G Hopf: The End

The first room on the right side was full of munitions and small arms. The room on the left was vacant except for soiled mattresses. The men proceeded down to the great room, where they found a few Iraqis leaning up against a wall. The Marines loudly demanded they stay still. They all appeared alive, but wounded.

“Do not fucking move, fucking stay put!” Gordon yelled at them. He quickly assessed the situation in the room.

In the background, Gordon could hear the reporter talking to a rolling camera.

“I’m here inside a mosque in Fallujah with the Marines. The battle has been fierce and the Iraqis have put up a tough resistance. In the end, though, they are no match for the superior firepower of the United States Marines. These wounded Iraqis here have managed to survive the heavy onslaught and are requesting aid—”

“Requesting aid? They haven’t said a fucking thing!” a Marine from the squad snapped at the reporter.

Gordon, with his rifle firmly planted in his shoulder, kept scanning over the half-dozen Iraqis. From the corner of his eye, he saw the Iraqi at the end of the line move his arm toward something on the ground.

Without hesitation, Gordon turned and fired off a single shot, hitting the Iraqi in the head. The sound from Gordon’s gunshot echoed through the great hall.

“Did you get that? Did you get that?” the reporter asked his cameraman.

“Yes I did,” the cameraman responded, turning the camera on Gordon.

“That Marine there just shot an unarmed and wounded Iraqi,” the reporter said to the camera, pointing directly at Gordon.

San Diego, CA

“Pink or purple?” Gordon’s 5-year-old daughter Haley asked, showing him two different bottles of nail polish.

“I like purple, but I prefer pink,” Gordon said, looking at his daughter as she started to shake the bottles.

“Can I have a snack after we’re done Daddy?” Haley asked, slowly applying polish to Gordon’s fingernails.

“Yes, of course, what did you have in mind?” Gordon replied in a soft tone.

“Fruit leather, I want a fruit leather and then I want to watch Octonauts!” Haley squealed, looking up. She smiled at Gordon and brushed some hair out of her face.

“Okay, fruit leather it is.” Gordon smiled, looking at Haley.

Haley was small for her age, very girly with long, blond curly hair and very fine features. She was definitely all-girl and loved everything princess.

Gordon adored his family and felt blessed to have his two children. Hunter, his 7-year-old son, and Haley were his pride and joy. His entire life revolved around them and Samantha, his wife.

He had met Samantha about a year after his tumultuous departure from the Marines. They were married after a year and had Hunter within the next. He was happy, secure and lived each day in the now. He never thought too much about his time in the Corps and when he did, it seemed like it was a different life entirely; almost as though it wasn’t even his life, but someone else’s.

Though his time in combat didn’t come to mind often, his everyday life was still influenced by his two tours in Iraq. The experience had shifted his priorities and shaped his perspective. He was no longer the idealist who believed in helping all. Instead, he had become more pragmatic and only wished to take care of his family. He was done sacrificing for those he considered “clueless.”

“After you’re done in the salon, meet me outside,” Samantha said to Gordon as she passed the doorway on her way to the kitchen.

Gordon looked over his shoulder, “Okay, but are you sure you don’t need a mani-pedi too?”

Samantha shouted from the kitchen down the hall, “Maybe later. Haley needs a little quiet time and you and I need some adult time.”

“Adult time? Like ‘adult time’ or adult time where you have to tell me something and have my full attention?” Gordon yelled back while watching Haley finish applying nail polish to his last finger.

“You’ll find out later,” she hollered from the kitchen

“You’re such a tease,” Gordon shot back.

“What is a tease, Daddy?” asked Haley.

“Well, honey, it’s when—”

“Haley it’s when we play jokes on one another,” Samantha interrupted, now standing in the doorway of the play room.

Gordon whipped his head back over his shoulder, “Gosh you move so quickly and stealth-like.” He winked and noticed a semi-irritated look on her face.

Samantha stood there, looking at her husband. She loved him so much. She felt so blessed to have such a good man and good father to their two children. She couldn’t think of too many men who would subject themselves to having their nails painted pink. She was so proud that he actually took an interest in his children and loved how important they were to him.

She continued admiring Gordon. He fit her perfect profile of a man. He was tall and ruggedly handsome with a chiseled jaw, light eyes and broad shoulders. Haley looked so small next to him, dwarfed by his strong, muscular build. She knew from the first time they met that he would always take care of her. She felt safe with him.

“Done, Daddy! Now can I have my snack?” Haley asked sweetly as she closed the nail polish bottle.

“Of course,” Gordon answered. He started to blow his fingers dry, but paused when he noticed Samantha still staring. He looked up to her and asked jokingly, “Does the pink bring out the blue in my eyes?”

Haley jumped up and ran out of the room, down the hall toward the kitchen. Gordon jumped up and followed, of course mindful of the wet nail polish he had on his fingers.

“So what’s up?” he asked Samantha before leaning forward to kiss her on the lips.

“Let me set up Haley for quiet time and I’ll meet you outside on the patio in, say, 5 minutes,” Samantha responded, then kissed him back.

Gordon sat on the patio and waited for Samantha to come out and join him. He leaned back, kicked his legs up onto the outside coffee table and let the mid-afternoon sun warm his face. While he had a love/hate relationship with Southern California in general, he definitely loved the weather. He preferred smaller towns, and San Diego definitely wasn’t a small town anymore. All in all, though, life was good. He enjoyed a comfortable lifestyle, a nice group of friends and the family he had around him. The one family member he wished was around more often was his little brother, Sebastian, who had joined the Marines four years after Gordon had left the Corps. His brother originally followed in his footsteps and became a TOW gunner, but it proved a bit boring for him. Being a man of adventure, he would now try out to be a Scout Sniper.

Gordon’s slumber in the sun was interrupted when he heard Samantha come outside. He opened his eyes to find her hovering over him.

“Are you enjoying yourself?” she asked, looking down on him, her arms crossed.

“Why yes, I am, thank you for asking,” Gordon replied with a grin on his face.

“When were you going to tell that your brother was coming down tonight for dinner?” Samantha asked, taking a seat across from him. “You know I need notice so I can get the house ready.”

“I thought I told you, I’m sorry,” Gordon said, sitting up more in his chair. “It is okay, right? We don’t have anything else going on, do we?”

Gordon looked at Samantha sitting across from him. He fell for her instantly when they met. He loved everything about her, from her small frame and long wavy blonde hair to her light green eyes and full lips. For him she fit the portrait of the perfect woman.