Bluet by Maria Lynnyk

“... There is the 52nd day of my participation in hostilities.
I`m sitting on the trenches in Dnieprodzerzhinsky town waiting for assault by separatists. I haven`t talked to my beloved, I miss her. It is good that mentally we are always together. Somewhere it has already started shooting. Rockets are cutting pines and sounds of felled trees are merging into a symphony with the laugh of my friends. There has been no day without jokes since I was here, of course, everyone is saved from madness in his own way, but laugh is the best distraction from the terrible hugs of reality. I'll be back, my dear, definitely be back. Your expectations and your patience make me still alive. We will be together. But if God decides otherwise, you should promise that you will be careful…”
Finally, he wrote some words in the diary. He takes the weapon and runs into the hell. He is like an undefeated warrior, who destroys enemies and goes into the thick. He inspires with his overconfidence his "called brothers" to follow. However, striking flash of grenades makes him blinded. The sharp pain forces him and he falls on the back, and then he sees the world in slow motion: all the cries, flashes, endless movements - but he doesn`t care anymore. Black veil is falling on the eyes and lips only whisper: "I love..."
He does not even realize how it had suddenly become so easy that he was ready to fly to his beloved. On the way to her he ripped off her favorite Bluet and went to his native apartment. She wasn`t at home. "Hmm, then I will make a surprise for her. I think, she would be happy" - he thought. However, after a few minutes he heard the sound of keys creaking doors, her quiet steps ...
She entered the hall, took off her clothes and looked involuntarily into the mirror. "How can I change myself in such a short time?" – she asked herself. She didn`t recognize this creature that looked at her closely: fallen cheeks, mad eyes, still thick hair changed into entangled strands… Then she went to her cold, empty bedroom. After a moment the phone rang - that wake-up call from an unfamiliar number. In response, she had made no sound. She were listening only. Her face turned pale, her eyes were filled with tears, and her trembling hands dropped the phone. She looked at the open window with unspeakable horror and silently cursed the world. She was ready to moan, cry, tear her clothes, hair, make the chaos in this hated bedroom, but she was too exhausted. That's why she hid under a blanket to feel the warmness, which was so necessary for her. Suddenly, her eyes stopped on a Bluet lying nearby.
      “What are you doing here?” - she thought.