The Final Countdown
The Marine’s mind was full of thoughts of home as he boarded a flight back to the United States; the long months of services, the stress, and the hardships were all behind him now. The only thing that mattered was the way back to the woman he loved; the urge to wrap his arms around her once more, to feel the warmth of her embrace, to make up for lost time.
He leaned back in his seat with the plane taking off, lost in thought as he recalled his last conversation with her before leaving. There were promises to keep, dreams to fulfill, and a future planned for them both. He missed all the little things-the quiet moments they shared, the soothing sound of her voice when she talked, how they’d laugh over nothing. His mind was already envisioning the life that they both would lead when he was home.
For the entirety of this flight, he couldn’t shake the feeling that was building inside his chest. The journey seemed longer than it was, yet he knew when he landed, everything would be different. The thought of holding his wife again, being with her, just consumed him. And little could he know that when he had been waiting for that moment, it would take a turn no one could have seen coming.
