She walked to the mailbox
On that bright summer's day
Found a letter from her son
In a war, far away
Sweat glistened her forehead and rolled down her rosy cheeks as she walked to the mailbox. The sun was shining as brightly as it always did in summer and from across the street, she could see many young children playing at the playground. She smiled softly, thinking of her own sons when they were younger, wondering how time had flown by so fast. It was in her motherhood years that she realized that time waited for no one.
Reaching into the mailbox, she groaned as she went through the letters slowly. Bills, bills and bills. Denise Grey sighed. As she finally got to the last letter, her eyes brightened and a sweet smile formed on her face again as she ran into the house and screamed for her family to enter the living room, waving a peach-colored envelope as she did.
Immediately, three young men sprinted into the living room, concerned as to whether the aging lady was okay. All she did when she saw them was to show them the envelope and the handwriting on it and they instantly knew who it was from.
Jason, Nate and Frankie Grey beamed, happy to know that their brother, Shane, was alive and well, and though he was away from them, he had bothered to keep in touch. Denise traced her hands over the familiar untidy handwriting as her three sons sat on the couch – Frankie positioning himself beside his mother with a box of tissues ready – waiting for her to read the letter aloud.
She tore open the envelope and read the letter contained, her voice heard as Shane's as she did so…
Dear Mom (and Jason, Nate and Frankie if you're there),
It's been three weeks since I last saw you and I already miss home. I miss making music with the guys and last but not least, I miss you. Life here is tough, Mom. They made me do push-ups everyday and I know my idiotic brothers are laughing at me right now because they know I can't even do 10 let alone 100 a day. The weather's been extremely terrible too. It's so hot that I feel like a sweating pig each and every day.
Jason and Frankie burst out laughing as Nate smirked. Denise smiled fondly.
Gross. And now, I sound like a fag. Shut up, guys!
Jason, Nate and Frankie continued laughing, glad that their brother hadn't changed one bit. Denise chuckled happily, glad that Shane knew his brothers so well and that their close bond had not changed.
On a serious note though, despite the tough routines and exercises, I can actually understand why Dad loved his job so much. There is so much satisfaction in being a soldier, Mom. I've found two amazing friends here and I feel connected to them. You'll be surprised, guys, to find that one of them is a girl. And now, I'm sure you want to hear everything about her and my other friend, Justin Henrie.
Justin's a nice guy. He's twenty-five and has his parents and a younger brother and sister waiting for him to back home. He loves them so much. His siblings are like the apples of his eye and his parents are the reason he lives. He's being a soldier for them. To protect them, to keep them safe and to make them proud.
Michelle Elizabeth Torres, on the other hand, is here to protect her country and to purposely anger her father. Her father had expected her future to be in the music industry but Mitchie (that's what we call her since she prefers it) had always wanted to do something else. She had always been a tomb boy in school and had lots of guy friends and she had been inspired by a friend of hers. I don't know how I know this but I am sure she's the one for me. I know it's a little early but I just have a feeling she's the one. She's amazing, Mom, and I've heard her sing. It's truly beautiful and hey, maybe when all this is over, we could add a new addition to our band.
Frankie's eyes widened at the possibility of having a girl in the band. Nate's jaw dropped in horror as he slowly turned his head to look at Jason, who let out a horrified scream. A girl?! In their band? They'd have to be called Connect Four! Denise chuckled and continued reading.
Relax, morons, I'm just kidding.
The only woman in the room and Frankie burst out laughing as Jason rolled his eyes and Nate made a mental note to never fall for Shane's stupid suggestions again. Yeah right.
I was thinking about Dad yesterday and I finally realized why he loved his job so much. I know I said this earlier but I'm repeating it again. This job gives me the satisfaction that I'm doing all I can to protect my family and I know that our old man's proud of me. It's one of the reasons I'm here today, away from you. To make Dad, you and my brothers proud. Dad had a tough life here, Mom, and I respect the man even more now. If that's even possible.
Yesterday, Mitchie said something that had me thinking.
"If you had one wish in the world, what would it be?"
It got me thinking. And I realized that I didn't need anything. You guys are alive and well. And it came to me.
You are what I'm fighting for, Mom. And I'm never going to let you down.
Love you,
Shane
Denise smiled as she finished reading the letter, her face stained as tears had unknowingly fell down her rosy cheeks. She kissed each of her son's cheek as they enveloped her into a group hug and left her alone in the room with her thoughts. It was, after all, Shane's first letter from war.
She started writing
You're good and you're brave
What a father that you'll be someday
Make it home, make it safe
She wrote every night as she prayed
That night, Denise stationed herself at the dining table with a pen in hand, writing back to her son in her neat handwriting, a content smile on her face as she scribbled away, lost in her own world.
Dear Shane,
Your brothers say hi. I've tried getting them to write to you but they say writing is too girly. I think we both know that the real reason they don't want to write is because it hurts. They want to be with you, Shane, but they have their own families to look after. Well, Jason and Nate do. Frankie's too young but I have a feeling he'll be the next Grey to join the army when he's of age.
Denise stopped writing for a while, thinking of how Frankie had already made up his mind at a young age of thirteen to become a soldier. She was so scared for him. Sighing, she picked up her pen again and continued her letter.
I'm glad you're feeling they way you are, Shane. Your father would've been proud of you. I'm glad you've made friends too. Justin sounds like a nice guy and I'm happy you found a great friend in him. I can't wait to meet Mitchie. She sounds like a nice girl and you sound like you really like her. It's never too early to tell if you've met the right person, Shane. Once you're in love, you're in love.
She smiled, thinking of her own husband and her own love story as she did so. Paul had always insisted that he knew from the start that she had always been the one for her. It had taken her a while to realize it but she had never been so happy when she realized it. And it was as if Shane wasn't enough like his father already.
