Letters Back Home

Prologue

The noise I had been dreading all morning finally startled me. It was time. I looked over at my husband's face and he was still sleeping. As much as I didn't want to say it, I had to. I turned off the alarm.

I slowly shook him awake. "Time to get up honey." He started to wake up slowly. "Your plane leaves in an hour." He opened his eyes and cradled my face. He then wiped the tears on my cheek that I didn't know had fallen and smiled.

"I know honey. I'll be back though." He rubbed my cheek with his thumb. Then leaned in to my face and kissed my forehead. I shut my eyes not wanting to let him go. "I'll be back. I promise." Then he wrapped me up in his arms and held me. I traced the muscles in his shoulders and ruffled his hair as he held me tight. A half an hour came and went too fast and we had to get up. Good thing we only lived a few minutes from the airport.

He drove me there because he knew I would need as much strength as I could get to drive back. He held my hand in one of his while the other sat on the steering wheel. We pulled into the Parking Lot and walked up stairs to the airport terminal. We got looks all around, from men and women I got looks of sympathy and honor. The men happy to have my husband serving and the women sympathized because I had to let him go.

We walked to the terminal 36 A and waited in line. When they began calling people to board the plane. We did what we always had to do. He turned and hugged me. The last hug I would have in awhile and kissed me, the last kiss I would have in awhile. We rested our foreheads together as I smiled at him, crying tears of joy just for him. Yes I was plenty sad but I wanted him to know I was happy for him. He was going off to do what the world needed him to do, fight.

"You come back to me safely okay, Nicholas Anderson? I don't want to have to deal with your parents by myself on holidays." I let loose a little chuckle. I loved his parents but like most in laws they became a little much at times.

"I understand sweetheart." He then saluted me in a cute, sarcastic matter and I chuckled again as he put his hand down and smiled. Grabbing my waist and pulling me close to him he leaned in for one more last kiss. "I love you Sammy." He said calling me by my nickname. "I will come back to you, okay?" He held my hand to his face as a tear escaped his eye.

The last call for boarding the plane sounded and I knew this was good bye.

"I promise." Then he turned and I had to let go of my hand. The strength I had left with him. The worry I had filled any gaps of emotion in my body. I cried more tears and when he went through the terminal I turned to leave. Many people stared at me, knowing what I had to go through with each deployment was hard. Knowing that I had just lost my significant, my rock and my shelter had just boarded a plane to go fight for their freedom.

I walked to the Parking Garage and did what I normally did every time he left. I put the car in reverse and pulled out of the parking space, using all energy I had left to get me back home. When I pulled into our driveway I walked into the house. I went into our room and grabbed a sweatshirt he wore, cuddling with it in our bed I cried into it. I smelled his cologne that stuck with all his clothes and I missed him so much already.