OK, here we go. We're all going to take part in a "living novel".
I post the first 300 or so words and then the next person picks up the story where I left off. Try to stay as close to 300 words as possible....
"Homecoming" by All of Us
As James walked down the dirt road, the dust clung to his boots and dufflebag as the hot Texas sun beat down on him. Each step felt heavier than the last, not from the weight of the bag but from the years it carried. Fifteen years had passed since he last saw this stretch of land, fifteen years since he stormed out of his father’s house after a fight that cut deeper than either of them admitted. His father, a decorated veteran bound to a wheelchair, had begged him not to enlist. James had gone anyway, chasing duty, chasing escape, chasing something he couldn’t name.
His mother’s tears haunted him more than the battlefield. She had stood in the doorway, clutching her apron, her sobs muffled by the sound of the bus engine. He wondered now if she would still stand in that doorway, waiting, or if the years had hardened her grief into silence.
And then there was Sarah. She had kissed him once, softly, the night before he left, and told him she couldn’t follow. Her parents needed her, and she had chosen them. He respected that, but the memory of her lingered like a scar. Did she still live in town? Did she still think of him when the cicadas sang at dusk?
The road stretched ahead, shimmering in the heat, leading him back to a town that might not remember him, to people who might not forgive him. Yet beneath the uncertainty was a pulse of hope. The dufflebag carried medals, letters, and scars, but it also carried the possibility of reconciliation.
James tightened his grip on the strap. Whatever awaited him—anger, forgiveness, or indifference—he was ready to face it. The dust rose behind him, marking the beginning of his return.
