//------------------------------// // Homecoming and Discovery // Story: AJ and Me // by hawkeye35 //------------------------------// First chapter enjoy. I am not in the military (At least not yet, I start Marine ROTC next year) So forgive me if my info is off. I was jolted awake suddenly when the ground appeared to be shaking. My first thought was that I was under attack by enemy anti-aircraft fire, after a few seconds I realized I was on a commercial airline headed to Ronald Reagan International Airport. My military plane had arrived in Bangor Airport in Maine and I had to take a second flight to my home in Washington D.C. My name is Second Lieutenant Thomas Richardson, I am an officer in the United States Marines. I was rather on the tall side standing at 6'4 and weighing 220 pounds, I had very short brown hair with light blue eyes. I had spent the last year in the wastelands of Afghanistan. I had seen quite a bit of action and my body showed it, my entire left forearm was discolored due to thermal burns from when the HUMVEE I was inside of exploded. I also had a long scar going down my right cheek from when an insurgent got the jump on me and tried to knife me. I was able to put him down but the bastard put a deep gash down my cheek. There were also plenty of other minor cuts and bruises from numerous close combat fights. I normally don't like to wear my uniform in public for two reasons: One. it brings a lot of attention and two, i could get into real big trouble if i was caught doing something bad in uniform but I had no civilian clothes to change into so I was stuck with this. It is Marine custom to roll up the sleeves on their BDU's, this exposed my grossly colored forearm to the world. I had received many looks from many people due to my visible injuries but I just ignored them. "We will soon be making our descent into Ronald Reagan International Airport, it is currently 42 degrees and cloudy in Washington D.C." The captain of the airliner said. I fastened my seatbelt as I felt the plane start to lower towards the ground. I never liked flying, mainly cause the last aircraft I was in got shot down and almost killed me. After twenty minutes the plane finally boarded into the terminal and the passengers began making their exit. I grabbed my backpack from the overhead compartment and slung it over my back. I began to walk out and I thanked the pilot and flight attendents who returned the thank you. I nodded and went on my way. My stomach growled as I desired to get some food, peanuts and pretzels don't exactly fill you up. I decided I wanted american fastfood and headed to the McDonalds that was in the airport. I ordered the traditional Big Mac meal. My mouth watered as greasy smell reached my nostrils. I took my food to a lone table in the corner and dug in. I could practically feel my arteries starting to clog as I ate the chunk of greasy goodness. After I finished I took my tray to the garbage and emptied the contents into the trash, I was never one to leave food on my plate. I then walked over to the bus station past the baggage claim. I didn't have anything with me that couldn't fit in my backpack. I saw some other soldiers in uniform across the hall, they look liked army to me based on how their BDU's looked. I boarded the bus and paid the fee to ride it before taking a seat in the back and settling down. My house was relatively close to downtown Washington D.C so it didn't take long for the bus to arrive at my stop. My home was simple two story house with a small basement and a yard. I chose to live off base and get my own house. My grandparents had been very wealthy and after they passed away they willed a quarter of a million dollars to me. That would be enough to last the rest of my life as long as I didn't go buying Ferraris or anything like that. As I rounded the corner to my house I saw a bright yellow banner which said "Welcom Home Tommy" on it. I smiled as I saw my family on the front lawn waiting for me. I saw my parents and my brothers and sisters with all their kids as well. Before I could even say anything I was tackled by all my nieces and nephews. "UNCLE TOMMY!" They all cried out as they hugged me tightly. "Hey kids!" I said returning the hug. "Sally get off Uncle Tommy." My older sister Betty said to her daughter. "I can't believe how big she's getting!" I said to my sister. Last time I saw Sally she was only starting to talk. My sister went over to me and hugged me. "We're so proud of you." She said. I looked behind her and saw my dear mother crying. I went up to her and hugged her tightly. It was never easy for a mother to know their son was constantly in danger in a war zone but she was strong and she managed to pull through. I was very close with my mother and I loved her dearly. "Oh I'm so glad your home Tommy!" She cried. "So am I mom." I said. "I made you your favorite apple pie." She said smiling as she held out a steaming fresh apple pie. My mouth watered at the sight of it, apple pie was my favorite and after eating MRE's for the past year this was going to taste extra good. "Son." I heard a voice behind me. I turned