The Final Moment

by Stephen Nielsen

  I look into a window on door and see a bunch of terrified people in the class. I try the door handle but something is blocking the door. “We are here to help, let us in,” I shout. The teacher is wide-eyed and shakes her head. I walk back and thrust my body at the door, it moves but not enough to get through.

  I spot Lucas with the people going out, “Lucas,” I shout. “Yes?” he answers. “Take this door down will you?” I ask him. Lucas rams the door and it opens. The people inside the class room start screaming. I calm them down and escort them out quietly. We walk up to the second floor and I peer into a window. I see a man in a ski mask and saying something to Riley. I motion for Connor to kick in the door and I’ll go in. Connor kicks the door; the guy in the mask turns around. I raise my M4 and fire off two shots. One hits him in the throat and the other in the chest.

  Blood spurts out all over the place and the man falls down. I run over to him and check his pulse, he is dead. “Here, take this, same as yours, just a bit more recoil,” I tell Riley and give her my small Glock. I tell everyone to follow the others to the stairs and exit the building. Megan and Hannah are both shocked to see Patrick and Connor with me and suited up.

  I tell Connor to take this floor and Patrick the one above; I’ll go to the top. I walk carefully up the stairs and into the hall way. I check the room to my right, empty, then the room to the left. As soon as I turn back to the middle I see someone and two flashes. I raise my gun up but not before one bullet hits me in my chest, then the other grazes my shoulder. Right before I fall I fire off one round. I miss, obviously. I try to get back up but a foot lands on my shoulder pinning it down.

  “Jack?” I hear the man behind the mask say. He takes off his mask, it is Carter. “Who is helpless now Jack? There is no coach to take me away from you. Some advice for the future, don’t leave your guitar case around. Oh wait, you won’t have a future after I’m done with you,” he says. “You don’t have to do this Carter, it would be better for you to turn yourself in before you kill someone,” I tell him. “Oh, are you afraid of dying?” he says. “No, I’m going to heaven, to live is Christ and to die is gain,” I tell him. “Well, I guess that you can find out for yourself that heaven isn’t real,” he says, then cocks his pistol.

  ‘Click’ it does not fire. He clears the pistol, and then says: “Bye bye.” I close my eyes then hear many loud pops. I look up and I see Carter wiggling and parts of his body have mini explosions and blood spurts out all over me and the floor. He falls right next to me and his eyes close. I push him away and roll to face where the shots came from. I see Patrick reloading his weapon. I stand up then check my M4, it is a bit wet from blood, but otherwise it seems to be fine.

  “Thanks Patrick,” I say and walk over to him. “Don’t worry, we got each other’s backs,” he says. “You ok?” I ask him. “Yeah, they were easy, they just gave up, and Connor is guarding them. It seems he put up a fight,” Patrick says and points to my shoulder. “Yeah, he caught me when I wasn’t looking,” I tell him. “Duck!” Patrick shouts. ‘Bang!’ Patrick fires one round and Carter flops. Carter’s arm is extended towards us with his pistol in it. “Are we going to take him down or let the feds deal with him?” Patrick asks me. “Let’s let them deal with it,” I tell him.

  We walk out of the school with the prisoners in front and their hands on their heads. “So did you ID the person up where you were Jack?” Connor asks. “Nope, I didn’t need to, I know him,” I tell them. “You know him?” Patrick says shocked. “Yeah, it is Carter, or was, he is dead now,” I tell them. “Our first string is out with a broken leg and now our back up is dead,” Patrick says. “Yeah well you killed him Patrick,” Connor says. “Hey, it isn’t funny, he almost killed me, twice,” I snap at Connor. “Plus I’m sure he didn’t want to kill anyone, I know I don’t want to if I don’t have to,” I tell them.

  “Take your hands off the weapons and on your heads kids,” one of the officers shouts at us with his pistol drawn. I look at the others and put my hands up. One of the police officers hand cuffs me and I say: “Way to welcome a person who saved a school.” At that time SWAT arrives. The officer escorting me says: “You were supposed to wait for them to come, not go in yourself. We can charge you for…”

  The officer stops when Mr. Williams says: “Hey, what are my people doing in hand cuffs?” “Well they went in without authorization, sir,” the officer says. “I said that no police will go in, these guys are not police. They are an elite force. Now take the cuffs off all of them, give them their weapons back, and take this man over to the ambulance he is bleeding,” Williams says.

