His Forever Flame

11. Early Return

Jay had been deployed for twelve days. Twelve long days that she had not seen his handsome face or heard his voice. He'd not had access to a phone or computer with a camera, so they had only been able to swap emails. All Jay had been able to tell her was that they'd been doing a lot of surveillance and he was hoping to be able to complete the mission soon.

He was ready to come home and be out of the desert. Lauren was a little worried because she hadn't heard from him all week. Usually Jay replied within two days, but she hadn't heard from him since Sunday. She was hoping that meant he was wrapping up the mission, but she wasn't so sure.

It'd been a normal Friday at school. She was finally settling in and adjusting to first grade. She still wasn't sure she was going to like it, but she liked the school and the people she worked with so that made it bearable. She was starting to get excited because in just one week, she would be flying to Chicago for Labor Day weekend. She missed her brother and all her friends, but she was hoping Jay would be there too. Because honestly, he was the one she missed the most.

As she was driving home, she remembered how just last weekend she had made a rash decision to go to Chicago for the weekend. She was feeling so alone and depressed. She didn't want to stay with her mother, and since her and Jay and been back together, Wes was out of the question. So on Thursday afternoon, she left school and just started driving north.

She emailed her professor and told her that she was sick and would not be at school the next day, and she texted her cooperating teacher the same thing. She drove all night, and made it to Chicago at one in the morning. Kelly was on shift so she bypassed the apartment and showed up at the fire hall.

She was a complete mess by the time she got there, and when Kelly saw her, he honestly thought something really bad had happened to Jay. When she explained she just didn't want to be alone, Kelly was furious that she had driven all night after being at school all day. She should have called him, and he would have gotten her a flight or something. She told him she was careful, but she didn't know what else to do. She just wanted to be with people that would understand and offer her comfort.

So she stayed Thursday night/Friday morning at the fire hall. She slept in Kelly's bed in his office, and thankfully the calls were minimal and he was able to stay with her. He felt bad, that she felt bad, but he wasn't sure how to help her. About eleven, Kelly was exhausted. He'd been up for twelve straight hours and he was in need of sleep. So Lauren asked to borrow his car, and she went to the apartment. Why she wanted his car he didn't know, but he let her have it anyways.

She changed into more comfortable clothes, and watched two movies on Hallmark. Of course, all they did was make her miss Jay more, so she decided to head to Molly's. It was four in the afternoon, and she knew it was still early, but she was hoping PD would show up soon. She started out not drinking. She was alone, and she needed to be able to drive home so she passed on the alcohol.

About five thirty, PD started showing up. They were all surprised to see her because no one had been expecting her. Mouse sat down at the bar beside her. "You drinking?" he asked. She shook her head no, and he asked, "You want to do though don't you?" When she nodded yes, he told her to order whatever she wanted.

She started with a mudslide; then a shot of vodka; after that, she order a melon ball, another shot of vodka, another mudslide, another shot of vodka, another melon ball and a screwdriver. After the screwdriver, Mouse cut her off. She was pretty well hammered by this point. Throughout the night they talked. She told him how she missed Jay so much that it hurt most days.

She just wanted him home. She told him how life at home sucked. She wanted to move to Chicago, but she didn't graduate until December. She told him her dreams for the future, the life she wanted with Jay. Mouse told her he was ready to settle down; he wanted someone that would just accept him for who he was, someone that could handle the past and the present. She knew he was referring to his PTSD and the trouble it still caused some times and the extremes of his job.