The Soul of the Unbroken
Copyright 2019 © Derrick Quick
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other, noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
This book is a work of fiction and is not meant to be historically accurate. Any references names or events, is purely coincidental, and a work of fiction created by the author.
This book is dedicated to my amazing family for all of their love and support.
I would especially like to thank my amazing wife Skye, for always trusting me and supporting me no matter what.
The Soul of the Unbroken
A Novel
By: Derrick Quick
Chapter 1
1933
As a kid, I thought my life was rough, as most kids probably do, but I was soon to find out things could have been much worse. When I was a kid, most of my days were spent with me and Hans playing tag and running around in the streets when we weren’t in school or working on our school work. On the weekends, my father would take the family out to dinner, and sometimes to the theater.
This particular weekend started like usual. Hans was picking on me right before we left to go out for the night. Hans was my older brother by three years, and I was always jealous of him. He was taller than me, around one hundred and seventy-three centimeters or so, he was muscular, he had perfect golden hair parted to the side, and most of all he could talk to any girl he liked. I, on the other hand, had not hit my growth spurt so I was barely breaking one hundred and fifty-two centimeters tall, I was pretty chubby with big fat cheeks, and my hair never did what I wanted it to. I also could not talk to girls at all, and none of them liked me. Because I was so much smaller than Hans, I guess I was easier to pick on. This particular day Hans was being extra annoying. “Eloy, papa says we can’t go to dinner with them because you would order too much food.” Then he poked me in the belly, with his finger squishing right through the softness of my rolls. I would normally let it go when he picked on me because I didn’t want him to beat me up, but I was now ten years old and I needed to stand up for myself. I had enough of him being mean. I shouted, “SHUT UP Hans!” Then I ran up and punched him in the stomach. It didn’t phase Hans though. I was so small and he was so big already, even for thirteen. He turned and punched me right back, but in the face. It probably wasn’t the full force he could have punched me with, but it sure was still powerful. My head snapped back, and my nose started stinging like crazy. I dropped to the ground, blood spewing out of my nose, and cried.
Right then my father comes storming around the corner, “ENOUGH!” I had never heard my father so forceful before. I was so surprised I forgot about my nose and just stared at him, shocked. He continued to roar, “If you two can’t behave you don’t get to go out with us tonight! Your mother and I will go, and you too can stay home and study. Maybe this will teach you two to get along.” Hans loved going out on the town to look for girls, and making him stay home with me was the harshest thing he could have done to Hans. “But father, Eloy hit me first! It was instinct, I didn’t mean to hurt him I promise!” Knowing how Hans liked to pick on me, my father didn’t believe for 1 second that it was all my fault. “Oh don’t lie to me Hans! Even if Eloy did hit you he’s your little brother and you should know better than to punch him in the nose. Now go inside to your rooms. Your mother and I will call from the restaurant, and check up on you two. Then we will be back later this evening.”
Hans and I went into our rooms and were left to our school work. I couldn’t concentrate though, so I got up and went to the window and watched my parents pack the car. My father looked exceptionally happy. He went over to my mother and swept her up in a swirling hug with the biggest smile I have ever seen on his face. Looking back on this day I realized this was their anniversary and that’s why he was probably so happy. Then he and my mom climbed into the car and drove off towards the restaurant. Afterwards I walked over to my desk and started on my school work. I could hear the floor creaking as Hans was probably doing push-ups like usual. That's what he did when he was angry. “Hans your pushups are distracting me from my school work!” Hans didn’t bother to respond but just kept up with his pushups. I decided not to pester him any further out of fear he may have punched me again. As the hours went by my stomach began to rumble tremendously. I went down to the pantry in search of something delicious to eat. I pulled out my mom’s homemade bread and some strawberry jam, then I went and grabbed leftover sausage, and potatoes. I was about to grab the milk when Hans came down and began to chastise me some more, “Hey tubby, are you sure your stomach can handle all of that food? I don’t want to clean it up after you make yourself sick.” Hans could be so mean sometimes. I wondered why he felt the need to make fun of me at every opportunity. I decided not to respond and just took my food up to my room. I was so hungry I just kept devouring the food until there was only a small amount of jam and bread left. Regretfully I realized Hans may have been right. My stomach started to feel a little uneasy and I had to go lay down. I didn’t even realize I had drifted off to sleep until I woke to the sound of pounding on the door. I walked downstairs and right as I got to the bottom I saw Hans had opened the door and standing outside was an officer. The only words I remember hearing were, “accident”, “dead”, and “Orphanage”. There was a car accident as my parents were driving to the restaurant. They must have been distracted and as they went over train tracks a train smacked them straight in the side of the car, sending it into flames and leaving nothing behind, but ashes. These ashes were now all that was left of my heart, and I didn’t know if it would ever go back to normal again. Since both of them were gone, Hans and I were sent to live in a boys home.
