Afterglow • Gideon Emery

3

It was late that night when Jack, Gideon, and Joker walked into the Emery apartment expecting to see the girls there. When they walked to the living room they seen the girls watching television.

When the dogs heard the door open set them off rushing to the kitchen where the men walked in. Jack got on his knee rubbing Icebreakers head greeting him hello. Then like normal he teased Icebreaker by swinging his arms above him so he'd try to grab him with his paws and bite him.

Gideon scratched behind Dempsey's ear "hello Mate" Gideon smiles moving his hand on Dempsey's back and gave it a scratch.

"Hey" the women said on the couch in unison while they watched the tv.

"Hey Fennec" Jack says smiling walking over to her and he sits down next to her, allowing her to hug his waist with a smile forming on her lips.

"Bunny" she responds with happiness feeling Jacks arm around her again.

"Jaguar" Chloe stood up and gave Gideon a hug .

"Bear" Gideon responds hugging her back and stroking her hair softly.

"And me!" Joker smiles being the outcast, too happy to realize that is what he is in this apartment. But Hannah and Chloe loves him so it's okay.

"Did you guys eat today?" Gideon ignores Jokers remarks and looked at both the girls. The two shakes their heads never moving them from their mans shoulders. "We decided to have a bonfire outside." This made the girls excited.

"Bunny do we have s'mores?!"

"Of course" he nods running his hand through her platinum blonde strands, one of his favorite things to touch. She smiled hearing what she wanted to hear.

• • •

After hours is when all the soldiers went to sleep in their apartments. Will Irons decided to join the group at their bonfire, he felt hungry too.

The night sky is very black with trillions of white stars sparkling the skies. The white moon full and light shined down on them making all their eyes glow.

Gideon was the one to stand closest to the fire while letting all the hot dogs burn as the rest of the group sat around in a circle surrounding the fire and drinking beers, chatting, and laughing.

Icebreaker and Dempsey always followed them around outside of the apartment because they're good and trained dogs. Jack and Gideon trusted that these dogs would never try to bite or be violent to any of the other soldiers, because if that were the case then they would have to be put down and no one wanted that.

Leaning on Jacks shoulder Hannah held one of his hands while she held her beer in her other. She always listened to Jack and Wills conversations because the chemistry between the two of them reminded her of herself and Chloe's chemistry. Will was fond of Jacks wife too, at their wedding Will was Jack's best man to no surprise.

"I keep telling Hannah that we are going to get a pet monkey and she still won't let me." Jack says to Will, this is something that he and Will planned for a while at first it was a joke then it transitioned to they really wanted to actually go through with it.

"We are not getting a monkey"

"But we have Icebreaker!"

"Exactly!"

"Common Hannah, we want to get monkeys together don't keep that away from us" Will then says, once Hannah said no again the three started to laugh together.

"Okay if you three lovebirds will quit your yapping-" Gideon starts off then he passes around paper plates with hot dogs on them "it's time to eat" the group passed around the condiments of their choosing then enjoying a nice heated meal together while drinking good cold beers.