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when I was with them.
They were the closest thing to family I had these days.
    “ Okay, he is handsome.”
    “ How handsome?”
    “ He’s gorgeous!” I
proceeded to tell them all about his body, face, hair, everything I
could possibly think of. I wanted to let Cheryl hear how easily we
got along, because I knew she was going to be concerned. Although
she often suggested dating soldiers, she was still very protective
of me. She really was like a stand-in mother at times, or more so
like an older sister. She needed to hear how we clicked instantly.
I rambled excitedly for quite some time.
    “ So where’s he staying?
Somewhere close by?” Cheryl questioned.
    “ Yeah, about that.” This
little tidbit of information was something I knew would freak her
out.
    “ Is there an issue with
where he’s staying? I bet if I spoke to our landlord he’d be happy
to put him up in one of our units. Joe’s a veteran; he’d be more
than happy to help out another vet. I know there are a couple of
the smaller units available and I can call him right now if you
want.”
    “ No, it won’t be necessary.
He’s staying with me.” I looked down so I couldn’t see Cheryl’s
eyes burning into me, along with flames shooting out her nostrils.
This was not going to go over well.
    “ Are you fucking kidding
me? You don’t know anything about this guy!”
    “ I know, Cheryl, but please
understand, there’s something about him. It’s just there, between
us. It’s a really strong connection. I felt it the second we
met.”
    “ Wow, Sydney, are you out
of your mind? You have no idea what he’s like. He could be all
messed up in the head from the war. Please let me call Joe and we
can get this guy out of your place today.”
    “ Cheryl, correct me if I’m
wrong, but didn’t you take Gina home with you the first night you
met? She stayed the whole damn weekend. A month later you were
living together.”
    “ That’s different. Look at
her.”
    “ You haven’t seen him yet.
It’s not different.”
    “ I think it’s sweet.
Lighten up, Cher. This guy could be her me ,” Gina
chirped.
    “ Aiden is amazing. I
actually can’t wait to get back to see him. It’s insane.” I
addressed only Gina.
    “ It’s insane, all right.
This guy could be a predator. You left him alone at your house?
What if he steals everything or goes through your things?” Cheryl
was pissed.
    “ He’s a war hero. He
wouldn’t do that!”
    “ Because you know him so
well? Remember that story from a few years ago? The one about that
soldier who also happened to have a Purple Heart? The whole town
celebrated him as a hero, with a parade and everything. A week
later, he had committed suicide. No one had any idea he wasn’t the
person he used to be or that he was suffering silently. Even his
family had no idea he was hurting so badly. Post Traumatic Stress
Disorder does things to people. No one is helping the soldiers deal
with it. There should be screening or groups to help them open up
about it. It’s not even like you knew Aiden well before he left for
the war so you could notice a change. You just met him yesterday.
How can you confidently say he wouldn’t do something?”
    “ I … I can’t. Remember,
Cher, I am a psychologist. I’m sure I would recognize all
the signs.”
    “ So you saw no signs of any
PTSD?”
    “ No.” That was an outright
lie. Every soldier had some form of it. I had seen a few moments
yesterday. Aiden seemed to withdraw inside himself each time I
noticed, though, and he didn’t come across to me as a
threat.
    Gina began to jokingly lay into Cheryl
about backing off, and letting me finally enjoy being with someone.
I half listened as she basically called me her potentially lost
cause , who might have a shot at some kind of relationship, no
matter how long it lasted. I should have been insulted. Why did she
think I would never find anyone? Maybe I wasn’t the only one who
really thought I’d end up a spinster. I felt like