Please Don’t Forget About Me – By Nic

John tried to sit up straight in the hot army truck. The bags

around his eyes matched the rest of his platoons’ also. Sleep was

very rare for him. Missing his loved one back at home and the

never ending attacks, kept sleep away from all of them. His

camouflage pants and shirt were heavy, and stuck to him in the

hot sun. He looked down at the gun in between his feet and

stared at it, as the heat only started to ignite his hallucination….

 

4 years ago…

 

19 year-old Marlena Evans parked her car and jumped out with

her friends; Kate, Laura, Jen, Lexie and Hope. The girls laughed

with each other as they all complained about their boyfriends.

They entered the fraternity house where one of the biggest

parties was going on. Hugging their friends as they walked

through the house, and conversing with people they knew.

 

“Go! Go! Go! Go!” They heard the guys chanting in the kitchen.

Everyone flew into the kitchen and living area. Marlena and the

girls went in there to see what was going on, and she saw Jack

and another guy standing on top of a dining room table, guzzling

beers that were being poured into a funnel, and to their mouth by

a cord.

 

Jack finished first, putting his arms in the air at his victory. Abe

and John pulled him off the table, as the rest of his friends

patted him on the back. Abe walked over to the other guys, who

paid him money from their bet.

 

“Yea! Anyone else wanna try?” Abe called out to everyone

standing around. When they all looked away and started to go

back to the party, Abe smiled. “That’s what I thought.”

 

“I am NOT doing that again.” Jack smiled, wobbling slightly.

 

“That’s what you say every time, man.” Bo laughed, hitting him on

the shoulder.

 

“Come on guys, I thought you were going to keep an eye on him

this time,” Jen sighed, shoving Bo away from Jack. “You just

encourage him.”

 

“Wait a minute Jen. He does that all on his own.” John defended

them, smiling slightly.

 

“And he wins us money.” Abe added.

 

“You guys are so immature. And disgusting.” Jen rolled her eyes at

them as she grabbed Jack by the arm and helped him to a couch,

before he fell over.

 

“No hard feelings I hope,” John called to her, as he took a sip of

his beer.

 

“Hey man, look.” Abe nudged John’s shoulder. John turned

around and immediately saw what he was trying to show him.

Marlena Evans, the most beautiful girl he’d ever seen was

standing there, talking with her friends.

 

“You’re kidding me.” Abe broke John out of his reverie. Still

keeping his eyes focused on her, taking in every curve of her body

like he did every time he looked at her, John, barely audible said,

“What?”

 

“I don’t understand you man. Every time you lay eyes on her, you

act like it`s your first time seeing her. How come you never look

at any other girls that way?” Abe asked him, knowing full well that

John was quite the ladies man. Every girl in school wanted him,

but by now, they all knew that John’s heart was only available for

one woman… and she already had it. They had grown up together.

And even though this was definitely not the first time he had laid

eyes on her, her beauty still captivated him. Both of their fathers

worked at the same company, and would often travel together on

business trips. Therefore, their Moms had always been the best of

friends. “Hello.” Abe waved his hand in front of John’s face.

“What’s wrong with you man?”

 

“Uh…nothing… nothing.” John shook his head slightly and

blinked his eyes. When he looked back at Marlena, he was

surprised to see that she was staring back at him. Before he

could look away, she started to walk towards him.

 

“Do you have a staring problem?” Her tone wasn’t venomous. He

smiled, expecting nothing less. How could it be? The whole time

he had known her, she had only helped people and tried to

understand them, and not judge them. Marlena Evans was the

most beautiful, popular girl in school. She always had been… even

before they had started college.

 

“When it comes to you, I do.” John tried not to smile that much,

hearing Abe snicker behind him.

 

“Oh, Mr. Funny guy. You know, it must be tough on your ego and

everything, knowing you can look but you can’t touch.” Was she

challenging him?

 

“You’re right. I’m sorry if I offended you,” John said.

 

“That’s better.” She smiled, grabbing his hand as he pouted.

“You hurt my feelings just now. I can look but not touch?”

 

“You know I was only joking.” She stood on her tiptoes and kissed

him fully on the mouth. “Lets dance; I’ll make it up to you.”

 

Abe smile, watching them go on to the dance floor hand in hand.

Hearing Lexie sigh behind him, he turned around. “What?” He

asked her.

 

“They’re so in love. And so cute together.” Abe wrapped his arm

around Lexie. “Yea, I know. They do that shit all the time.”

 

She smiled, slightly rolling her eyes as they went to dance also.

 

John leaned his head down near Marlena’s shoulder. He breathed

in the wonderful scent of her. She wrapped her arms tighter

around his neck, pulling him closer. He got the hint and started

to softly run his lips along her neck and up to her cheek. “I’m the

luckiest girl alive,” she told him.

 

“Why is that?” He wondered, as they continued to move together

to the slow music.

 

“It’s simple.” She began to run her hands through the short hair

on the back of his neck. “I’m in love with the hottest, sweetest

guy ever. And he’s in love with me.”

 

“So much,” he whispered, kissing her lightly. As their soft kisses

always turned out, they began kissing more passionately. Abe

pretended to bump into them, as he and Lexie danced by them.

 

“Abraham, stop it,” Lexie scolded him.

 

“He’s just jealous he can’t get any action.” John smiled, looking at

Abe, whose face turned a little red as Lexie slapped him in the

arm.

 

“Why can’t you two ever be nice to each other?” Marlena

wondered, dragging John out of the frat house

 

“Because we’re guys. But I wouldn’t expect you to understand,”

John explained, as he got his car keys. Suddenly, Marlena shoved

him against the Jeep. She attacked John’s mouth with her own,

kissing him wildly as one hand roamed down his chest and the

other locked itself in his hair, making their kiss deeper.

 

“Mmm… I couldn’t wait to get you outside. There were way too

many people in there,” Marlena told him, her hands already

starting to undo his belt.

 

“So you think outside in front of the frat house is better?” John

asked, barely able to hold back from her.

 

“Are you complaining?” She stopped doing what she was doing.

 

“No, no, not at all.” John picked her up and placed her on the

hood of the Jeep. Grinding himself into her center, he was

getting more turned on just hearing her moaning.

 

“Oh God, right there,” Marlena demanded, roughly unzipping his

pants and slipping her hand inside his boxers.

 

“Mar, oh, you are driving me insane,” He said as their lips meshed

together. He tore open her shirt, immediately burying his face in

her breasts. He licked and lightly bit her breasts through her bra.

Marlena instinctively wrapped her legs tighter around his waist,

repeatedly grinding into him as he unhooked her bra. The cool air

hitting her breasts as John moved his mouth over them, made her

want him even more.

 

Letting two fingers slide down her abdomen, he rubbed her

center through her underwear. “Oh John, oh God!” He could tell

she was nearing her climax as she rocked her hips harder and

harder into his fingers.

 

John pulled his hand away before she came. Marlena grasped a

hold of his member and in one motion; she shoved her wet

underwear to the side and dug her heels into John’s ass as she

guided him into her.

 

The both moaned out loud, forgetting they were outside in

public. John stayed still, letting her adjust to his rather large size.

He waited until she started to move, letting him know she was

alright. John placed each hand around her on the Jeep, lowering

his head to kiss along her shoulders.

 

“John, faster, faster.” Marlena said loudly, running her hands

down his back, scratching him. Grabbing her ass, John lifted her,

pressing her back against the door of the Jeep. “Oh fuck!” John

yelled out, slamming harder into her. As Marlena came, she yelled

out, “John! Oh my God.” She leaned against him as he backed

away from the Jeep enough to open the door and sit her down.

They collapsed against each other in the passenger seat, knowing

that probably half the frat house heard them.

 

“Well, I guess you were right.” John smiled as Marlena wiped some

of the sweat from his face.

 

“About what?” She wondered.

 

“I do make a scene everywhere we go.” She laughed, kissing him

sloppily. “Let’s go home, Sailor, where I can have you all to myself

without an audience.”

 

“I love you, pretty lady,” John mumbled, letting his head rest in

the crook of Marlena’s neck for a moment.

 

She smiled, running her hands through his hair. “Oh and I love

you so much Sailor.”

 

Present….

 

“Men, lets move!” He heard his Sergeant yell. John sat up straight

and adjusted his cap. Grabbing his gun, he piled out of the army

truck with the rest of the soldiers.

 

“Hey Black, you dropped this.” Roman, his buddy said, handing

him a small, wallet sized picture. John took it from him and

looked down at the beautiful face staring back at him. “Doc…”

He sighed, running his finger over her face. He looked back up,

hearing the gun shots and quickly placed the picture inside the

top of his jacket. He had begun to call her “Doc” because she

was just about to graduate from being a psychiatrist. She had

told him that in the many letters she sent him before he joined

the army.

 

However, the letters stopped coming as she told him she had

moved on. After that, John became almost suicidal by running

out in the middle of attacks and going right after the enemy, not

caring what became of him. But he had told her to move on

without him. God only knew when he would get home, if ever. On

the outside he acted like he wanted her to be happy. And God

knows he did and still does, but it still hurt.

 

He shook his head of all thoughts and ducked down into the

muggy lake as a bomb was dropped out of the enemies plane

above.

“Momma, Momma!” Marlena smiled as she turned around. As

soon as she did, her 3-year old son jumped into her arms. “Look

what I got.” He smiled, shoving a bunch of daffodils in her face.

 

“Oh Brady, they’re wonderful. I love them. Thank you sweetie.”

She smiled, placing a kiss on his forehead.

 

“Daddy said you would love them,” Brady told her.

 

“Oh I do, very much.” Marlena hugged her little boy close to her.

“I think someone needs a bath,” she told him, feeling his sweaty

clothes and seeing the dirt on his face and in his dark brown hair.

 

“No way.” Brady started to squirm out of her arms. “No bath for

me,” he insisted.

