A Soldier in Love (15 page)

“Come here,” he said
gently pulling her into his arms. He reveled in her soft feminine body pressed
against his,
God, this feels good. It
feels so right.

“I’m… I’m a burden on
you, aren’t I?” she said as her sad emerald eyes met his blue and golden ones.

He shook his head.
“No, Michelle, no.
I’m glad you’re here.”

“Are you really? I feel
pretty useless right now. I feel like a burden on you,” she said as tears
continued to roll down her cheeks.

“You’re not. Don’t ever
say that again. You just need to get better,” he cooed softly.

She looked to him with
an uncertainty in her eyes.

He took a deep breath
in. “I’m glad you’re here. I’m glad I don’t have to be alone. Just let it all
out, baby. You’ve been through a lot. I’m here now.”

She looked into his
blue and golden gaze and then brought her body close thus embracing him in a
hug. She felt safe, incredibly safe in his arms. She didn’t care anymore about
being strong or being angry. She just let herself be held.

“Serik, I’m glad I
don’t have to be alone either. I’m lucky to have you. You saved me. I’m so
lucky. You make everything better,” she said.

His heart raced as his
mid processed the words she had just spoken.

“Michelle, what did you
say?” he asked in disbelief.

“I’m lucky to have
you,” she repeated. The words were soft as they were muffled by his chest.

He grinned. “No one has
ever told me that before.”

She nuzzled her cheek
against his chest relaxing in his comforting embrace. She knew it was strange, she
barely knew him but his arms, his voice,
his
entire
being was incredibly soothing and calming to her.

He softly stroked her
back.

“Michelle, I promise
everything is going to be OK. I will do whatever it takes to make it that way.”

I promise Michelle. I will do whatever I have to do
to make you as happy as you’ve just made me.

It was bright outside.
Michelle could feel the warm sunshine on her skin. The scent of fresh cut grass
was all around her. She could still hear the humming sound of the lawnmower not
far away.

Something wet pressed
against the palm of her hand.

“Hey
boy,” she called out excitedly pulling her hand out from under his wet nose.

It was her golden
retriever, Gus. His coat gleamed in the sunshine and he wagged his tail. She
stroked his soft fur as he rolled over onto his belly.

“You want your belly
scratched huh?” she grinned.

“Michelle, honey?” she
heard her mother’s voice call out.

“Yeah, mom?” she called
back.

“Breakfast time,” her
mom answered in her usual sweet tone.
 

“Sorry, boy.
I have to go inside,” she said giving his belly a
few more pats.

He wagged his tail and
watched as she made her way inside.

“Good morning honey,”
her mother said as she gave her a quick kiss on the top of her head. She was
holding a cup of coffee in her hands. Michelle could tell it was hazelnut. The
aroma was strong. Her blonde hair was tied up in a lose bun. She was still in
her night gown and robe.

“Hi mom,” Michelle
replied.

A sweet and enticing smell
entered her nose.

“I made blueberry muffins
for you and Amy. Sit down,” she said gingerly as she grabbed an oven mitt and
opened the stove.

“They smell good, Mom,”
she said as she sat down at the table.

Michelle went to sit
down but it felt as though someone had jerked her to the side. Suddenly,
Michelle wasn’t in her mother’s kitchen anymore. No, she was in her classroom. She
stood on wobbly legs. It felt like someone had dragged her through the air on a
whirly ride at the carnival.

“Yes, Simone?” Michelle
had called on one of her student’s with their hands raised. The words just seem
to come out without her trying.

“Is, is the answer 4?”
the blonde little girl called out shyly.

“Yes!
Great job!”
Michelle replied enthusiastically.

Simone smiled a toothy
smile.

She could see the
children and their happy faces. She had tried so hard to help them have some
sort of happiness in their lives when many of their parents had died in the
first Earth wars. She was like a mother to some. To some, she was the only
source of nurturing they received. She had to make sure they weren’t getting
abused that they weren’t getting hurt like she had been.
 
Before she was drafted, she was able to be
loving, kind, compassionate. After the draft and during training, it was
harder, ultimately it became a struggle. She was no longer a teacher but a
soldier. Her mannerisms reflected that, it just couldn’t be helped. She had
been hardened.

The same rushed, whirly
ride feeling pulled her again. This time the rush, the whirly ride, it was
pulling harder; it was almost throwing her around. She felt an intense wave of
dizziness overcome her.

She hit the ground and
she hit it hard. She got back up and she was running. Her side ached, she was
getting side stitch but she kept going. Her muscles burned as she pushed
herself harder.

“I have to run, I have
be the fastest,”
she scolded herself
out loud.

She forced her legs to
move faster and she pushed herself further. Her running shoes hit the pavement
with a thudding sound as she sped up again.

Suddenly, more quickly
this time, the rushed feeling, whisked her elsewhere. It was jarring and
unsettling. It was rough, she felt as if she were debris being hurled around by
a hurricane.

This time she was
punching. She missed and ducked down as a man swung at her. She jumped back
then quickly paced back and forth on the tips of her toes. She kept her hands
in hard fists close to her face. She lunged forward slugging the man with her
right hook, hard.

