Burned
The fire burned as it scorched my already deathly dry, tight skin. I thought I would be one of the nine million Jews that were killed in the heart wrenchingly horrific holocaust. No. Someone had rushed to the side of this seemingly endless pit and took pity upon me. They extinguished the flames and hurried down seeing that I, an eight year old, had just barely survived this encounter with death.
They picked me up and with extreme caution put me in a flying machine. It took me somewhere with many hurt and dying people. They said that I would be alright. I was still scared that they wouldn't see the point of keeping me alive and they would leave me somewhere to die. I had a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. I just realized that my whole family, to my knowledge, was dead. I cried myself to sleep for a month. Then they sent me to another place with the same type of people except these people were only injured writhing in pain.
I didn't want to be there. These people were in need of help more than I. I waited for a nurse to pass by. One finally made her way into the tent. She was checking on the men in the tent and making sure they were comfortable and healing welI. When she passed by my cot, that was on the floor, I took the hem of her dress. I pulled it ever so gently so not to rip what seemed to be fine clothes. She looked at me and smiled. She asked me how she could be of assistance. I told her that I didn't feel that I needed to be in this tent and that I wanted to help where I could. She nodded gravely and replied that she would talk to the general and see if I could help. Otherwise I would have to stay in this tent until they could find a home or a job for me. With that she walked off to tend to the other sick and wounded soldiers. About a month later I was released from the medical tent and put into a tent with the nurses.
I asked questions when I could. Through those questions I found out that the flying machine that took me away from that horrible place was known as a plane and the person who saved me had been a soldier. They also told me that we were in an area known as a war zone and that I may have to be taken away from here due to how dangerous the area could become.
I remember before this tragic nightmare my family and I were celebrating my eighth birthday. These men rushed into the house, took me, my mom, and my brother to a train. Before we left I watched as they held a gun up to my dad's head and pulled the trigger. That memory has been scarred into my brain. It was the last time I had felt anything. I was numb to the world. To the constant burns I would get or the insults and beatings that most of the people died from. But not me I was strong. The only time I felt anything was love and relief whenever I saw mom come into the building we were in after a long day of sorting through piles upon piles of clothes.
I remember the last time I saw my mom. I was horrified to see her up upon a barrel her head secured in a noose, body wrapped in barbed wire. She had been sentenced to death due to her taking more than her fair share of bread. I remember staring at her horrified as they kicked the barrels from under each one’s feet. There were about seven men and women. Mom was the last to fall. They were hanging there looking like fish out of water. Gasping for air. My brother, Isaac, who was fifteen tried to cover my eyes and shield me from seeing her dying. He hadn’t been quick enough though. I had seen the barrel kicked.
The last words that I heard from my mom were directed towards Isaac, “get your....sister and try..... To escape." With those words rolling around in my head I clung to my brother who had given up on shielding my eyes and was staring at our mother's now limp body hanging dead her eyes glazed over and her once perfect brown hair plastered to her face matted and bloody. The barbed wire still tightly gripping her now pale dead body as if it were trying to squeeze any sort of life left out of her.” We...we have to.....to get o...out of here tonight." He stuttered trying to keep his emotions hidden. I could see how the tears had welled up in his eyes though.
My mom had been our rock. To have your rock removed right from under your feet makes life harder. You have to find another rock to stand on or the chaos will pull you down so far you can't reach the surface again. Having my rock ripped out from under my feet felt like I was the person in the noose instead of my mom.
I was emotionless on the outside. Inside though I had mixed emotions of anger and grief mixing and stewing in my brain causing disastrous thoughts pour into my brain like a tidal wave. I looked up to see Nazi running towards us. I gritted my teeth, looked at my brother with tears in my eyes and yelled, "RUN! No matter what you hear don't look back GO!" He stood there, his mouth gaped open as if he were surprised by my sudden outburst. I screamed for him to run and it got him moving finally. I watched, tears streaming down my face as my brother made it out of the camp. He ran straight to a man in uniform right outside the gate. They wore a different uniform. I watched as one of them spoke to him. They asked him a question. It was muffled so I couldn’t hear it due to the noises around me. As he was responding, he pointed in my direction.
