A Final Request
                                                        By Joe Mynhardt

     The phone gently slid from Hans Ruben’s grasp as he slumped into his office chair. “It’s not possible,” he whispered.

     Hans stared at his hands, determined to never leave his home office. The thought of sharing the news with the rest of the family crossed his mind, yet, if he had to be honest, he hardly cared for them anymore. How could you love someone who only loves your money? Getting re-married had been the biggest mistake of his life.

     His breaths quickened. His heart ached, entombed in a squeezing fist, his insides gutted.

     Hans stared at his drawer. Considering that he had nothing left to live for, perhaps it was time to finish it all. He removed a hidden key from below his desk and opened the drawer. A dull pain struck his chest as he saw the .38 Smith and Wesson special.

     He struggled to breathe. All he wanted to do was scream, to stop the overbearing pain. “Unhappy people shouldn’t die,” he whispered, “Not before they get a chance to be happy.”

     His shaking finger pressed against the trigger, wondering if perhaps he shouldn’t put it off till after the burial. Maybe it was all a lie, some horrible dream he would eventually wake up from.

     All Hans could think about was what his last thought should be before he pulled the trigger. The only happiness he had ever known was now gone. He began to squeeze, waiting for the knock, the stab of pain . . . the darkness.

     A belligerent sound rumbled from the living room. It cut through his distress and he lowered the revolver, placing it on the desk.

     With his mouth wide and his arms hanging limp by his side, Hans left the office.
Inside the living room sat his two step-daughters, staring at the television. His wife, Kelly, stood with her arms on her hips, shouting at Hans’s only son, William.

     Hans reached for the wall, barely stopping himself from fainting to the floor. His lips moved, but his voice faltered.

     “What have you done now?” Kelly said.

     William emanated an aura of enthusiasm. “Quickly, Ma. Change to the news channel.” He could barely stand still or conceal his widening smile. Hans hadn’t seen William so happy since before his biological mother died.

     Kelly turned to Hans with a pinched expression on her face, her eyes rolling. “Can you believe this son of yours? Shouting orders us.”

     Hans only stared in silence.

     “Quickly, before it’s too late,” William said.

     William’s youngest sister grabbed the remote from the coffee table and changed channels. Everyone turned their attention to the screen, except Hans, who kept his gaze on his smiling William.

     The words ‘News Flash: Apartment complex inferno’, highlighted the bottom of the screen.

     “I can’t believe it, Dad,” William said, his face radiating.

      A female reporter on the screen pointed toward the smoldering leftovers of the building. “It is right here,” she said, “at the Constantia Apartment complex, where a small kitchen fire quickly turned into a blaze that consumed all twenty three homes.”

     William stared into his father’s eyes. “I saved them, Dad.”

     Hans frowned. He turned towards the television.

     “The fire is now under control,” the reporter said, “and it seems that no one has been seriously injured. But it is another story, a story of heroism, which has brought this community together tonight. A young man, a local resident to the area, witnessed the blaze before the firefighters arrived, ran into the building and saved several elderly people as well as a young girl.”

     “I’m famous,” William said as he smiled to Hans. “I’ve finally done something.”

     The family all stared back at him with unbelieving eyes, but Hans kept his gaze on the screen.

     The reporter wiped a tear from her cheek. “We do have reports that young William Ruben has however been escorted to the hospital. It is unclear at this time exactly why  . . . wait.”
She pressed her hand against her ear. “Oh, no . . . this is terrible. Ladies and gentleman, I’ve received word that William Ruben, the courageous young man who saved so many here tonight, has slipped into a coma and perished on the way to the hospital.”

     Hans turned his attention towards William, who, staring into his father’s eyes with loving warmth, faded out of sight.

     Kelly and the children cried out in horror and disbelief. With their hands over their mouths they went in search of William, while Hans, caught in an overwhelming sensation of tearful laughter, returned to his office and picked up the revolver.

     His son, who had lived a life of clinical depression and continuous setbacks, had died a happy man – a man who will be remembered. A hero.

     It was with a bittersweet smile on his face that Hans placed the revolver back in its hideout and went in search of his son’s body. “People deserve to be happy before they die,” he told himself. “Even me.”