 

“Son, what did I tell you? Don’t disobey your Mother now.” Brady

immediately stopped, hearing his father’s voice behind him. “Sorry,

Daddy,” Brady mumbled, running upstairs.

 

“How come he always obeys you?” Marlena asked, watching her

little boy make his way up the steps, running his hand along the

wall, no doubt leaving dirt smears.

 

“Because you don’t make him listen,” Tony said. Marlena sighed,

walking into the kitchen to clean up the dirt that Brady had

tracked through the house. They had had this conversation

before, and every time Tony tried to tell her how to raise Brady,

they ended up fighting about it.

 

“Please let’s not go there,” Marlena told him before he could go

into it.

 

“Why not? Marlena, he doesn’t listen. He goes out and plays in the

mud with his friends, then brings it all through the house. And he

tells you no.”

 

“He’s a 3 year old boy!” Marlena said, getting a little irritated.

 

Tony gave her a threatening glare. “Well, I will not put up with it

anymore. That boy will start to listen!”

 

“Don’t lay a hand on him,” Marlena said, as Tony shoved her

against the wall, his hand moving to her throat.

 

“Momma,” Brady said, scared from the doorway. His big blue eyes

looked up at them, shinning with unshed tears.

 

After a second hesitation, Tony let Marlena go and watched her

go to Brady’s side, picking him up. “Let’s go get you in the bath,

honey,” Marlena told him softly. She refusedto look at Tony as

they walked by him to go back upstairs.

 

“Momma, what was Daddy doing?” Brady asked, holding onto her

a little more tightly than usual.

 

“He was just playing.” Marlena made up an excuse so that he

wouldn’t worry. “How about when you get out of the bath, we’ll

make ice cream sundaes? Does that sound good?” She gave him a

smile.

 

He nodded excitedly and jumped from her arms. As he ran down

the hallway, he shed his clothes. She stood there and watched

him, smiling.

 

“Marlena…” Tony said, coming up behind her. He placed his hands

on her shoulders and started to slightly massage them. Marlena

moved out of his grasp. “Don’t touch me. If you ever lay a hand

on me or Brady again, I’m leaving!”

 

“Where are you going to go?” He laughed. “You’re nothing,

Marlena. You can’t even practice being a psychiatrist because you

have no time. And you have no money to pay someone to watch

that brat. No one wants you, Marlena. You are stuck here with

me, -forever.”

 

“No, that’s not true.” Marlena backed away from him, feeling the

tears well up in her eyes.

 

“Let me refresh your memory.” Tony smiled, loving the advantage

he had over her. “Your boyfriend got you pregnant, and then left

for the war and for all we know, he’s either dead or banging some

girl in Iraq. Either way, he’s not coming home to you.”

 

“He was drafted. He did everything he could not to leave me.”

Marlena let the tears fall down her cheeks. “And he didn’t know I

was pregnant. I never got the chance to tell him because of you!”

 

“Because of me?” Tony moved closer to her. “That’s right. He’s

probably a drunken soldier and he doesn’t care about you

anyways. I’m the only man who could love a slut like you.”

 

“I’m done!!” Brady called from the bathroom. Marlena couldn’t

even look Tony in the eye, as she knew he was probably right. She

sighed, wiping the tears from her face as she went to get her

little boy out of the tub.

 

Later that evening…

 

Marlena sat on the edge of her son’s bed, running her fingers

through his dark brown hair. She smiled as Brady moved in his

sleep and a little smile came to his face. His tiny hands clutched

the football sheets on his bed as he was lifted away into his little

dream land.

 

“Oh Baby, someday I will tell you about you real Daddy. He would

love you so much. God, every time I look at you, I can’t help but

think of him,” Marlena sighed, using a finger to wipe the lone tear

that cascaded down her cheek. “Sweet dreams, my little prince.”

She kissed him on the forehead and shut the door halfway closed.

 

She sighed with relief when she heard the front door shut. Tony

had gone out to a bar with some friends, leaving her there the

way she liked it; alone. At least she wouldn’t have to have sex

with him tonight. That was, unless he came home drunk in the

middle of the night and demanded it from her. She shivered at

the thought of his hands roaming across her body. She refused

to call it making love. It was anything but that. Tony only used her

for sex and it had never seemed right to her. Afterwards, when

he would fall asleep, Marlena would get in the shower and rinse

and wash for hours, trying to erase the remnants of him.

 

Marlena went to their room and sat on the bed. For a while, she

stared into the darkness, wanting nothing more than to be with

her love. She smiled at the thought of him and turned on the

light. Reaching her hand as far as she could under the bed, she

felt for an old shoe box. Pulling it out, she took off the lid. She

always got nervous butterflies in her stomach when she looked

through it, afraid that Tony would arrive home and discover it.

Thus, beating her for having it, and more importantly; throwing

away or burning whatever she had left of John.

 

“Oh John,” she whispered, pulling out the most recent picture

she had of him from about a year ago. He was standing in front

of a tree in his army uniform. His army hat was slightly placed to

the side of his head. His hair was so short that at first she

couldn’t tell he had any, but realized his cap didn’t show it. The

camouflage shirt he wore fit him perfectly, showing off his abs

and perfectly formed chest muscles. The muscles in his arms

stretched the fabric of the shirt, making him look hotter than

ever.

 

“I miss you so much.” She placed the picture beside her and

picked up the last letter she had received from him.

 

She clutched that and his picture to her chest and fell asleep,

having dreams of the love she thought would never return to her.

John woke up to the smell of burned, dead bodies. He could tell

that defiant smell anywhere. Rolling onto his side, he tried to

focus his drowsy eyes. At that moment he felt as if he were ready

to give up. To just lay there and die and return home in a body

bag… that was, if they ever found his body. He shook his head

and once again tried to make out anything in the smoke that

surrounded him. They had just been attacked, he remembered

that much. He moved his legs, fearing that for some reason they

wouldn’t be there… and sighed, feeling them resting half in the

murky lake. He searched around for his gun, but couldn’t find it.

 

“Hello?” he called out, pulling himself into a standing position.

“Help!” He heard someone weakly yelling. Once he figured out

where the sound was coming from, he started to run in that

direction, but didn’t get far when he fell over something. Looking

down, he stared into the face of a dead soldier. His eyes were

open wide, a small bullet hole between his eyes. Instead of

freaking out like he did the first time he saw a dead body, John

sighed and simply pulled the eyelids of the soldier down and said a

soft, little prayer for him, before grabbing the soldier’s gun and

heading off into the same direction he had heard the screams

coming from.

 

“Is anyone out there? Oh God, someone please help me.” John

heard someone say. When he found the soldier, he realized it was

Roman. Roman was sitting up against a tree, holding his leg.

“Roman, oh thank God.” John rushed over to him.

 

“My leg…” Roman whispered.

 

“Can you feel it?” John asked, tearing off a piece of his jacket to

tightly wrap around Roman’s leg to stop the bleeding.

 

Roman nodded. “Yea, it hurts like a bitch.”

 

“I bet.” John couldn’t help but laugh a little. “But that’s good. At

least I don’t have to amputate it right here.”

 

“You know how to do that?” Roman asked, a little curious.

 

“Nope.” John tied the knot tight so it wouldn’t come loose as

Roman grimaced. “Oh that makes me so much more confident.”

 

“Here. Come on.” John pulled Roman into a standing position.

Holding one arm around Roman’s waist to support him, he held

the gun in his other hand, not sure if the enemy was still close or

not.

 

“Hold it!” Someone yelled, seeing them. Suddenly, two guns were

pointed in John and Roman’s faces. “Oh.” One of the soldiers

sighed, putting their gun back down. “I never thought I’d say this,

but I’m damn glad to see you Black, Brady.”

 

“Are there anymore survivors?” Roman wondered, closing his eyes

as he felt a jolt of pain rip through his leg.

 

The soldiers shook their heads sadly. “We checked the area twice.

We thought you two were dead. Can you make it for a few miles?

The next platoon should be in one of the towns.” He looked at

Roman.

 

Roman nodded. “Yea, but I’m going to need some help.” With that,

the soldiers headed through the dry desert, prepared for another

attack. In the meantime, messages were sent home telling their

loved ones that they were all dead…

 

~

 

Marlena awoke to the sounds of papers shuffling and Tony

stomping around the room loudly. “Tony? What are you doing? Its

3 in the morning.” Marlena sat up in bed, seeing the shoe box

open. “Oh shit,” she whispered.

 

“Nothing, Baby. Go back to sleep.” Tony smiled, throwing more

stuff into the fire.

 

“Tony!” Marlena yelled, jumping out of bed. She ran across the

room to where he was standing in front of the fireplace.

“Noooooo!” She yelled, trying to reach for the papers that Tony

was throwing into the fire.

 

“I couldn’t find any newspaper.” Tony laughed. “Oh, I’m sorry

honey. I didn’t know you wanted that junk.”

 

“It’s not junk! How could you?” Marlena cried, seeing the picture

of John going up in flames.

 

“You don’t need anymore memories of him. We’ll make new ones

together. Don’t you see?” Tony pushed some hair from her face

and she slapped his hand away. “Don’t touch me. You’re a selfish

bastard. I will never love you, get that through your thick skull.

You will never be Brady’s father and you will never claim my heart!

Never!” Marlena yelled, running from the room. She heard Tony

chasing her, so she ran to Brady’s room and slammed the door

shut, sinking down the door onto the floor.

 

The next morning, Brady jumped out of bed, seeing his Mom on

the floor, curled in a ball. “Momma?” he asked softly, putting his

hand on her cheek as he sat down in her lap. “Momma, it`s

morning, wake up.”

 

“What?” Marlena looked around, focusing her eyes on Brady.

“Good morning Baby.” She hugged him to her, a little tighter than

usual.

 

“Are you tay?” Brady asked her a little confused.

 

She nodded. “You’re all I have left, please don’t leave me. Please.”

She began to cry.

 

“I not leave you, Mommy. I promise.” He gave her his smile that

reminded her so much of John. She couldn’t help but smile back

at him.

