Enlisted

by Michelle Edwards

  “I am going to tell you. When I tell everyone else,” I said, tossing some cut up tomatoes into the salad.

  “What’s the big secret?” She grinned. “Are you pregnant?”

  “No! Mom, I’m not pregnant.” I shook my head.

  “Well are you sure?”

  “Yes. I promise, I am not pregnant.”

  “Okay.” She scooped up the tray of salad dressings and carried it into the other room.

  I followed with the over large bowl of salad.

  “Where’s Travis?” I asked Micah, setting the bowl down in the middle of the table.

  “He’s at the door with his grandparents,” he replied.

  I nodded. This was going to be hard for his grandmother. Hell, it’s going to be hard on everyone I’m sure. But even knowing that this is coming, it’s still stings to hear.

  Everyone sat around the table chatting and laughing. I looked at Travis who squeezed my hand without a word. This was more than nice. Our families were combined for a night.

  “Alright, so what’s this big news you want to share?” my father asked.

  I looked at my father then back at Travis.

  Travis cleared his throat, “Well you all know that part of being in the military means changes.”

  “You’re moving already?” my mother shrieked.

  “Mom. Shush,” I growled.

  “I’m getting deployed.”

  Gasps came from around the table. Except for my father and his grandfather.

  “We all knew this would happen sooner or later. It just ended up being sooner than I would have liked.”

  “When do you leave?” Gina sniffed.

  “Two months.”

  “This is an outrage! In my day they gave us much more notice!” His grandfather yelled.

  I sighed and looked down at my lap.

  “Elena?” my mother questioned.

  “We’ve known for a while now. We just weren’t ready to tell anyone yet,” I whispered.

  “Why would you keep this from us?” my father questioned, his voice raising.

  “Sir, it isn’t her fault. We decided together to not say anything. We wanted some more time together just us before we broke the news to our families,” Travis explained.

  “And we understand that,” Gina said before anyone else could talk. “You two are newlyweds and deserved this time together.”

  “Thank you,” I said.

  “What happens now?” Cora questioned.

  “I have two weeks of leave coming up here in a couple of weeks, so we want to spend as much time with you all as we can.”

  Nods came from around the table. Except for my father who seemed angrier with every sentence that came out of our mouths.

  “Dad?” I questioned.

  He shook his head, “How can you allow your commander to deploy you when you are just married? Isn’t there some sort of law or time limit?”

  “That’s not how the military works. He’s lucky that he got the time he did to be honest,” Travis’s grandfather pipped in.

  “Coming from the man who just yelled about how much time he had until he was deployed,” my father scoffed.

  “Listen here mister, the military is honorable, and yes I was mad thinking they only allowed him two months to prepare, but six months to prepare is more than enough time. There is a lot that has to be done before someone goes off to fight for your freedom.”

  My father looked at Travis and I. “Like what?”

  “What?” I asked.

  “What had to be done before Travis goes off to war?”

  Travis squeezed my hand again.

  “Elena had to be made my power of attorney, we had to discuss my end life plans and care.”

  “All things my daughter shouldn’t have to be thinking about.”

  “Daddy. I did sign up for this, remember? You and mom tried to talk me out of it in the driveway. You knew that I was signing up for all of this. Yes, it sounds scarier when it’s actually happening, but I understand why it has to be done. The wives…”

  “Again, with these wives,” my mother sighed.

  “I think everyone needs to take a minute and cool down. Why don’t we all take a breath, walk away, and come back in a couple of minutes?” Gina questioned. She truly sounded like an angel. A voice of reason.

  My father rose from his chair and walked outside, my mother rushing behind him.

  Everyone else just sat there.

  “Are you okay?” Micah signed to me.

  “Not really,” I signed back.

  “Going to share with the class?” Travis asked, looking at me.

  “He was just asking me if I was okay.”

  Travis nodded, and I could see his eyes flicker. He was jealous.

  We finished dinner and dessert without anymore yelling. Everyone was trying to be on their best behavior, but I knew my parents were just waiting for everyone to leave before they shared their thoughts again.

  “You’ll call me as soon as you guys can so we can spend some time together?” Gina asked, hugging Travis tight.

  “Yes ma’am.”

  She nodded, hugged me and shuffled her daughters out the door.

  “We will see you both next week for dinner,” his grandmother insisted.

  “Always,” Travis replied, helping them out the front door.

  “You think they will be okay?” I asked.

  “Yeah, they will still have you around.”

  Micah walked up to us.

  “He asked me to translate for him.” I said to Travis.

  “He says, he is sorry that he can’t communicate well with you, but hopefully one day you two can. He says to be safe and come back in one piece, for my sake.” I laughed through my tears.

  “He says that while you are on leave, he will try to stay out of the way so we can visit with family as much as we can.”

  “Thank you,” Travis smiled, shaking his hand.

  I hugged Micah tight and told him I would text him later.

