Memories with Khalid

 

Sohaib only has one leg. Now and for eternity he had to give up his life on the crutches that supported both sides of his body. Indeed, a pair of complete legs is Sohaib's fondest memory. But his leg has gone in the amputation operating room of Gaza's Ashifa hospital. 

 

It all started from the fence bordered three months ago. At that time Sohaib and his playmate, Khalid joined together with the people of Gaza at the border occupied lands. The two of them crowded among burning tires and shouts demanding an end to the decade-long blockade.

 

“Suhaib, I will carry the Palestinian flag over the wire fence. I want to fly it there! " exclaimed Khalid amidst the hubbub and the scorching sun sprayed with the smell of burning tires.

 

“No, it's too dangerous, Khalid. The Zionist army can shoot you,” prevent Suhaib. 

 

"I don’t care,” reply Khalid. He immediately grabbed the flag lying on the ground and ran over to the barbed wire fence 80 meters away. Suhaib screamed and asked his close friend to come back. But apparently Khalid didn't care anymore. Inevitably, Suhaib followed his friend, too worried to leave him alone.

 

The screams of the people were getting bigger. Four colored flags; red, black, white and green are getting flapped by the border wind. It seems to join in cheering and encouraging the Gazan people who have been mutilated their basic rights for decades. Sohaib ran after Khalid. The people shouted at the two of them not to get too close to the border. But the two of them don't care anymore.

 

From afar, Sohaib could not see the rows of soldiers in green uniforms complete with their vehicles behind a fence or a pile of excavated earth. But, when the two of them got closer, Sohaib could see them. They stared at Suhaib and Khalid with gloomy eyes. No, actually Sohaib didn't see their eyes. Because they wear helmets. But Sohaib was sure their eyes were stalking him and Khalid with guns ready to spit out bullets.

 

Sohaib's body seemed to freeze and her body temperature cooled down. Some of the Zionist soldiers were brandishing their weapons.

 

"Khalid, let's run behind the mound."

 

"I will reach the fence!"

 

"No!" 

 

"Let me go. You wait here. " Khalid is indisputable. He really is stubborn. As far as Suhaib knew, as long as he was friends with him, Khalid was always stubborn. Sometimes he always bragged about being a warlord and driving the Israelites out of the plundered lands.

 

"The teacher told me about the Muslim Commander named Khalid, right?" Khalid asked one day, just a week before they joined ‘The Great Return’ action.

 

"Yes," replied Sohaib shortly.

 

"And I want to be like him. The name baba gave me is prayer. Someday I will beat those Jews. "

 

Sohaib only smiled at his best friend's words. Khalid pats on chest and they both laugh.

 

It seemed that was Khalid's last laugh which always stuck in Sohaib's mind. Because right at the moment when Sohaib raised the four-colored flag, a single bullet was fired from its muzzle with a finger pull of the Zionist army. The bullet whistled and a split second landed on target. Khalid's chest was torn open and blood spurted out.

 

"KHALID!" Sohaib shouted loudly. But the scream was followed by the sound of a second gunshot and Sohaib felt her body freeze a second time. He felt his right leg warm. After that it was numb. At first it was just like an ant bite, but seconds later he realized that his right leg was bleeding. The faded blue jeans were now torn apart. The blood forms a brown color. Down the leg until the sandals are sticky with gore.

 

"KHALID!" once again Sohaib shouted the name of his best friend. The pain in the right leg was gone after seeing Khalid's body twitching and wandering beside him. Meanwhile, the blood soaked his white T-shirt with the Palestinian flag on it.

 

People arrived, raising their hands as a signal to the soldiers who were still cocked on the border. It was obvious their faces were terrified. Afraid if the savage soldiers returned to vomiting bullets and they became the next victim as the two boys in front of them had fallen.

 

Khalid's body movements weakened as Sohaib sobbed beside him. Sohaib sobbed and hugged his friend's head, who was getting smeared from blood loss. Khalid stiffened even more. His body movements were getting weaker along with the sobs of Sohaib beside him.

 

The people were carrying a stretcher to carry Khalid and Sohaib's bodies. The screams grew more obvious, the flags were still flapping, and the smell of burning tires became even more intense in the heat. People came, some of them brought cameras. Meanwhile, Sohaib's gaze grew darker.

 

When he woke up, Sohaib found that his right leg was only limited to the knee. They have cut off his leg. Meanwhile there are bundles of cotton and bandages on his knees. Sohaib tried to move his feet, when one hand held him from the left side of the bed. It was the hand of his older sister, Sumayya.

 

"I told you, don't get too close to the fence!" That was the first sentence that came out of his older sister's mouth.

 

“Enough Sumayya, don't make your sister suffer even more. Let him rest. He just woke up,” said her mother in a soft voice. Her hand stroked Suhaib's head gently. Suhaib realized that there was her mother on the right side of the bed.

 

“What about Khalid? " asked Suhaib.

 

His mother took a deep breath. Meanwhile Sumaya was sobbing while hugging her brother's head. “Luckily, they only shot you in the leg. What if they shoot you in the chest like they did to Khalid."

 

"How about Khalid?" this is the second question that came out of Suhaib's mouth.

 

"He was gone." His mother replied softly. Almost inaudible. Even his mother was reluctant to reveal the truth about Khalid for the sake of the condition of her second child's heart.

 

Suhaib sobbed. Memories with Khalid flashed through his mind. Meanwhile Sumaya was still hugging her head and her mother was kissing her hand lovingly.