Where was Pippy?

The cabinet behind us suddenly flew open. Out popped a German soldier carrying a live grenade. As he ran out of the pillbox, he tossed the grenade back into the room.

The army trained you how to fight the enemy. Intricate manoeuvres, brilliant tactics, fighting styles. But no amount of training would prepare you for your biggest enemy in war: fear. When that grenade flew into the room, I was one of the unlucky few to ever experience what true fear felt like. I always thought it was cliché when people said your entire life would flash before your eyes before your demise. But time really did slow down at that moment.

I saw myself back at home having breakfast. I felt at peace. I hadn't experienced that in awhile. Pop was talking about the war breaking out in Europe while my mother was pouring milk into my glass. I was about to go into town to bring Sally out for a walk downtown. I never got to say goodbye to my parents. Never got to propose to Sally. Never got to continue my studies. I was too young to go.

I had also become desensitised to the value of life. I had seen too many of my friends lose their lives for their country. All good men. To me, they just became a number in a war that had been dragging on for way too long. So why was I so scared of losing mine? Was I just selfish?

"NOOO!"

Lou's scream brought me back to reality. Sparky knew the grenade was too far away to jump as he accepted his fate in the corner. There was no point, really. The explosives and ammunition in the room were enough to wipe us all out. I got into a foetal position and whimpered, clutching my cross with my trembling hands. 

This was it. 

There was silence except for the occasional far-away gunshots. Sparky got up, confused and shaken. He immediately picked up the grenade and tossed it outside. The grenade had been a dud.

"Get up son, we've got to go." I've never heard Sparky's voice so tender before. There was no sign of rasp from the heavy smoking anymore. I was in such a pathetic state, struggling to stand on both feet. Lou wasn't any better. He carried a face that bore no emotion. A man who used to always carry the biggest smile, now reduced to nothing but a hollow vessel. 

Command had caught wind of what had happened in that pillbox after Sparky gave a brief to Livingston. A Jeep was prepared to take us back to camp, where Lou and I would be placed on administrative duties for the remainder of the war.

Back at camp, a team of medical staff escorted Lou to a room as he was non-verbal and non-responsive. They said something about shock. Sparky pulled me aside with a sullen look on his face. 

"Son, I didn't wanna be the one to tell you this, but Pippy's gone. Shot in the leg by one of ‘em bastards. You take care of yourself, you hear me?" I saw his mouth quiver.

He gave me a warm hug before walking away. It felt weird. Perhaps behind all the grumpiness, Sparky did have a heart. 

I always wondered how I managed to survive that day in Aachen. Why was I alive while Pippy was taken from us? I like to believe that Pippy was our guardian angel at that moment, preventing the detonation. I guess it gives me comfort, knowing I couldn't witness him change the world.

I returned home after the end of the war. I heard that Sparky continued fighting after that day, eventually losing his life in the Battle of the Rhine. I heard no news about Lou other than him being medically discharged early. I had tried to talk to him inside the medical bay, but my efforts were futile. It felt like I lost my one final brother in arms. But I continued to live my life. I eventually married Sally, went to school, and started a beautiful family. This was my second chance at life. And I had no choice but to not waste it. It was the least I could do.

For Lou.

For Sparky.

For Pippy.