It was late on Tuesday evening, and Morgan sat at the dining table with her laptop, a Google search populated with the names and phone numbers of local family practice lawyers open on the screen. She hadn't heard from Devon since he'd stalked her at work, and she was hoping it would stay that way. But, she still wanted to be prepared in case he reared his head again. Staying up on her legal matters also provided an opportunity for distraction from the other set of problems that had been keeping her up late recently.

More than a week had passed since Morgan and Justin's Mexican dinner with Chloe. While the news had been hard for Chloe to take that first night, she seemed to be back to her normal self the next morning - especially when she saw that he was still there when she woke up. He'd taken her to school while Morgan headed to work, and things returned to normal, or as normal as normal could be.

Morgan would be lying if she said she hadn't noticed changes in Justin over the past week. His unit had started a strenuous training schedule which often pulled him away from his night shifts at the apartment complex. Their text conversations were much shorter and more inconsistent that she was accustomed too. He hadn't even left yet, but it seemed like he was already pulling away from them. Part of her started to wonder what she'd gotten herself into. It'd been a little less than two weeks since she'd found out he was leaving, and already she felt an empty, sinking feeling in her heart. Could she really survive weeks, months, even a year of this? How did military couples do this for decades on end?

Maybe waiting for him hadn't been the best idea. But, at the same time she couldn't imagine herself saying goodbye to him, or being interested in any other man. Even if she wasn't 'officially' waiting for him, she knew that deep down inside she always would be. He was perfect - perfectly flawed for her - and saw potential in all her shortcomings. It wasn't ever day that you met someone who could see your heart even more clearly than you could see it yourself.

As if on cue, her phone buzzed on the table next to her laptop, and she looked down to see Justin's name.

"Just got the call," he'd written. "Thursday night at 6pm."

Morgan chewed on her lip, not sure what to say. What did you say when the man you were in love with gave you 48 hours notice? Great? Cool? Okie dokie? Sounds good? Somehow, nothing seemed appropriate, so she sent back a sad face emoticon.

She set the phone down and ran a hand over her face. Reality was quickly sinking in, and it was almost too much to handle. This time, two days from now, he'd be God-knows-where doing God-knows-what. How long would it be before he could call her? Where was he going? How was she going to occupy her free time without him? Would things between them be the same when he came back? How long would it be before she got to look into those blue eyes again? What if he came home even more screwed up than he was when he left?

It was too much - much too much. Her mind seemed to be swirling with a trillion thoughts, each one tumbling over another. The Google logo at the top of the page seemed to glow, and she clicked on it, opening a new page. There were other men in Justin's unit: Billingsley, Wilson, Perri, Michaels, Stonewall. Each of them had wives, girlfriends, children, parents and other family members waiting at home. She wasn't the only girl in the world dealing with these feelings, so how was everyone else coping?

She typed 'military girlfriend support' into the search bar, and the white screen was instantly flooded with links. There were t-shirts, key chains, Tumblr accounts, Twitter posts, articles, memes, and YouTube videos. Every link led to a blog or website by a woman who was currently missing someone that had been deployed. From all those pages, there were a dozen more links, leading to more and more girls who were missing half of their hearts. They called themselves milsos - a term completely foreign to Morgan's vocabulary.

"The MilSO life is like Narnia," one post read. "It's a whole nother world you didn't even know existed until you're in it."

That idea turned out to be one of the truest statements Morgan had heard in a long time.

Laced within the search results there were multiple groups for military significant others in general, and groups catering to each specific branch of the military. Beyond that there were articles on how to help your children adjust to the troops' departure, and an entire website detailing how to make elaborately themed care-packages and what items to include inside. On the next page Morgan found printable checklists of things she and Justin needed to do to prepare their relationship for his absence, and a pamphlet about the emotional changes troops go through when being groomed to deploy.

The psychologist who'd authored it explained that the additional hours they spent together training on base not only gave them the opportunity to practice maneuvers, but it also helped to bring them together as a unit. Once deployed they needed to work together and trust each other. The bonds they'd need in order to be able to successfully carry out missions in the future was being formed now. It suddenly made more sense to Morgan why he'd been pulling away from her. It wasn't intentional, it was just something he needed to do to survive.

He truly was transitioning from his normal self into SSgt. Timberlake.

Her phone buzzed on the table top again, and Justin's name lit up the screen.

He had replied to her sad face with a frown and said he'd come over tomorrow evening after saying goodbye to his folks. That made part of her feel better, knowing that she'd see him at least one more time. But, the split second of happiness was followed by a long moment of angst when she realized it would be the last night they'd spend together. What if it was their very last night forever?

Morgan's eyes looked to the screen again, seeing a link titled A Military Spouses Prayer. Curiosity made her click, and a page created by a 30-something Army wife and part-time single mother opened. As her eyes read the words, a blanket of comfort seemed to fall over her for the first time since Justin had broken the news many days ago.

