Only For You

XLVIII) Marion: The Final Frontier

Booking my plane ticket home was miserable in itself. "Baby, I will see you in two weeks, I promise." Nicholas told me at the final gate. "Promise?" He nodded yes at my statement. He gave me one last kiss before I boarded my flight back home to New York. It was nice to be in the skies again, my home away from home, my all and all. Women can indeed fly, and they can fly anything they want. Waking into a world that I knew once before and it knew me, but I truly do not know it anymore is really aggravating in itself. I have certainly found that each second is miserable, more miserable than anything before.

De-boarding was certainly normal, at least my kind of normal. I felt like I had to cover up my face because everyone knew me. Some part of me liked that and some other part of me disliked that. To an effective degree, a taxi was waiting outside of the airport just for me. It felt wonderful to finally be back in my hometown where I felt at ease. Being home with a breath of that fresh air really invigorated my soul. Most often as a pilot I would get asked if I liked to be away from home. The answer is yes and no all at the same time. "Marion, Madame Wright, we welcome you back and thank you for your service, the time you have dedicated to this country, as well as the hardships you went through to save us. Welcome home Marion." The taxi driver was a nice man, who wore long slacks with a checkered button up shirt. His voice was quiet, unlike any of the other taxi drivers out there. I described to him the route I needed to take in order to get to a hotel that I would be staying at until I found a home for myself. The home I was raised in was torn down because it was uninhabitable due to the shots fired at the foundation. I am officially on my own, solo, no one else.

The New York morning was filled with life and laughter just how I remembered it. The air smelled somewhat salty with a mix of my favorite restaurants. I placed my phone in my pocket as I made my way out the door. Today would be the day that I block out all emotions and just go have fun. Whilst walking through downtown Manhattan I came to the realization that I am worth it. I survived and I am thriving, but I always have that question in the back of my mind regarding who saved me the second time. They never came forward -yet.

Time seemingly flew by as the birds chirped and showed off their colorful display of feathers. I couldn't help but reminisce about my time in Europe as I touched each flower that lined the streets. It was beautiful and it appears that I am too. Maybe this adventure really wasn't a solo adventure either. As the stream water flowed through the small creek it reminded me of my mother's favorite place to be -the river, fishing, in the sweltering heat. Each wooden post I passed imprinted the remembrance of my father further and further in my mind. His strict schedule allowed him to carve wood in his free time. This crazy, yet beautiful world is just the forefront of it all. Everything here is really good, and now the world is out of a war and the ally countries won.

___

I buttoned up each button on my air force uniform, which really complimented both my eye color and my figure. I looked in the mirror and gave it a final breath. Today was the day of that inaugural ceremony -whatever that meant. The formal dress shoes I wore were black with gray laces. As soon as I made my way for the taxi outside of the hotel everyone clicked because they knew who I was. "Mommy, look, it is that girl from TV!" I heard a young girl shout as her left pointer finger showed her mother the way. "Well, if it isn't Marion Wright herself, you are indeed a hero. In fact, you will always be painted as one too."

Mister Geld already knew where to take me -the military base located at the field. At the time of my arrival I sat down in a chair next to a completely empty row. My eyes observed each detail in the theater-like room. Every second of life is cherished by me because I died twice and came back to life. I am still in remission from the traumatic stress that I had to go through. In the end, I guess it was all worth it. "Officer, thank you for coming this morning. May I ask you to move up front?" The tall man guided me up to the front of the room where six men sat. "Here?" I asked in a shy tone of voice. He pointed his finger and nodded yes.