Before the people had time to react, I was harshly grabbed by one of the camp men and tossed into the fiery pit gaping like an open wound. It swallowed me up and tried to kill me. I looked beside me to see that my mother had been thrown in and had landed right beside me. I screamed and covered my mouth as tears leaked from my eyes. I couldn’t look away from her. That was the last time I saw my big brother. Now, remembering that I had a glimmer of hope. Hope that he was still alive and well. I started to softly cry trying to shake the memory of my mother’s dead eyes out of my mind.
Another nurse who was passing by noticed I was crying. She knelt down. She was an older woman. Her dark hair had touches of gray in it. Her face was kind and gentle, much like my mother's face. That started me into a sobbing fit. She gently held me close till I calmed down enough to say my brother’s name. "I-I-Isaac?!" She looked at me with a concerned look, stood up and left the tent. Then I see him. He wasn’t the same as I had remembered him. His eyes gloomy and dark. His form showed the signs of severe depression and grief. "Isaac? I-I-is that you?!" He looked over at me with sad eyes. He stared at me and had to take a second look before he ran over, picked me up and held me close. "Belle! I thought I'd never see you again!" We hugged each other.
Tears threatened to spill, we looked each other in the eyes and smiled. "I thought I would never see you again either! I'm so happy to see you!” I had to ask since I had just remembered that memory, “By the way what did the soldier ask you and why did you point at me?" Isaac looked down at me his eyes darkened with pain from the memory of that night. "He asked me if I had any family left. I told him that I had a sister. So as I explained I pointed you out. Then..." Isaac stopped and swallowed hard to try to get his emotions under control. I frown and hugged him knowing what he was going to say. He returned the hug and pulled me closer to him much like mom did when either of us were upset or scared.
"Shhh, it's ok I'm here now and I'm not going to leave you alone anymore. I promise. Ok?" I hear him calmly whisper the soothing words in my ear. I pulled away from him, extending my small pinky finger. I know it was childish, but I wanted to make sure he was serious. "Pinky promise?" he only smiled at first, then ruffled my hair before he wrapped his pinky around my smaller one saying "I ,Isaac, pinky promise, cross my heart and hope to die and solemnly swear to never leave you, my little sister, alone anymore." Happy with our agreement, I hugged him again.
I heard a bunch of "aws" going around the room. I looked up and saw the nurses were watching us now, along with all the soldiers-- smiling at our touching reunion. I didn’t care and hugged my brother again burying my head in his chest happy to have him back and not wanting to lose him. We spent the rest of the day in the tent he had been staying in. That soon became our tent. It was late by time Isaac fell asleep holding me in his arms. I fell asleep soon after.
Third person pov.
The nurses who were supposed to be in the tent with us frown and whisper as they huddle around the sleeping teen and child to keep them safe and warm. The booms of distant bombs and gunfire are heard. The general came in and told them to wake up Isaac and carry Bella to a plane heading back to the U.S. because this was not a place for children. The nurses nodded and woke up Isaac before one of them picked up Bella carrying her to the planes where she woke up panicked. The nurses tried to calm her down.
Belle’s pov.
I woke up and panicked forgetting that my brother and I were safe. I saw my brother sitting calmly, his back against a seat “ISAAC!!” I screamed terrified. Isaac looked up and smiles “Hey sleepyhead!!” That’s when I noticed the gentle hands and soft voices trying to calm me. I looked up and relaxed realizing that we were safe and I was in the arms of a sweet young nurse. A sheepish grin crossed my face. The young nurse holding me smiled in a motherly way.
I panicked internally knowing that Isaac and I would most likely be split up because I was younger then he was. That same nurse looked over at Isaac and smiled and held her hand out towards him. He stood up and made his way over to her. I frowned not sure what was happening.