 

“Why don’t you go get cleaned up, and I’ll go start breakfast?” She

asked, picking out some clothes for him.

 

“But do I have ta?” He whined, knowing she would make him

anyway… no matter what he did. She gave him her, ‘You know the

answer to that, so just do it’ look. “Whatever,” he told her,

running out of the room to go clean up like he was told.

 

Marlena made Brady’s little car bed and cleaned up some toys and

matchbox cars he had laying around the room… before going

downstairs. She avoided any sort of eye contact with Tony as she

began to make breakfast. “So I get the silent treatment?” Tony

asked.

 

When she didn’t answer, he just started to laugh. “I expected as

much.”

 

Before she could say anything and start an argument, Brady

climbed through the doggy door in the back door. He tried to

sneak through the house without being noticed, but cringed

when he heard his Mom’s voice. “Brady, I thought you were

supposed to be cleaning up, not getting dirty.” Marlena smiled at

him, not showing any signs of being mad. “Come here so I can

wipe the dirt off your face.”

 

“You what?” Tony got up and intercepted Brady before he went

to Marlena. “Your Mother told you to do something and you did

the opposite? This is going to end, boy!” Tony grabbed Brady

roughly by the arm and dragged him out of the room.

 

“Tony, stop it!” Marlena ran after them.

 

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” Brady started to cry. “My arm hurts.” He

looked up at Marlena with his blue eyes, shining with tears.

 

“You will be sorry. Its time you learned a lesson.” Tony pulled off

his belt and pushed Brady into the bathroom, locking it.

 

“Stop it! Tony, please don’t hurt him! Tony, please!” Marlena

screamed, trying to open the door. She started crying and began

to ram herself into the door, trying to break it down when she

heard the loud, snapping sounds of Tony whipping her son. “Tony,

I’ll do whatever you want! Please stop! Oh God, please don’t.”

Marlena realized there was nothing she could do to save her son

from the pain he was going through. She heard his screams and

yells, but she couldn’t get in there to help him.

 

After a minute, the door opened and as Tony came out, Marlena

pushed him aside despite his attempt to stop her. She ran into the

bathroom, locking the door behind her and gathered Brady’s

shaking body in her arms. “Oh honey, I’m so sorry.” She rocked

him back and forth as he continued to cry. “I’m so sorry, Baby.”

She cried herself, knowing she should have done something more.

But what? What could she have done?

 

Making a quick decision, she picked Brady up and opened the

door, pushing past Tony once again. “Get out of my way you sick

bastard.” She jogged up the stairs with Brady and started

throwing whatever clothes and toys she could gather for Brady

and her.

 

After making a quick call, she sat on her bed, cradling Brady in

her arms. She looked down at him and saw that he had almost

cried himself to sleep. “Oh honey, I’m so sorry. This is all my fault.

I should have never let him go this far. But I promise you, he will

never hurt you again. I promise.” She kissed his forehead as she

heard voices downstairs. Just then there was a soft knock on her

door.

 

Marlena unlocked it and opened the door slowly. She sighed in

relief, seeing John’s mother, Caroline, standing there. “Are you

two alright? Oh my God, what happened?” She asked worriedly as

she grabbed their two suitcases and led them down the hallway.

 

“We’ll be fine. Thank you so much, Mrs. Black.” Marlena told her,

feeling overwhelmed at what this woman and her husband were

doing for her.

 

“Marlena, you know we always thought of you as family. And we

still do.” Caroline looked at Marlena when she stopped suddenly

before going down the stairs. “Don’t worry, honey. Shawn and Bo

won’t let Tony touch you or Brady again. It’s alright.” She placed

a comforting hand on Marlena’s arm and they slowly descended

the stairs.

 

“Don’t even look at him.” Caroline said as they passed Tony, who

immediately started begging for her not to leave.

 

“You’re lucky my brother isn’t here or he would have kicked your

ass.” Bo gave Tony a shove as he and his father followed

Caroline, Marlena and Brady to the car.

 

“They won’t be there to protect you forever, Marlena. You’ll

come crawling back soon enough.” Tony smiled, watching them

drive off.

Brady had fallen asleep in the car on the way to the Pub, so as Bo

carried him upstairs, Marlena and Caroline followed Shawn into

the Pub.

 

“Sit right here and I’ll go fix you something.” Shawn smiled at

Marlena as he headed towards the kitchen.

 

“Oh no Shawn, that’s alright. I’m fine, really. You’ve already done

so much for me, I couldn’t ask anything more of you.” Marlena

insisted.

 

“Nonsense.” He waved her off. “We always do this for family. And

besides, you and Brady are gonna need a place to stay. And don’t

think Caroline and me will let you stay anywhere besides here.” He

continued talking, already in the kitchen.

 

Marlena sighed as Caroline gave her a smile. “Alright, alright.”

Marlena gave in. “I’ll do it for Brady. But I don’t want us to be a

burden on you.”

 

“Of course you aren’t. Don’t say that dear.” Caroline went around

to the other side of the bar and got Marlena some water. “You

and your son are always welcome here.”

 

“Caroline, there’s something I haven’t been quite honest about.

And I fear that when I tell you, you won’t be feeling the same.”

Marlena put her head in her hands.

 

“What is it, dear? Honey, it can’t be that bad. And you know

nothing will ever change our minds once we have them set.”

Caroline placed a hand on Marlena’s shoulder, sitting the water in

front of her.

 

“Brady is your grandson. I found out 2 months after John left for

the army. At first I didn’t want to tell him because I thought he

might hate me. Then I wrote a letter telling him about it and Tony

threw it out. He wouldn’t let me send it. John doesn’t even

know.” She cried.

 

Caroline sat there beside Marlena not saying anything for a

moment. She was a little shocked, but figured as much was true.

“I always thought Brady looks so much more like John than he

does Tony. And acts like him too.”

 

“You’re not…mad?” Marlena asked, lifting her head to look

Caroline in the eyes.

 

“Oh how could I be mad? Brady is a wonderful little boy. And just

because you wanted to keep Brady’s father a secret doesn’t make

you a bad person. I understand why you did it. I’m just so happy

to know he’s my grandson.” Caroline wiped a tear from her own

eye. “Oh, hold on a second Dear while I go tell Shawn the news.

If you don’t mind, that is?”

 

“Of course not.” Marlena smiled, glad that she was happy. And

she expected nothing less. She watched as Caroline hurried into

the kitchen.

 

“Marlena?” Hope squealed from the doorway. She ran down the

steps and pulled Marlena into a huge hug. Marlena’s smile got

bigger as she hugged her best friend back. “Oh my God, Hope, it’s

so good to see you.”

 

“It’s so good to see you too. What happened? Is everything

alright?” Hope sat down beside her. For the next half hour,

Marlena informed Hope what had happened. “And Brady is

upstairs sleeping.”

 

“Well thank God you got out of there before he really hurt you.

If only John were here.” Hope told her.

 

“Yea, I know. And for some reason I’m glad he wasn’t here to see

that. John would probably be in jail now for killing him.” Marlena

agreed.

 

“You know what you need?” Hope asked, noticing Marlena’s stress.

 

“What’s that?” Marlena wondered.

 

“Just a little girls night out.” Hope’s eyes twinkled with a hint of

mischief.

 

“But what about Brady? I can’t just leave him here with Shawn

and Caroline.”

 

“Yes you can. And you will,” Shawn told her, standing in the door

with Caroline. “Besides, I think Caroline and myself could use this

as an opportunity to get acquainted with our grandson.”

 

Marlena looked back at Hope who smiled widely and grabbed the

phone.

 

~

 

“Think if I claim insanity I’ll be sent home?” Roman asked, letting

John pull most of his weight as they walked down the deserted

road.

 

“You’re going home,” John told him, a small smile coming to his

lips as they saw a helicopter landing a few yards away from them.

 

“Oh thank God,” Roman yelled, happily. “Sorry man, I know you

have to stay.”

 

“Hey, don’t be sorry that you get to get out of this hell hole,”

John assured him, happy for him. “I got nothing to go back to

anyways,” he sighed, watching the ground below him.

 

“Your girl leave you?” Roman sympathized with him.

 

John nodded. “Yea, but lets not talk about it. Come on, let’s get

you out of here.”

 

John helped Roman into the helicopter. “Hey. Good luck.” Roman

held out his hand to shake John’s. John shook his hand. “You

too,” John told him, running away from the helicopter to join the

few members of his platoon left.

 

A few days later, Roman woke up in a hospital. “Where am I?” He

whispered, looking around the room. It definitely was not an army

hospital. There were no screaming men and the place was air-

conditioned.

 

“You’re at Salem Hospital. You’re in good hands, Corporal.” He

heard a soft voice speak to him. He looked up and saw a

beautiful, young blonde haired woman staring at him.

 

He nodded, still adjusting to her beauty. He smiled, touching her

hand. “I’m Roman Brady. You are?” He asked her.

 

“Dr. Evans. But you can call me Marlena.” She smiled, starting to

like him already.

3 months later…

 

“Roman, where are you taking me?” Marlena laughed, trying to see

past Roman’s hand that was placed over her eyes. He led her

down the hallway of her apartment and opened the door. After

staying with John’s parents for a month, Marlena decided she and

Brady needed to get a place of their own… although they spent

most of their time with Caroline, Bo, Kayla, Kim, Shawn and the

rest of the family. “Okay, you can look now.” He removed his

hand. She gasped, looking around the room. “Oh, Roman. It’s all

so beautiful.” She listened to the soft music playing in the

background and was touched by all the candles lit everywhere.

 

“It’s all for you.” He smiled, wrapping his arms around her waist

from behind.

 

“I love it. Thank you.” She turned in his arms and kissed him. He

kissed her back. “How did I get so lucky to end up here with

you?” He asked her.

 

“I don’t know.” She turned her head away from him a little bit.

 

“Hey, what’s wrong?” he asked, putting a hand on her cheek and

making her look at him.

