Sense of A Spark

We finished lunch, and were now washing, drying, and putting the dishes away. "Lunch was great, babe," I said, handing Chase the last plate to rinse, dry, and put away. He smiled at me, those green eyes shining brightly. His bruises were gone and he was fully healed, he was just trying to get his balance back from the three months of immobilization.

"Thanks. I try to make sure you're happy," he replied, putting the plate in the cabinet. Walking over to me, he wrapped his arms around my neck and just stood there, snuggling against me. I wrapped my arms around him, grateful that he was here with me now ... here in my arms. As we stood there, embraced, I felt whole again ... alive again.

We pulled apart, and I remembered the note that I had gotten from Specs, who was now on the back of the sofa, watching us curiously. Opening the note, I read it, and laughed. "What? What does it say?" Chase asked, leaning over the note and reading it. "What does that mean?"

"It means what it says," I replied, this time looking back at the owl and laughing. It was then I realized the day I got the phone call where no one answered on the other end. "Shit! It is time to gear up! I completely forgot about it!" I said, jogging back to the storage room. "Chase! Get back here!" I yelled, almost immediately hearing his quick footsteps. "Go to the closet. Find the gear that fits," I said, grabbing my bulletproof vest and helmet. I covered all the necessary areas with protection, grabbing my paint ball gun and two bag fulls of multi-colored paint balls.

"What's going on? Why are we dressing up in this?" he asked, curious and scared. I looked over at him and smiled. He was dressed already and waiting for me to hand out directions.

"It's a war. A paint ball war, and we got to get going," I said, filling up another gun and handing it to him along with a bag of balls. "Shit. I forgot."

"Forgot what?" Chase asked, his gun strap across his shoulder.

"Are you feeling up for this? Is your balance good enough? Are you sore anywhere that this 'war' might cause a problem?" I asked, my questions firing like mad.

"Yes, yes, and yes," he said, smiling brightly. "Stop worrying so much. I'm indestructible." At that, he flexed his arms. I smiled and tossed him a helmet, watching him with caution. After he was set, we headed out the back door.

Once we hit the dirt in the back, I motioned him to hunker down a little, watch every angle with a good eye. I whistled, watching Specs take off. "Can you hear me good?" I said into the mike that was in my helmet.

"Crystal," Chase replied. I nodded and motioned him forward, reminding him to stay low. After hitting the woods, I motioned him to go stand by a tree on the other side. "Are we waiting for someone?" he asked, not taking his eyes on the path.

"Yeah. There is four others," I said, watching the surrounding woods. "You know the tune for Arabian Nights from Aladdin?" I asked.

"Of course. That's my movie!" he said, causing me to smile. I nodded.

"When you hear it, I want you to go till you get to a clearing. If there are others there with black helmets, you need to enter quickly. If they're red helmets, stay hidden."

"Got it," he replied. We were waiting for the whistle, not exchanging any words. After about ten minutes, there was a tune invading the quiet. It was the other team's call. "Under the Sea? Really?" he asked, laughing lightly.

"One of the other team members of our group has a daughter. She picked our whistles. She's about six years old," I said, smiling. Five more minutes passed before our tune was heard. "Go! Go! GO!" I said, running deeper into the woods.

Chase stayed hot on my heels, though he kept a good space between us. We heard a few shots and paused, but just for a moment. Hearing the hoot of Specs, I looked up as I started walking, following the path the he was flying. "Come on, Chase. Keep up."

Getting to the clearing, I saw the black helmets of our group. Grabbing Chase, I walked to the center. "Guys, and girls, we got a newbie. Go over the strategy with him. I'll search the grounds."

At that, I left Chase with the others. This .... was .... war. And I wasn't about to let Chase get obliterated so quickly in it.