Dear Lord, give me the greatness of heart to see the difference between duty and his love for me. Give me understanding that I may know, when duty calls him he must go. Give me a task to do each day, to fill the time when he's away. When he's in a foreign land, keep him safe in your loving hand. And when duty is in the field, please protect him and be his shield. And Lord, when deployment is so long, please stay with me and keep me strong. Amen.

Below it was a list of songs entitled A Milso's Playlist.

Scrolling down the list there were more than one hundred songs, including If It's Love by Train, A Thousand Years by Christina Perri, American Soldier by Toby Keith, Ass Back Home by Gym Class Heroes, Worldwide by Big Time Rush, and Here Without You by 3 Doors Down. There seemed to be selections from every genre of music possible, each written with the idea of missing someone who was special in your life.

"These songs always help cheer me up when I'm having a hard time missing him," the blogger said. "Hope they bring you some comfort too."

Morgan leaned back in the chair, reading over the prayer again. It was a poor substitute for having Justin physically here with her, but suddenly she didn't feel quite so alone without him.

“Chloe, put on your shoes, please. We have to go.”

“No!” Chloe shouted.

She was sitting in front of the TV, watching her morning cartoons. Morgan stood behind her daughter with her arms folded over her chest. That was the fourth time she'd nicely asked Chloe to put her shoes on, and it was the fourth time Chloe had flat out refused. Now this temper tantrum was about make them both late. Morgan still had to drop Chloe off before she could head to work. She was having enough problems with her boss, the last thing she needed was to be late for her shift.

“Chloe, put your shoes on right now!”

Morgan raised her voice sternly, causing Chloe to shrink down and sigh. Then she snatched her shoes from the floor beside her and proceed to roughly yank them onto her feet. Chloe had been giving her a hard time all morning, but not without good reason. It was the morning of Justin’s deployment, and both girls were on the edge.

Morgan was more than sleep deprived, since she'd spent most of Wednesday night being intimate with Justin and the rest of the evening laying on the pillow next to him staring at his face. They'd tried to memorize every feature of each other’s bodies, not wanting morning to come.

She was exhausted from sex, talking, sex, talking, more sex and more talking. When he'd finally fallen asleep there had been tears - many, many tears. She was completely overwhelmed with emotions, but many of the articles and posts she'd read online said that it was important that she keep her composure in front of Justin. If he knew that she was struggling without him it would only weigh on his mind and cause a distraction, leading to injuries and mistakes in the field. He had to see that she could be strong without him, so he could keep his head in the game and come home safe.

But, as hard as it was for Morgan, it was an even more difficult watching her child try to work through her feelings. If Morgan wasn’t secretly crying by herself, she was holding Chloe while she cried. Now Chloe was angry, and had been throwing fits all morning since the moment she'd woken up. Morgan tried her best not to fuss at her, but Chloe's refusal to cooperate was making that nearly impossible. If Morgan wasn't being stern then Chloe wouldn’t respond.

"Now, get your backpack and let’s go.”

Chloe jumped to her feet, glaring up at her Mom with an attitude. Then she grabbed her backpack from the couch and flung it over her shoulder, stomping her way to the door. Morgan took a deep breath and turned the TV off, following a stomping Chloe out the door and down the walkway.

The car ride to school was quiet, except for a soft rattling in the back as Chloe purposely kicked the passenger seat repeatedly, causing Morgan to fuss once more. She knew today was not going to be an easy day for either of them, but Morgan had to draw a line with her daughter's behavior. Being upset was understandable, acting out was another.

When Morgan pulled up to the curb in front of the school she got out and helped Chloe gather her things.

"Okay, I need you to talk yourself to class because Mommy's late. You try and have a good day today, okay? Cut the attitude. I know you are upset, but you have to try and be sweet.”

“I don’t want to go to school. I want to go see Justin.”

Morgan sighed, rubbing her face and kneeling down.

"You will see him as soon as you get out of school. Mommy is getting off early so we can go see him before he leaves.”

Chloe sniffled as she folded her arms over her chest.

"But I don’t want to go to school. I want to see Justinnn!!”

Morgan shook her head.

"Chloe, that’s enough. I said we will see him after school and that’s all there is too it. Now get in there and go to class.”

The little girl grumbled under her breath and turned on her heels, stomping away. Morgan watched as she went into the building and took a deep breath. She wished Chloe's teacher good luck and extra patience - she was going to need it. Then she got back into her car and headed to work.

Once she finally arrived and settled in Morgan busied herself with unloading clothes from the new shipment they'd received over night. She was trying to keep her mind occupied so she wouldn’t think about tonight, but one way or another it kept creeping back into her mind. She imagined their final goodbyes over and over again. What would she say? What would he say - or leave unsaid? Every time she thought of it her heart fluttered and her stomach twisted into a knot.

“Morgan, you have a telephone call," one of her co-workers mentioned as she whizzed by with an arm full of clothes on plastic hangers.

It pulled Morgan from her daydreams, and she placed her own arm full of clothes on an empty rack before walking to the desk and grabbing the receiver.

"Hello?”

“Hi, is this Ms. Andrews?”

Morgan pushed up the sleeves of her cardigan as she pressed the phone to her ear.

