Danger Line

Matt barely held on to the house phone. His mind was doing so many spins he was getting dizzy. Martin’s voice seemed so far away, like it was a dream. He placed his hand on a wall to keep himself steady.

“Matt is everything all right?” Penelope’s voice was the same as Martin’s, far away.

“When is she coming home?” His voice low and barely recognizable.

“Tomorrow afternoon at the LAX Gate 32.”

“So soon?”

“Yes, I know it’s sudden. You have Damien ready at ten in the morning.”

“Yes, sir,” he replied and put the phone back to the cradle.

It took him a couple of seconds to turn back to Penelope. What was he supposed to tell her? The truth, he supposed. But, right after they kissed? He had to tell her what was going on. She was worried about him.

“That was Martin, Kari’s dad,” he began. “She’s alive. Kari is alive and she’s coming home tomorrow afternoon.”

Her eyes went big, and he saw a flash of disappointment and then a bit of hurt before she masked it happiness.

“Oh, Matt, that’s… that’s a miracle!” she said. “How?”

“I’m not really sure,” he ran a hand through his hair. “I’m in a bit of shock, so whatever Martin told me just didn’t register. All I know is that she’s coming home.”

**

Kari’s Point of View

“Mrs. Sanders,” someone shook my shoulder and I snapped open my eyes and looked at the flight attendant. “We’re almost at Los Angeles, I just thought I’d let you know.”

I straightened up in my seat with a polite smile. “Thank you. How long before we land?”

“About half an hour,” she replied.

“Thanks,” I said again and the flight attendant walked away. I let out a small breath. I turned to my right and shook Eli’s shoulder. “We’re about to arrive home in half an hour.”

Eli opened his eyes much like I had. He blinked, rubbed his eyes and turned to me.

“Really?” his voice was raspy from the sleep.

“Yes.”

He smiled. “So it wasn’t a dream like the many I used to have?”

“It’s real,” I bit my lower lip. My eyes watered, but nothing would fall. “Goddamn it!” I cursed softly.

“Hey, don’t force yourself,” Eli placed his hand on top of mine. “When you’re ready they’ll come down. I’m sure when you see Damien you’ll be crying so much you’ll wish you could stop again.”

I chuckled. “You better be right.”

“And,” he added, “when you see your husband, you are going to kiss him until you can’t breathe.”

“Do you think if he sees the…” I didn’t finish it, but he knew what I was talking about.

“If he loves you, like you’ve told me he does, then it won’t matter. He’ll love you no matter what.”

“Eli,” I smiled at him, “you always know what to say.”

“I know,” he grinned.

How he managed to stay so upbeat after what we’ve been through was a bigger even more miracle than being rescued.

Fifteen minutes later the light for the seat belt turned on. With shaky hands I pulled it on. I closed my eyes and held on tightly to Eli’s hand.

“We’re here, Kari,” Eli told me.

I opened my eyes again and watched as people were getting up and getting their things. I took off the belt and got up. I got my bag and walked with Eli all the way.

He saw his family first. His mom and dad and some cousins, aunts and uncles. I hugged him tightly.

“You have my house number, right?” I asked him.

He tapped his temple. “Duh, I’ll call soon.”

We went our separate ways. I shifted the strap of the bag as I looked around for my family. I licked my lips and watched all of the other people. I was in my uniform, so I would not be hard to find.

I had imagined this moment for the past two years.

“Mommy!” a voice that filled my heart with pure joy and happiness.

I turned around and saw Damien. He was so big. I saw him run towards me and I crouched down and he went into my arms and Eli was right. All I needed was to hold my son in my arms and I would start to cry again.

I cried and hugged my little boy tightly.

“I missed you, mommy,” Damien said into my chest.

“I missed you too,” I told him back.

I pulled Damien away from the embrace to take a good look at him. So much like Matt.

“Kari,” Matt’s voice came.

I looked up and saw my husband. I picked up Damien in my arms. Matt and I were face to face for the first time in two years. He looked so different. Not physically, he was still that big buff guy I fell in love with over ten years ago, but there was something about his eyes that seemed different. I began to wonder just how different I looked to Matt. My hair was shorter. I wasn’t ready to let him know why though.

His hazel eyes looked at my face. He placed his arms around me like I was made of crystal and he didn’t want to hurt me. I let him hold me, and I inhaled his signature cologne. I let out another shaky breath.

Please don’t let it be a dream, I begged to whatever God was above us. I wouldn’t be able to take it if I woke up back in that shit hole and realize it had all been a dream… again.

I tightened my single arm around Matt. If it was a dream, I didn’t want to let go.

