I'll Be Back

In The Army Now

"Oh how we've suffered in all this.
Psapfo.... I swear I go unwillingly."

- Sappho 'To A Friend Gone, Remember'

//

"Aden! You better hurry up or i'll leave without you!" Lisa Manoban calls upstairs. The smell of pancakes and eggs wafts through the home. The sound of the radio playing low in the kitchen and the TV volume up slightly higher in the living room. TV shows and movies put on the back burner in every household across the United States for different news programs. Lisa hears a muffled response and is satisfied. She makes her way into the kitchen where her wife of ten years is making scrambled eggs. Jennie is dressed in her nurses scrubs, having just arrived home from the night shift. Her hair thrown up in a messy bun, tired eyes and a tired smile as she hums a tune.

"I dread our sons teenage years." Lisa says as she takes a seat at the island where her half eaten plate still sits.

Jennie chuckles. "Like mother like son. No one can be as prompt as you."

Lisa rolls her eyes. "I'm glad you find it amusing that our son has inherited your penitence of late-ness." Just then, the son in question emerges bouncing off the walls. He hops into the stool next to Lisa. Jennie sets his plate in front of him as Lisa helps fix his light brunette hair. Light cat eyes meet Lisa's doe and he gives his mom a sheepish small smile. He then begins eating his breakfast.

"Mama, when the fair comes in a few months, can we go?" Aden asks in-between mouthfuls.

"Yeah, i'm sure we can spare a day to go to the fair." Lisa says and sips her coffee as she gives Jennie a wink. Jennie smiles and then turns her attention to Aden.

"Did you clean your room like I asked you to yesterday?" Jennie asks the young 8 year old. He nods.

"Yes m'am." His response is the product of Lisa. He is their biological child. Jennie and Lisa had grown up together in their small picturesque town of Polis, Virginia. They didn't begin dating until High School though. Married by eighteen, they went off to college together, Lisa getting her teaching degree and Jennie getting her nursing license. When they were twenty they decided to have a baby. Lisa went through a procedure to have some of her bone marrow extracted so it could be used to grow sperm cells. It had become a common practice for lesbian couples in recent years, giving them a chance to have biological children. Their result was Aden, nine months later. He mostly looks like Jennie, but acts and imitates Lisa. His light brunette tresses are all Lisa though. Lisa and Jennie were currently in the process of trying for another child, the lab having stored the unused sperm cells for the future.

"Alright, you done?" Lisa asks Aden. He nods and gets up from the stool. "Grab the keys and wait for me in the car, I gotta grab some tests." Aden snatches the keys and is out the door. Lisa moves over to Jennie to give her a hug and a kiss on the mouth.

"Have fun at summer school." Jennie says. Lisa smiles and nods then furrows her brow.

"Make sure you get some sleep. I'm sorry I won't be at the appointment today."

Jennie shakes her head. "Don't worry about it. It's not the most romantic thing in the world."

"Well I hope it takes, regardless. I'll romance you tonight to make up for it." Lisa smirks and Jennie chuckles as she leans in for another kiss. They break apart and Lisa grabs her bag and walks out of the kitchen towards their front door that's still wide open from Aden's hasty exit. "I'll see you later!" Lisa calls out one last time before exiting the home. Aden is sitting in the driver seat of her car, pretending to drive it with the door wide open. She grabs him and picks him up and he squeals.

"Sir, I don't think you're old enough to drive." Lisa mocks seriousness. Aden giggles as Lisa continues holding him and opening the back passenger door to place him in his booster seat. He buckles himself up and Lisa hands him her bag to set on the seat next to him. She gives him a quick kiss on the cheek and shuts the door before climbing into the driver seat. They back down the driveway and begin their short drive to the middle school.