I stood at the airport, my hand tightly gripping the bunch of flowers I'd been holding since I got here. My eyes were scanning the arrivals board, hoping to see that he would be arriving on the next flight. After what felt like forever, the flight number jumped to the top of the list and I felt my heart speed up as I turned my attention to the door where he'd be coming from.
Scores of people poured through, some busy on their phones, others looking for loved ones who were, like me, waiting somewhat impatiently. I began bouncing on my toes in excitement and I could no longer hide the smile as I saw a few of his fellow soldiers come through the doors. In moments, I could see his dark floppy hair and his goofy grin as he laughed at his companion's joke. Staying silent, I watched as he scanned the crowd, still laughing but clearly looking for me. When his eyes met mine, an impossibly bigger smile crossed his face and he quickened his pace. His companion was confused for a moment until suddenly I was in his arms, my face pressed against his chest.
"I missed you." He whispered to me.
"I missed you." I agreed before stretching up on my toes to press my lips against his in a feverish kiss.
"Jacob." He reluctantly broke apart from me and turned towards the person who'd spoken.
"Tyler."
"It's been an honour to serve with you." When Jacob was silent for a moment, I looked up, searching his face.
"And you. We'll keep in touch." It was so formal. I wondered what had happened between them but I knew that it wasn't the right time to ask. Instead, I wove my fingers through Jacob's and turned to face his friend.
"Welcome home. Enjoy being with your family." I said and the man smiled.
"Thanks. I will." He turned away and headed towards the exit doors. As soon as he was out of sight, Jacob relaxed again and pulled me close.
"Are those for me?" He asked, pointing to the forgotten flowers that I was still holding.
"Oh. Yes, they are. Beautiful flowers for my beautiful man." I smiled, handing them over and kissing him again. "I'm so happy you came back to me in one piece. Every time the phone rang, my heart dropped a thousand feet."
"I'm careful. I don't go running aimlessly through fields." He laughed and stooped to pick up the bag he'd dropped, tossing it over his shoulder and draping his free arm around my shoulders as he guided me towards the parking garage.
"Are you jet-lagged?"
"Nope. I slept most of the flight and woke up about seven, home time. Why?"
"Just wanted to know if I can actually spend time with you today or if you wanted to sleep." I laid my head against his shoulder as we stepped out into the warm October sunshine. We'd only taken a few steps before time seemed to stop and everything began to go in slow motion.
Loud bangs echoed around us and I heard people start screaming. Confused, I looked around, trying to figure out what was happening. I spotted a black car driving by just as Jacob turned in front of me to shield me with his body but it didn't hide the long, silver gun being held out of one of the windows. I let out a scream as both Jacob and I fell to the ground. At first, I thought he'd pushed me but when I felt something warm beginning to spread across my chest, coming through my shirt, I realised he'd been hit.
"Jacob. Jake, please." I was sobbing, trying to push him off me so I could help but he wasn't responding, just lying there. "Please, Jacob."
I don't know how long it was before the shots went silent and the only sounds were the sobs and screams of the people around me. Everyone was rushing all over the place, no-one seemed to have a plan. Eventually, someone pulled Jacob off of me and I was left breathing heavy, trying to calm myself. When I finally looked up, I saw that a couple of paramedics were working on my boyfriend, one of them pressing on his chest, doing CPR while the other was trying to stop the wound in his stomach from bleeding. Suddenly I heard a crack and sat up, scrambling over to sit by Jacob's head, my hands pressed to his cheeks.