She stepped back again
as he swung for her again, but she was too slow this time. She winced in pain
as she had taken a blow from an opponent. The wind had been knocked out of her;
it felt as though everything had stopped for a moment.

Then she felt it again,
the rushed, whirly ride feeling. It somehow went even faster this time. It
threw her down in a dizzying spiral.

This time she was in
combat, real combat. She was back on Redex.

She was in the Jeep
with Kate. She had down shifted and then pulled the brake. They had stopped to
try and find survivors.

Sadness had overwhelmed
her. Alex had just died. She could still feel the light squeeze he gave her
hand before his soul had left his body.

The molcos hund lunged
at her. Its razor sharp claws dug into her skin. The pain was immense.

The horrid thing hissed
and its pungent stench filled her senses. She reached to the back of her neck
and threw her cooler pack at it. Her arm, it was bleeding and it hurt like
hell, but she still had her arm. It was hot; the heat was penetrating her body.
It zapped her energy making her feel weak.

One more spin came
about before anything else could happen. It felt as though she was about to
leave her body. Just as she thought she couldn’t take any more it all came back
together, crashing into each piece.

This time there were no
memories; only the strongest of emotions.

Anger, sadness, pain, rage.

They all ran through
her as though they were playing a game of hide and seek. The emotions coursed
through her blood. She felt as though she might go mad.

I can’t take much more, I can’t take much more,
she
panicked.

As quickly as
everything had happened, it left just the same. She jolted awake and gripped
the bed. Her eyes were wide and fearful.

She exhaled and inhaled
again. She was safe; she was back in the bedroom again.

“What the Hell did they
give me?” she questioned softly. It was late, she didn’t know what time it was
but she could sense it was late. She looked over to Serik’s sleeping form. For
someone that large she expected him to snore like a freight train, but he was a
surprisingly quiet sleeper.

She took a few deep
breaths and steadied herself. She sat up carefully as not to disturb him. She
thought back to everything she had just seen.

What did I just see? What the hell kind of shit was
that?
 

Her mind slowly cleared
but a slight headache began to build. She began to put the pieces back.

That was… that was my life. Those were my memories. My
life… it was good. I had a
dog,
I had a family,
parents and a sister who loved me.
 
My parents,
they had to fight for our planet, they died. I had to go to foster care. I was
abused and starved there. My sister, my sister came to get me. I had to be
tough so no one could ever hurt me again. I ran and I fought. I trained and I
trained hard. I wanted to be a teacher; I didn’t want other kids to end up like
me. I wanted to make sure none of them were hurt. I went to Redex, I was
attacked by molcos hunds but I had wanted to go to the army. I wanted to go to
fight and honor my parents.

It tore at her heart to
go back, to remember but just like that everything was back. She could remember
but everything still seemed a little fuzzy as if they were old memories and she
had to think of really hard to find.

She looked down at her
scarred arm in the dim light coming from what appeared to some sort of
nightlight contraption. It was somewhat grotesque but at least she had an arm. For
that she was thankful.

She remembered that
some soldiers had lost more than their arms. She was lucky.

She looked over to Serik.
Make that very
lucky,
I’m luckiest Earth girl in the whole universe
.

After fighting for such
a long time it was nice to have someone to protect her instead. She thought
back to what she thought was her certain death and shuttered. The molcos hund
had been incredibly close to her. She swore she could still smell its
overpowering stench. The dreams, the memories, whatever they were they felt
real again. It was like she was there all over again.

I should be able to protect myself,
she sharply scolded herself.

I am no longer an innocent little girl; I am no
longer a teacher. That life has long passed, I am a soldier. My duty is to
protect others not to be protected.

Her stomach churned
with an uneasy nervousness.
I should be
able to protect myself…

She sighed.
It would be easier to protect myself if I
knew where I was… I don’t even know where in the universe we are. I am with
this alien from another planet; another planet I didn’t even know existed. Right
now, everything just depends on him.

The feelings, the
realizations, the memories, they all felt incredibly strange to her. She knew
the ride had stopped and she only hoped it would now be over.

It feels strange because that’s how things used to
be on Earth
, she realized.
There was a time when only men fought, then
some women fought but it was only if they chose to. Men protected women.
Her
heart pounded.
Right now I am protected.

It felt strange, it
felt incredibly strange, but it also felt good.
 
Michelle sighed as her mind continued to race.

What am I going to do? I’m not anywhere close to Earth,
not that I can go back to Earth. If we dock on next trade planet and I make
contact with the Earth Army and they will send for me.
 
My best bet is to stay with him for now. Best
bet? Who am I kidding? My only option…

It was peculiar but she
didn’t feel trapped or repulsed by the idea of staying with him. In fact, she
kind of enjoyed it.

I’m safe with him and I’m finally off Redex
, she smiled to herself.

She closed her eyes
again trying to rid herself of the pain the dwelled in her head and the sadness
that had taken siege in her heart. She would fight again.