Meredith and Emilia were waiting for me at the airport. A month passed and I finished my contract working for the hospital in Iraq. My false hope of Danny returning before I left, vanished. Leaving Doctor Diaz and Lori was so hard for me. I had made a new family and I was completely devastated when I finished my last shift. Doctor Diaz made every single staff member write comforting goodbye wishes on a card along with a party in the break room. We promised each other we would all reunite on a vacation trip somewhere in the States, one day.
The plane starts to descend and I grip the arm wrests as I feel my stomach float into my chest. Anxiety makes my heart palpitate as I internally plead for the plane to land safely. But I’m immediately reminded of Danny challenging my worst fear. Flying. The memories of Danny fucking me while I sat on him, unstrapped, loom in my head. He challenged my fears in ways that made me forget about it. I don’t fear flying anymore. I loosen my grip on the armrests.
The plane lands without any of my delusional thoughts coming true. The sound of loud rumbles from the plane vibrates into my ears and I’m celebrating a safe plane ride.
I hadn’t heard from him since he left which he told me was going to be normal. We couldn’t communicate with each other so I patiently waited for his call or text. He reassured me his safe return but I took it with a grain of salt. My brother always reassured my mom and me, yet we were burying him a few months later after he left.
I fiddle with the new bracelet on my wrist. A red bracelet with a cowgirl boot jewel in the center. A gift from Violet before she was sent home. She thanked me for my kindness, patience, and willingness to listen to her. Bonding with her solidified I was doing more than just being a nurse… I’m a healer and I will forever hold Violet dear to my heart.
Most nights were sleepless, between the constant worries for Danny’s safety and even Damon’s return. I hoped Danny and his team would successfully bring Damon back home to Violet every day. It had been a month already with no word or updates from him so I knew the mission is still on.
Violet’s and Damon’s story was all over the news. Her name had occupied the national news at home for weeks and it had just recently died down. It felt wrong to leave Iraq and Danny. Knowing I was farther away from him, worried me. I couldn’t imagine how Violet was feeling. It didn’t compare. Violet and I exchanged numbers before she left. I made sure she knew that she could reach out to me whenever she felt like it.
I’m off the plane, carrying my backpack. Walking into an American airport felt so good. It felt great to be home. I went overseas fragile and came back an entirely different person. I was changed in such a short amount of time but I felt like it was a good thing.
The airport in my town was small but it was surprisingly packed with people arriving and departing. I had to go to baggage claim before anything else.
I’m walking through the airport, passing by restaurants and gift shops when something catches my eye. It’s Emilia, Harry, and Meredith. They’re holding a poster with my name on it,
Welcome Home To Our Favorite Nurse
My eyes widen when I realize what it says. I clear my throat and my chest tightens. I’ve missed them so much.
I walk faster as Emilia and Meredith head my way, running. Harry is left with the poster in his hands and he’s laughing at how excited Emilia is. The girls and I embrace and I’m hugging them as nostalgia hits. I missed my close circle of friends.
‘Ari! We’ve missed you so much,’ Emilia exclaims, backing up.
‘Dude I’ve missed you too much! You came back just in time, I have this thing growing on my ass and I need you to tell me if I’m dying or not.’ Meredith jokes and I’m rolling my eyes at her.
‘I’m a nurse, not a doctor, go see a dermatologist, you nasty ass.’ I shove her gently, giggling.
We reach Harry and we exchange greetings. Harry is tall, Filipino, and the sweetest man I’ve ever met. He’s so good to Emilia. The way he treats her is how every woman should be treated. He was so gentle and romantic.
‘Ari, it’s nice to see you come back in one piece,’ Harry says, handing me my luggage. I’m not surprised they grabbed my luggage for me. I was lucky to have them as my group of friends.
‘So, I already made plans for us tomorrow night, we’re going drinking. The same bar we always go to.’ Meredith claps her hands together, excited.
‘All I wanna do right now is see my mom. You guys are more than welcome to join.’ The girls agree and Harry offers to drop us all off at my house. He had some work to finish up at home. The best thing about his job was being able to work remotely and on his own schedule.
The distance from the airport to my house is about half an hour. Meredith catches me up on her life since I’ve been gone. Emilia expressed to me how stressed she’s been the past few weeks due to her wedding.
We get to my mother’s house and I’m eager to walk in. I rush getting out of the car and I can already smell my mom’s delicious cooking from outside. Homemade enchiladas fill my nostrils. My stomach rumbles and my mouth waters. It’s one of my favorite recipes.
I walk into my house flinging the door open, with Meredith and Emilia trailing me. The sun is setting and it’s around eight at night. I find my mother preparing the utensils for all four of us on the table with a napkin.
Her eyes circle and she’s smiling as she sees me. It looked like she had aged a couple more years since I’d been gone and immediate guilt follows. My mother was never the type of person to constantly check on me. She was a woman of faith. Instead of calling and texting me every day when I was gone, she spent her days going to church, praying for me. That’s what she did for Paul and now she did it for me.
‘Mija! You’re home! Finally!’ She brings me into a hug and I can feel her radiant with happiness.
I squeeze her.
‘I know Ma. I’ve missed you so much. I’m home! Thank you so much for making me my favorite.’ I held back tears as my mother greeted my friends. We all sit down at the table. My mother, of course, fought my pleas to help her serve everyone. I wanted to make sure she sat down to eat before I did. My mother always made sure that everyone else was taken care of before herself.
