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There is an anxious feeling in Christina's stomach the entire plane ride. She can't place it at first; she's going home, she should be happy. Then she begins to realize that what she is feeling isn't nerves…it's excitement.
48 hours ago she was in space with her best friends. And now, in few hours she'll be reuniting with her husband and her dog, and she can't wait. She's a lot more restless on the plane ride than she normally is.
"Everything okay?" Victor asks her, noticing her fidgeting. She nods,"Yeah, I'm just excited to go home."
Time feels like it is dragging on far longer than it should. Every minute feels like five and she is unable to pay any attention to the movie Victor put on for them.
—
It's not hard to find their families in the airport. The giant group of people is kind of hard to miss. As soon as Christina sees them, a huge smile spreads across her face.
It's not dramatic like it is in the movies, she doesn't run and jump into her husband's arms, but she does start walking faster. Some of the kids do run to smother their dads in love as soon as they see them.
"Welcome home," Bobby says as she walks over to him. She responds by pulling him into a tight hug. "I love you," she says, just because it feels right. "I love you too," he laughs. She doesn't let go for at least a full minute. Her friends can wait.
—
It's hours after their reunification in the airport that she actually gets to go home. They went to get lunch as a group at a Panera downtown, then had to do a lengthy press conference. After that they were driven to the Johnson Center to return their suits and have a few tests run.
By the time they pull into the driveway it's 6:30pm. "You fed Sadie, already?" She asks, reaching to unbuckle her seatbelt as soon as he shifts into park. "Yes."
"And you took her for a walk?" Bobby laughs, "she is all taken care of, she's just missing her mom." Christina nods; every time she comes back from a mission their house has been spotless. She doesn't have to ask at this point, but she does anyway.
When they open the front door, Christina expects Sadie to jump on her but she goes for Bobby instead. She laughs, getting down on her knees. "Come here!" Sadie brings her a toy and then runs in a circle around her.
Sadie isn't nearly as excited to see Christina as she expected, but she's okay with that. Really, she's just happy to be home.
—
They always go to the beach when she returns from a mission. After Christina's been home for two hours (enough time to shower, change, eat dinner and decompress) they drive over.
Sadie loves the beach even more than Christina does, if that's even possible. They both run along the shoreline before Sadie ultimately settles next to their beach towels just in time to watch the sunset.
They sit in silence for a while, just watching the waves come and go. "Thank you," Christina says, her voice almost a whisper, as if she was scared speaking too loud would destroy the moment.
"For what?" Bobby asks with a soft laugh. "For making all of this possible." He smiles, leaning in for a kiss.
Christina wouldn't mind if this moment lasted forever.