The small, yellow car pulled to the end of the darkened parking lot. In the front seat sat a man who looked very, very ordinary. An ordinary watch, and ordinary tie, an ordinary driver’s license. The two men in the back looked ordinary, but they were both perspiring to a large degree. The man on the left had large pit stains forming under his arms, and the man in the right, well, he was never much of a sweater, but, when the occasion calls…
Both men were having second thoughts. But there was no way to change their minds now. They were in too deep.
“So, this is it.” The man on the left said.
“I guess so,” the man on the right responded.
The man in the front drummed his fingers against the steering wheel. “It is it,” he said. His voice was muffled by the bullet proof partition between the front seat and the back.
“Why are we here?” The man on the left asked.
“Well, we’re here to kill each other, aren’t we?”
“I guess so. It was just a parking space.”
“That’s what I tried to say. I tried to tell you, it’s just a parking space, but you would have none of it. None of it.”
“It was mine,” the man on the left said.
“Territorial, those two,” the man in the front said to no one in particular.
“It’s not like I was banging your wife,” right said.
“No, but it’s a matter of principle. I didn’t come to your job and start parking in your space, so I don’t think you would know quite what it’s like.”
“Okay, but your space wasn’t even marked. You’re just angry that I get up earlier than you do.”
“If you think that’s it… Boy. No. Your willingness to rise in the morning has nothing to do with this,” left shot back.
“Right. I mean, if you could have gotten up earlier, you could have taken your space back. There were other spaces. It was just a game, man.”
“Not much of a game anymore,” left said. “Now that we have to kill each other.”
“It’s still a game. Just not a fun one,” right responded.
“So, do we do it in here? Try to kill each other in here?” Left asked.
“The guy up front told us to step out of the car and do it.” Right responded.
“Don’t want blood all over my car. Could do without that, I could,” Front muttered.
“And what if we run?” Left asked.
“Then I kill you both!” Front shouted. Quite loudly. Bullet proof barrier or no, his voice rang out.
“One of us gets to walk away from this,” Right said.
“I have a wife,” Left offered. “If you could kill a man that goes home to someone that loves him, then you can – “
“My dog loves me. Love is irrelevant to this situation.”
“I’ve been at the company longer, so I’m worth more –“
“Worth has nothing to do with it.”
“Then what is it?” Left inquired.
“Survival. Who has the desire to live more. Who wants it the most. Your wife wants you to live, but I want to live. Do you think her wanting you alive will help you? Do you think it adds to your will to live?”
“Her strength… It gives me strength,” Left said, his voice quivering.
“You shake when you say this,” Richie said.
“I don’t want to die,” Lou said.
“Well, that’s a shame, because I certainly don’t want to die.”
“On with it!” Fred called from the front. “I don’t have all day!”
“But my dog will miss me,” Richie nodded. “I’d hate to leave him alone. Without me, he’ll starve. Your wife will hardly starve if you don’t come home.”
“And you think that having another life dependent on you will help you?” Lou asked.
“In the grand scheme of things, it should count for something.”
“But what if life is equal to love? Then we’re equally matched. Your dog knows devotion, but not love. My wife knows love, but will not die. A part of her will. The important part will go away for some time. Plus, I hate dogs. They bother me.” Lou rationalized.
“It’s a shame. It’s a shame this has to happen this way.”
“It is, isn’t it? Two lives cut short in their primes.”
“Well, I’m about to hit forty. I’m aging. I’m not in my prime.”
Louis grinned. “I’m almost thirty. The best shape of my life.”
“And if you think your extra muscle or endurance will help you take a bullet any better, then that’s your folly right there,” Richard told him.
“I can run,” Louis said.
“Not faster than a bullet,” Richard and Frederick responded.
It made all three occupants smile briefly.
“I have more to offer the world,” Louis said.
“I’m wiser,” Richard countered.
“Neither of us deserve what will happen to us tonight. That is unfair.”
