YOUR RIGHTS OR YOUR LIFE

Leo could see the car pulling up and it was obvious that the driver intended to back into the vacant slot to pump gas.  But Leo pulled in ahead of the man.

Thomas and his best friend Leo both worked at Handy Mart during the summer.  This was their last full time week before the fall session began.  They graduated from Winston High School and were headed to Winston Community College in the fall.  After work they ate at Burger Hut and went to get gas before heading to a movie.  They were in Leo’s car.  His dad gave it to him as a graduation present.

“Hey, I was backing into that slot,” the driver shouted.  Leo and Thomas had the windows down and were bouncing to the music.

“Move,” the little old man shouted as he exited his car and stared at the teenagers.

“This gas station is first come first serve.  You don’t have a reserved spot here,” Thomas said as Leo got out to pump his gas.  They continued to bounce to the music and ignored the old man.

They heard a loud noise and Thomas felt something hit the side of his head.  He touched his hand to the side of his face and felt something warm.  He looked at his hand a realized that it was blood.  He turned just in time to see the man fire again and the bullet hit him square in the face.   The old man pointed the pistol at Leo.  Leo let go of the gas hose and attempted to run around the car.  The man fired once more and was overtaken by two men who had been pumping gas at adjacent pumps.  Leo fell to the ground, and crawled around the care and got in.  He notice that Thomas was slumped forward and tried to start the car.

“Hey”, a bystander shouted, “don’t leave, an ambulance is on the way to help your friend.”  Leo could see that the man with the pistol had been thrown to the ground by several men.  He shut the motor off and turned his attention to Thomas.  The ambulance arrived and the EMR personnel rushed to the car to check on Thomas.  Once they checked him over, they put an oxygen mask on his face, loaded him on the stretcher, and prepared to head to the hospital.  “I’m going with him,” Leo insisted.  But he police arrived and began questioning Leo and the witnesses.  Leo’s mind was whirling.  He knew he should have gone with Thomas, but knew he would not have been permitted to leave once the police arrived.  The record kept playing in his mind.  All we wanted to do was get some gas and get to the movie.  How could such an awful thing have happened so quickly?  And Thomas looked so awful.  I hope he is still alive.  What will I tell his parents? What will I tell my parents? 

After the police questioned all the witnesses, the old man was arrested, and Leo was allowed to leave.  He called his parents and told them what happened.  He asked them to call Thomas’ parents.  He told them he was going to the hospital.  His parents told him to remain at the station and they would come down and his dad would drive his car.  They didn’t want him to drive alone.    Leo felt that this was the worst day of his life.

He kept asking himself, “What if I had let the old man pump his gas and go his way.  How long would it have taken to wait for him to go first?  Exercising our rights may have cost Thomas his life, the old man his freedom, and me my peace of mind and a good friend.  What I wouldn’t give to be able to turn back the hand of time.”