Hey everyone, this is my first story. Please comment, vote, and by all means send me any suggestions on how I can do a better job next time. Thanks so much!!
SouthernAphrodite
*
Mara stood at the edge of the crowd, scanning the faces of the men and women in uniform as they marched into the auditorium, hoping to spot the one she was looking for before the broke formation, but between the domes of the helmets, the thick body armor they were still wearing, and the loose digital camouflage uniforms, most of the defining characteristics of the soldiers that wore them were erased. As the formation came to a halt in the middle of the floor, somebody important began droning on about their accomplishments in Operation Iraqi Freedom 5-6 (that's years five and six of the American occupation of Iraq for the uninitiated).
Mara barely heard the speaker's voice. What the hell were they thinking giving speeches at a time like this? Why didn't they just let the soldiers get off the plane and go to their families like everyone knew they wanted to?
A year and a half. She couldn't believe it was finally over. It felt like an eternity since she watched the one person in the world who she loved above all else walk away to get on a plane to serve in the ongoing mess in Iraq. She had been so scared that it may be the last time she would ever see him. She had ached for eighteen months to have him home, wanting to wake up next to him again, to see his face smiling at her, to hug and kiss him when he came home from work. All she had wanted was to know he was there and to be able to reach out and hold him close to her. Now, Alan was somewhere in that mass of soldiers less than fifty feet from her and she still couldn't go to him.
Down girl, she thought to herself. You've waited this long, another ten minutes won't kill you. She pulled a compact from her purse to check her make-up. She had never been so nervous in her life. She smoothed her waist-length, dark red-brown curls and checked the light make-up she wore before snapping the case shut. A quick check of her clothes—a dark red satin shirt, the top two buttons left undone to give a tantalizing hint of her generous cleavage; an almost knee length black skirt made out of some kind of light material that swished gently around her shapely hips and thighs when she walked; and to complete the ensemble, a pair of big, chunky goth boots coming almost to her knee and encasing her calves and feet. As an employee of a local radio station that played only rock music, she was allowed—even expected—to be pierced, tattooed, and somewhat goth-ish. She never took it too far though. Tasteful tattoos graced her lower back and right wrist, black polish gleamed on her manicured nails, three hoops ran through each ear to frame her face, a tiny stud in her nose setting off the aristocratic bone structure of her face, and a ring around her lower lip emphasizing her full, pouting mouth. Her make-up, while in blacks and grays, was minimal—no lipstick, almost no eyeliner, just enough mascara and eyeshadow to really set off her intelligent, dark gray-blue eyes. She also wore very little jewelry aside from her piercings—a couple of necklaces, a claddagh on her right ring finger, her wedding band and a watch. No dog collars or studded leather bracelets—at least not to work.
She turned her attention back to the group of men and women standing in formation in the middle of the auditorium. Still scanning faces, she spotted one friend, and a couple of acquaintances, but the one she really sought, her husband, eluded her. Finally, the speaker said, "Families, you may now welcome your loved ones home."
Mara was off like a shot, dashing onto the floor and into the mass of soldiers, still scanning faces. She greeted the few that she knew and was friends with, and they pointed her in the right direction. Finally she spotted him — a tall, lanky frame, with a long, fine boned face, which she saw in profile as he looked around trying to find her in the sea of families. "ALAN!" she shouted, and dashed towards him.
Alan spun towards her just in time to catch her in his arms as she ran into him, almost knocking him to the floor. His bright, Caribbean blue eyes met her dark Pacific ones for a moment before his sensitive mouth met hers. Then they were lost in the kiss that burned with a fire born of being denied that passion for far too long.
After what felt like an eternity, they came up for air. Alan's bright blue eyes met Mara's, he brushed away the single tear of joy that had leaked from her eye and run down her cheek, and he gathered her in his arms and held her as close as he could with all the equipment still strapped to his body.
"I've missed you so much," Mara whispered, snuggling into his broad chest as much as his body armor would let her, wrapping her arms around his midsection, smelling the subtle scent that was distinctly his under the dust and airplane smells lingering from his journey.
Alan smiled, whispering, "The missing is over now, my love. Everything's right now."