Everlong

11

The alarm on my watch started beeping as I was reading my book. I glanced at it and got excited when I realized that it was 6 pm my time, 10 am their time. I threw my book down and ran to the computer, turning it on. Soon I heard the sound of the skype call asking me to accept. I did and came face to face with the loves of my life.

"Mommy!" My beautiful children yelled from their father's lap. I saw the glimmer in Brian's eyes when he saw me. I started to tear up.

"Hi, babies!" I cried. All I wanted was to have them in my arms. 6 months is a long time. We talked for a while and then Brian sent them off to go play. They told me their goodbyes and I cried when Jack cried and told me he loved me. I watched the twins run away to their room and Brian turned back to look at me.

"How's everything going with the twins?" I asked him. 

"Good, it's nice having them here all the time. They definitely miss their mom. I do too." He smiled at me when he said the last part. "How's it going over there?"

"It's good, we have a couple days off before we go out for a 2-week tour. I have some good news though, I have some time off to come surprise the twins for their birthday." Brian's entire face lit up.

"You're coming home?" 

"Just for a few days. They need me here, but my babies come first. Please promise me that you'll keep it a secret." I pretty much begged him. 

"Of course I'll keep it a secret. Hey, 'Brina. I don't know if I've said this enough to you, but you are an amazing mother and we are all very proud of you for what you're doing. I'm speaking for the guys and myself on this part when I say that none of us would have the guts to go fight for our country. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. You're a goddamn hero." I wiped away the tears that were flowing down my face. 

"Thank you, Brian. It really means a lot to me, especially coming from you." We said our goodbyes shortly after and I turned off the webcam. I went back to my cot, laid down and cried. I missed them so much, it broke my heart every time I had to say goodbye. But in just a few weeks, they were going to be in my arms again.

My stomach was in butterflies and I felt like I was going to throw up. My plane had just touched down into New York. I'm beyond exhausted, my trip from Iraq to here was 12 1/2 hours long. But I was so unbelievably happy and excited. As I walked through the airport, people kept stopping me and thanking me for my service. That was something I never got used to, even when I served almost 10 years ago. The closer I got to baggage, the more excited I got. I don't know who was all going to be there. I knew the twins weren't going to be there though, we were going to surprise them at home. They were too smart and would've figured it out if Brian had brought them to the airport. As I went down the escalator to baggage, I saw them. Sal, Joe, Murr, and most importantly, Brian. Joe had a huge sign that said 'Welcome home Sabrina!" on it. I felt tears roll down my cheek as I ran into Brian's arms. He picked me up and spun me around, hugging me as tight as he could. He didn't want to let me go. When Brian let go of me, I was pulled into Sal's arms, and then Joe's, and then finally Murr's. 

"Let's get you home to our children," Brian whispered into my ear as we were all standing around talking. 

When we got to Brian's house, I was jumping up and down in my seat. He pulled into the driveway and I opened my door as fast as I could. I went to his front door and waited for the guys to catch up. Brian just chuckled at how excited I was. He opened the front door and I could hear my babies playing. 

"Daddy!" They yelled and came running for the door. That's when they saw me. 

"MOMMY!" They screamed at the tops of their lungs and came rushing into my arms. I kissed their little faces about a million times each and held them as close and tight as I could. They were crying and hugging me back. My heart was full again. When I finally let them go, they grabbed my hands and led me to their play area. When I looked back at the guys to laugh, Brian had tears rolling down his face. Joe was putting a comforting hand on his shoulder. Alice gave me a doll to play with and we played for hours.

After I had gotten the twins down for bed, I met everyone downstairs in the living room. We sat around, drank, laughed, and caught up. I looked at the clock on the wall and it read that it was 1 am. Everyone was feeling tired, so they said goodnight to us. I turned to Brian after everyone left. 

"I could stay somewhere else, I don't have to stay here." Brian looked at me like I was crazy.

"No, you're staying here." And that was that. 

"Where's April?" 

"We're on a break right now. She thought that she was ready for marriage and to be a stepmom. But once we got Alice and Jack fulltime, she realized that she couldn't handle it. I told her that my kids come first and that I won't marry her if she can't accept that. She said she just needs some time to think."

"I'm really sorry Brian. I didn't think that I would cause a wedge between you two."

"Sabrina, I don't want you to ever apologize. There is nothing to be sorry about. You're doing one of the most selfless things ever. It's better that I know now, then if I were to marry her and had any more kids with her." I nodded and he took a swig of his beer. 

"You think about having more kids?" He turned and looked at me and thought for a moment.

"Yes. But not with her." My heart skipped a beat.