to see my father in his old Marine BDU's. My father had served in Vietnam which is one of the reasons I joined up. I looked up to him because I know from history that whatever shit I go through in Afghanistan, it was much worse for him in Vietnam. "Dad." I said as I shook my fathers hand. He smiled as he held out a stogie to me which I gladly took. I wasn't much of a smoker but I loved the occasional ciger. I lit it up and blew out smoke rings with dad. "First I clog my arteries with McDonalds, now I'm rotting my mouth and lungs with tobacco. What organ am I gonna fuck up next?" I asked my dad. "Your liver." He said pulling out a case of Miller Lite. Damn he was good. The party continued all night till most of my family left to go home at about 7:30. I waved goodbye to my relatives as I walked back inside. It felt so damn good to be home again! Being able to sleep without worrying about an ambush, eating real food, and best of all, no damn big ass bugs. As I sat down on my sofa I realized I didn't know what I wanted to do. Although I wasn't deployed that didn't mean I didn't have to work. Next week I would have to go to Marine Barracks for work. It wasn't so bad as I got to see the Silent Drill Platoon and the Commadant's Own practice. I decided to go for a walk in downtown D.C. I always liked walking around the city at night, it was very peaceful save the waves of protesters that had no idea what they were protesting at Capital Hill. Since I lived close to the downtown area I got on the Metro and got off at Union Station. It was quite cold out so I wore two pairs of pants and a sweater under my jacket. I began my walk down towards the Jefferson Memorial. It looked quite majestic in the night sky as I looked up at the monument to our third president. I was so entranced by the beauty of the statue I barely noticed a coughing noise. At first I ignored it but then it continued so I began to investigate. "Hello? Is anyone there?" I asked. No answer except more coughing. I walked around the building to look for the source of the coughing. It wasn't the 'i got something in my throat' coughing, it was more iike the 'im fuckin dying over' kind of coughing and that is what concerned me greatly. I continued to search when I saw a person under a tree cuddled into a ball. It looked like they had no clothes on, damn they must be freezing! I walked closer till I was only a few feet away. "Excuse me?" I asked as I took off my spare pants and jacket and held it out. It wasn't in my nature to leave someone in the cold like this, besides I could always buy a new jacket. The person looked at me and i saw it was a young woman, probably in her early twenties. She had long blonde hair with emerald eyes, she had freckles and forgive me for being perverted but she had a very curvy figure. She had large rounded breasts and long toned legs. "Here take thi-" I said holding out my jacket before I felt a force make contact with my nose. I was knocked back and I realized that bitch had kicked me! I wiped my nose and saw blood, damn she had some powerful legs. "G-g-get a-away from m-m-me y-y-you h-hear!" She said shivering out of cold and fear. I could see she was scared so I tried to come friendly despite the fact she probably broke my nose. "I'm not gonna hurt you." I said holding my hand out. She jumped back obviously preparing for another kick but she was cold and weak and she soon collapsed. I went up to her and wrapped my jacket around her. I also took my spare pants and gave it to her to put on. She looked at me quizzically. "Put these on, it'll keep you warm." I said. She struggled to put the pants on much to my surprise. It was like she never worn pants before. "Listen I just want to help, I promise I won't hurt you." I said again. She looked at me square in the eye and then she held her hand out. I took it and helped her up. She soon fell over again from bad balance. I noticed she was barefoot so I gave up my socks and shoes. My feet were very calloused from months of war so I could go an hour being cold. "Where do you live?" I asked. "A-ah'm not from here." She said. I figured she was from Texas from her accent. "You mean like Texas?" I asked. "No ah mean I don't know how to get back, ah'm lost!" She cried. She must have some sort of amnesia or some shit like that. "You can come with me till we find out where you live." I said. I wouldn't mind having her at my house, money wouldn't be an issue and I did get lonely at times. I was never sociable, I never went to parties in High School or College and to my embarrassment I had yet to kiss a girl. "Ah don't know-" She said nervously. "Trust me, I would love to have you." I said as I walked with her to the nearest Metro station. She was intrigued by the massive structures and cars that zoomed by. I figured she must have been raised on an isolated farm where she never seen cities or cars before. "Whats your name miss?" I asked her. "Applejack." She replied. Applejack? Who the hell names their kid after an alcoholic beverage? Yup there is no more doubt in my mind she is Texan. "I'm Thomas Richardson, you can call me Tom." I said.