Thinking back on the accident I always get this heavy feeling in my chest, and I feel like I can’t breathe. Just thinking that my parents may have died being mad at Hans and me, chips away at the ashes of my heart, little by little. Then I think of how happy my dad was to be with my mom, and it brings a smile to my face, probably the only time I smile anymore. Sometimes I felt like I would never be able to feel joy again, and my happiness died with my parents that day. That all changed one day at the end of 1937.
Chapter 2
1937
Hans and I lived in the orphanage for just a short amount of time before our uncle came and picked us up and took us to Berlin to live with him. The orphanage wasn’t too bad, however, I’m glad we didn’t have to stay there. We all slept in one big room, on a bunch of tiny little beds. We had no privacy, and no time alone. The worst part was the food. It was awful. It looked like a pile of sludge, slopped onto a plate. After a few months at the orphanage, our uncle’s house seemed like a palace with gourmet food. Our uncle was a tailor and had his own little shop where he made suits for the most prestigious people around. He had Hans and I work in the shop but he didn’t trust us to work with the fabric so we mostly just swept and brought him any supplies he needed.
“Eloy go get me some fabric and my measuring tape! Dr. Egelstein is coming and I want to have everything ready to go.” I trudged to the back room and grabbed the materials he asked for and begrudgingly made my way back to the front. My uncle was a very grumpy man, that seemed much older than his actual age. He had eyes that seemed a little too close together and very round glasses. On his head was a straw-colored mop of hair parted to one side, and on his face was a needle-thin mustache. He walked a little bit hunched over and his voice shook. Sometimes I was amazed that he looked
so old and my father looked so young. I decided his anger, and stress must have aged him at a faster rate than everyone else. Just then a stout man with a big bouncing belly walks through the door and greets my uncle, “Mr. Wolf! How are you today? Do you have my materials ready? I want this suit to be my best yet!” My uncle motioned for me to come to him with the supplies, “Of course! Eloy has just brought them from the back.” Then he shooed me away so he could get to measuring Dr. Egelstein. I was walking towards the back when I luckily took a quick glimpse back and that's when I saw her. She was about my age, with the most beautiful brown eyes I have ever seen. When I looked into her eyes I wasn’t sure I would ever be able to look away. They were the most alluring, mesmerizing eyes, and I just couldn’t stop staring. Her hair was curly and bounced on her shoulders as she walked, her nose was thin and cute, and her smile showed perfect white teeth that could brighten a room. She twisted her hair with her finger in a cute way, and she bit down on her cheek as she was lost in thought. It was the cutest thing. I could watch her do it for hours. Just as I was starting to fall into a daze staring at her, she turned to me and I thought she must have noticed me staring. I could feel my cheeks filling with blood and I suddenly felt very hot. I quickly looked away and scurried to the back. I stayed hidden in the back room until they were gone because I didn’t want to face the embarrassment. I stared at her for what felt like forever but it also felt like no time at all. I could have stared into her eyes for the rest of my life. The rest of the night and the next few weeks I did nothing but think about her.