 

“Nothing. It’s just that, I’ve never been away from Brady this long.

I haven’t seen him all day.” Roman sighed, trying not to roll his

eyes as he sat down on the bed.

 

“Marlena, this night is about us. Just you and me. Please try and

enjoy it…” Roman pleaded with her, pulling her to the bed.

 

She sighed, giving in, even though she wanted nothing more than

to spend the evening with her little boy. “I guess you’re right.”

They began to kiss, falling back onto the bed.

 

“Roman, wait.” Marlena stopped him as they began to get a little

heated up. “I… I don’t… could we use some protection? I don’t

think this is a good time to get pregnant. It’s a little soon in our

relationship.” Deep down she knew the real reason she didn’t

want to get pregnant, but she couldn’t tell him.

 

A little annoyed, Roman gave her his pouty face. “You don’t want

to have kids with me?”

 

“No, that’s not it,” she lied, knowing that was the exact reason. “I

just think it’s a little soon for that.”

 

“Sure. Whatever you want.” He did his best to keep his annoyance

and jealousy to himself as he left the room for a second.

 

~

 

He stood outside the apartment building, looking up at all the

windows, wondering which one she was behind. He smiled to

himself and willed his hands to stop shaking. It`s not like he

hasn’t seen her before, so what was wrong with him?

 

“Go away.” He closed his eyes, telling the butterflies in his

stomach to leave him alone. “What do I say to her?” He asked

himself, clutching the bouquet of lilacs in his left hand as he

tried to tighten the tie on his uniform with the other hand. He

straightened his cap and looked down at the ground once more.

“What if… no, don’t think that. She still loves you. She promised

before you left that she always would,” he told himself, trying to

shake the insecurities he felt in his gut. “Yea, but it`s been four

years.” He sighed.

 

The thunder roaring above him and the rain falling from the

darkened sky quickly broke him out of his reverie. He took one

more deep breath and jogged to the front door. “Thanks.” He

smiled when an older couple opened the door. He jogged past

them up two flights of stairs.

 

He stood there in front of her apartment door and suddenly was

frozen in place again. This is a bad idea, he thought to himself,

walking back down the hallway. Stopping again, he turned around.

“Just go.” He pushed himself along back to the door. “Okay, this

is silly,” he mumbled.

 

Raising his hand, he knocked on the door softly. Waiting a

moment, he knocked a little louder. As if on instinct, he grabbed

the doorknob and turned it. He was very surprised when the door

actually was open. She never left the door unlocked to his

knowledge. “Well, maybe she forgot?” He laughed a little nervously

and opened the door enough to peek inside.

 

Not seeing anyone, he walked further inside, shutting the door

behind him. “Hello?” he called out. Hearing noises come from the

back room, he headed down the hallway. Everything happened so

fast within the next seconds. He opened the door and saw his old

war buddy in bed with his girlfriend. “Oh my God.” Was all he

could say as he dropped the lilacs and started backing out of the

room. “Sorry,” he said, closing his eyes. He barely heard Marlena

chasing him as she called out his name and told him to wait.

 

He ignored her and ran out onto the street, the rain now coming

down in a downpour. But even the rain couldn’t wash away the

tears streaming from his face. With his vision blurred, he raised

his hand to signal a cab. He was thankful one came before

Marlena caught up to him.

 

“John, wait!” Marlena yelled, reaching the cab as it started driving

off down the street. “Oh John, I’m so sorry. Please don’t go.” She

cried, falling to the ground, wearing the only shirt she had left of

John’s. Her tears overwhelmed her, and she barely realized that

Roman carried her back inside the apartment.

“Marlena, are you okay?” Roman carried her inside the apartment

and sat her down on the couch. She shook her head, barely able

to speak. Roman sighed, sitting down beside her. He placed his

head in his hands. “I didn’t know,” he said softly.

 

“Didn’t know what?” Marlena asked.

 

“I didn’t know that you were the girl who left John Black. Oh, if

only I had known.” Roman fought his tears. “I hurt my best

friend.”

 

“You… you were in the army with John?” Marlena looked at him

then. Roman nodded.

 

Roman moved closer to her on the couch. “Neither one of us

wanted to hurt him. But, we did and we can’t take that back. Nor

can we hide the feelings that we share for each other. Please tell

me you agree,” Roman said, placing a hand on hers.

 

“I… I can’t do this right now. I need some time.” When Roman got

off the couch a little angrily, she felt sorry. “I’m sorry Roman. But

you can’t expect me to go on with you right away when what John

and I have is unfinished. We loved each other when he left and I

still love him. Please, just give me some time to adjust to this

situation. He just came home and was hurt beyond belief with

what he just saw.”

 

“I know, you’re right. I’m sorry. You know where to find me.”

Roman kissed her lightly on the cheek and quietly left.

 

John sat in the back of the cab, his head rested on the cool

window. Too tired to go drink his sorrows away at some bar, he

headed home to the Pub. Paying the cab driver the last of his

money, he wearily got out and went inside. He had been there

earlier, that’s how he got Marlena’s address; from his mom and

sister. “I wish I hadn’t.” He laughed sarcastically, laying down on

his bed, still in his army uniform. He hardly slept throughout the

night, save for an hour here, an hour there. Finally, he got up

when he saw the sun rise, not able to stay in bed any longer.

 

He heard noises coming from the kitchen and wasn’t surprised to

hear his father already awake. However, he was a little surprised

when he saw the sticky note on the bar counter.

 

John, Bo,

Your Pop and I went to the market.

Marlena will be by later to get Brady.

 

Love

Mom and Pop.’

 

“Who is Brady?” John wondered. Hearing the noise again, he

headed into the kitchen. He saw a little brown haired boy

standing on the kitchen counter, reaching his little arms up to the

cabinet above.

 

“Hey,” John said, startling the boy. He rushed over to Brady when

he saw him loose his balance a little. “Sorry. Do you need some

help pal?”

 

Brady nodded. “Who are you?”

 

“I’m John. You must be Brady.” John grabbed the cereal box he

was reaching for.

 

“How did you know that?” Brady asked, reaching his arms out to

John.

 

“Just a lucky guess.” John gave him a small smile and after

hesitating a second, picked him up off the counter. He had no

idea who this little boy was.

 

John got him some cereal and sat with him at the bar. He got

himself some orange juice and watched as the little boy started

eating sloppily with his spoon.

 

“Hey, bro.” Bo smiled, patting John on the shoulder as he came

back downstairs. “I still can’t believe you’re home. Its great to

have you back.”

 

“Its great to be back.” He said, not really feeling it after what he

had seen last night.

 

Bo noticed something was up, but didn’t say anything in front of

Brady. “Listen man, how about we go out for some beers later

and catch up?”

 

“Sounds good.” John said, looking back to Brady who had

disowned his spoon and had his face half in the bowl like a dog.

 

Bo laughed a little, remembering how Caroline had told him to

keep it secret for now that Brady was John’s son. “Come on, Bo,

lets get going.” Hope started pulling Bo to the door. “She’s

expecting. Its our first ultrasound.” Bo smiled as John

congratulated them. “Kim and Kayla went shopping earlier, so can

you just watch Brady until Marlena gets here?” Hope asked John.

 

“Well, I…” John started, not knowing anything about taking care

of kids. “Please? Marlena will be here later.” Hope sighed.

 

“Okay, okay. Get going before you’re late already.” John smiled

slightly, watching them run out the door. Oh how he wished that

were he and Marlena.

 

“So…” John looked back at Brady. “I’m not sure, but I think you

eat with this.” He held up the spoon, smiling at him.

 

“Not me.” Brady giggled, tossing the spoon on the counter.

 

“Is Marlena your Mommy?” John couldn’t help but wonder, having

a feeling she was. Brady nodded. “What’s your Daddy’s name?”

 

Brady suddenly stopped, not moving as if he were scared. “Hey,

what’s wrong?” John asked worriedly, not knowing what happened.

 

“My Daddy is mean. He’s…he’s a bad man. He hits Mommy and he

hits me with the belt.” Brady suddenly started to cry, reaching out

for John.

 

Not knowing what else to do, John picked the boy up, cradling

him in his arms. Brady’s tears soaked the shoulder of John’s shirt.

For some reason, John felt some sort of connection to this little

boy who he had only met an hour ago.

 

“I don’t know who your Daddy is, but I promise I won’t let him

hurt you or your Mommy again.” John told him.

 

“Really?” Brady held on tighter to John. John nodded. “Really.”

 

“Are you supposed to take naps or anything?” John asked him.

 

He nodded. “Mommy says its healthy for me to take naps. But I’m

not tired.”

 

John smiled. “Your Mommy would say that. I never believed her,

so I won’t make you take one.”

 

“I like you a lot, John.” His eyes lit up. “Since its raining outside,

want to play video games?”

 

“Sure.” John smiled at him. He was touched and felt tears come

to his eyes when Brady grasped his hand in his little one, leading

him back upstairs.

 

Marlena woke up on the couch the next morning. She could feel

her still damp face from all the tears she had cried the night

before. Stretching, she looked around the room and suddenly

remembered Brady was at the Pub. “John’s there. Oh man.”

Marlena quickly got ready and an hour later, she was out the

door, heading towards the Pub.

Marlena took her time getting to the Pub. She prayed John

wasn’t there, but deep down she knew she had to talk to him

about what he saw last night. But what was there to say? He had

seen what was going on and Marlena couldn’t deny that. She

sighed, asking herself what had possessed her to do that in the

first place. She arrived at the Pub and sat out in her car for a

few minutes, pondering what she would say to him. She sighed

and finally got out of the car, heading inside.

 

“Hello? Caroline? Shawn?” She called, walking through the front

door, bypassing the sign on the door that read ‘Closed.’

 

“Brady?” she called again. Not seeing anyone downstairs, she

headed upstairs where she heard video game music. “Brady?” She

peeked in through the door to his bedroom and almost cried

when she saw the scene before her. Brady and John were both in

beanbag chairs, lounging in front of the television that had a

stagnant video game on it. Both John and Brady were asleep;

Brady’s head was rested on John’s shoulder, slobber slightly

coming from the side of his mouth.