“Kari,” Matt breathe my name and it sent chills all over my body, “I’m so happy you’re back. You have no idea how happy.”

We pulled away from the embrace. I still had Damien in my arms as my parents came to me and hugged me. My mother gave me a thousand pecks on the cheek and my father hugged me tightly. I never put Damien down. I gave him a thousand pecks on the cheek like my mother had on me.

I was really happy, yet it all felt so weird. I couldn’t put my finger on what was weird, but there was something different in the atmosphere. I pushed it away because I didn’t want to ruin the reunion. I had my family back, and that was all that mattered.

Matt was at my side and took my bag immediately from the floor. I could see the sparkle in his hazel eyes. He truly was happy to have me back. We went to the Expedition, the same one we owned two years ago. My eyes watered in delight when I inhaled the familiar smell of the truck.

I put Damien in his car seat and continued to talk to him. He told me all about his life. How he had a lot of friends, games, and how much he liked his kindergarten teacher Ms. Penny. I felt Matt’s eyes on my whenever there was a red-light or a stop sign.

I was so nervous when we arrived at the house. There was only a few differences. There was no more garden. I had kept a garden in the front, but it was now gone. The color of the window frames went from brown to a reddish color.

It was only slight differences, but to me it felt like Matt might as well have painted the whole house pink or something. I wasn’t mad. It just bothered me a bit, and for no reason, but I wasn’t going tell him. There were minor differences.

My parents had followed us and we walked to the house. My mom rubbed my back gently when she noticed my hesitance. Damien pulled my hand.

“I wanna show you my room, mommy. It’s best room in the whole world!” my little boy exclaimed.

I laughed lightly and let him pull me inside of our home. Inside, everything was the same. Not a single picture had moved, though there were some new ones about Damien playing baseball and other things like karate.

I followed Damien upstairs and took in all of the familiar sights. His room had changed. There was a car bed to the right end of the room. A carpet in the middle of the room that had a bunch of toys lying around. There was a small TV and an X-Box there as well.

We sat down on the carpet and he showed all of his toys. I was more content just being with him. I had lost two years of seeing him grow up. His hair was longer, and his speech had gotten better, of course. He was a bright kid. He sang his ABC’s perfectly and when I gave him a couple of easy math problems like 10 plus 12, he would answer ten seconds later. A bright child.

Two light knocks brought my attention to the door.

“Your uncles are here, Damien,” Matt said with a grin on his face.

Damien’s face lit up. “Uncle Jimmy! Come on, mommy! It’s Uncle Jimmy!” The boy ran out of the room like a rocket.

I laughed a little and sat up. Matt quickly came to my aid and helped me. I was still aching and I had to be the jetlag. The time difference was very significant. Over it was midnight and here it was the afternoon. There was a huge difference.

Matt pulled me into another embrace. I wrapped my arms around him and rested my chin on his shoulder.

“I love you so much,” he whispered.

“I love you too,” I answered. He pulled far enough for us to kiss.

At first I didn’t respond because I was surprised and shocked by how good it felt, but then I slowly got into the kiss. It was slow. He was being careful, and I appreciated that. I took it slow too. I wanted to taste him first, so I slipped my tongue past his lips.

His taste made my eyes water, in a good way. It was like I was breathing correctly since the day I got into that plane and left my boys.

Several minutes later we broke the kiss to look at each other.

Our breathing was labored and I could feel the passion radiating off of him. I suddenly had a flashback and it made me step back away from Matt. I saw concern in his eyes, and a bit of hurt, but it was mostly concern.

“I’m going to change… did you keep any of my clothes?” a question I never thought I would ask. I half expected him to tell me that he donated everything, but he nodded his head.

“It’s in the garage, I’ll go get it.”

“Tell the guys I’ll be down once I’m done showering.”

He forced a smile. “Of course.”

He left the room and I did too. I went to our bedroom and I stood in the middle of the room and did a full circle. Again, I took in the small changes. Different sheets, curtains and some pictures were taken down or replaced.

Matt came back. “I got these cleaned this morning. There’s some underwear in there too.”

“Thank you,” I smiled, but I knew it didn’t reach my eyes.

His eyes scanned my body and even through the uniform anyone could tell I had lost a lot of weight.

“I have belts if you need some,” he always knew what I was thinking.

It was one of the reasons I married him.

“Thanks,” I said and dug in the box and took out a pair of jeans and a shirt. I smiled. “The shirt you bought me to our first date. I think I’ll wear it.”

Matt grinned widely. He closed the space between us and placed his lips on top of mine. It was so soft that it felt like a feather. I let out a small sigh of content. I missed him so much.

“I’ll be downstairs with the others.”

“Okay, I won’t take long. I promise.”