  They patch me up and debrief me. Finally I can go and see Riley. I see her, then run to her and ask: “Are you OK?” “Am I OK? You are the one that got shot!” she responds. “Well yeah, but how are you?” I ask. She huffs then says: “Yeah, I’m fine, but I am, and was, really worried about you.” I hug her, a long hug. Then I say: “I love you.” “I love you too,” she responds.

  Chapter 4: Patrick

  Megan was not happy when I told her a few weeks ago, when the shooting happened, that I am part of an elite force. She was kind of mad at me for not telling her, but she also understood that because we are a special force I cannot tell people about my job. Hannah was also annoyed at Connor for not telling her.

  Sadly we didn’t make it to the Rose Bowl. That also means that I don’t get the discount on the car. I don’t really care though. Although we did not make it to the Rose Bowl we still made it to the Holiday Bowl. It takes place last few days of December and we are getting ready for the Holiday Bowl tonight.

  In the locker room there is a lot of energy and tension. We are all waiting to be told to get ready to run out on the field. We are wearing our home outfit; the gold helmet and pants and the blue jersey. We are playing against Baylor; last time in 2012 they beat us. However, this time, in 2015, I want to win, and so does everyone else. My locker is right next to Jack’s; this lets us talk about the game and other things.

  “Hey, you know what?” Jack asks me. “What?” I answer. “My best friend from high school is the starter QB for Baylor, I also saw on the tape that he plays the same way as he did in High School,” Jack tells me. “Oh, well you might have wanted to tell the coaches about that when we were preparing before, genius,” I respond. Jack then says: “Yeah, I probably should have. Hey, where are Connor and Lucas?” “Umm, there and there,” I say and point at them.

  Jack calls them over to have a conference, “OK guys. So Chris, the QB, likes to roll to his right because it is easier to throw that way. If you flush him to the left his passes are not very good and are mostly inaccurate. Never underestimate him, he can run, throw far, and break tackles. Wrap him up and don’t try to go for the shoulder smash. Listen to what the coaches say, they probably know best, just keep my information in mind. Last thing, don’t underestimate his ability.” “Got it,” Connor and Lucas answer simultaneously. “Great, now put the rest of your gear on,” Jack says excitedly.

  Finally we get called out to stand in the tunnel. Jack, Connor, a few others, and I gather in a circle for a prayer before we run out onto the field. Everyone runs out on the field except for Jack, Connor, and I. The reason is that we are the home team and we are the players that will be announced.

  I hear over the PA: “Number 10, from UCLA, star quarterback Patrick Lewis!” I run out of the tunnel and in between some of my team mates and high-five them. Most of the crowd are cheering. I run over to the bench and high-five a few other players. Jack and Connor are also introduced the same way as I was.

  It is almost the end of the second half; the Baylor Bears are at our 30 yard line. We are winning 35-14. Chris snaps the ball and drops into the pocket; he has great form. He then hands it off to the running back, a draw play. Sadly for them Lucas is right there to stuff the running back and tackle him for a loss of yards.

  32 seconds left in the game and we just need to hold them to a field goal and we probably have the second half i
n the bag. Chris snaps the ball and drops back, Lucas comes roaring through the middle and Chris rolls out to his left. Connor smashes him on the corner blitz. Chris goes down hard, but gets up right after. Ten seconds left and Baylor runs the clock down until it says 3 seconds then they take a timeout.

  The kicking team comes out to attempt a 50 yard field goal. The kick is up and it is floating to the right. The ball makes a soft ‘bang’ sound as it hits the right upright and bounces off and lands on the turf. No good, the end of the half score is 35-14 with a big lead to us. We walk into the locker room slapping each other and congratulating each other.

  The coach stands on a bench and shouts: “Hey! Look, we have a 21 point lead. Keep it, don’t slack off out there, the Bears are known for their comebacks, especially with that Chris guy. Don’t let your guard down boys. Now gather around, I have something to show you.”

