I followed Erika through the door. The apartment was small, but it didn’t seem cluttered. There were plants everywhere, which made me smile. Erika adored plants.

My eyes landed on a picture of her and Finley, our five year old son. They both looked happy, smiling in the photo. My smile grew but got a sad tint.

Erika gave me a nervous smile. “What do you think?”

I enveloped her in a hug. “I love it, it reminds me of the two of you.” I kissed her hair. “I love you too.”

She squeezed me. “I missed you so much.” She whispered.

I’d be lying if I said I didn’t shed a few tears. I hadn’t seen my wife or son for three years because I’ve been fighting in a war.

Blinking to clear my eyes, I ran my hand down her hair comfortingly. “I’m home now, so we can make up for all the time we missed.”

She pulled back and wiped her eyes. “Yeah. Do you want to see Fin?”

I nodded, my heart beating a bit faster in anticipation. I missed my boy dearly.

Erika walked around a corner and I took the time to wipe my eyes and take a calming breath. When Erika came back, it was with Finley.

My breath caught in my throat and my eyes got glossy again. He was so much bigger than I remembered but he wore a shirt with sharks on it. Sharks have always been his favorite. His brown hair was long enough to reach his eyebrows and he had a curious look in his eyes.

“Who are you?” He asked.

Those were the hardest three words to hear in my life. They had my heart plummeting down and my stomach jolting up. I could feel the blood in my face swirling, unsure of whether to leave me pale or flushed.

“Fin, this is your dad.” Erika said softly, giving me a pity-filled look.

Fin’s eyes widened and he glanced from me to Erika. “Really?”

I nodded, swallowing the lump in my throat. “Yeah. How’ve you been Shark?”

Finley’s eyes widened even more and he gaped at me. “You really are my dad…”

He ran towards me and I caught him, throwing him up in the air before catching him and squeezing him tight. Now I was definitely crying.

Fin pulled back and I put him back down. “How come you don’t look like all the pictures Mom showed me?” He asked as I was wiping my eyes.

Erika laughed and I smiled at her before focusing on Fin again. “Because those pictures are from years ago before I was a soldier.”

“So you’ve been fighting in a war this whole time?” Fin’s eyes were big as he stared at me in awe.

I chuckled and started toward the couch. “Why don’t we sit down and I’ll tell you about it?”

“Alright!” Fin agreed, racing to sit down next to me.

I glanced back at Erika, who was wiping her eyes again. “Care to join us?”

She nodded with a large smile, sitting down with Fin and I. Once we were all situated, I started telling them about some of the stupid things me and my best mates would do.

As Fin’s jaw dropped and Erika covered her mouth to stifle a laugh, I felt my chest swell. This was home. This was what I’d been fighting for.