 

Marlena quietly walked over to them and leaned down in front of

Brady. She was surprised when she tried to pry Brady from the

beanbag chair, and his little hands tightened around John’s arm…

waking John up. John shook awake and his eyes opened in a

flash, still having memories about being woken up from attacks in

the war. He calmed down quickly when he made eye contact with

Marlena. John started to stand up. “Let him go,” he whispered

softly to Marlena. “Come on.” He felt like outstretching his hand

to her, but then remembered what he saw last night and the pain

came back full force.

 

Marlena followed him from the room, shutting Brady’s door

halfway just in case he woke up. She watched as John walked in

front of her. His stance was straight and he walked with a strong

purpose, as if he were still in the army. She couldn’t help but

notice the muscles rippling through the back of his shirt and even

further… down to his ass. “I’m sorry, what?” She asked, realizing

John had asked her something.

 

“I said, do you want something to drink?” he asked, turning to

face her. He almost gasped out loud when he looked upon her.

He had seen her last night, but he hadn’t had a chance to look…

with the shock he had received from the situation. However, he

couldn’t blame her. She had needed someone after they were torn

apart. He couldn’t be there for her while he was at war, so it was

only natural for her to move on. And as much as it killed him to

realize that, he was still happy if she was. She hadn’t changed

much in the years apart. She had only become more beautiful and

had an older, more mature look to her. Her hair was cut shorter,

down to her shoulders and her curves had formed more than they

had when he had seen her last.

 

“Umm..no, I’m fine,” Marlena answered, looking down at her

shoes, blushing at the way he was staring at her. He noticed her

change in attitude and immediately apologized.

 

“I’m sorry,” he said softly, looking away. After that, an awkward

silence followed. John broke the silence first, avoiding talking

about what happened last night. “How’ve you been?” He asked.

 

She shrugged. “I missed you so much.”

 

Before he could stop himself, he snorted slightly. “Yea, that’s

what it looked like last night.”

 

She felt tears come to her eyes as she once again thought about

how badly she had hurt him. “Listen, John… I…”

 

He interrupted her. “No, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to say that at

all.” He raised a hand to silence what she was about to say next.

“I just missed you so much while I was gone. Hell, your letters

were my lifeline… even when I couldn’t see you. And I kinda

figured you had moved on when you stopped sending them to me.”

 

“John, there are some things you don’t know. I…” She started to

tell him when Brady walked down the stairs. “Momma!” He smiled,

running to her.

 

“Oh hi Baby. Mommy missed you so much.” She leaned down to

pick him up. John smiled, watching mother and son reunite after

a night away from each other. “Did you have a good time at

Grandma and Grandpa’s?” Marlena accidentally blurted. John was

confused, but didn’t think anything of it, as he wasn’t surprised

his mom and Dad had wanted Marlena to still be known as family.

 

Brady nodded excitedly. “And I met John this morning. And we

ate cereal with our faces, and played video games.”

 

“Oh really?” Marlena looked at John who just smiled and shrugged.

 

“And he promised that he wouldn’t let Daddy hurt us no more.”

 

“He did, did he?” Marlena asked softly, feeling the tears sting her

eyes once again. Not looking at John, she told Brady, “Why don’t

you go get your things, okay, honey?”

 

“Oh but do we have to leave already?” He pouted.

 

She nodded as John spoke up. “Well, maybe your Mom will let you

come visit me again.”

 

“Would you Mommy?” Brady smiled, pleading with Marlena who

didn’t have to think twice. “I think he can visit you whenever you

want.” She couldn’t wait to tell John that he was Brady’s father.

Marlena smiled, watching Brady run up the stairs to get his stuff.

 

“John, what you saw last night…” Marlena started when John

turned away from her and started to walk back into the kitchen.

Determined, she followed him and started again.

 

“Marlena, I really don’t want to talk about it. It’s none of my

business anyway. You moved on with your life, and I won’t deny

that it doesn’t hurt… because it does. But I didn’t go to war with

the expectation that you would wait for me,” he sighed, looking

up at her. She had tears in her eyes, wanting to stop him from

going any further… so she could explain. “I’m glad you moved on.

I really am. You have a wonderful son and I don’t want you to feel

like you have to regret that part of your life. And about last

night…” he sighed, running a hand through his hair before he

continued. “I was just shocked at the situation, that’s all. I’m

happy to see you though. I just wish I could have told you that

last night. Well, I guess I could have but…” He didn’t realize he

was rambling on and on, until Marlena started moving closer and

closer to him.

 

“Do you have feelings for Roman?” John whispered… their faces

so close together. At that comment… the moment they both

seemed to be getting caught in… vanished. Marlena looked away

from him and broke their eye contact. “John…” she started,

wanting to explain everything he had missed and all the news she

had to tell him.

 

However, he had taken her response the wrong way. He backed

away from her and held his hands in the air slightly. “You know,

I’m sorry. It’s really none of my business to be asking you that.”

 

“I’m ready Momma!” Brady yelled as he came running into the

kitchen with his backpack on his shoulders. Brady’s smile got

wider as he high-fived John, reaching his arms up to him for a

hug. John lifted him off the ground and smiled slightly as Brady

hugged him tightly. “Maybe you can come over tomorrow and we

can play video games and… do you like baseball?” he asked.

 

John nodded. “I used to play baseball. Before I went away.”

 

“He was so good at it. He got accepted to the majors even,”

Marlena added, seeing how Brady’s eyes lit up, hearing that piece

of news.

 

“So why don’t you play for them?” Brady wondered.

 

“Well… I had to go away for a while.” John tried to explain.

 

“On business?”

 

“Yep. On business.”

 

“So, can John come over tomorrow?” Brady gave Marlena his

pouty look.

 

“Well… I don’t think John would want to…” she started, seeing

the tears come to Brady’s eyes.

 

“I wouldn’t want to wake you up so early in the morning like

today, so I can come over when you wake up.” John smiled.

 

“Alright!” Brady yelled, running out to the car.

 

Tell him…tell him, Marlena urged herself. She opened her mouth

to say something when they heard the door to the Pub open and

Bo and Hope return. “I’ll see you tomorrow then.” She smiled at

John and started walking to the door.

 

“Yea, see ya,” John sighed, watching her go. He told himself to

run after her and stop her, but he wasn’t sure what her feelings

were. To him it wasquite obvious that she wanted Roman and he

was the last person who wanted to destroy her happiness yet

Again.

The next day, John went over to Marlena’s apartment like he had

done two nights before. He sighed, eyeing his shoes for a second

before knocking. He heard footsteps coming to the door and a

few seconds later, Marlena swung the door open.

 

“Hi,” she whispered, giving him a smile.

 

“Hey.” He smiled back, wondering what she was whispering about.

 

“Brady is sleeping,” she explained, leading him inside. She led him

to the upstairs living room where they wouldn’t have to worry

about disturbing Brady. “Would you like something to drink?”

Marlena asked him.

 

“Sure. I’ll have some water,” he said, taking a good look around

the room. He smiled, seeing all the pictures of Marlena and Brady.

He wondered why there weren’t any family pictures around

showing Brady’s Dad. He wanted to ask her about him,

remembering how upset Brady had been when he talked about

him. But, he didn’t want to get into that right now seeing as they

didn’t get off on a good start with his return home. He walked

over to the couch and took a seat, waiting for Marlena to come

back.

 

A few minutes later, Marlena came back into the room and

handed him a glass of water as she took a seat beside him on the

couch.

 

“So, I’m sure I don’t have to explain to you what I’ve been doing

for the past four years.” John smiled slightly. “How about you tell

me what you’ve been up to.”

 

Marlena rested her elbow on the edge of the couch, turning her

body so she was facing John. She tilted her head to the side,

letting some hair fall to that side of her face. With the sun

shining in through the glass doors, hitting her face… and the nice

breeze blowing through the room, moving some of her hair, John

couldn’t help but think of how lucky he was to be staring at an

angel.

 

She smiled at him and said, “Well, I finished school. I’m officially a

psychiatrist.”

 

His eyes lit up with happiness for her. “That’s great, Doc. You

know, I never ever doubted you would do that. You always did

want to help people and now you are.”

 

She nodded. “You helped people too, don’t forget that.”

 

He looked away for a second, the memories coming back to him.

“Yea, I know,” he sighed, not saying anything else.

 

She placed a hand on his arm and made him look at her. “You

know, I think you should go back to school. You always wanted

to finish your police science and go into the FBI or ISA.”

 

He smiled, looking back at her. “You always refuse to think

negatively. And that’s a good thing,” he added.

 

She shook her head. “No, you’re partially wrong about that.”

When he looked at her quizzically, she focused her eyes on the

fabrics on the couch. “I never thought I would be seeing you

again. For the first time in my life I thought I’d never be complete

again. All those other times, I had you by my side and that… that’

s what kept me hanging on and able to get through anything. But

when you were gone, I had nothing.”

 

He caught the tear that rolled down her cheek with his thumb. It

came so naturally for him to do that for her. “But I’m here now.

And I’m not going anywhere.” He scooted close to her in one

movement and pulled her into his strong embrace.

 

She cried out slightly, throwing her arms around his neck as the

tears started pooling from her eyes. “Oh John. Oh I missed you

so much. I’m so sorry I hurt you.” She buried her face into his

shoulder and ran her hands up and down his arms, down his back,

wanting to feel him all over again. She pulled back to look at his

face and saw that he had tears coming from his eyes too. She

placed her hands on his cheeks, then ran her fingers softly over

his eyebrows, down his lips, wanting to touch him again.

 

“Doc…” John whispered as they both looked upon each other

desperately, both needing each other so much. She threw her

arms around his neck again as their lips latched on to each other

as if for the first time.

