In Times of War

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Chapter Thirty-Seven

David

“You ready to go home?”

   Lee puts his hand on my shoulder as I stare out across the sea. The ship was getting closer and closer to the harbor of Savannah and I was hardly ready. Three years and one month was how long I had been in combat and none of it seemed quite as scary as seeing my mom and Maria again. That was assuming that Maria was home and she was safe. I hadn’t gotten a letter from her in almost a year. I was worried.

“I guess, you?”

“I don’t know. I wonder if Leo’s even gonna recognize me?”

“What are you talkin’ about? Of course he’ll remember you, you’re his brother.”

“But he hasn’t seen me in three years, and he was five then. And what about Alice?”

“Stop worryin’, this is supposed to be a happy time. Our first time back on American soil for years, our first time seeing our families again, this is gonna be happy if it kills us.”

“Then how come you’re not smilin’?”

“Because I’m terrified.” I admit, still looking at the ocean.

“Of seeing everyone again?”

“Yes. I don’t really know why either, but I know I’m worried about Maria. She hasn’t sent me a letter in forever and I don’t even know if she’s home.”

   “I’m sure she’s fine, now stop your worryin’, she wasn’t on the front lines or anything. We’re gonna be happy if it kills us!” He mocks me. We stay leaning against the rail as the Georgia coast comes into view. The spray from the Atlantic cools my face from the Georgia heat. We dock and Lee and I walk off the ship. It was so good to be on solid ground again, solid American ground to make it even better. I walk down the street with Lee.

   We walk to the corner store with our bags slung over our shoulders. As soon as we walk out of the store I see my mom, Lee’s and Leo turning the corner. We hadn’t really set a meeting spot, so they were looking around trying to spot us. I laughed because they were all so short that they couldn’t see us. I laughed and pointed them out to Lee who took no time at all to call them over. Leo weaved in and out of the crowd much easier than our moms because of his small size.

   He’s bigger, but he’s still small for an eight-year-old. His brown hair is shaggier and his blue eyes were still wide behind his large, round glasses. Lee drops his bag and goes down on one knee as Leo approaches. Leo smiles from ear to ear as his brother wraps him in a hug. I’m so busy watching the lovely scene before me that I don’t even see my mother until she has ran into me. I put my arms around her and she does the same. I release her and she releases me and she starts talking a mile a minute.

“Are you okay, any injuries? Don’t ever leave me again. Oh, my gosh you’ve had me worried sick.”

“Mama! I’m fine; I’ll tell you everything over supper.” I interrupt her rant and get my first good look at her in years. Her black hair is graying and her gray eyes are starting to get wrinkles beside them.

“You better, oh and we’re goin’ to Mary’s tonight.”

“Is Maria there?” I ask, maybe a little too eagerly.

   “I don’t know.” She is lying, I know she is. Her voice got higher and her nose twitched. I decided not to push it even though I really wanted to. We start walking down the street to the bus station with Lee’s family trailing behind us. We get on a bus and go back to Clarion. When we get off the bus we walk to my house. Lee and his family stay in the living room to talk while I go up to my room and drop my bag on the floor. I collapse onto my bed and feel like it’s about to drop me straight to the floor. I close my eyes and take a deep breath. I almost fall asleep but I manage to open my eyes so I can be awake to eat later. My eyes catch on a photograph on my desk.

   I drag myself off my bed and over to my desk. I sit down and pick up the picture so I can look at it better. It’s a picture of Maria and I, one Alice took just before I left. I had my arms wrapped around her and she was smiling and leaning into me. We were on our dock and we weren’t even looking at the camera. I was looking down at her with a smile and my cheek on her head. She was looking down at the book in her hand with a smile gracing her beautiful face. She had one hand covering mine, the other holding her precious The Hobbit with it open to the middle of it. I had been planning to take it with me to the war, but I decided to keep it here to keep it safe.

“Tony, come on.”

“It’s time to go?” I ask.

“I thought you’d be more excited.”

“No offense to them at all, but I really don’t want to be there if Maria isn’t.” I admit.

“Even if Alice is?” I perk up at that.

“But I thought she was in Atlanta.”

   “She moved in with Mary last month. Her family’s down for a visit right now so quit your whinin’ and get movin’!” I rush downstairs and out the door. My mom follows behind at a much slower rate, laughing at me. I didn’t really care. I thought of Alice as a sister and I hadn’t seen her in three years. I couldn’t wait to get there so I could see her and the rest of her family. Mrs. O’Leary I could wait on. I still didn’t think she liked me very much, only tolerated me because I had saved her daughter all those years ago from Zacharias. She still didn’t know the full story on why Maria was kidnapped; she just thought that it was some random ransom job. We had wanted to keep it that way.

   “Tony?” Alice calls. I see her sitting on the front porch swing. She gets up and looks closer. She gets up and runs down the steps and out the gate, while I start to jog. I pull her into a big hug as soon as we meet. I was so happy to see her; it was unbelievable that I hadn’t noticed how much I had missed her. Before either of us gets the chance to say anything I catch a glimpse of red through Alice’s brown strands. I lift my head up and I see her.

   She stands in the doorway of her house, looking out in disbelief. I let go of Alice immediately as Maria’s face breaks into a wide grin. She was still thin, but it wasn’t as bad as it was before I left. Her blue eyes sparkle and her red curls flow behind her as she runs down the sidewalk and into my arms. I pick her up and swing her around, feeling unimaginable happiness and love that she was safe and with me, in my arms. I never wanted to let her out of my sight again. I wanted to be able to hold her always. There is one loud, indisputable cry coming from the porch where Alice has now joined her family, my mother, Lee’s family, and Maria’s mother. “Just kiss!”

   I happily oblige. Her lips were just as soft as I remembered. Her hair was just as wonderful to tangle my fingers in. One hand was tangled in her hair, and the other was around her waist. She wraps her arms around my neck and it felt so good to feel that again. To feel her soft skin and her hair and her lips, it was all amazing. I lean her back farther and farther until I’m the only thing keeping her from hitting the ground. She doesn’t flinch or even tighten her grip on my neck, she just keeps kissing me. I was glad that she trusted me so much, when I had pretty much never given her a single reason to. I guess that’s love, though. Caring about someone even when you have no reason at all.

“Hi,” I say, sadly breaking the kiss for air we both need. I was definitely breathless, and so was she. But she was smiling.

“Hi,” She breathes back, and then she kisses me again.  I gradually bring her back up so we are both upright.

“How’re you?” She asks when we break away again. She curls her delicate fingers into my hair and keeps our faces just far enough away that we can see each other’s eyes.

“Fine,” I laugh. She gets this beautiful, happy, carefree smile that sends my heart soaring.

“Me too.”