I've Got You

~chapter eighteen~

OWENS POV
I asked Amelia to spend the night with me again because I needed to tell her. I was driving home with her and the girls and I was dreading telling them. I was going to tell Amelia first and then tell Olivia and Sophia. I pulled in the driveway and the girls ran inside and I didn't know how I was going to tell them.
"Hey you Okay?" Amelia asked as she grabbed my hand and walked inside.
"Uh I need to tell you something," I said as we walked into the kitchen.
"What's wrong?" She asked and put her hand on my arm.
"I-I'm being station in Iraq for three months," I said slowly, "starting in two weeks." She looked up at me and I could see the tears forming in her eyes.
"What?" She said in denial. I could feel the tears streaming down my face as they fell down hers too.
"I don't know how I'm going to tell the girls," I said. Amelia was just silent and I heard Olivia walk into the kitchen.
"Uh," She said as she saw both of us crying.
"Can you go get your sister?" I asked.
"Yeah," she said and ran upstairs. Amelia walked over and hugged me tightly as we both started crying.
"Owen don't leave," she said.
"I don't want to," I said, "trust me I don't want to leave you and I don't want to leave my daughters."
"When do you leave?" She said as her voice broke.
"Two weeks," I said.
"Owen," she said. I kissed her passionately and I heard the girls come in. Amelia wrapped her arms around me and we were both still crying.
"I need to tell you something," I said to them, "remember how I told you how I was in the military when I met mommy?"
"No," Olivia said because she knew what I was going to say, "no you're not leaving."
"It's only for a few months," I said as my voice broke. Both of them started crying and I wrapped my arms around them.
"Daddy what if you don't come back?" Sophia said.
"I will come back Okay? I promise," I said.
"What if you don't?" Olivia said crying.
"I will Okay," I said, "I will be fine Okay? And I'm going to write you guys letters and maybe even Skype you guys if I can Okay?"
"Okay," they said.
"When are you leaving?" Sophia said.
"In two weeks," I said.
"Okay," She said. I kissed their heads and wrapped my arms around them as we cried. Eventually we stopped crying and I got up and hugged Amelia again.
"I love you," I said.
"I love you too," she said and started crying too.
"I won't die I promise," I said.
"Promise?" She said.
"Promise," I said.