The rain fell and Dim tried to read, but he couldn't relax. He adjusted himself on the couch, thinking if he changed positions, he'd be comfortable. Jesus, it's no use. he thought as he adjusted for the third time in as many minutes. It had been a month since the explosion that nearly claimed him and claimed his best friend. That's it. That's why I can't be comfortable and relax. Dim tried to reason with himself. He saw a car pull up and wondered who it could be visiting on a lousy day. He smiled slightly when he saw the outline of Scream. He grabbed his crutches and opened the door to welcome his Sergeant. "Sergeant Scream." Dim smiled.

"Dim." Scream's reply, though short and sharp, resonated relief that Dim was going to be okay. Despite the scares. Despite the fact he knew Dim lived, Scream felt relieved to see Dim standing in the doorway.

"What brings you here?" Dim hobbled to the side to allow Scream inside.

"We wanted to check on you." Scream nodded.

"'We'?"

"You don't think he'd come alone, do you, Dimwit?" Dim smiled when he heard Smoke's voice.

Vanessa stood behind Dim and watched as his friends lined the house. "When did you guys return?"

Angel looked at her. "Yesterday. But, we wanted to surprise Dim, so we're glad you forgot."

Mrs. B gave Dim a hug. "Glad you're alright. Here. I got this for you and Vanessa in Kuwait." She handed him a small package.

He unwrapped it. "It's lovely." He handed Vanessa the porcelain figurine. "Thank you."

"We just want to know you're okay, Dim." Double Wide smiled.

"I'm hanging in there." Dim closed the door. "It just...just..."

"It's okay, Dim." Angel patted his shoulder. "I found this in Tariq's things and thought you should have it." He handed Dim a picture.

Dim looked at the picture, tears welling up in his eyes. "This was taken that day."

"Of the explosion?" Vanessa gently took the picture.

"Yeah." Dim wiped a tear.

Angel looked at Vanessa. "It was a disposable camera he got at the PX and it's the very last picture on the camera. It was the camera, not the picture, I found. Guess I should have made that clear." He smiled.

Vanessa smiled back. "How long after this did you go?"

"Hour." Dim hobbled back to the couch. "With in three, he was gone." He sat down. "All we did was go to remove a car from a school and hand out candy to the kids. It was a shit mission as far as the car went, but those kids." He smiled. "They...they wanted nothing more than to be next to us, especially Tariq. They would hold our hands and hug our legs. Their laughter..." Scream sat next to him and patted his shoulder. "The sound of their laughter was enough to make us realise that, no matter the lies that brought us there in the first place, we were doing and had done the right thing."

"They made it worth it." Smoke agreed. "And that one little girl, no older than 12, who refused to leave Tariq's side." He laughed.

Angel's soft laugh echoed through out the tiny home. "Tariq said that she told him he was her future husband."

The kids stood in the distance, even though they wanted to see what was going on. Tariq looked around as cars drove past, the orphanage bombing still present in his mind. He never understood why the fanatics had to kill kids. One little girl smiled at him and refused to leave his side. Tariq could only quietly laugh and shake his head as she spoke to him.

"What did she say, Tariq?" Dim asked.

"She's going to be my wife." Tariq grinned.

"Robbing cradles now, Tariq?" Dim joked back.

"It's tradition, right?" Smoke's question, though serious, was not meant with malintent.

Tariq laughed. "Not really. Some sick families may do that, but who knows? In 6 years, she could be available...What?" He laughed at Smoke's look.

"Nothing. It's just weird that you're talking about...I don't know." Smoke sighed.

Tariq patted Smoke's shoulder. "No, it's not tradition. Even over here, they have some morals, right?"

Smoke shrugged. "Not if they kill their own people." Smoke unsuccessfully tried to shoo off a little boy who wanted to hold his hand.

Dim smiled. "Yeah, but if these kids are any indication of what the future is for Iraq, we've done something good, right?"

Scream looked at the guys. "Enough. We have a job to do and we need to do it."