#jwin deleted scenes

[efingart]

JWIN Deleted Scene 1

It's been a while, hasn't it? I was looking to write something Frank a week or two ago when a friend suggested writing a deleted scene from JWIN. To keep me on track. I've got some smart friends huh?

Anyway, here you go. You only have to have read up to Chapter 7 (either version). Not highly edited, kind of written on vibes.

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The shell made a satisfying splintering sound before he crushed it between his fingers. He removed the peanuts, placing them in the palm of his other hand as he discarded the rest. Then, he popped the nuts into his mouth. The movements were done absently, as his eyes were glued to the television in front of him which was currently broadcasting the Phillies’ game. Before he even stopped chewing he plucked another peanut from the bowl and began the process again.

Truth be told, he wasn’t even that focused on the game. It was just something to look at, clear his mind of all the usual thoughts, stop it from wandering to darker things. He did like baseball, but his life was so busy, so unpredictable, it was hard to follow closely. He relished the moments he could catch a game and not have to read about it in the next day’s paper. But that’s when he was stateside. Good luck even trying to figure out the scores outside of the US. Even the year before, he hadn't known they'd won the Series until he got home a week later and saw the remains of dirty confetti that still littered the streets after the parade.

He dusted his hands off in his jeans and picked up his beer. The broadcast had gone to commercial, so he took the opportunity to scan the bar. Even though he wasn’t actively paying attention, he always had some kind of idea of who was coming in and out of the place. Constantly aware of who was around him. It was instinct, like knowing the distance between his spot at the bar and the nearest exits.

A couple walked up to the bar and stood close to him. Nothing remarkable about them. They ordered their drinks from the bartender and took them back to their booth. As they moved away, his eyes fell on a book on the floor. It was wedged between the stool and the front of the bar. He leaned over, long arms able to reach it without hopping off the stool. He again glanced around the bar to see if the owner would make themselves known.

But no one reacted. No one ran back in, breathless, realizing they had forgotten their book. Almost surprising anyone would notice it was gone, maybe relieved to not have to lug the heavy thing around. He moved to flag down the bartender. Maybe they had a lost-and-found they could keep it in. But the title caught his eye. The cover was a little different, but he recognized it.

In that moment he was transported back to a tiny apartment in East Berlin.

“You can borrow that if you like. It’s good.” “Not sure if I’d have the time to read it and get it back to you.”

He sucked in a breath. In the end, it was she who didn’t have the time.

He wondered if she got through the stack of books. Were they still waiting for her to finish them? Stacked neatly on that small table off her kitchenette? Or had some other officer taken over her apartment and tossed them? What happened to any of her stuff? She didn’t have any family. Were they donated? Probably trashed. Probably trashed all of it. The books, the clothes. That sweater that used to annoy her because it never stayed in place.

Wonder if Adler or Sims kept any of it. They’d have been the only ones who might want something of hers. Knowing them, though, probably not. You start collecting stuff you can’t bear to get rid of it. Then, your home becomes more of a memorial. A place to remember the dead instead of a space for the living.

And what if he had taken that book from her that day? Having a piece of a dead person like that. A physical reminder shoved in the bottom of his duffle. Forgotten about it until he had to do laundry when he made it home. He made it home.

How come he gets to live when everyone else around him keeps dying?

He set the book on the bar and flagged down the bartender. He ordered another beer, and when it came, he hopped off the stool. He tucked the book under his arm and took his beer to a booth. He sat down and placed the book in front of him.

For the space of a few sips of his beer, he sat there and stared at the cover. Then he opened the book, wincing as he accidentally cracked its spine, and began to read.

#frank woods #cod bell #black ops cold war #just what I needed #jwin deleted scenes #if you read all of JWIN I'll love you forever #maybe this will get me back into my groove