  My parents didn’t yell anymore. They simply said goodnight and left us to chat with Bri and John.

  “So, you are really going huh?” John asked.

  “Kind of have to.” Travis chuckled. “Hey John, can I talk to you for a minute?”

  “Sure.”

  I watched them walk off out of hearing range.

  “So really, how are you?” Bri questioned.

  “Breaking inside. And sadly, I’m actually mad at myself. I let him in. I let myself fall for him and now I’m losing him.”

  “You aren’t losing him. It will be like when he was in basic training. You will just have to communicate through email, letters, occasional phone calls.”

  “And worry twenty-four/seven about whether or not he’s alive or being shot at.”

  She shrugged. “You’re strong, you’ll power through this.”

  Chapter Ten

  Travis

  Two weeks at home with Elena went faster than I wanted it to. Part of me was interested to see what deployment was like. I was ready to support my unit, but the other part of me was sad to be leaving the woman I love.

  “You leave Tuesday,” Elena whispered to me as we woke that morning.

  I nodded. “I know.”

  “I’m going to miss you something fierce.”

  “You know I’ll be back.”

  She nodded, but her face didn’t agree.

  “How about tonight you and I order in, stay up late and pack? My bags have to be there tomorrow morning.”

  “Sounds good.”

  We still had today to spend the whole day together and I was determined to make the most of it.

  When I got home from running a few errands, Elena was sitting at the kitchen table with a slew of menus scattered all over.

  “What is all this?” I laughed.

  “I drove around to all of the places that deliver to us and got an updated menu. We can pick what we want and never have to leave the house.” She smiled.

>   I walked across the room and pulled her into a kiss. Damn I was going to miss this.

  “What was that for?”

  “For being you. What looks good to you?”

  She shook her head. “You are the one going away, you pick. I can get any of this anytime I want.”

  I nodded and shuffled through the menus before picking one out.

  We placed our order and started gathering everything I needed to pack while we waited for dinner to arrive.

  It seemed like much more once it was all over the living room.

  “You sure you need all of this?”

  “Yep. It’s all on the list.”

  “Alright.”

  I started to fold things exactly right and place them in their spot.

  The doorbell rang and Elena skipped to the door.

  The smell of Chinese food filled the house almost immediately and it smelled amazing.

  We spent the rest of the night eating the mountains of food we bought and finishing up packing my bags. Elena tried hard to put on a brave face the whole night, but I could tell she was breaking inside.

  That night was one from a book. Everything was perfect. She looked beautiful.

  I pulled myself out of bed early the next morning. My stomach twisted as I looked down at her. The sheets barely covered her body and I just wanted to crawl back into bed, pull her close to me and never let go.

  “Morning,” she whispered.

  “Morning.”

  “Do you really have to go to work today?” she questioned.

  “Have to load up the rest of the stuff. But I’ll be home around normal time. We will make another night of it.”

  She nodded.

  “Alright men, tomorrow we roll out. I hope by now you all have your personal stuff squared away. If not, come to me because that shit should have been taken care of months ago. Do not be late tomorrow. Your asses should be at that field earlier rather than later.”

  “Nervous?” Collins asked me as we walked out of the building.

  I shrugged, “I guess so. I think I’m more nervous about leaving Elena. I know she’s used to being alone and I know she handled it fine while I was in basic training, but this is a little different.”

  “Yeah, but she has Kate, and Kate has her. And they have their weird little group of friends. I think she will be okay. You need to get your focus on the unit though.”

  I stopped and turned to face him. “You think I don’t?”

  He got a little closer. “Look man, we all know you are a newlywed and we see it. We see that you love your girl. But you have to admit, your focus these past few weeks has been a little off.”

  “I am one hundred percent committed to this unit!” I growled.

  “And I believe that, but now you need to show everyone else that.”

  I sighed and took a step back. Did I really come off that way?

  I nodded and we continued loading up the rest of the gear.

  When I pulled into my parking spot, Elena was sitting on the front step.

  “Is everything okay?” I questioned, walking up the sidewalk to her.

  She rose and nodded. “I got you a surprise before you leave.”

  I sighed. “I’m not big on surprises.”

  “I know, but this one is really good. Come on.” She extended her hand to me.

  I took it and followed her into the house where everyone waited for me. My grandparents, Gina and the girls, Elena’s parents and siblings.

  “What are you all doing here?”

  “Well since we aren’t coming to see you at the field, we decided to see you tonight.” My mother smiled.

  “You all know I am leaving at two in the morning.”

  They all nodded.

  “We took a nap today. We should be good. Plus, Elena’s parents got us a hotel room in town. So, we are staying the night and we’ll all be here with Elena for a bit tomorrow,” my grandmother explained.

  I looked over to my wife. “You didn’t have to.”

  She shrugged, “We had our night last night. This is your first deployment, I feel like you should get that little bit of time with everyone before you leave, not just me.”