You're a good son, Shane Grey. And you're so brave for doing this. Remember me telling you to think about your future before you left? And you told me that you're doing this now because you definitely do not want to be a soldier when you're married because you want to be there for your future wife and your children. You'll be a great husband and father, Shane.
Please remember that I love you and that I am so proud of you.
Make it home. Make it safe.
Love,
Your mother
She put the pen down, aware of the tears flowing down her face. Feeling a pair of strong arms around her, she looked up and gave a watery smile at her youngest son. Frankie smiled at her sadly, silently telling her he missed Shane too.
When her tears finally subsided and Frankie had gone to bed before making sure she was okay, she put her hands together and prayed for her son's safety, for his happiness and that he would return to her as soon as possible.
It was late in December,
A day she'll not forget,
Oh her tears stained the paper,
With every word that she read
A few months later…
She tried rubbing her eyes, unsure as to whether she was awake or in a nightmare. It couldn't be true, it just couldn't be. She pinched herself and winced when she felt the sharp pain coursing through her arm. Finally realizing that that was reality, she let her tears flow as she read the piece of letter again, wanting to believe that it was anything but true. She didn't care that Frankie was talking to her, or that Jason and Nate had arrived with their families or that her tears were staining the paper, creating a few ink blobs. All she cared about was her son, her soldier, her Shane.
It said, "I was up on a hill
I was out there alone
When the shots all rang out
And bombs were exploding
And that's when I saw him
He came back for me
And Though he was captured
A man set me free
And That man was your son
He asked me to write to you
I told him I would, oh I swore"
It was the last of the letters from war
Dear Mrs Grey,
My name is Justin Henrie. Shane may have mentioned me in his previous letters. A few days ago, your son, along with me and a few other soldiers were positioned at a hill. I'm sorry I can't really give you much details. We were all prepared for any attacks but the enemies seemed to have the upper hand.
Shots rang out, bombs were exploding and I couldn't move because I was stuck underneath a few rocks. I thought all was lost until your son came back. He came back for me and helped me. And although he was captured, he set me free.
Before he was captured though, he asked me to write to you and I told him I would and swore to him. I'm sorry, Mrs. Grey.
Yours sincerely,
Justin Henrie
And she prayed he was living,
Kept on believing and wrote every night just to say
You are good,
And you're brave,
What a father that you'll be someday,
Make it home, make it safe,
So she kept writing each day
Her family was falling apart. She could feel it. Nate and Jason had just had another heated argument with Frankie and they had only calmed down because their wives had reminded them that Denise was sleeping. It was too late though. She had woken up as soon as they had started arguing and she just couldn't go back to sleep. Sitting up, she
Turned on her night light and took a piece of paper and a pen out of her bedside drawers.
Dear Shane,
You're a good son and you're so brave. You'll be a great father to you and Mitchie's children. Please make it home and make it safe. I love you and I am so proud of you.
Love always,
Mom
She would send the letter tomorrow, just like she had for the last few months since she received news about her son's capture. Jason and Nate had tried telling her that writing the letters wouldn't bring Shane back while Frankie had glared at them when they had said that. Denise had told them that she refused to believe her son was dead until she saw his body.
Then two years later
Autumn leaves all around
A car pulled in the driveway
And she fell to the ground
Denise laughed as she watched Mitchie Torres interact with her youngest son. It had been two years since Shane had been captured, two years since Mitchie had met her and two years since she had unofficially become a part of the Grey family. Denise was proud to say that Mitchie had been like a baby sister to Jason and Nate, both of whom had taken an instant liking to her, and an older sister to Frankie.
Many people may have thought that Mitchie had replaced Shane's absence in the family but Denise knew better. Mitchie was with them because she had loved Shane too. She was with them because she felt bounded to them. She was with them because she knew from Shane that she could go to them should she had felt the need to be near him.
It was Sunday, meaning it was time for their weekly family day. Jason had arrived with his wife and children first and Nate and his family had joined them a while later. Frankie had set up the barbeque pit just a few hours ago and he and Mitchie had been working on a song he had wanted to sing for a girl he was crushing on.
Denise was busy looking around when she spotted a luxurious white car drive into the driveway. All movement seized at the entrance of the uninvited and unexpected visitor. Peeking through the window of the car, Denise felt her heart stop as her eyes widened at the man. She felt her legs get weaker and she unconsciously dropped to the ground.
And out stepped a captain
Where her boy used to stand
He said, "Mom, I'm following orders
From all of your letters
And I've come home again"
He ran in to hold her,
And dropped all his bags on the floor
Holding all of her letters from war
Mitchie gasped as a familiar man stepped out of the car. His beautiful eyes swept across the backyard over everyone and rested on her longer than a rest. He smiled at her softly and lovingly, sending shivers down her spine, while she just stood rooted to the ground, her jaw hanging open.
Denise looked up as the man walked closer to her and slowly picked her up. She caressed his face, as though she was afraid she was in a dream and breathed the name she hadn't said in two years.
"Shane…"
Shane smiled, his eyes lighting with love at his mother.
"Hey, Mom. Thanks for the letters. They kept me going," he said softly before wrapping his arms around her and burying his face into her shoulders just like he did when he was little, allowing silent tears of happiness stream down his face. Denise laughed happily as she hugged him tightly, afraid of letting him go.
Frankie watched with a content smile on his face as he watched his brother drop his bags on the ground to hold his mother with something in his hand. Narrowing his eyes to get a clearer view, he found himself laughing as he spotted the brown envelopes in Shane's hand, no doubt that they were the letters from war.
Make it home…
Make it home…
Make it home…
A/N: This was supposed to have been posted up for Mother's Day but it got a little delayed… Please tell me what you guys think… Review!