  The coach gives the defense some tips and then he gives the offense some tips as well. “Hey, great catch on that throw in the second half,” I tell Jack. “Yeah, great touchdown,” Jack says. He taps me then says jokingly: “Hey, next time throw it in a hard spot, I think the scouts are watching.” “You still have one more year of college ball Jack. Don’t start thinking about the NFL now, the scouts are for the seniors,” I answer.

  Late in the third quarter I stand over our center and scan the defense. It looks like man coverage. I call an audible for the two widest receivers to run a curl route. “Hut, hut, hike,” I say and the ball hits my hands. I drop back a few steps and raise the ball up. I am staring at Jack the whole time hoping they will notice. We have practiced this play a lot. I wait the few seconds and fire it to the right. John is the receiver on the left side. I probably should have looked before I threw. The ball is intercepted by the other team’s cornerback Garcia. Garcia starts running towards our end zone.

  I almost tackle him but I am not fast enough. All of the sudden I see Jack blaze past me. He knocks the feet out from under Garcia. Garcia lands one yard short of the goal line. I walk back to our sideline with my head down. Jack comes up next to me and says: “Hey, it’s OK; we’ll get them next time.” The coach didn’t think so. I got a chewing out for not reading the defense correctly and changing the play. The other players encourage me knowing that it wasn’t my entire fault. They noticed that John was not in the right spot, something the coach did not catch.

  I make sure that John knows. I walk over to him and say: “Hey, make sure you get your steps right and be in the right place. I you need to do your best, you are one of the best on the wide receiver corps, and the others follow your example.” “Are you trying to pin that interception on me?” John asks. “No, no. It was my fault for not looking slightly before I threw. I just need you in the right place next time I need to throw to you,” I respond. “Yeah OK, I got it. Nice throw by the way, tight spiral,” John answers with a smirk on his face. I punch him on the shoulder and laugh.

  The rest of the quarter and most of the last quarter is filled with touchdowns for the Bears. Right now we have the ball on their 23 yard line. The score is 42-45 to the Bears and there is just one minute left in the game. I snap the ball and I look around, John is marked up well. Our tight end is also marked up. I see Jack down the field. I launch the ball up in the air for a high arc so only Jack can catch the ball. Jack is in front of the cornerback and just crosses the goal line when my pass hits him perfectly in the hands. Touchdown! I run up to the end zone and jump on Jack.

  Now we are ahead by four so Baylor cannot make a field goal to win it; they either score a touchdown and win it or don’t score and lose. They get to our 40 yard line and only have five seconds left and no timeouts. Even if they did have a timeout it will be useless.

  They are in Hail Mary formation: four receivers out; three on one side and one on the other. We have four cornerbacks in, three defensive linemen, and four safeties deep. They snap the ball and the defensive linemen push Chris to his left side. “Hey you see what they are doing?” I ask Jack. “Yeah, it seems that it is going well,” he answers. As planned out of nowhere one of our cornerbacks, Jason Westbrook, launches his body at Chris.

  You can hear the crunch of the pads. “Yes!” I shout then walk over to the people closer to the bench who can’t see. I start giving everyone high-fives. The crowd suddenly roars and cheers loudly and I hear the whistle. I see Jack walking slowly over to me with a sad face. “What’s wrong? Didn’t we win?” I ask. “Nope, don’t celebrate so early next time,” he responds. “What? How?” I ask stunned.

  “Jason didn’t wrap up and Chris kept his balance. The safeties slacked off when they saw Jason hit Chris. So Chris was able to throw it over Connor and the receiver caught it,” Jack responds. “Dang!” I shout then walk over to Chris to congratulate him. Jack and Chris have a quick reunion and Jack walks with Connor and I back to the locker room to discuss the last play.

  Chapter 5: Megan

  It is a warm, sunny, April 2016 afternoon. The sky is almost a true blue color and there is not a cloud in the sky. It isn’t hot like some days in the summer, it is the perfect temperature, between hot and cold; a lukewarm day.

  Patrick and I are playing Hannah and Connor in a tennis match of the couples. Jack and Riley are on the side waiting to challenge the winner; or maybe the loser. Jack and Riley are not very good at tennis. At least not as good as Hannah or me. Hannah and I are the only ones who actually play tennis for real, as we are on the team.

  Patrick and Connor only play because Hannah and I play. Jack and Riley started after they were interested in making a competition out of this. It is also a good way for us to hang out and enjoy something together.

