Revenge is a strange concept, some people search for it, while others shy away from it. There are always the people that encourage others to do it, promising that it will make them feel better, and there are those who tell people to walk away and let it go. The concept of revenge is not black and white, people struggle from differentiating right and wrong. There have been good hearted people, who have done bad things in the name of revenge, while there are bad people who crave it. The real question is, what side prevails when all is said and done? Light or dark? Good or bad?

“Don’t move!” John screamed as held up the metal object, his fingers clenched around it. John and the other male were within ten feet of each other in the corner of a dark alley. A street lamp’s light crept through the cracks of the buildings and glistened off the object in John’s hand. The man had a startled expression on his face and tried to negotiate saying, “hey, take it easy kid…” but John had cut him off and continued to yell, “Shut up! Stay right where you are, I know who you are and I know what you did.” John’s hands were shaking, he had never held a gun before, but somewhat enjoyed the feeling of authority. The man stood very still and John pointed the gun at him, ready to pull the trigger.
It was a scorching day in the summer of 2011, kids were laughing, people smiling, life was good. John was passing a football around with his dad in the yard as his mother laid in the lawn chair watching. John and his family lived in a nice enclosed neighborhood, where everyone knew each other. “Brady to Gronk!” John yelled as he threw the ball high into the air. The ball formed into a tight spiral and his father extended his arm as he palmed the ball and gracefully caught it. “Great pass!” John’s father said as he spiked the football like Gronk and ran over to chest bump John. “Bravo, bravo!” John’s mother cheered as she clapped her two hands together. “Go long!” John’s father yelled as he threw the ball way up into the air. John ran for it, but his father had underestimated the strength of his arm, the ball sailed right over the fence into Mr. Thompson’s yard across the street. “I got it!” said John as he quickly hopped the fence. He found the ball near the shed and ran over to pick it up. As John grasped the ball he heard an unsettling sound that cut through the air, “bang!” At first John thought it was fireworks going on in the neighborhood, but then he heard the sound again, “bang bang” A woman's scream echoed throughout the neighborhood and John dropped the football, rushing to get back over the fence. John sprinted towards his house and did not see his mother or father in the front yard. “Mom!” “Dad!” John called out as a cold sweat began to form above his eyebrows. John continued to search, making his way to the backyard. As John walked around the side of his house he was greeted by a horrifying sight, his mother and father were both dead. An African American male was standing near John’s parents and had two wallets in his hands. John locked eyes with this man, but before anyone advanced towards the other, the man ran away. John rushed over to his parents and looked at their lifeless bodies, covered in blood. A number of emotions rushed through John all at once, fear, anger, and sadness. John held his parents bodies close and cried. A few neighbors had heard the commotion and dialed 911. John could hear the ambulance sirens in the background, but he continued to cry and hold his parents tightly. John knew it made no sense, but he did not want to let go of his parents because that would make it a reality that he could never be close to them again.
“Look man, I don’t know who you are!” yelled the terrified man in the alley, “I have never seen you in my life!” “You’re a liar!” John screamed as he waved the gun around, “you know exactly who I am.” The man continued to insist he did not know John and this only angered the boy more. John reached into his pocket and pulled out a photograph of him, his mom, and his dad. “Look at it.” John said quietly at first, but then began to raise his voice “look at it!” The man continued to avoid eye contact with John, but studied the photo closely. “I don’t know who those people are,” he said, John responded by putting the photo away and walking closer, “look me in the eyes!” The man continued to look away, but John c***ed the gun, showing that he knew how to use it. “Okay okay!” The man yelled as he looked into John’s eyes. John noticed that the man looked older, but his eyes were still the same cold eyes he had seen standing above his parents dead bodies. “I was just a boy” John said as he continued to look at the man, “I was only thirteen years old when you killed my parents. It’s been five long years, but every single day of my life I have devoted to finding you and experiencing this very moment.” The man was silent and John continued to speak, “you took away my family, my innocence, my life. And for what? A couple of wallets?” “I’m sorry!” The man said, “I needed the money badly and didn’t know what to do.” John grinded his teeth together holding back the rage and calmly said, “I want you to experience the pain and fear that I felt on that day.” John pointed the gun towards the man’s head and pulled the trigger, “bang.”
The man opened his eyes, and realized that he was still alive. He looked up a few inches above his head and saw a shiny steel bullet lodged in the foundation of the wall. The man looked around and the furious boy who had confronted him was nowhere to be found. The only object that was left was a silver revolver on the ground. The man did not know how to feel about what had just occurred, he was positive that the boy had planned to kill him.
John had the gun aimed at the man’s head, but before he pulled the trigger he looked into his eyes one more time. This was definitely the man who had killed his parents, but something was different about him. His eyes were filled with fear. In that moment all of John’s anger faded away. He had been so set on revenge the past five years of his life that he had let it consume him. John was not a killer and murdering another man would not bring his parents back. The man John had hated for so many years was now the one looking at him afraid. John knew he was better than this, he would not stoop down to the level of this pathetic man. So when he fired that bullet, he tilted his arm up slightly and shot a mark on the wall right above the man’s head. The sadness was still in John’s heart, but the anger had faded. He dropped the gun and walked away feeling like the bigger man. Revenge is never the right path and can consume the heart’s of good people. It is important to remember who you are as a person, and be strong enough to avoid the temptations of revenge.