Chapter 10

                                    

                                          
Death of a Son
(Part Two - Stay Alive)
                          
The last time I could ever see this house is now. Laurens was mentally freaking out. He didn't want Philip to duel, but he already called it.
                          
"Pops, if you had only heard what he said!" Philip shouted, his hands tangled in his hair.
                          
"Calm down," Hamilton said, sighing a bit. "Did your friends try to negotiate a peace?"
                          
"No, he refused to apologize."
                          
Hamilton went silent. "Where is this happening?" He asked. Philip grew silent before giving an answer.
                          
"Across the river in Jersey." He said, a smile appearing on his face.
                          
"Everything is legal in New Jersey." Hamilton and Philip spoke in unison, Hamilton's tone filled with worry, while Philip had excitement. Laurens smiled at this, earning a wider smile from Philip before it disappeared.
                          
"I want you to take these guns and remember one thing." Philip took two guns that Hamilton took out. "Aim towards the sky. You don't want the blood on your mind."
                          
Don't throw away your shot. Laurens couldn't believe the two different phrases. He knew that Hamilton wouldn't throw away his shot, but he just told his son to.
                          
"Hamilton, what the hell do you want me to believe now." Laurens mumbled, following Philip outside. "I don't get it. He didn't want to throw away his shot, he told me not to throw away my shot, but now he's telling you to throw your's away!" His voice rose quickly, almost scaring Philip.
                          
"What are you even talking about?" Philip asked, making Laurens go quiet.
                          
"Back during the war I had a duel. Alex told me not to throw away my shot, and I didn't. I shot Charles Lee right then and there." Laurens explained quietly, keeping his eyes focused on the ground. He stayed silent for a moment, then spoke again. "He's never throwing away his shot, and he always tells others not to throw theirs away. I don't want you to throw it away. Please, Philip, do not throw away your shot." Laurens could feel his voice crack slightly. He knew this would end badly.
                          
"I won't." The small mumble from Philip told him enough. Laurens smiled a bit, feeling a tear fall from his eye, only to see it disappear as it fell off of his face.
                          
---
                          
Laurens wasn't ready. He was worried about Philip. The fact that he could be shot and die, or live, haunted him. Glancing at Philip, he noticed that the young man was ready. He knew what he was doing, or at least Laurens hoped.
                          
"Mister Eacker, how was the rest of your show?" Philip asked kindly, only to receive a glare.
                          
"Skip the talk, give me the pistol and let's do this." Philip flinched, handing a pistol to George and placing his back against his.
                          
Laurens watched as Philip glanced at the doctor, his friend, then directly at him. They then started to move, ten steps even. They turned, guns pointed at each other. Laurens waited for one of them to fire, only to see Eacker pull the trigger a second before Philip. His eyes went wide as Philip fell limp to the ground. Eacker kept a straight face as he gave Philip's friend the pistol.
                          
Laurens couldn't move. Philip was dying, he could feel it. Tears filled his eyes quickly, a waterfall coming down his face and disappearing. He fell to his knees, struggling to get up. He's dying. The kid I had to protect. I couldn't protect him. I can't protect him.
                          
---
                          
Laurens found himself on the floor, next to a table. He felt the beating of a heart above him, a door slam open, and two figures running in. A third one followed the other two.
                          
"Philip, Philip please, stay alive." The voice of Alexander filled the room. Laurens stood up, hands still shaking. He noticed Alexander and Eliza standing there, hugging their son. A third figure stood next to Laurens, and he only noticed it as Philip's younger sister, Angelica. She didn't speak, she only stood and watched.
                          
"Ma, I'm sorry. I should've listened to you." Philip said quietly. "Pa, I threw it away." He coughed, his life draining. "Angie, take care of everyone else, please." Angie nodded, her mouth not moving, but tears speaking for her. Laurens wanted to hug the girl, he wanted to comfort Eliza, and wanted to save Alexander from the grief. He looked back at Philip, who fell limp for the last time.
                          
Laurens wanted to cry, but he couldn't feel the sadness. He couldn't feel anything. He was just empty.
                          
A small light came into view as Laurens looked up. He watched the light transform into a figure. Before he knew it, the figure became Philip. His eyes grew wide as he ran to the smaller man, embracing him in a hug. He didn't want to let go. He could feel the tear from Philip pour out as he watched the scene around him.
                          
"It's alright, Philip. You'll be alright. I'm here to protect you." Laurens whispered, rubbing Philip's back. He lifted his eyes to notice a tall man standing in front of him.
                          
"General." Laurens said. "General Washington." He stepped away from Philip, lifting his hand to salute him. Washington quickly grabbed his wrist.
                          
"There's no need, Laurens." He said, letting Laurens' hand fall. "Philip, thank you for keeping peace. You truly are a good son." Philip gave one look at Washington and smiled weakly. "Laurens, I'm glad you watched over Philip this whole time. It may have not been your choice, but you did a good job. You could've done a much better job if you lived though."
                          
Laurens gave Washington a glare, then moved over to a small pond. He noticed that Philip came over to it as well, sitting next to Laurens.
                          
"Laurens," He started. "Thank you for watching me. You made my life fun, and taught me a few things." A smile appeared on Philip's face as he noticed Alexander appear in the pond. "Hopefully my father moves on and stays good." The smile split into a grin, leaving Philip to fall into a ball of laughter. Laurens joined in, leaving all worries behind.
                          
---
                          
Oops, sad endings.
                          
Guys, I cried, but only cause I listened to the soundtrack again and forgot how sad it was. Ironically Blow Us All Away and Stay Alive (Reprise) came on while I wrote this.
                          
(On another funny note, me trying to say "and Peggy" led to voice cracks. I died for a few minutes)
                          
Chapter word total: 1,032 - aka my new record because why not.