  “Thank you.”

  We spent the night eating more takeout, playing board games, and enjoying the time we had together. Listening to Elena laugh was something I would miss the most, but I knew she would be okay here. She had an amazing support system.”

  “We’ve got to get going,” I said to Elena around midnight.

  She nodded and stood up.

  “Thank you all so much for being here, it means a lot. I’ve got to head to the post.”

  Elena stood back while I said my goodbyes.

  Her parents both hugged me, told me to be safe and that Elena would be well taken care of.

  “You be safe over there you hear me,” my grandmother sniffed.

  “Yes ma’am.”

  “I am so proud of you son,” my grandfather said, pulling me into a hug.

  “You take care of yourself. Write us.” Gina pulled me into a hug. “Don’t worry about Elena, I will be up here as much as I can to check on her,” she whispered in my ear.

  I nodded. “Thank you, mom.”

  That did her in. The tears began to fall as I hugged both girls.

  Elena stood by the door with her purse in her hands.

  “I told Daniel and Kate that we would take them,” I said to her getting within inches from her.

  “We’ll be here when you get back,” Bri said, standing next to her.

  “Thanks,” Elena replied.

  The car ride was quiet.

  “Now what?” Kate whispered as I pulled into a parking spot.

  “We still have a few minutes before Travis and I need to report.”

  We all climbed out of the car. I pulled Elena to the front of the car.

  “I don’t want you to go,” she cried.

  I nodded. “I know.”

  “Come home to me in one piece.”

  “I will.”

  She pulled a letter out of her back pocket. “To start the chain of letters.”

  I took the letter and kissed her for as long as I could. Her body was warm against mine and her hands locked into mine.

  “I love you,” I said pulling back.

  “I love you too.”

  I nodded to Daniel as we both kissed our wives one last time before heading to the field. I wanted to turn around and look at her, but I knew if I did, I would have an even harder time getting onto that plane.

  We gathered in formation and listened to the commander speak before we piled onto the busses and headed to Hunter Army Airfield.

  I pulled out the letter Elena wrote and read through it.

  Travis,

  Where to even start? Things definitely haven’t been as I expected, but here I am. I wouldn’t trade it though. I love you and I believe in you and what you do. Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine. I have plenty of things to keep me busy. Plus, between your family and mine, I don’t think I’m ever going to get alone time now.

  Be safe for me. Keep your head on straight and don’t let your team down. I’ve been trying to save up things to tell you in this letter and now for the life of me I can’t remember a single thing. Guess that means it wasn’t that important, huh?

  I am so damn proud of you though. Proud of what you are doing and what you want in life. You are making a difference and you are doing something not many can do. Oh! Bri and I are going to a concert in a few weeks. I think it will be her turn to babysit me by then. HA!

  Well I don’t have a lot to say right now, except that I love you fiercely.

  Be safe.

  Love always,

  Elena

  “Letter from your girl?” Daniel asked.

  I nodded, folding it back up and shoving it into one of my pockets.

  “I’ve got your back,” he said.

  “Right back at you,” I said to him as I turned my attention to look out the w
indow.

  The plane sucked. The space was horrible. I felt like a sardine stuck in a can. The plane took off and my stomach twisted again. I knew I wasn’t going to be sick, but damn this was not what I thought.

  The ride to Germany was long and sleeping was hard, but manageable. I think almost everyone slept on the flight as best they could.

  “Get up, stretch your legs. You do NOT leave this side of the airport, you understand? We are refueling and then wheels up again!”

  My legs felt like jelly. I was surprised I could even stand after that trip.

  “You alright?” Daniel asked, patting me on the shoulder.

  “Yeah.”

  We didn’t have much time before it was time to buckle up again and head back out. Next stop, Turkey for a short stop before landing in Kuwait.

  We finally got to get off the plane and I was more exhausted from just the flight than anything else. On one hand it was great to get out and stretch my legs knowing I wouldn’t be back on a plane for months, but on the other hand, it was dusty and hot.

  There was still several weeks of training that we needed to do here before we finally got to Iraq.

  “Not what you thought, huh?” one of the guys in our unit said, walking up to Daniel and me.

  “Not really.”

  “You’ll get used to it.”

  I looked at Daniel after he walked away. “Doubtful,” I huffed, lugging the stuff in my arms to where it belonged.

  Moving stuff this heavy in this type of heat had to be a new type of workout.

  ***

  Three weeks in Kuwait felt like three months. We were loading up again and heading to Iraq for however long. I don’t think we even had a time limit on how long we were going to be there.

  I felt more prepared, but I still knew there were going to be many things there that I couldn’t be prepared for in training.

  We were taking the easy way and flying into Iraq which sounded a lot better than driving in. While in Kuwait, I had heard horror stories about when some of the soldiers drove in.

  Chapter Eleven