 

“Oh John… mmhhh…” Marlena moaned, their lips locked

together in the lover’s dance they knew all too well. She pushed

her tongue into his mouth and shoved his back against the back

of the couch, climbing onto his lap. He pulled her closer, their

lips only breaking long enough for them to breathe in some air.

 

John ran his lips down her neck to her chest. As his hands

started unbuttoning her shirt, he started to lose control, feeling

Marlena’s hips rock against his. Removing her blouse, John tore

off her bra, his lips making contact with her perfect skin. He

licked and nipped at her breasts, taking each nipple in his mouth

and slightly biting it. Marlena couldn’t take anymore as she lifted

his shirt roughly over his head, tossing it across the room to join

her bra and shirt.

 

She ran her hands up his taut chest, sliding it through some of

the tiny chest hairs. Suddenly, John grabbed her by the hips and

pulled her against him roughly as he stood up. Her lips sought out

his, kissing him wildly and passionately. Her kisses threw him off

guard for a second and he had to pause, pushing her up against

the wall so he could concentrate on her kisses.

 

After a few seconds, he pulled them back and led her down the

hallway. She giggled, trying to lead him away from the door he was

about to go in. “That’s Brady’s room.”

 

He smiled and went to the next door he saw. “If this is the closet

or the bathroom, we’re just going to have to deal with it.”

 

She smiled and he carried her into her bedroom, kicking the door

shut behind him. They both fell onto the bed, Marlena’s legs still

wrapped tightly around John’s waist.

 

“Oh my God, John,” she moaned as he started kissing down her

chest. He placed soft kisses down her abdomen, reaching the

waistline of her denim short shorts. He quickly discarded them

and her underwear, smiling up at her. She smiled back at him and

lifted her leg in between his legs, rubbing her foot against his

manhood. “No fair John, you’re still half dressed.”

 

He moaned. “Patience, my lady.” He smiled lowering his face down

to kiss her thighs. He started from her knee and placed kisses all

along her perfect thighs, then began kissing the inside of them.

She moaned in pleasure, wanting more. “John, please…” She

sighed, locking her hands in his hair as he parted her legs even

further. His mouth instinctively parted and his tongue and mouth

came in contact with her lips, pushing them apart. He sucked and

tugged at them with his mouth, smiling as he felt her push his

face more into her.

 

“John….!” She yelled out loud, not remembering the last time a

man had made her feel the way he did.

 

He knew when she was about to come. He could always sense it in

the way she rocked her hips faster into his face and the slight

tremble she made. Just as he expected she said, “John, I’m… I’m

going to… come,” she warned him.

 

“Its okay, go ahead baby,” he told her, flicking his tongue on her

nub and using his fingers to massage her a little more. She yelled

out with her orgasm, arching her back slightly. “Oh John… oh my

God…” She pulled his face back up to her and kissed him deeply.

 

She put her hands on his chest and applied some pressure,

pushing him onto his back. “Now, it’s my turn.” She smiled

seductively, kissing him before she began placing kisses down his

strong chest and over his six pack abs. When she reached the

hem of his pants, she straddled his knees, slowly pulling his belt

buckle from his pants. He moaned in anticipation and sucked in a

breath when she grabbed a hold of his member through his pants.

 

She swiftly pulled his pants and boxers off of him, taking no time

in hesitating before dipping her head to try and put as much of

her mouth around him as she could. She started out slowly,

letting her tongue ride along the underpart of his shaft as she

pulled up, running her tongue around the tip of his head.

 

“Oh Doc… you… this feels so good,” he moaned, closing his eyes

to relish in the pleasure that only she could bring to him.

 

Her ministrations got faster and she held onto his sacs with one

hand, sucking as hard as she could on his member, then bobbing

her head down again in a seductive manner.

 

“Doc… I’m gonna come… stop.” John pulled her away from him,

watching her give him a pouty face. He gave her a sweet smile,

pulling her on top of him. Their kisses were sloppy and loving as

they made love with their mouths. Marlena smiled, laying back as

he advanced to her, supporting his own weight above her.

 

“Are you ready?” he asked, meaning it in more way than one. The

last thing he wanted was to hurt her in any way or to do

something she wasn’t ready for yet.

 

His unspoken words were clear to her as she nodded. “I want

you… I need you so much, John.”

 

He smiled, kissing her softly as he entered her slowly. He didn’t

want to rush her at all and as much as he wanted to fuck her

wildly, he stayed inside of her, unmoving. He knew she was ready

when she began to push her hips hard into his.

 

“Oh Doc…” he moaned, pulling almost all the way out of her, and

pushing back in.

 

“John, harder. Fuck me harder.” She looked him deep in the eyes

and grabbed onto his shoulders, scratching her nails down his

back.

 

That turned him on even more as he plunged in and out of her

faster and faster. He tried to hold back as long as he could.

Unhooking her legs from around his waist, she planted them on

either side of his body, giving him better access to her opening.

He looked down at them joined together and slammed into her

harder and faster. “John… John!” Marlena cried out, throwing

her head back in pleasure.

 

Marlena climaxed, bringing John to the brink of ecstasy also. He

moved more softly in her, bringing them both down from the

wonderful place they had both gone to. When he was about to

completely pull out of her, Marlena wrapped her legs around him

once again. “No…” She whispered. “I need to feel you in me

tonight. I need to wake up knowing you’re still here and this

wasn’t another one of my dreams.”

 

She pulled him down on top of her, letting the white satin sheet

cover some of their bodies. “Doc.” John lifted his head from her

chest to look into her eyes. “I love you so much. I never

stopped…”

 

She smiled, tears coming to her eyes. “I love you too, John. And I

promise for the rest of our lives I will show that to you.”

 

With that said, John rested his head back on her chest as he and

Marlena fell into their first peaceful sleep in four years.

 

~

 

Outside the apartment building, a dark figure stood looking up at

her window. “So John, enjoy what you have today, because

tomorrow might be another story.” He smiled, then started to

laugh as he got weird looks from onlookers. That only made him

laugh harder as he walked slowly back down the street.

John woke up to the feel of Marlena’s lips pressed against his

mouth. She was slowly, but passionately kissing his mouth. He

moaned and began kissing her back, pushing his tongue past her

lips into her mouth. She smiled and kissed her way down his chin,

down his neck and to his chest.

 

John ran his hands through her hair as she lifted a leg over his

waist and straddled him. He sat up, capturing her lips with his

own. Moving his hand up her shirt, he ran it up her abdomen, to

her chest.

 

“John…” she moaned. They both tried to jump apart as they

heard Brady come running down the hallway yelling, “Momma!

Wake up!”

 

Marlena dropped her head a little in embarrassment, but John

placed a hand under her chin and made her look at him. She met

his eyes and he smiled, giving her a soft kiss on the lips before

they moved away from each other. Just then Brady ran in the

room full speed into the room. He stopped short, almost falling

from how fast he was running. “John!” He smiled seeing him, his

excitement at seeing John pushing away any other curious

questions he might have asked like why was he in bed with his

mom?

 

Brady ran and took a large leap towards the bed, landing half on

John in between him and Marlena. “That’s a spider man leap.”

Brady smiled, sitting up. “You said you would be here when I woke

up, and you are!”

 

“Well, I did promise you, didn’t I?” John smiled.

 

Brady nodded and innocently said, “You know, my Daddy never

kept no promises.”

 

John felt bad for the boy and couldn’t help but start to wonder

what Tony had done to Brady and Marlena. He vowed he would

find out and make sure Tony would pay… and learn to never lay a

hand on either of them again. Marlena broke John out of his

reverie and immediately said, “Brady, why don’t you go get some

cereal and I’ll be down in a minute?”

 

“But Mom…” Brady whined.

 

“Don’t worry, John won’t go anywhere. We’ll be downstairs in a

minute. Get going.” She smiled, patting his butt as he jumped of

the bed.

 

John watched Brady run out of the room. “I don’t think it’s safe

you let him eat cereal by himself,” he teased. “He doesn’t like

spoons for some reason.”

 

Marlena smiled, running a hand down John’s arm. He looked at

her, sensing something was on her mind. “Everything okay?” he

asked, caressing her cheek as she looked away, tears in her eyes.

 

She shook her head. “I don’t know. There… there is something I

haven’t told you yet. And I’m afraid you’ll hate me for keeping it

from you.”

 

“I could never hate you, Doc. No matter what you kept from me,”

he assured her.

 

“Tony isn’t Brady’s father.” She looked down at the sheets half

covering them.

 

“He’s not? Well, who is?” John asked, confused. Marlena wasn’t

the type to sleep around, so who else could it be.

 

Marlena shook her head. “No, he’s not. You are,” she whispered.

 

John was shocked for a moment. “Me? I’m Brady’s father? But

how? I went to war.”

 

“It was the night before you left. Do you remember that?

Everything was so perfect… except for the fact that you were

leaving. We promised each other that we’d always love each other

and we would always be together, no matter how far apart we

were.” Marlena felt tears sting her eyes as she remembered that

night. How they were both caught up in the passion and the raw

emotions, never doubting they would be together forever.

 

“But why didn’t you tell me?” There were a thousand feelings

running through John. After the shock passed through, he felt

excited, overjoyed, complete. Yet couldn’t help but feel a little

betrayed and maybe somewhat lied to.

 

“At first I didn’t know if I should. We had never talked about

children before, we really didn’t think of it because we were still

young. I knew you could never hate me or our child, but I didn’t

want you to feel obligated in some way if you weren’t ready.

Besides, you were at war and… I just didn’t know what to do.”

She sighed, not looking him in the eye. A small smile tugged at the

corners of her lips. “But then I decided I had to tell you. You had

the right to know. And I couldn’t wait to share the news with

you. So, I sent a letter. Or so I thought.”

 

“What do you mean?” John asked her.

 

“I thought I sent the letter to you. And when you wrote me back

a letter never mentioning me being pregnant, I felt rejected and

that you didn’t care. It tore me to pieces but I kept on writing to

you because I loved you anyways. Just a few months ago, I found

out that Tony intercepted my letter to you. I’m so sorry, John. I

never meant to hurt you,” she cried. John immediately pulled her

into his strong embrace.

