Time seemed to stop as he watch his wife stumbled to the ground. Her body was drifting slowly before landing onto the hard tarmac. He didn’t – couldn’t – hear anything else, the shriek, the gunshots, the commands; miraculously, amidst all the noise and commotion, he’s in a silent world, a world where only he and his wife exist.
But as his feet started to move towards her, his body was slammed to the side by another human being. He didn’t care who it was. He only cared that this person had just stopped him from going to his wife. He was angry. He was furious. He tried to push him away. He wriggled back and fro to release himself from underneath him but he failed. This man is too powerful – or maybe he was too weak – for him to gain even an inch. He could only watch in agony as his wife’s body lay on the tarmac, in the middle of a gunfight.
He knew that she’s dead. Even before the bullet pierce her head, he knew that she’ll die. That’s why he said those words. The words that were supposed to be said earlier. The words that were supposed to be said at another time but he ran out of time. It was his fault, for putting things off. For creating this situation.
“ I love you”. With desperation he said.
“I love you too”, she replied. The look on her face was one of pure joy. But somehow he couldn’t feel it. Couldn’t take in the meaning of those words. Their goodbye shouldn’t be like this, his heart screamed.
Exactly at those moments, he heard the shot. He saw the trigger being pulled. He felt the pain as if the bullet were being put inside his head, scattering his brain.
And now, it’s over. The guy who shot his wife was lying dead next to her in a middle of a blood poll. All his accomplice were either dead or surrendered to the police. And he’s finally able to walk over to his wife’s body. Her hand were still bound behind her, her clothes was soaked with blood – he couldn’t tell whether it was hers or the guy’s blood – but she looked happy. Content. As if death is a prize that she’d won, something that she’d been waiting for. Or could it be because of his final words to her?? He couldn’t tell.
He picked her up, and finally the tears were coming down.