Body slumped on the pavement. Blood dripped in water, creating a blur of dirt and red.

"For our children's future", my superior ended his speech and our hands automatically went to the edge of our temples, saluting to a common hope and goal. We can finally start a war that was supposed to end a long running evil.

"If they try to pick a fight, open fire."

Alert and vigilant, we aim at a skinny boy as tall as my son. His eyes were red and his movements were unsteady. He was a figure of crime and disturbance. He was a boy in his teenage years. He couldn't be part of the list. He couldn't be—

Body slumped on the pavement. Blood dripped in water, creating a blur of dirt and red. I slipped the gun back into the holster. For our children's future. For our country's sake. I stepped back. I stepped back. For whose future is this?

(Illustration by Dan Nacito Acedillo)