  “Come on, when is it our turn to beat you guys?” Jack asks from the sidelines. “Oh, are you sure you want to play?” I reply teasing him. “Yeah we gonna beat you and Patrick so bad,” Jack says with a smile. Jack and Riley are not very good; and only started at the beginning of this year.

  “OK match point,” I say and serve to Connor and Hannah. It is a long rally, finally I see an opening; they are both in the back. I put back spin on the ball and it hits the net and plops on the other side. Connor lifts his head to the sky and lets out a: “Ugh.”

  “Yeah, our turn,” Jack says and jumps off the bench. As Jack and Riley take over the court and Connor makes sure he punches Jack on the arm. “Hey, what was that for?” Jack asks jokingly.

  “Are you ready?” I ask Jack, because he is returning this serve. “Yeah, bring it on,” he taunts. I throw the yellow ball up in the blue sky. My arm comes around and hits down on the ball with a great angle. I put side spin on the ball so that it exits out on his right side. The ball just makes it over the net and lands on the other side inside the box. Jack does not calculate the spin and the ball flies right past his racket.

  “Ace!” Patrick shouts. Then I say: “I thought you said you were ready Jack.” “Yeah well all of that waiting on the bench made me cold,” Jack responds. I roll my eyes and move to the other side. “Nice serve Megan,” I hear from the sidelines. The voice is not Hannah’s but Naomi’s. Naomi is my tennis teacher. She is really cool and not like those other teachers who are mean or just weird. She is also only a few years older than me.

  “Thanks, you are the teacher,” I reply. She smiles and says: “I also have a talented student.” “You want to stay and watch?” I ask. “I would love to, but I have to go teach someone now. See you later or next year; maybe we can take the trophy,” she answers. “Bye,” I reply and focus back on the game. We play best of five games for each set and only one set so that we all get to play and not wait a long time in between switching.

  We beat Jack and Riley three games to one. Jack points his racket at me and says: “One day we are gonna beat you, and when that day comes you will never forget it.” “I think you will be dead by then,” I joke. Riley makes the ‘I’m watching you’ movement and I raise my hands up in confusion.

  Summer time comes and the school year ends. Riley and I are in her roo
m on our last day that we can stay in our dorms. “So where are you going to stay when you work at the aquarium this summer?” she asks. “With a co-worker, she has a big apartment with an extra room. I can rent it for like nothing,” I reply. “Cool, but why don’t you want to take a break?” Riley questions. I respond: “I don’t really need one, and I want this job at the aquarium.”

  “You always go somewhere, where is it this time?” I ask Riley. “Well last year it was the Bahamas, and the year before was the Canary Islands, so now it is Bora Bora!” Riley responds excitedly. “Lucky. Do you always go on expensive trips?” I ask. “Well, ever since we moved to Maryland,” Riley responds. There is a pause then I ask: “Does Jack ever go anywhere for summer?” “Yeah, that special camp thing and he has been to Europe a few times for vacation, but nowhere ‘expensive’,” she replies.

  My phone buzzes and I look at it, “Oh, that is my reminder, gotta go to work now, see you after the break?” “Yeah, but we need to Skype during the break,” Riley says. “Of course, what is a friend for if you don’t Skype them?” I reply and we both laugh.

  Chapter 6: Patrick

  After a long and hard practice in the September heat I walk into the locker room and start undressing. Jack plops down next to me. As I unlace my shoes I hear the coach say: “Jack, I need to see you in my office now.” Jack looks at me with is pads still on but jersey off and starts walking to the door.

  A few minutes pass Jack comes back hanging his head. He takes off his shoulder pads and slams them against his locker. Then he digs in his locker and pulls out his phone. He dials a number as I get my towel and soap. Then As I walk to the showers I hear Jack say: “Hey dad, thanks a lot, you got your wish.”

  I come back from the shower to my locker just as Jack is heading over to the showers. I grab his arm and ask: “What was that all about?” “The coach said that I cannot play anymore because of the issues of my attendance and apparently not being prepared for the games because of a lack of practice,” Jack replies. “What? But you don’t miss that much of practice, the receivers don’t even start until you come anyways,” I reply. “Yeah, well now I’m off the team; just what my dad wanted. I hope he is happy now. Now if you will excuse me,” Jack says then shrugs me off.