Champion

Chapter 9: Old Pain

I woke up early before everyone else, the nightmares were slowly creeping into the back of my mind, sleep was hard. I sat up in the bed, looking to my left to look at Tommy who was calmly asleep, with his son curled up in his chest, sleeping soundly. I smiled to myself, running my hand along Tommy's face before getting up. Quietly, I made my way down the stairs, careful to not wake anybody, jades room as closed, I opened it slightly to check on her and saw her and Ronda sleeping closely together. I walked down the hallway past the guest room where Conor was sleeping, the door opened slightly but it was quiet inside. I took a deep breath and stepped slowly down the spiralling staircase. When I got to the bottom I was met by Koda who had just finished eating his food and slowly walked up to me, pressing his little head into my hand, knowing exactly what was wrong, I scratched behind his pointed ears and he followed me into the basement pub.

I sat at the bar by myself, turning the cup full of whiskey between my fingers. I shouldn't be drinking, I shouldn't, but I didn't know how else to cope with these flashbacks again. They started up again after Kian's birth, but I gave birth to him im California, the doctor I was seeing said it was stress from a new environment that started them, but I knew it was bullshit, something was wrong with me. I downed the rest of the Irish whiskey and poured another glass. Koda sat whimpering next to me, he knew this too well. I reached into my pocket and pulled out a bottle of orange pills my doctor had prescribed for me and stared at them for a moment. I contemplated taking some, but remembered what happened the last time I took these pills and drank.

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"Naomi, Naomi wake up we're moving out" Joel softly woke me from the floor, brushing my hair out of my face. I opened my eyes slowly and looked up at him, his eyes just like our mothers, but his face like our father. He smiled at me "hey" he chuckled "you sleep alright? You were moving around a lot" I sat up, looking around to see the others putting their equipment together, loading up on ammo and packing up the campsite. Manny though, was leaning back against a wall, eyes closed but I knew he was awake, his bag packed next to him. Young Williams, taking the mud stains off of his boots, something so small in the midst of a war, but small things like that is what kept us sane. The sun was rising, it was better for us to move now because it was cooler than the deadly heat that would follow.

Tommy, wiping his face down with a damp cloth looked over at me and gave me a soft smile, something I haven't seen in a long time and he came over to me with some bread. "Eat this, it'll keep you going" we looked at each other for a moment and he crouched down and sat next to me, loading my rifle and putting extra ammo in my pack. Joel had left to fill up the canteens.

"It's so calm..." I mumbled, mostly to myself, looking around at the other men of my unit. We rarely ever had calm moments like this together, and all of us appreciated these moments dearly, but there was an unspoken fear in all of us, for none of us knew if this would be the last time we were all together. There was a bond made between the people you battled next to that you couldn't find anywhere else, we fought, died and risked our lives for the men and women next to us, each of us willing to take bullets for any one next to us.Tommy leaned back against the wall, turned his head slightly to look at me, his blue eyes so burdened but he hid it within him.

"Your leg doing okay?" He asked pointing to the leg I was shot in a while ago, it was healing  nicely, but I refused to let this shot tap me out of the war we were fighting. I nodded, standing up to my feet and leaning on my leg, the pain was dull, subtle, enough for me to keep moving.

"Sergeant" the young kid Damon called from across the campsite. "JOC says Enemy units are coming in, better move out quickly" Tommy nodded, standing to his feet and getting his stuff together and sliding on a pair of sunglasses that all of us had to carry in the harsh Iraqi sun, the remaining nine of us headed out, not knowing if it was he last time we would be together.

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I was taken out from this memory, not knowing how to feel. That was the day we lost Williams, so young, dying in the back of the humvee during a sand storm, and there was absolutely nothing we could've done, I knew that day stuck with Tommy. Young kid, barely 19 and Tommy thought he could've saved him, we all did.

I took large swigs from the bottle, leaving it almost half empty and putting it back with the other bottles. I was buzzing, but not drunk, I couldn't get drunk In front of Kian. I stumbled a little as I made my way up the stairs to the main floor, and Koda stood firmly by my side as I began making breakfast. It wasn't long before Conor woke up, coming down the stairs yawning.

"Morning, Nae" he chuckled, walking to the fridge and getting a bottle of water and drinking some of it as I fried bacon in the pan. He stopped, stared at me for a moment and then set the bottle down on the counter, crossing his arms over his chest. I closed my eyes, i knew he could smell it on me. "Naomi"

"Just stop" I gripped the dog tags around my neck tightly in my fingers. He walked up to me, placing his hands gently on my arms.

"I can't let you go through this again, what would Tommy think... And Kian-"

"Conor, just fucking stop okay?!" I spoke curtly, pulling myself out of his grip and returning to the frying pan. He opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by Kians footsteps charging down the stairs.

"GOOD MORNING MOMMY, GOOD MORNING" he yelled, hugging my leg gently. I contemplated lifting him up, but there was the smell of alcohol lingering, so I didn't. Kian looked up at me, his eyes full of confusion and it broke my heart, but he walked to Conor and hugged him. Tommy, Ronda and Jade were the next down the stairs. Ronda speaking about something and laughing, Jade grumbling grumpily and Tommy silent, rubbing his eyes. Jade kissed my cheek, pausing for a minute and looking at me, she didn't say anything, she just immediately beginning to help me put breakfast together, while Ronda lifted up Kian in the air, nuzzling his stomach with her nose and making him laugh. "STOP AUNTY RONDA" Kian laughed hysterically pushing her head away with his little hands. Tommy out his hand on my waist from behind me leaning in to kiss me but he stopped, his eyes scanned my face and there was anger in his eyes.

"Again?" He spoke low into my ear, but there was that raspy tone in his voice that was only present when he was upset.  I turned my head back to the frying pan, taking out the finished bacon and putting in raw slices. His hand gripping my waist tighter. "Naomi" I shrugged him off, he went back upstairs, and didn't come back down.

We sat down at the table together, Ronda and Conor bickering about something but I wasn't paying attention. I drank from the white mug as I ate, this white mug full of coffee, and the coffee laced with whiskey, I guess I was desperate. Kian ate his food happily, giving little pieces to Koda who sat next to him protectively, he would be spending the day at the gym with us today when we trained Jade, we got the whole thing to ourselves today He loved it there, Tommy even got him little gloves and he would always try to copy what we were reaching Jade, and like his father, he learned quickly.

Jade reached over the table and out her soft hand on my forearm, rubbing with her thumb not saying anything but her eyes speaking for her. "Are you okay?"

I just nodded, finishing what was left in my mug and getting up to collect the dishes and placing them gently in the sink.

"Go get ready, we're leaving soon." I spoke, making my way upstairs to get my stuff together. I was buzzing, but that didn't stop me from training Jade before, she had two fights she had to prepare for, and I wasn't about to let my struggle stop her from being the champion.