“Life was never meant to be fair. It was meant to be a test.”
“A test of what?” Louis asked.
“Survival. It’s all about surviving.”
“That’s very base of you,” Louis said after a moments thought. “You are wise.”
“I’m old and have too much time on my hands. Never confuse that for wisdom.”
“I was offering you a compliment. You yourself said that you were wise. I was just trying to up your spirits before you killed me. Or I killed you. I hope it’s the latter.”
“I’m rooting for the former.”
Louis cracked his car door, and removed the revolver from under his seat.
“Ten paces then? Back to back?”
Richard nodded. He too opened his door, and grabbed the revolver.
Louis Terry stepped out of the car, the revolver heavy in his hands.
Richard Garfield stopped out of the car, the revolver weighing on his mind.
They stood, back to back.
Fredrick Lawrence sat behind the wheel of the car, his gun at the ready, watching to see if they would run.
A young nurse walking out of the office building saw the two men, but heard three voices. They were all counting up to 10, each voice. The men were taking very slow and deliberate steps.
When they reached 10, the men turned and there was a loud noise, like a tree cracking that last couple of inches before falling. The sound shot off of buildings, the forest, the cars in the light. It seemed to reverberate through the light, almost rippling it.
There were two bright red puffs, the nurse would go on to say, from both of the men, coming from their backs. After a few seconds, the nondescript yellow car started, and pulled away. Both men fell in opposite directions. One was facing north. The other south.
Both were dead by the time the young Nurse approached them.
All she could do was scratch her head at the odd behavior of the two men.
Natalie could only help but wonder what was going through their minds as they shot each other. Each only took one bullet, and each only fired once.
And it was with the single double shot that the duel was over and both men lay still.
Louis Terry fell into the space that he had worked so hard to get.
Richard Garfield fell into the space that he would have taken had Louis’s space occupied all those days.
And the next day, Frederick Lawrence would park over where Richard’s body fell.
And Natalie would take the empty space.
Frederick thought it was ironic walking Natalie Simmons down the aisle. Her dog was the ring bearer. Maybe he deserved to live more than both Richard or Louis.
After all, now he had a wife and a dog.
Both men were having second thoughts. But there was no way to change their minds now. They were in too deep.
“So, this is it.” The man on the left said.
“I guess so,” the man on the right responded.
The man in the front drummed his fingers against the steering wheel. “It is it,” he said. His voice was muffled by the bullet proof partition between the front seat and the back.
“Why are we here?” The man on the left asked.
“Well, we’re here to kill each other, aren’t we?”
“I guess so. It was just a parking space.”
“That’s what I tried to say. I tried to tell you, it’s just a parking space, but you would have none of it. None of it.”
“It was mine,” the man on the left said.
“Territorial, those two,” the man in the front said to no one in particular.
“It’s not like I was banging your wife,” right said.
“No, but it’s a matter of principle. I didn’t come to your job and start parking in your space, so I don’t think you would know quite what it’s like.”
“Okay, but your space wasn’t even marked. You’re just angry that I get up earlier than you do.”
“If you think that’s it… Boy. No. Your willingness to rise in the morning has nothing to do with this,” left shot back.
“Right. I mean, if you could have gotten up earlier, you could have taken your space back. There were other spaces. It was just a game, man.”
“Not much of a game anymore,” left said. “Now that we have to kill each other.”
“It’s still a game. Just not a fun one,” right responded.
“So, do we do it in here? Try to kill each other in here?” Left asked.
“The guy up front told us to step out of the car and do it.” Right responded.
“Don’t want blood all over my car. Could do without that, I could,” Front muttered.
“And what if we run?” Left asked.
“Then I kill you both!” Front shouted. Quite loudly. Bullet proof barrier or no, his voice rang out.
“One of us gets to walk away from this,” Right said.
“I have a wife,” Left offered. “If you could kill a man that goes home to someone that loves him, then you can – “
“My dog loves me. Love is irrelevant to this situation.”
