Stephen King: The Long Walk: Submit your own ending

He hasn't been doing so well.

He was tackled and sedated after he tried to run toward the dark figure, and later hospitalized due to the injuries he sustained during the walk. Of course, no amount of medical assistance would fix the trauma he went through.

He became obsessed with the Walk. When he volunteered to become a spokesperson for the Walk, the Major accepted him, willing to have another supporter of the cause. Now he encourages boys like him to play the game, eager to tell them that "there's still so far to walk". Ironically, he himself cannot walk very well due to past physical trauma.

On another note-He missed McVries too much. He broke up with Jan and struggled to find someone else since. He remains closeted, fearful of what could happen if they found out.

They sit down at the same time when it got to the last 4 or 5 people and wasted themselves in front of a crowd...no winner, just an act of defiance that would ultimately make it all less sad.

The soldiers would argue among themselves for awhile in mass confusion to make it all more dramatic, before just killing them all and dealing with the fallout from the public, while trying to cover it up so it didn't happen again in the future.

... Garraty stumbled and fell dead. Almost dead. Half dead. Some time passed. Garraty knew, he had to wake up and go. Just go for Christ sake. But then he felt pain. That was the same blonde soldier, kicking his head with his heavy army boot. 'Wake up Garraty' - he yelled. 'This is your third warning. Third warning Forty Seven, ha ha get up, you stupid asshole'. Garraty opened his eyes. He saw the blue sky. He saw someone's smiling face above him. Garraty could also see his reflection in the dark sun glasses. 'Garraty you are the lucky winner, my boy' - Major said. 'It is time to claim your reward. What do you wish for, Garraty. Tell us.' 'Ehhh ehh' - Garraty couldn't say a word. 'I want... ehh ehh, I want to dyeeee' Garraty whispered. The crowd roared - 'Kill the MF' 'Major, please just kill me, that will be the greatest reward I could ever wished for'. 'What ever you ask' - Major said quietly, and made a wide smile. Garraty could see his golden teeth.

And when the hand touched his shoulder again, he somehow found the strength to run.

The crowd roared in bewilderment. He, the nearly dead boy who had walked for so many days non-stop, had incredibly started to run. It was a slow, stuttering, stumbling run, but a run nonetheless.

Garraty chased the dark figure ahead of him, and he could finally make out who it was. It was McVries. It was Baker, Abraham, Pearson and Olson. It was his father. The dark figure was everyone he'd ever lost, and he was ready to join them now. Join them in death. He fell to the ground, at last.

There were soldiers, now paramedics, running towards him. But he didn't notice them. Ray Garraty was finally on the other side.

The Major's tough hand fell to the damp shoulder of Garraty's fatigue, it was quickly and smoothly shifted off when Garraty pushed past him. Garraty tripped a bit, he even fell backwards into the Major, but he quickly got back up, he pushed his hands into the spiky rubble of the pavement and lifted himself into a run. Garraty felt the blood flow, he felt his liver and his intestines working in his body, he felt his heart racing, but even when he felt his body's reminder of the fact he was human, it was incredibly numb and frizzy like a limb when it fell asleep. Garraty ran as much as he could, he didn't think it through, he didn't take into account the horrid ache in his feet that felt like they were in the eternal pit of hell and the nerves that was actively dying in his heel from the 200th mile, he just ran, it's all he knew to do. He heard cheers, he heard gasps, he heard static in his brain as it felt like it was being mindlessly fondled or thrown in a blender or a paper shredder. He felt like he was going on dancing like this and that he would never tire, he'd scrape his shoes on the stars and hang upside down from the moon. He looked forward onto the road, the road he had come to known as endless over the past 450 something miles that he'd been walking over the past many days or years. It was dark, it was shadowy, it beckoned him closer like a vacuum. Garraty started making exasperated breathing noises, they could have been confused for laughing by someone a distance away in the far loud crowd, it was sounds of exhaustion and hyperventilation. Ray felt a Charley horse developing and loosening in and out of his leg, for fucks sake it was annoying, it was all his mind happened to focus on as the madness of the moment filled. He crashed to the ground, he scraped his face on the sharp rocks as his face was covered in dirt as his skin was peeled like a potato. He felt a warm, soft something on his face, it was damp and wet from the rain. He looked up, his eyes were blurry and the rain landed on his eyelashes and dripped onto his bottom eyelids, the something wiped them away like they were reading his mind and let a gentle hand on his wound. He looked at it, the face was old and baggy, it had wrinkled lips that were formed into a soft smile, its jaw was quivering. They had purple bags around their eyes and gray fragile hair. It was his mother, she was shaking, she had broken away onto the road and had run to Ray in a desperate attempt to reclaim her son from the horrid contest from this horrible world.

"Ray... baby... you won... Ray... I knew you wo-"" She was suddenly cut off like a vehicle running out of gas. Ray spun to his feet and ran, he felt the blood flow a bit more freely this time, he spattered out laughing maniacally as he ran through the empty road. People cheered, "go Ray go!" They cheered. Ray felt the pavement pierce his wet, bloody socks. He picked them up and put them down, there was still so much walking left to do.

And when the hand touched his shoulder again, he somehow found the strength to run.

As he approached the dark figure, it came slowly into focus. It was his mother. She was wearing the plain black coat she wore in Freeport. He could see her iron-colored hair.

In a shambling run, he embraced her. "It's over Garraty. You can stop now."

But panic consumed him. He had to keep walking. Had to. He pushed her away, and shambled on. He didn't want his mom to get an interference ticket

Suddenly someone was walking with him. "Where ya going stranger?" He looked over with blurry eyes and noticed the blonde hair. "Stebbins? I thought you bought the farm. I thought ..."

Garraty, my love, it's Jan.

Jan? You're in this too?

No my love, you're done. You don't need to walk anymore.

Am I dead?

You're alive! alive!

Alive-o?

You can stop now. You can rest in my arms.

Garraty slowed ... the confusion slowly clearing. "Jan!"

They embraced. They cried. "Can I sit down now?"

Jan helped him down to the cold wet road since he knees would no longer bend in that way, and they lay together, looking into each others eyes, until Garraty fell asleep.