Chapter #3 Dear John
'Dear Steve, I know you won't want to hear this, but I've found someone I think I have feelings for. I didn't mean for it to happen, it just did. I've been so lonely since you've been gone and although your letters helped, it just wasn't the same. His name is Keith and he works with me. Steve, it just started out as someone to have lunch with and then progressed to someone I could talk to and confide in about how I was feeling. I told him I was waiting for you and he said that was ok because he already had a fiancé. I don't know when it happened but one night I told him how I felt about him and Keith said he felt the same way about me. Steve, you've got to believe me, I never cheated on you before this; it just happened. He's going to break the news to his fiancé soon so we can be together. Please be careful, you still mean the world to me.'
At least I made it totally through Ann's letter this time. I folded it back up again and put it into my top pocket. I still had about an hour left before we landed and even though I was tired I started getting anxious. This would be the first time home in fourteen months. Ann was right about one thing, letters were ok in a pinch but the real thing was oh so much better.
When I had hit the San Diego airport I was dressed in my newest uniform. I purchase my ticket to Minneapolis and had about three hours before the flight left. We'd been warned about confrontations in the airports but besides the Hari Kristinas beating on drums I didn't see any problems. They had a USO in the airport and a donut and coffee really hit the spot.
"Coming or going?" a guy in an Air Force uniform asked me.
"Going home on a three week leave," I said with a huge smile as it was finally starting to sink in.
"Where were you?"
"Nam," was all I said.
"See any action?"
"Naw, worked in an office, never even fired my rifle," I told him grabbing another donut.
"You're lucky man. I heard a lot of horror stories about what's going on there. That's why I joined the Air Force; I didn't want to go over there."
"I hate to be the bearer of bad news, there are a lot of Air Force personnel over there. Most are stationed around the Da Nang airport, but they're there." I didn't want to be the one to bust his bubble but I figured he'd better get his head out of his ass now instead of later.
"Well, glad you made it back in one piece; where're you headed?"
"Minneapolis Minnesota; that's where I'm from. I've got nine brothers and sisters waiting for me."
"Wow, talk about a large family; let me guess, Catholic right?"
"You got it."
"Word of warning, they just kicked out a group of fucking hippies about a half hour ago. They were yelling shit like baby killers and other things at us when we got here. One of them spit on an army staff sergeant and he almost ripped the guy's head off. Airport security dragged them out, what a bunch of assholes. They don't know shit other than what they see on the news. They don't do crap like that over there do they?"
"As I said, I just worked in the office during the day and drank my fill in the club at night. Never had to worry about all the other shit going around me." I didn't know this dude from Adam and wasn't about to discuss what had or hadn't happen over there; I just wanted to go home.
So, here I sit in a quiet and dark plane. We'll be landing in Minneapolis at about five o'clock in the morning. Like Lassiter, I was coming back unannounced but unlike him, I already knew there was a problem on the home front.
When we landed I felt it in my stomach as I looked out the window. It was the end of April and still cold, I was thankful I hadn't packed my coat. I grabbed my duffel bag and stepped outside the terminal to a cold wind whipping through the covered parking garage. I pulled up the collar on my coat as I felt the chill down my neck; this was one thing I hadn't missed. I remember after graduation, we went up north to a buddies' parent's cabin. We planned on water skiing and having some fun with our girlfriends; we got snow flurries. We still had fun but never took the boat out.
"Need a cab?" the guy in the first of a long row of cabs called out. I Guess I did.
"Home on leave?" he asked making small talk.
"Yeah, three weeks."
"Where you coming from?"
"San Diego,"
"You stationed there?" he asked.
"Yup, been there for the past fourteen months," I replied now getting tired of all the questions.
"You're lucky you didn't go to Viet Nam. I see a lot of those guys coming home, one way or another," he added. I knew what he meant, I just didn't want to think about it any more; I was finally home.
Much to my dismay we shot the shit all the way to my house. I was tired, he was bored, and so it went for the next forty-five minutes.
"Twenty-one bucks," he said turning around. I gave him a five-dollar tip as he pulled my duffel bag out of the trunk. "Looks like everyone is still asleep, don't they know you're coming home?"
"I guess I kind of forgot to tell them," I said now with a shit-eating grin on my face. He left me standing there on my driveway pondering my next move.
The hide-a-key by the back door was still there and the house was dark and quiet as I stepped into the kitchen and closed the door. I put my bag down and took a deep breath. Nothing had changed. Everything was exactly the same, just like the morning I left. It was as though I'd gone out on a date and come home after everyone had gone to bed. The only difference was my mom wasn't waiting up for me this time.
With ten kids my mom's hands were always full. The only time she ever had time to herself was in the evenings when everyone had gone to bed. She would sit on the couch, with that ugly end table lamp on, and read both daily newspapers and any new magazines. However, the one thing she never did was go to sleep when one of her kids was out on a date; no matter how late it got. I got a rude awaking when I stayed out all night with a couple of my buddies. I came home to find my mom still on the couch, light on and dead asleep. Needless to say I didn't do that again. Well, not without telling her first.
I thought about making coffee, but decided instead to check the refrigerator and have a bottle of soda pop. Two pieces of cold ham and a bottle of RC cola hit the spot. Fifteen minutes later I met my brother Roger when he came downstairs.
I was still sitting at the kitchen table in the dark when he walked in and turned on the overhead light. He jumped and I smiled.
"Hello little brother," I said smiling. He wasn't very quiet.