 

“Hey, it`s okay,” he whispered, kissing the side of her face.

“Listen, I’m so sorry. I wish I would have known and I really wish I

would have gotten your letter. But it`s not your fault, okay? It`s

Tony’s fault. But none of that matters anymore.”

 

“It doesn’t?” She lifted her head to look at him.

 

“No, it doesn’t. Because I’m here now. And I’m not going

anywhere. And now I know Brady is… my son.” He stopped,

smiling to himself at how that sounded. “I won’t let Tony or

anyone else ever keep us apart again. You know, the truth is, I fell

in love with that little boy the first time I saw him at my parents’

Pub.”

 

Marlena smiled at him, wiping away his tears. “And you know

what, John? He fell in love with you too. Last night when I

brought him home, he talked non-stop about you. He couldn’t

wait for you to get here this morning. Neither could I.” She

placed a soft kiss on his lips. “Why don’t you go tell him?”

 

John smiled, getting out of bed. He pulled on a pair of boxers

and a white t-shirt and headed downstairs. Halfway down the

stairs he heard the loud TV booming cartoons into the room.

When he peaked around the corner, Brady was sitting in the

kitchen, his eyes glued to the TV as he ate his cereal with his

hands.

 

“Do you have something against spoons?” John asked after

watching him for a minute. Brady turned around and smiled at

John. “I really don’t believe your Mother lets you eat like that.”

 

“Oh, she doesn’t know.” John smiled at him, thinking this really

was his son, he could tell by the way he never listened to what

Marlena told him. John took a seat beside Brady.

 

“I’m going to tell you something really confusing now and you

probably won’t understand, but I want you to listen, okay?” John

grinned as Brady stopped eating and looked John straight in the

eyes.

 

“I swear I didn’t get mud through the house again. I tried to clean

it up, please…” Brady started to slide out of his chair, flashbacks

of Tony dragging him into the bathroom to beat him with his belt

coming back to him. The smile fell from John’s face as he

watched Brady. He got up out of his seat to go comfort him

when Brady whimpered and ran under the kitchen table, curling

himself in a ball, crying softly.

 

“Brady, it’s okay. No one is going to hurt you, especially not me.”

John kneeled down to look at Brady under the table. “Come here,

son, there is something I want to tell you. I promise it’s okay.”

 

Brady looked up at him, trusting him, but still unsure. John saw

that Brady was still freaked out, so he didn’t move any closer to

him. “Brady, why are you scared of me? I don’t care about any dirt

in the house.”

 

“My Daddy hit me with the belt all the time for it. He… he

wouldn’t let Momma help me and she was crying for him to let me

alone. But he didn’t. It hurt so much.”

 

John felt the anger boil through him at the same time feeling bad

for what he and Marlena went through.

 

“Please don’t tell my Daddy. If he knows I told someone that, he’ll

hurt me and Mommy real bad.” Brady continued.

 

Firmly, yet in a comforting tone, John said, “Tony will never hurt

you again. He won’t ever hurt your Mommy again either. I promise

you that.”

 

“You…you won’t let him?” Brady sniffed.

 

John shook his head. “No, I will not. And you see, Tony, he isn’t

you real Daddy anyway. So, he can’t hurt you anymore.” John

watched as Brady’s face got more confused, so he tried to explain

it as best as he could. “I’m your Daddy.”

 

Brady cried, not understanding any of this. He went straight into

John’s arms, holding onto him tightly. After a few minutes, Brady

looked at John. “You promise you’re not lying?”

 

“I promise. I am your Daddy.” John looked Brady in the eyes.

 

“How come you didn’t want to be my Daddy before?” Brady asked.

 

John felt tears form in his eyes at his innocent question. “Well, I

loved your Mommy for a long, long time and one day I had to go

far away to help capture bad people. And Mommy tried to tell

me, but I never found out until she just told me. I know it’s very

hard to understand, son, but all that matters is that I’m here with

you and Mommy now.”

 

“And you won’t leave again?” Brady asked him.

 

“No, I promise I won’t leave either of you again.” He kissed

Brady’s forehead as Brady hugged him again.

 

Marlena watched them from the doorway of the kitchen, tears

softly cascading down her cheeks.

 

“I love you…” John told him.

 

“I love you too, Daddy.” Brady laid his head on John’s shoulder.

“I’m really glad you’re my Daddy now.”

 

John smiled, laughing slightly at the innocent way Brady said it.

Marlena smiled, hearing him say it. “Well, I’m really glad you’re my

little boy.” John picked him up off the ground and turned around

to see Marlena standing there, watching them.

 

Brady smiled happily. “John is my Daddy,” he told her.

 

She laughed a little. “I know, honey.” She walked over to them

and gave Brady a kiss on his forehead. Brady held on to John,

laying his head on his shoulder as John leaned forward and kissed

Marlena.

 

~

 

“Such the perfect family now, huh?” The man said, looking

through his binoculars at them from his apartment room across

the street.

 

“Tell me John, who will look after them when you’re gone?” He

laughed to himself, a crazy man’s laugh. “See, you probably don’t

remember me. We were in war together and you left me there to

die. I could have come right home to my family, but no… I was

stranded because of you… and my family was killed! But it`s okay,

John, no hard feelings. Because when you’re gone, I’ll take your

family.” The man began to laugh again, talking to himself in his

own private world

Shh…” Brady held a finger to his mouth as he straightened his

plastic army helmet. His plastic body armour was too big for him

as he tried to move quietly without it hitting his legs and making a

sound.

 

“What do you mean, ‘shhh’?” Billy, Brady’s best friend asked.

 

Brady stuck his head around the corner, watching out for him.

“Brady, what are you two doing?” Marlena smiled, coming up

behind them. Brady and Billy both jumped, her voice like thunder

compared to the silence they had enveloped themselves in.

 

“Mom! Shh!” Brady turned and scolded her.

 

“Run!” Michael whispered loudly, as he and their other friend,

Sam ran up behind them.

 

“What?” Billy asked, his back still to them. Brady’s eyes got wide as

he saw John advancing towards them with a water gun in his

hand. “Run!” The boys started screaming as John chased them

through the house. Marlena smiled, watching them all run into

the kitchen, John pretending to lag behind them, giving them an

advantage. She sat on the stairs, watching as John chased them

out the back door, smiling at how happy he made Brady. And how

happy he made her. Lost in her own thoughts, she barely heard

the screen door slam.

 

John ran halfway up the stairs to her and picked her up easily,

not missing a beat or stopping for a moment. “John! What are you

doing?” Marlena giggled, holding onto him as he threw her over

his shoulder, running up the stairs. She looked over his shoulder

and saw Brady and his friends chase them with the outside hose

on full blast. At the top of the stairs, John sat Marlena down on

her feet in front of their bedroom. Just then Brady came up

behind them, the hose pointed right at John. His buddies came

up beside them and they grinned evilly.

 

“Give it up, Daddy.” Brady smiled.

 

John pretended to think for a minute. “No!” He smiled as Marlena

ducked behind him when Brady yelled for Michael to turn on the

hose. He did and water shot out, soaking John, Marlena, the

walls, the carpet and everything in sight. Marlena started to

scream. She opened the door to their bedroom and pulled John

inside with her, slamming it shut. “Brady!… hose …outside!!”

Marlena called to him, not able to keep her laughter inside.

 

“That was great.” Billy smiled, high-fiving Brady.

 

“Your Dad won’t be mad will he?” Sam asked, surveying the soaked

walls and carpet.

 

“Nah.” Brady smiled.

 

“Hey guys! Let’s go to my house and get my parents!” Michael

yelled. They all yelled and ran out the door to Michael’s house,

which was next door.

 

Marlena watched them from the window, making sure they got

inside okay. “He got me,” John said, out of breath as he took off

his wet shirt and fell back onto the bed.

 

Marlena grinned at him as she seductively started to walk towards

him. “He got me too.” She smiled and began slowly unbuttoning

her shirt, gathering John’s attention. “But now I do start to

wonder how this all came about anyway?”

 

“Are you suggesting this was my fault?” John propped himself on

his elbows, mesmerized by her actions.

 

She let her shirt slide down her arms to the floor. Then she

reached a hand behind her and unclasped her bra, letting that fall

to the floor too. “That’s exactly what I’m suggesting.” She smiled,

climbing up the bed to where he was. She sat on top of him, her

legs spread apart across his waist.

 

“But he started it,” John defended, reminding Marlena of how

Brady sounded when he tried to defend himself to her.

 

“Are you saying I’m wrong?” She played with him, pretending to

move away from him.

 

“No! No, I mean you’re right. He’s only three.” John smiled,

placing his hands on either side of her waist to keep her right

where she was. He looked deep into her hazel orbs, getting lost in

them like he always did. Slowly he ran his hands up her sides,

grasping her breasts in each of his hands. He massaged them

softly, eliciting moans from Marlena. She arched her back as he

began to flick her nipples with his thumbs. “Mmmm… John…” she

moaned, throwing her head back, closing her eyes. He sat up,

replacing his mouth with his hands. Marlena immediately locked

her hands in his hair, grinding herself against him.

 

He kissed his way up her chest to her mouth. She parted her lips

to accept his tongue, darting hers out to duel with his. Wrapping

her arms around his neck, she pressed herself against him and

pushed him back on the bed.

 

“I love you,” she whispered softly, lowering herself onto him. They

both moaned aloud in pleasure.

 

“I love you,” John whispered back, caressing her cheek before he

moved his hands down to grab her hips.

 

Marlena began rocking against him, sitting up, then slamming back

down onto him again. “Oh my God, Doc!” John threw his head

back into the pillows, his eyes rolling back slightly. Marlena smiled

at him and grabbed the headboard above him, holding onto it for

better support.

 

“John, John…” Marlena started to moan louder. Within seconds,

they both climaxed together. Marlena fell on top of John, both

of them relaxing to catch their breaths.

