A man walked through a frozen wasteland. There were neither trees, grass, or life. A heavy snowstorm blew, the blizzard trying to gobble up the man. The silver white snow looked as though it was trying to kill any life that dared show up, the sharp and bitter cold snuffing out all vitality. Still, the man kept on walking through the wind.

He had the build of a giant. His tall frame and gruff face would make any child cry, and even a grown man would piss himself. His rough appearance was mostly due to an unkept beard and his long disheveled hair that had some strand of white; he could be mistaken for a bear from afar. He wore black military clothings, a thick mantle keeping him warm. A silver medal held by a blue strip around his neck was the only accessory he had. He had a big backpack almost bursting behind him, though it was hard to tell what was inside. Finally, he held a long rifle in his hands, but it was unusable because of the cold freezing it.

You could tell he was a war veteran with just a single glance. The way he held himself, looking straight in front of him while keeping a stern face… This man saw many battles. The hideous scars all across his body were proof of that.

Just what could this man be thinking? 

…

One way or another, his back became a familiar sight.

I was always behind him. He was strong. He was fast. He was smart. However, I was stronger, faster and smarter than him. Still, he was always in front of me.

No matter what I tried, what I did, I couldn't overcome him. I put in as much effort as I could, even using trickery and dirty means. Going as far as abandoning everything: my family, my friend, my emotions… 

After each defeat, I looked for the answer of his victories. Any clues about why he always won. I didn't find anything. Even after confronting him and asking him directly, he only looked at me straight in the eyes and said that the way I did things was right.

I wonder what he meant by that.

…

I was what you could call a loser in life. My parents were good-for-nothings, my mother a hostess and my father an alcoholic. All I could wear were rags and eat some questionable things during my childhood. They mysteriously died one day when I was 8. It could have been because of the mountains of debts they had, but who knows? I didn't feel much remorse after their death.

I was put in an orphanage after that incident. However, not many parents would want a boy who had a mysterious and bloody background, so it was only when I was 12 years old that I was adopted in my current family.

I had two father. While some mocked me for that, I quickly put their idea in place. There was this time I beat a guy so much that he became a girl… I digress. So, they were both from the military and while that is a little cliche, it seemed love can be born on the battlefield after all. 

I followed in their footsteps. Not in my sexuality (I am straight) but in my choice of career. I joined the military. That was when I met him. 

…

His achievements always trumped mine. While the most I always got was a silver medal, he always got gold. Everything he did would save dozens of lives and he excelled anywhere. I didn't knew much about his background but I knew he was rich. Like, rich enough to not have to work at the military and go to the front-lines. While I could say with confidence that I was physically stronger than him, his charisma was something only a shrewd politician would have.

I put my darn best effort into everything I did. Studying and training to an inhuman level. Not hesitating to risk my life, going into the most chaotics of battlefields. Stopping distracting myself with hobbies and friends outside of my job. Still…

His back was the only thing I saw. 

Always one step faster. Always here before me. Always knowing what to do, what to say. Always running ahead at a breakneck speed and me trying to catch up to him. I was a firm believer that enough effort could bridge the gap left by talent or luck. So, I did my best.

After years of being together, I was becoming frustrated. While I was killing myself learning and training, he laughed with other soldiers. While I cut my relationships with my family and friends, deeming them unnecessary, he made connections and even got married. While I stayed awake at ungodly hours watching the camp, he slept without a care even if he was in the middle of a desert filled with terrorists. I got some achievements and handshakes for my efforts, he got branded as a national hero. He even got a movie with him as the protagonist!

I kept following my path nevertheless, never once giving up. Even after we went into differents units, we still competed with each other. The military was the only thing I had, so if I couldn't be the best, then what was the point of me giving up everything I held dear? I was hungry for fame and recognizance.

When a world war broke out, I saw it as an opportunity to prove my worth. 

He saw it like a disaster, like everyone else.

…

I was deemed too 'reckless' for a war that was more about being as cautious as possible. You would not want some country to send a nuclear missile and end the world after all. A single mistake would spell the end of all human life. Almost every country have nuclear weapons nowadays and those that do not… well, at least they would not retaliate.

I was sent to the cold northern front to 'cool my mind'. While at first I was more than happy to protect a frozen wasteland where untold natural resources like oil and gas hide under the ice, the area I was assigned was empty. 

There was no tension here. There weren't any valuable resources to steal, no important strategic value and no one lived here apart from some mice hiding deep beneath the snow. It was a death sentence for my career. 

I did not mind the cold all that much after hearing news about his death.

After going through all five stages of grief in about 1 minute, all I felt was emptiness. I lost my emotions long ago. You could say that I was now the best soldier that the country had. They tried to call me back to fight but I refused by lying that I needed some time to calm down after hearing the news of my rival's death. I always wanted to have some vacations camping in nature, I guess.

I never surpassed him and never will. He was dead after all, so while I could say that I was the best soldier alive, it could not be said for every soldiers that ever existed. 

I truly did my best. Never once retreating in front of a challenge. My life was full of them, so I could not run away from them forever. I decided going all out against them was the solution. In the end, what did I accomplish? Did I found any answer about my purpose in this god forsaken world? No.

That was how my story should have ended. Alone and cold, forever being second place.

…

The man kept on walking through the tundra. The blizzard ended some time ago, so his footsteps stayed without disappearing. He finally arrived at a wooden house but stopped when he saw a helicopter behind it. Sighing, he pushed open the door.

"I have returned."

While dropping his backpack on the ground and desequiping his military garbs, rapid footsteps could be heard. Before the man could react, a golden bullet shot towards him. Lithe arms wrapped around him, strong enough to break his bones. The man let out a grunt after looking down to see familiar long blond hair. The girl began to talk fast enough to put even the most rapid fire rifle to shame. 

"SIIIIIIIIIIIILVER! I WAS SO WORRIED! JUSTWERETHEHELLDIDYOUGO! I WAS-"

"Calm down."

The man tried to calm her using the legendary headpat technique that the japanese developed for decades, but it seemed it wasn't enough to completely stop her.

"Don't try to brush it off like last time! Do you know how worried I am?! Just why did you go outside this time?! I waited for you for three days! Three days! Me, a beautiful and cute young woman, alone for three days in the middle of nowhere!" 

"Do not call yourself beautiful or cute, it has the opposite effect. I just went hunting."

"What the hell did you manage to hunt?! There's nothing alive around here! Or… d-did you finally went insane after only eating military rations?" 

Sighing, the man slowly explained himself with a sharp tone to the girl.

"You are making me insane. First, I managed to found a deer. Second, do not use military propriety just to visit me. You still do not have the right to fly helicopters in dangerous areas. Finally, stop trying to break my bones."

After huffing and pouting for a while, she finally stopped nagging the man, whose name was Silver.

"Well, a surprise visit is never a bad thing right? If I doesn't come regularly, who will know in what ice hole you will fall to death? Geez…"

"I am sorry for worrying you, Gold."

Once again hugging Silver, Gold muttered softly in his nape.

"You should have said that from the start…"

A comfortable silence went on for a few minutes, until Gold jerked her head back shouting.

"Gosh! I don't know what you smell, but you smell bad! Go wash yourself! Also, cut this beard and hair! Well, if you want, no, ask nicely, I can help you."

"Alright. If you want, I could show you how to prepare a deer in exchange of you cutting my hair."

"Really?! Deal!"

Silver and Gold went deeper inside the house, the man answering the antics of the girl with a stern voice while she kept pestering him on stories about her father.

It seemed the man still had many happy years in front of him.