Every time I fell asleep she came to me in my dreams. In them, she and I would just stare into each other’s eyes, until I woke, and every time I just wanted to go right back to sleep. I also started spending more time in my uncle’s shop hoping she would come back, but for weeks she never did. Finally, I got up the nerve to ask my uncle,” Uncle, when is Dr. Egelstein coming back?” Without looking up from his work he said, “Funny you should ask Eloy, he will be back tomorrow afternoon to pick up his suit.” I was filled with joy that was quickly replaced by nervousness. What would I say to this girl? Would she even notice me? Would she remember I was the one who stared at her.? Would she even like me? I had grown up considerably since I was ten. I was now almost fifteen years old and lost all of my chubbiness, but I still wasn’t sure. I had never had a girlfriend, or even really talked to a girl for that matter. I decided my best option was to talk to Hans. He seemed to be with a different girl every week.
I went up to the room he and I shared (Uncle wasn’t expecting two kids and didn’t have much extra room) and he was currently doing push-ups like he does every night. “Hans, how do I get a girl to like me?” Without pausing from his push-ups he said, “Like you? That would be impossible.” Then he chuckled to himself a little bit. “Hans I’m serious, there's a girl that may be coming to uncles shop tomorrow and I want her to like me! This time he stopped and stood up. “Well first thing is, you should start doing some push-ups so you aren’t such a string bean, then she might notice you. Then you just have to be confident, go up to her and tell her she is beautiful and ask her to go out with you.” Hans made it seem so easy, but I wasn’t so sure it would be. I did take him up on his advice and started doing push-ups though. Hans made it look so easy and he did one hundred and fifty every night. I could hardly get to twenty before I collapsed, then I was able to do a few more before I needed a break. I did push-ups for hours it seemed, and I only ended up doing eighty-four of them. I went to the mirror to see if I had become as muscular as Hans but unfortunately, I was still skinny. I knew it wouldn’t happen right away though. Hans had been doing push-ups every night for years.
The next morning I got up and got ready to meet this girl with the mesmerizing eyes. I bathed, got my haircut, and put on my nice clothes. Hans, of course, chuckled when he saw me. “Eloy, you look like an old man in that worn out suit, I don’t think that girl will think much of your style.” Then he surprised me by going into his closet and gave me a plain white shirt, and trousers, and told me to switch it out for my suit. I quickly put them on and asked Hans how I looked, “Well not quite as good as me but I think the lady might even notice you.” I tried not to smile too much and quickly went to the shop hoping Dr. Egelstein had not come and left already.
As I was walking in the shop from the back I noticed Dr. Egelstein getting fitted, and there she was again. She was browsing the shelves of fabric, and I couldn’t help but stare again. The elegant way she walked, the way she squinted when she was really focusing on a fabric, the way her curls seemed to bounce when she moved. I was transfixed. Then I heard, “Eloy!” which startled me from my transfixed state and I jumped a little making me feel embarrassed once again. “Eloy, I said your name many times and you just kept staring into space! Now go in the back and grab a couple more pins.” Now feeling even more embarrassed that he pointed out I was staring, I quickly slunk back and grabbed the pins he asked for. I tried to make my way back into the shop as inconspicuous as possible, but the minute I stepped in I saw the girl was looking my way and smiling. I didn’t want to make a fool out of myself once again so I quickly handed my uncle the pins, gave her a sheepish smile, and ducked into the back once again. I was sitting there cursing myself for being such a fool when I heard someone come into the back. “Hello?” The sound of her voice melted my heart and froze me in place. “H-hello.” I stammered back. “I saw you staring at me.” She said with a smile on her face. Once again the blood rose to my cheeks and I could tell I was blushing very badly. “I’m sorry it’s just…just..” Then I thought back to what Hans had said, “you are just so beautiful I couldn’t help it.” This time she blushed and smiled at me. Then her father yelled, “Eliza, it’s time to go!” I felt really disappointed that she was leaving but then as she was walking to the shop she turned back to me and asked, “Would you want to meet at the park that’s down the street a couple of blocks from here, maybe at around eight?” I couldn’t believe it! Hans was right! “I would love to!” I said back probably a little too enthusiastically. She gave me one more quick smile and then disappeared to the front to leave with her father. I immediately ran back to Hans to tell him everything. He seemed pretty proud and said, “I told you brother, my plans always work. Pretty soon, you might even be as cool as me.” Then he took off probably to go hang out with one of his many girlfriends.
