Dave Lara

I on the ship was seeing suffering and pain.

It became routine for men to die in my hands.

My 13 months were up and I once again joined Matt and Joe at Dong Ha

to spend my last week in Vietnam before going back to the world.

Second day I was there, Matt and I found ourself alone as we came off a shift.

And he said, David, why haven't we ever made love?

I laughed and I go, dude, we haven't had a chance.

But he asked, you want to, don't you?

And I leaned in and kissed him.

A few days later, a dust-off, a medevac, was needed at a base very close to the DMZ.

It was called Kantien.

And the unit up there were known as the Walking Dead.

Matt went on one chopper, I went on another.

Joe was already up there.

We landed and we began to load the wounded.

A rocket hit the chopper that Matt had come in on and he was standing at the door and was blown several feet.

I ran to him.

I knew he was dying.

And as I looked at him, he had glistening tears in his eyes.

And I told him, I wish we could have been lovers.