She smiled at us, “would you two like to live with me?” I looked at her then at Isaac, uncertain. I look down at my feet and nod slightly, “o-o-okay” I was still very upset that we had lost mom but I knew that Isaac and I needed each other and we needed a family. I smiled sadly when Isaac ruffles my hair. The nurse smiled at us and hugged me close giggling, “my husband back at home will certainly be pleasantly surprised!”
I frowned and look at her, “where are we going?” She smiled, “we are heading to my home. It’s safe there. You don’t have to be afraid anymore. I frowned and looked down. I was extremely emaciated. She noticed my sadness and softly pulled me close, “I know you miss your family. I’m so sorry that such an innocent girl such as yourself had to go through that. I couldn’t even imagine what unexplainable horrors happened. I would like to know, but I won’t force the issue sweetie.” I looked at her and smiled sadly and hugged her, “th-thank you miss.” I drifted off to sleep. We landed in the United States some time later. We were transported to the nearest hospital and we stayed there for several months if not longer.
After we were released from the hospital we were allowed to go home with the nurse. Isaac picked me up and chuckled softly, “We have a home now sis.” I nodded and cuddled against him. We had grown and were a healthy weight for our ages now. I still had the scars from the camp as well as the tattoo on my left wrist. Certain smells or sights reminded me of the camp. I would have bad flashbacks. I looked down then at my brother. “I don’t want to have a new home. I want mom and dad.” Isaac sighed, “that’s not an option. they aren’t here anymore.” I didn’t mean to, but I yelled at him, “I KNOW THAT! IT’S THEIR FAULT! THOSE MEAN MEN TOOK OUR FAMILY FROM US! THEY HURT US AND THEY TRIED TO KILL US! THEY TOOK AWAY OUR HOPES AND DREAMS! THEY STOLE OUR CHILDHOOD! THEY WERE UNFAIR AND I HATE IT!” I sobbed out. Isaac looked surprised. He hugged me closer unsure of what else to do.
Isaac sat me beside him and buckled us up. We were going to go surprise the nurse’s husband. I was a ball of anxious nerves. What if he didn’t like us? What if he didn’t want kids who were not their own? I looked over and it was clear that Isaac was thinking similar thoughts.
We pulled up to an average looking house. There wasn’t anything special. It was a single story light blue house with white shutters and trim. It wasn’t massive, but it wasn’t small either. It had a nice front yard and a cute little flower garden. She pulled into the driveway and parked the car. She opened the driver side door before letting us out of the car. Isaac and I looked at the house as if it were as terrifying as the concentration camp. It was time to see what her husband would say.
She opened the door and beamed, “Charles I’m home!!” A man, I guessed was Charles walked over and embraced her. He didn’t notice us at first. He froze when he did, “well now, who are these two?” He didn’t seem cruel or mean in any sense. He had a soft, kind voice like a father would. My brother picked me up and held me close before responding, “I’m Isaac, and this is my little sister Bella. Your wife brought us back to live with you if that’s okay….” The man looked surprised at first then burst into a roaring laugh. “Tiffany you brought war kids home with you? You saved them and now we get to raise them?” He wiped tears away as if that were the best joke he had ever heard. Isaac and I looked at each other unsure of what to say or do.
Tiffany kept a straight face and nodded, “yes. I expect you to be kind and treat them as if they were our own. You and I both know that we cannot have kids on our own. I figured since they didn’t have parents or other family besides each other that we could become their family.” Charles looked at her, the sparkle in his eyes growing less bright, “so we actually have kids to raise….We’re parents.”
She smiled softly and nodded a little. He scooped her up and Isaac covered my eyes afraid that he was going to hurt her. He spun her around and then kissed her happily. “You have no idea how happy I am right now Tiff!!” This action left Isaac and I both confused and stunned our parents never did anything like this. Especially not when we were around.
Isaac and I looked at each other and smiled a little, home. We finally had a home. Charles and Tiffany were now our parents. They hugged us and we walked into the house, a happy and loving family. Even though we were broken and little, it was good.
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