Author's Note: Third part of the latest series, most of it has been written out as was suggested by a few commentators. Mainly because I am still limited and can't ride for at least a few more weeks, but once I am free and clear you can bet your ass I will be on the road.
On a side note, yes earlier introduced characters will be returning, the mood and tone of the story is going to change with this series, if you want a huge hint as to how it will just take a look at the title, this should give you some reference as to how it will change and setup hopefully the next series. If you keep reading and commenting, I keep writing, its rather simple.
Like always, thank you for the comments, the reads and the votes, hope you enjoy this one.
Much love,
aka_Mike
...
The rest of the time was thankfully uneventful. Ann and I did a lot of fucking, I don't think a night came when I didn't fill her with cum and where we did not sleep clutching each other. But eventually my time back home would end and I would have to move on to my next duty station. I had known for a while that I wanted Ann to go with me, yeah call me whatever you like, but I did love this woman. When she packed her stuff, she did so knowing that she was taking a gamble, we were moving across the country without a plan other than she was slowly becoming a girlfriend. The day came and the long drive to Georgia saw us becoming closer and closer to one another, I was looking forward to the stability of a new adventure.
"So, are you going to be living with me or are you going to be stuck living in the barracks?" That was a fair question, like I said I am not a long term planner and this thought had honestly not crossed my mind.
"We'll figure something out," was all I could say, "I'm honestly not even sure if I'm walking into a deployment, or if I'll have time to get stabilized before it happens."
"You already know you will be deploying?"
"Well, we're going to a Ranger Bat, babe," I replied, "they deploy all the time. I would suspect that I'll be up for one as soon as possible if not when I get there." My words turned to be prophetic. When we got to Savannah, I was notified that I had two weeks to settle any issues before I was to be put on a plane and meet the rest of my platoon in beautiful Baghdad. Within that time, Ann and I decided that the smart thing to do was to get married so that she could be covered with my benefits, so that she could settle any issues in my absence, and so that there could be something stable waiting for me back home. By the time our wedding festivities were over, I was gone.
Baghdad was a strange experience, as a brand new Medic I was immediately assigned to a rifle squad which was tasked with clearing a large portion of the southern parts of the city. Soon, we were sent to Samarra, where we took part in the large offensive against Insurgent forces that had taken large parts of the land for themselves and posed a large and continuous threat to foreign nationals and security forces. Immediately after, back to Baghdad, and the bloodiest part of my first deployment. The first trip back home was celebrated by the spouses waiting for their husbands to return from the horrors of war, the airport was packed with supporters.
The second trip saw a little less people. The third even less. By the fourth, even Ann did not show up to greet us, these trips had become so common that they seemed like a natural event. Less and less marriages survived those trips, many of the friends I had made had ended up divorced, separated, and that shine in their eyes had dulled a little.
"It doesn't get easier, does it?" I asked Werkman, the first person I had met once I had fully integrated into the new unit. We had talked about Moyers and Kitchen, I learned quite a lot about my instructors, somehow learning about them made them look less ominous and more human-like.
"No," he replied, "but it becomes more normal. That's just the same I guess, we really can't hope for more during these times. It's a mad world, D." Everyone had taken to calling me by just one letter instead of a name, at least everyone in my unit or other uniformed services.
"What are you going to do until we get called up again?"
"Drink, I guess," he replied, "my wife went back home to her mom's after our second deployment. I might go visit her, but it feels like there is nothing to talk about."
"Yeah," I picked up my duffle bag and started making my way to the waiting bus, "I am running out of things to talk about as well. It's hard to make them understand, you know?"
"They weren't there," he replied as he followed me, "even with your fancy words, I am sure you would find it hard to paint that picture for them. At least we don't have such a shitty job as the sir does, having to send all those letters back home. That's gotta wear down on your soul after as long as he's been doing it."
"There's a lot of empty seats now," I said, truly there were. Once upon a time, this very bus would be crowded, filled with laughs and boastful screams. Now, all that remained was empty seats to remind us of those faces that would not make it back, and the piercing silence made the short trip back to base seem like an eternity.
"You watch yourself, brother," Werkman said as we started the climb down and headed to our vehicles, "not everyone stayed over there." The suicide rate was high among people like us, the system was not set up to deal with so many men and women returning with unseen scars.
"You too," I replied, "I'm just a phone call away." As we went our own ways, I couldn't help but experience that fear all military members have in those fleeting moments when we return home after being away for so long. Its always the same, would we be returning to an empty home? A cheating spouse with a new live in lover? I had forgiven Ann a long time ago, but that fear was always gnawing at the back of my mind. The abundant stories of others experiencing that very situation did not make it easier to ignore, few even in our unit suffered that and did not deal with it well. But as I pulled into my driveway, my heart skipping a beat brought me back to reality; there she was, waiting for me just like she had done every time I have been away. I knew we would argue, I knew we would fight about the constant deployments, but that would be tomorrow. For today, we would just enjoy our love.
...