The rest of the afternoon went by so slow. I could not wait to meet up with Eliza. Just thinking of her amazing smile made my heart jump. To pass the time I did a bunch of pushups. Then I washed up, got some food, and endlessly paced around the room. Waiting for it to be dark.
After an eternity, the sun finally started to go down and it was time for me to head to the park. On my way there I was so nervous. I was afraid that we would meet up and I wouldn’t know what to say. Suddenly, I realized I should have asked Hans for his advice again, but I forgot. How stupid! I was going to meet up with this perfect girl and have nothing to say. I thought about turning around but I couldn’t. I had to see that smile at least one more time. Even if this night turned out awful I would at least know I gave it a shot. I walked into the park but she wasn’t there yet so I sat down. Sitting there with nothing but my own thoughts, I became increasingly nervous and kept jiggling my feet and had to refrain from biting my nails.
I was sitting for about an hour and she still hadn’t shown. I kept looking down the street to see if she was coming, and every time I saw someone, I expected it to be her, but unfortunately, it never was. It was already dark and I figured she wasn’t going to come, but I didn’t want to leave just in case she did show up. After another half hour or so I finally gave up. I thought to myself, that I should have known someone that amazing wouldn’t want to hang out with me. Slowly, I peeled myself from the park bench and trudged home, kicking every rock on the way back.
Chapter 3
1937
It has been a couple of months since Eliza didn’t show up at the park, and the nice warm sunny
days have gotten shorter and shorter and gave way to the gloomy bone-chilling days of fall. I was still feeling hurt by that night and was on a continuous journey to forget Eliza, but for some reason, I just couldn’t. Every time my uncle’s shop door would open I would hope that it was her, but I was not that fortunate. Dr. Egelstein had already come and picked up his suit at this point so unless he needed another one soon I would probably never see her again. I just decided to ask my uncle if Dr. Egelstein would be coming back anytime soon and he responded, “That Jewish Swine! He won’t be coming back anytime soon.” I was completely baffled. “Uncle he used to come here all the time, what happened?” He shot me a lasering glare, “You stupid boy! Do you not read the papers? The Jews are bringing down our great country. I can not and will not work with one of them ever again!” I didn’t even know what to say. How could he be so angry with certain people just because of newspapers, and not one Jewish person had crossed my uncle in anyway. It didn’t seem fair.
I quickly left the shop and headed to my room to do more push-ups. When I got to my room I realized how lonely it had become, being in there. Hans had gotten a job and moved to the other side of Berlin, I had no friends and the only girl I ever liked stood me up. I got down on the floor and let out all my frustrations on the pushups, pumping out one after another ignoring the fiery pain in my arms, and by the time I could no longer get my chest off the floor I had gotten to a new personal best seventy-four push-ups in a row. Then I headed out to go see Hans.
I crossed town over to where Hans lived. It was a very old, red brick building with a giant, heavy wooden door at the front. I walked in and there was a big staircase straight. Hans was on the second floor so I started climbing. The whole building smelled of dust, and mice droppings. I was surprised that anyone even lived there, but I guess Hans probably couldn’t afford much. At the top of the big staircase, I turned right and found Hans’ room straight ahead. I went up and knocked right on the big number 7 that was displaid on the front of the door. He didn’t answer right away, but I could hear rustling, inside the apartment. I knocked again, this time much louder and all of a sudden the room became silent. I was getting very frustrated that Hans just wouldn’t open up the door. “Hans open up the door already! I have already knocked five times!” Just then he flung open the door and hauled me inside.
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