 

John softly kissed along her jaw line, running his hand through

her hair as he rolled them over onto their sides. He watched her

close her eyes, a smile forming on her lips. She looked at him then

and brought her hand to his cheek. “Make love to me again.” She

whispered as he leaned in and kissed her, pushing her on her back

as he settled in between her legs.

 

~~

 

“How disgusting!” The man threw his binoculars on the table as he

averted his eyes from the apartment room across from him.

 

“Then don’t look.” He heard a voice come from behind him.

 

“Its about time you came back. Damn, did they have to grow the

tobacco?” He sat up in his seat as the other man threw a pack of

cigarettes on his lap.

 

“What you’re doing is wrong.”

 

The man started to laugh, lighting a cigarette. “Oh really? And

what you did with her was right?”

 

Roman looked away. “I’m not saying that. I don’t regret making

love to her, but I do regret taking advantage of her.”

 

“Don’t get sappy on me now. You know we have a job to do.” The

man looked at Roman. “Oh come on. He stole your woman.

Doesn’t that make you jealous and pissed off? Listen, it’s the

perfect motive to go through with our plan. Besides, in the end,

you could have them as your family.”

 

“Right. I know better than that,” Roman said, disgusted for ever

getting involved with this man and his maniac plans. “If we get

through this alive, which we won’t, you will never let me have

them as my family. You’ll take them for yourself.”

 

“Are you calling me a liar?” The man yelled, standing up from his

seat.

 

Roman rolled his eyes. “No, whatever. Listen, if we stop this now,

we’ll both be alright. We’ve only spied on them a little and no one

knows about that. So, let’s just forget about everything and leave

it… Now.”

 

“Scared?” The man smiled, taking his seat again.

 

“Smart. I have common sense.” Roman walked over to the window

and looked across the street at Brady having a water balloon

fight with some neighbourhood friends. “We’re fucking around

with the army and if we don’t get killed in the process, we’ll

certainly be jailed for life.”

 

“You worry too much. Besides, we both got nothing to live for.

And killing John would be more than enough satisfaction for me.”

 

Roman closed his eyes, listening to him. “You don’t seem to

understand me. I’ve made a mistake. I never wanted to hurt John.

And especially not his family. I was so jealous of him. He had a

girl when we were in war and I had no one. No one!” Roman felt

the tears cascade down his cheeks.

 

“Well, it’s too late for that son, ain’t it?” The man smiled, hitting

him on the shoulder before he walked out of the room.

Marlena sat up in bed, her back resting against the headboard.

She sneezed loudly again, grabbing a handful of tissues sitting

beside her. “Oh, John what is taking you so long?” she moaned,

her half opened eyes looking around the room, knowing he wasn’t

there. He had left a little over an hour ago to pick up Brady from

spending a day at his parents’ house, with promises to bring back

cold medicine and some of his Mom’s famous chowder.

 

She snuggled down into the covers and turned her eyes back onto

the television. Forgetting for a moment about her cold, she hit

the pillows and yelled, “No, Drake, you stupid dumb-ass, she loves

you, not her boss! Oh my God!” She rolled her head back onto her

pillow, frustrated out of her mind. “Don’t leave her for that

witch. She’s not really carrying your baby! There is no reason to

feel obligated to marry her just because she is having your child.”

She sighed when she saw the leading man walk off with the bad

lady and watched as the beautiful woman stood at the window,

tears in her eyes. “God damn soaps!” She threw the remote at the

TV and fell back in bed.

 

“John, where the hell are you already?” She was getting more

antsy and tired of laying in bed with this cold. She rolled her eyes

when she heard the doorbell ring.

 

Sighing, she pulled back the covers and groggily got out of bed to

answer the door. Swinging the door open, she started to say,

“John, it’s about time. Next time don’t forget your key-“ She

stopped talking when she saw Roman standing there, a small smile

on his face.

 

“Hey there, lovely lady.” He smiled, holding up some cold

medicine. “I ran into John at the Pub. We made some small talk

and he said that you were sick. So, I decided to bring you some

medicine.”

 

She gave him a smile. “Well, thank you. But John is bringing me

some.”

 

“Oh, he didn’t call you?” Roman asked, the smile leaving his face.

 

“What are you talking about?” Marlena asked; confusion on her

face.

 

“Brady wanted to go see the new Sponge Bob movie, so I told

John to take him and that I’d take care of bringing you some

medicine. And, well here I am.” He smiled again.

 

Marlena frowned. ‘Why hadn’t John called to tell her?’ She shook

her head, a little hurt and a little frustrated with him. Placing her

hand on her head, she sighed. I’m getting a headache, she said to

herself. “Thanks Roman. I really appreciate you taking the time

out to think of me like this.”

 

“No problem. Listen, I have some errands to run, so here you go.”

He handed her the cold medicine. “I’ll come back later to see how

you’re doing, okay?”

 

She smiled in thanks. “I’m sure John will be back by then. But

thank you again.” She closed the door and headed back upstairs.

She rolled her eyes at the soap opera that was still on TV, making

her way into the bathroom. She got herself a glass of water and

measured out the right amount of cough syrup to take. Then she

closed her eyes and downed some, taking a sip of water to wash

away the awful tastes.

 

She laid down in bed and closed her eyes, falling into a deep sleep.

 

~

 

Roman came back about 20 minutes later and knocked on the

door. He smiled to himself and walked away, hoping that woke

her up.

 

~

 

Marlena jolted awake to the sounds of knocking again. She

looked at the clock and realized she had only been asleep for 15

minutes and got out of bed again. Her eyes were blurred and the

whole room was moving in circles as she tried to make her way

out of the room. ‘What the hell kind of medicine…’ Marlena

thought to herself. Something is wrong with this medicine, she

kept telling herself.

 

“I’m coming…” she slurred, her attempts at grabbing the railing

going down the stairs lost. She lost her balance and tumbled

down the stairs, smacking her head on the front door, out cold.

 

~

 

“Doc?” John held a sleeping Brady in his right arm, trying to open

the door with a bag of cold medicine in his other hand. ‘What

the…’ He sighed, frustrated, feeling something blocking the door

from the inside.

 

Brady stirred in his arms, but didn’t wake up. Drool was coming

from the corner of his mouth, leaking down on to John’s shirt.

His chubby baby arms were wrapped tightly around John’s neck,

feeling his Daddy jerk his arm to get the door open. “Sorry

buddy,” John whispered, giving him a little kiss on his forehead.

 

John finally got the door open enough to fit him and Brady

inside. “Doc!” John yelled, seeing her on the floor, blood puddled

behind her head. That woke Brady up and he jumped in his

father’s arms, sleepily looking around. He looked down and saw

his mother and started to cry.

 

“Shh…” John said, hugging him. “It`s okay, buddy. Mommy is just

sleeping.” John hurried into the living room away from Marlena

and sat Brady on the couch. “Wait here and Daddy is going to go

wake Mommy up, okay?” John ruffled the boy’s hair and ran back

into the dining room where Marlena was.

 

“Doc, baby wake up!” John didn’t want to shake her, not knowing

what, if anything was broken.

 

He grabbed the telephone and called an ambulance, cradling her

body in his arms, tears falling from his cheeks. “Doc, you have to

be okay.”

 

~

 

At the hospital, John held Brady close to him as he paced the

waiting room. Brady had fallen asleep again and John stared at his

son, feeling some comfort in having Brady there with him.

 

“Doctor, what is wrong with her?” John stopped a doctor passing

by.

 

“Mr. Black.” The man sighed, hating this part of his job. “Dr.

Evans hit her head pretty hard when she took that tumble down

the stairs. She’s suffering from amnesia right now.”

 

“But I can see her?” John asked hopefully.

 

“Yes, you can.” The doctor nodded. “But only for a minute. She

needs her rest.”

 

“Will her amnesia be permanent?” John wondered before heading

off to Marlena’s room, still cradling Brady, who was beginning to

wake up.

 

“We don’t know that yet. But we are going to do everything we

can to help her. Your wife is in good hands.” The doctor looked

at him with sad eyes, pitying the young man and his son.

 

‘Wife’. John repeated in his mind. A smile came to his lips as he

started thinking about it. ‘Focus.’ He shook his head, watching

the doctor walk off.

 

“Lets go see Mommy.” John said, carrying Brady down the hall.

 

~

 

Marlena woke up, a smashing headache. She moaned out loud

when she sneezed. ‘Oh great, a headache and sore body to top

off a cold.’

 

“Honey?” She heard a voice from the door and looked up to see a

man standing there.

 

She tried to focus her eyes on him, but couldn’t put her finger on

who he was. “Baby, it`s John. Oh I’m so glad you’re okay.” He

smiled and moved to her side of the bed, taking her hand in his

own.

 

“John? You came back to me. You came back.” Marlena started

to cry as she touched his face. “You promised you would come

home from war and back to me. And you did. You’re here. Oh I

love you so much.” She pulled his face towards her and kissed him

passionately.

 

“I love you too.” Tony smiled, kissing her back.

 

John stood from the doorway, watching them. He couldn’t

believe his eyes. Tony Dimera. He broke the silence and carried

Brady who was now wide awake into the room.

 

“Mommy!” Brady yelled happily, jumping onto the bed with her.

Marlena pulled away from Tony and hugged her son. “Oh honey,

Mommy is okay. I love you so much. Now we can be a family

again.” Upon laying eyes on Tony, Brady backed away from him

and Marlena, immediately reaching his arms out for John.

“Daddy,” Brady said, watching Tony like a hawk.

 

John picked Brady up and Brady clung to him tightly. “It`s okay,

son.”

 

“Who are you?” Marlena looked up at John, wondering why this

stranger was having her son call him Daddy. “That is not your son.

He’s John’s son. John, please save our son.” Marlena felt tears

come to her eyes as she looked at Tony.

 

Tony just smiled and stood up, knowing he now had everything he

wanted back in his life.