A Soldier's Life

Chapter 19 - Space Adventure

Y/n's POV:

The car journey back home was quite quiet after the manic day we had just had. Lizzie and Scarlett were in the double seat up front whilst Ava, Sophie and I were in the back. Ava's car seat making it a tight squeeze. Ava and Sophie had fallen asleep within minutes of the car driving off. I would have been the same if my head wasn't currently throbbing. There was a bit of small talk, but we were all fighting off sleep.

"The three of us should have dinner one night. I could cook." Lizzie spoke up, stifling a yawn. "I wouldn't say no. You make the best food." Scarlett answered almost drooling at the thought. "What about you Y/n? Dinner and wine?" Lizzie asked turning around in her seat to face me. "Yeah sure, that would be nice." I responded, giving a smile in return. "Yay! Oh, I can't wait for us to hang out!" Lizzie grinned through her tired state.

Eventually we turned up at my apartment block. I gently woke up Ava and Sophie to let them know that we're home. Lizzie was also passed out asleep, but we decided to leave her be, not wanting to disturb her. The driver helped us unload our belongings and I gave him a thanks as he returned to the car. I grabbed the pile of presents and balanced them in my arms whilst Sophie grabbed out bags and cool box.

I instructed Ava to stay close as neither Sophie nor I had a spare hand to hold on to. As we started walking, I looked around to find Ava but she wasn't by my side. I looked up and saw that Scarlett was following us, Ava in her arms.

As I was opening the door, I realised this was the first time that Scarlett was in my apartment and nerves started to fill me. We walked in and I placed the pile of presents on the coffee table and took the cooler off Sophie before putting it away in the kitchen.

Scarlett was hovering in the doorway with a sleepy Ava in her arms, clearly not sure what to do with her. I internally chuckled to myself, feeling slightly better that I obviously wasn't the only one that was nervous. "Ava, say goodbye to Scarlett so she can head home." I said, gently rubbing her back. Ava lifted her head and rubbed her eyes, noticing that she was in Scarlett's arms.

"Goodbye Scarly, thank you for my presents and party" She said hugging her tightly around her neck. "I'm glad you enjoyed your birthday. I had fun too. Sleep well my little widow." Scarlett replied, reciprocating the hug. "Here, I'll take her." Sophie said walking over to take Ava. "It was lovely to see you again Scarlett. Come on Ava, lets go get ready for our space adventure." Sophie said walking away to Ava's bedroom.

Scarlett and I both stood in the hallway of my apartment in a slightly awkward silence, which I decided to break. "Thank you for all that you did to make today so special. We had a fantastic day and I bet Ava can't wait to tell all her friends at school on Monday." I gratefully said. Scarlett smiled and moved towards me. "I was glad to be able to help. I've not had this much fun for a while." She responded, making eye contact with me.

There we were back in that awkward silence again. I could tell that Scarlett wanted to say something. Her eyes were flicking around the place as she thought before breaking the silence. "Y/n, if you ever need anything, or just want to talk, I'm here. I know there's not much I can do to help, but I'm a good listener. You don't ever have to be embarrassed around me." Scarlett offered with a soft and caring voice.

I dropped my gaze to my feet briefly. Other than Sophie, I don't really talk about my PTSD and even then, I don't like to worry her. But I felt comfortable with Scarlett. "Thanks Scarlett, that means a lot. I may just take you up on that one day." I said, raising my head and giving her a smile.

"Please do." She whispered before pulling me into a hug. "We need to arrange that dinner night soon or Lizzie won't stop going on about it, so I'll text you ok?" She stated to which I nodded in reply. She pulled away from the hug and I felt cold no longer in her arms. "Goodnight Y/n." Scarlett turned to the door, and I followed, standing in the doorway. "Goodnight to you too. Text me when you're home safe." I responded with a closed mouth smile.