Never Again, Again
Chapter 4
Mike wondered if Christine was regretting it. It had been a great night and Mike had no regrets. He remembered waking up after sleeping with Gwen and hating himself. So much so that he hadn't even tried to hide it from Christine. At the point, he wanted to hurt her but he also wanted it off his conscious.
He was busy and he knew Christine was busy with the kids and her little business. He called the house about noon and talked to the kids, but Christine was on her cake delivery. He had wanted to talk to her but she didn't answer her cellphone and they were underway at one. His cellphone had been stowed in his quarters, turned off because of being at Emcon Alpha One.
It was weird because while he was on the ship; time went by so fast. Of course, he missed his kids deeply, but day to day; he didn't think about them a lot. And he was thinking about Christine a lot. Was he willing to jump through her hoops to save his marriage? He hated counseling. He hated being critiqued and told he was a horrible husband and father. He knew he was and didn't need to be told that.
So, four months flew by so fast. As soon as the weapons test was done, Mike was looking forward to heading home. And then he was told they weren't heading home and there was some sort of pandemic going on. He was finally about to get a line home and Christine answered immediately.
"Mike?" Christine asked.
"Oh, thank God. I was so worried." Mike said. He immediately knew that things were not okay because Christine started crying.
"Mike; Lucas…he didn't make it. He went to his Boy Scouts camp and contracted this…whatever it is. He didn't even make it to the hospital. The paramedic said his heart gave out. They are seeing it in some cases." Christine explained.
"You and the girls?" Mike asked while trying to swallow down the emotion.
"Do you remember that camp we went to before we split up? We took the kids camping." Christine asked.
"Sure." Mike said.
"We are there at a safe zone. The girls are upset, of course, but so far okay." Christine said.
"Okay." Mike answered.
"Mike; we'll be okay. You just take care of yourself." Christine remarked. The connection was getting iffy.
"I love you and the girls. Please tell them." Mike said.
"We love you too. Remember to take care of yourself…" Christine said just before the phone cut off. Mike could only slam the phone down in frustration.