“I’ve been at the company longer, so I’m worth more –“
“Worth has nothing to do with it.”
“Then what is it?” Left inquired.
“Survival. Who has the desire to live more. Who wants it the most. Your wife wants you to live, but I want to live. Do you think her wanting you alive will help you? Do you think it adds to your will to live?”
“Her strength… It gives me strength,” Left said, his voice quivering.
“You shake when you say this,” Richie said.
“I don’t want to die,” Lou said.
“Well, that’s a shame, because I certainly don’t want to die.”
“On with it!” Fred called from the front. “I don’t have all day!”
“But my dog will miss me,” Richie nodded. “I’d hate to leave him alone. Without me, he’ll starve. Your wife will hardly starve if you don’t come home.”
“And you think that having another life dependent on you will help you?” Lou asked.
“In the grand scheme of things, it should count for something.”
“But what if life is equal to love? Then we’re equally matched. Your dog knows devotion, but not love. My wife knows love, but will not die. A part of her will. The important part will go away for some time. Plus, I hate dogs. They bother me.” Lou rationalized.
“It’s a shame. It’s a shame this has to happen this way.”
“It is, isn’t it? Two lives cut short in their primes.”
“Well, I’m about to hit forty. I’m aging. I’m not in my prime.”
Louis grinned. “I’m almost thirty. The best shape of my life.”
“And if you think your extra muscle or endurance will help you take a bullet any better, then that’s your folly right there,” Richard told him.
“I can run,” Louis said.
“Not faster than a bullet,” Richard and Frederick responded.
It made all three occupants smile briefly.
“I have more to offer the world,” Louis said.
“I’m wiser,” Richard countered.
“Neither of us deserve what will happen to us tonight. That is unfair.”
“Life was never meant to be fair. It was meant to be a test.”
“A test of what?” Louis asked.
“Survival. It’s all about surviving.”
“That’s very base of you,” Louis said after a moments thought. “You are wise.”
“I’m old and have too much time on my hands. Never confuse that for wisdom.”
“I was offering you a compliment. You yourself said that you were wise. I was just trying to up your spirits before you killed me. Or I killed you. I hope it’s the latter.”
“I’m rooting for the former.”
Louis cracked his car door, and removed the revolver from under his seat.
“Ten paces then? Back to back?”
Richard nodded. He too opened his door, and grabbed the revolver.
Louis Terry stepped out of the car, the revolver heavy in his hands.
Richard Garfield stopped out of the car, the revolver weighing on his mind.
They stood, back to back.
Fredrick Lawrence sat behind the wheel of the car, his gun at the ready, watching to see if they would run.
A young nurse walking out of the office building saw the two men, but heard three voices. They were all counting up to 10, each voice. The men were taking very slow and deliberate steps.
When they reached 10, the men turned and there was a loud noise, like a tree cracking that last couple of inches before falling. The sound shot off of buildings, the forest, the cars in the light. It seemed to reverberate through the light, almost rippling it.
There were two bright red puffs, the nurse would go on to say, from both of the men, coming from their backs. After a few seconds, the nondescript yellow car started, and pulled away. Both men fell in opposite directions. One was facing north. The other south.
Both were dead by the time the young Nurse approached them.
All she could do was scratch her head at the odd behavior of the two men.
Natalie could only help but wonder what was going through their minds as they shot each other. Each only took one bullet, and each only fired once.
And it was with the single double shot that the duel was over and both men lay still.
Louis Terry fell into the space that he had worked so hard to get.
Richard Garfield fell into the space that he would have taken had Louis’s space occupied all those days.
And the next day, Frederick Lawrence would park over where Richard’s body fell.
And Natalie would take the empty space.
Frederick thought it was ironic walking Natalie Simmons down the aisle. Her dog was the ring bearer. Maybe he deserved to live more than both Richard or Louis.
After all, now he had a wife and a dog.
Comment