I was telling my mom about Violet and more interesting medical cases I worked on. The surgeries I assisted in such as saving Rooker’s life. She listened with open ears, her eyes glistening with pride.
She begins to cry as I finish telling her about Rooker. The last time I checked on him, he was getting ready to go back to his team.
‘Paul is so proud of you. As am I. Nunca lo dudes.’
Don’t ever doubt that.
I nod, swallowing the tightness in my throat. Stopping myself from breaking into a hot mess. I didn’t want this to turn into a night of tears.
‘So again, you reunite with the hot Navy SEAL guy overseas? What a crazy-ass coincidence. I’m convinced it’s fate…’ Meredith says.
Meredith pauses grabbing her water before continuing, I kick her knee, clearing my throat. My mother doesn’t like it when we use curse words in the house. Meredith catches my signal and nods apologetically.
‘Or he’s your stalker.’ Emilia shrugs and I shake my head.
‘Danny? Paul’s friend?’ My mother asks, getting up from her chair, and collecting my plate.
‘Yes…’ I say as I clean my hands with a napkin. I didn’t want to talk about Danny around my mother. I was afraid she would catch onto my true feelings for the man and read me so easily. I’m hoping she won’t be able to unveil that I had sex. Sex before marriage was a huge sin, according to my mother. If she found out, I would literally die inside. The way she views me was so important to me. The relationship we have is everything to me. I’ve never wanted to disrespect or disappoint her but for the past few months, I’ve been doing everything she would disown me for.
My cheeks are flaming hot and I’m sucking on my bottom lip. I was in my fucking twenties for God’s sake but she treated me otherwise. My mom’s view on raising me is so contradicting. She wanted me to be independent but also wanted me to know that I was going to need her, always.
‘He’s a very handsome man. I was wondering where these Tulips came from. They were at the front door this morning.’ My mom says walking away to the kitchen with all of our plates in her hand. She drops them in the sink, grabbing a dozen tulips that were on the kitchen counter. They were hiding behind a fruit basket.
Confusion and bliss excite me. How did Danny manage to pull this off? I hadn’t told him my favorite flowers, were tulips. He must have picked someone’s brain about me.
My mom hands them to me and Emilia and Meredith start cooing and making kissing noises. I roll my eyes at them blushing, rushing to smell the flowers, and my mind travels to Iraq. This was so nice and unlike him.
‘And there’s a card. But I didn’t open it. Here you go.’
There’s a single blank small card folded in half. It’s white and I’m hesitant to open it. Knowing what I know now about Danny, I’m afraid to open it. This man was dirty and I loved it. I’m afraid of what kind of lustful words await me. My mother hovers around my shoulder, I peek over to her and she holds up her hands, surrendering.
‘Okay okay, I’m leaving.’ She says retreating back to her chair. I chuckle and open it. Meredith and Emilia were across from me rolling over in laughter, anticipating my reaction to the note.
I open it and I immediately frown. My chest tightens, my throat aches, and I’m swallowed with fear.
Here are some flowers for getting deflowered
See You Soon
Ari Cakes
“What in the fucking creepy shit is that?” Meredith shrieks, holding the card in her hand. We’re in my bedroom getting ready to sleep. I begged them to stay the night to keep my mom and I company. The more people in my house, the better. Harry brought Emilia pajamas and Meredith was borrowing some of mine.
So many questions erupt one after another. My head throbs from the stress, and nausea starts to get the best of me. My stomach feels like it’s burning with acidity. I feel sick. How couldn’t I with Shanes’ threat? I made a police report right after reading the card.
The policeman that came to investigate was so condescending. He kept downplaying my situation. I told them about the number of incidents starting from my toxic relationship, the bar fight, when my room was vandalized, and now this threatening note.
Either way, he filed my complaint. He mentioned something that set me off. When the cop looked into Shane Mitchell, we found out that he was classified as a deserter in the Marines. Deserting his job was against the Uniformed Code of Military Justice. He stopped showing up to work when he returned home. The military police were looking for him, so this was one useful tip that could lead to his arrest.
That information only made me even more sick. What was going on through Shane’s head? He was really losing it. Why hasn’t he moved on from me? Why was he more motivated than ever to scare me?
The walls are spinning and I can feel my dinner rising in my throat. I feel the unsafest I’ve ever been. Paul isn’t here anymore and Danny… Danny’s halfway across the world, and I feel helpless.
“See you soon, like what is that? A threat?” Emilia adds, getting comfortable on my air mattress.
“It’s been a long time since we’ve broken up. I don’t get it.” I swallow, laying on the left side of the bed.
“Okay but… are we also just going to move past the part where he’s accusing you of losing your virginity? Because I’m sure my best friend would have told us something like that. So he must be lying.” Meredith raises an eyebrow at me, as she sits at my feet.
“I’m going to be sick.”
Instantly, I’m hyperventilating. Questions about my sex life, and now after remembering the horrid abuse I endured at Shane’s hands. I had refused to report him to the police before because I believed at one point in our lives, he was good. I cared about him deeply at one point and that always stopped me from running to the police. Our history.
I couldn’t handle my upset stomach any more. I take off running towards my restroom. It’s attached to the other side of my room making it an easy trip. I lift the toilet seat up and I’m vomiting.