"Yes, this is she.”

“Hello Ms. Andrews, this is Linda Moore, the guidance counselor at Ridgewood Elementary school. I have Chloe here in my office, she had a little incidence here at the school.”

Morgan frowned as she began to worry.

"What happened?”

“Well, Chloe got into a fight with one of her classmates today. They wanted to use the same set of markers during class, and she gave him a little bit of a bloody lip. She seems to be very upset, but refuses to talk to anyone. Because of the altercation we have to send her home for the day. Is there is any way that you can come get her?”

Morgan pinched the bridge of her nose out of growing frustration. It wasn't even 10am, Chloe had only been at school for two hours.

"Well, I’m at work right now, but I can have someone pick her up if that’s alright.”

“Yes ma’am, absolutely. If you could just give me the name of the person and their number I'll give it to the front office and they can pick her up from there.”

“Alright.”

Morgan gave the counselor the information before hanging up the phone. Then she walked to the back of the store and into the mini break room where she pulled out her cell phone and dialed Justin’s number.

“Hello?”

“Hey Serge, it's me.”

“Hey babe. You at work? What’s wrong?” He questioned.

He always knew when something was going on with her. It was in her voice. She sighed into the phone and sat down on in a green plastic chair. They'd been trading texts off and on all morning. He was aware of Chloe’s fit.

"Yeah, I’m at work. I just got a call from someone at the school, and they said little Miss Chloe got into a fight today and gave someone a bloody lip.”

“Oh wow," he laughed. "Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee, huh?"

Morgan rolled her eyes and continued.

“They have to send her home for the day. I can't leave work because my manager is still a little hot about the Devon thing. I was wondering, if you have time do you mind swinging by and getting her and I'll just meet up with you two later? I know you're packing all day, but -.”

“Of course," he interrupted. "Consider it done. I’m on my way.”

"Thanks. I'll see you in a few hours."

Justin exited the Audi and he made his way into the school. As he passed through the doors he pulled the hat from his head and brushed off the front of his uniform. It was a little dusty from running ops the day before, and he hoped he still looked presentable. He was planning on washing it this afternoon before shipping out, but hadn't had time to get to it yet.

His boots echoed through the empty halls of the elementary school, and he followed the signs hanging from the ceiling directing him to the office. When he pushed open the door Chloe was sitting on a yellow chair in the corner with her back pack on her lap, her arms wrapped around it, and her legs swinging back and forth.

She stopped burning a hole into the floor with her eyes and looked up as he entered. Instantly her back straightened and she sat up, watching Justin as he approached the secretary. He threw Chloe a discreet wink before turning to the person behind the desk: a frizzy dark-haired woman smiling up at him from behind thin glasses.

"Hello, how may I help you?”

“Hi, I’m here to pick up Chloe Andrews.”

She looked down over her papers.

"Oh, you must be Mr. Justin Timberlake. Do you mind if I see an ID?”

He nodded and pulled his wallet from his pocket, retrieving his military ID and handing it over. She inspected it, and handed it back.

"Okay. If you would just sign her out on this clipboard please, she's all yours.”

Justin nodded, quickly scribbling his name.

"Alright, Chloe, you are free to go, darling. I hope you have a better attitude tomorrow, honey. You two have a nice day.”

Justin gave her a smile before turning to Chloe. She slid out of her chair and slowly walked over to Justin as he peered down at her. He held out his hand without saying a word, and she latched onto his finger as they walked out the office. As soon as they entered the hall a bell rang and kids started to file out of classrooms, a sea of rainbow colored lunchboxes in their hands. Justin guessed it was lunch time, and he could smell the scent of chicken wafting down the hall from the cafeteria.

Chloe held Justin’s hand tightly as they made their way past the other kids. They were moving to the side, eyeing his uniform as he walked by. To them he was some kind of superhero come to life - a real life army man who did all the things they saw on their video games for real. Chloe felt like all was right in the world as she walked alongside him. This was the Mr. Justin she knew, and had grown to trust. As they approached the exit Chloe heard her name being called by a group of kids from her class.

"Hey, Chloe, where you going?”

“Home," she called back.

"Who is that man?” They asked.

She subconsciously squeezed Justin’s hand as he pushed open the doors that lead outside and turned her head to answer over her shoulder.

"He's my Daddy.”

Justin had been listening to every word she'd said, and he reached down to scoop her up as they approached the front steps. He couldn’t help put give her a squeeze as a grin passed over his face.

Morgan stood outside of Justin’s apartment, listening as he turned the locks and pulled open the door. He smiled and stepped aside to let her in, stealing a kiss from her puckered lips as she passed.

"How is she?” She asked.

Morgan headed straight for the living room, pausing when she found Chloe stretched out on his couch sound asleep.

“She’s fine,” he replied, walking up behind her and pulling her purse from her shoulder. "We got some lunch, watched a movie, and she passed out while I finished packing."

He set the bag on the dining table, hearing her sigh with relief at the unexpected removal of the heavy item. His hands massaged her shoulders gently and she slowly turned to look at him, taking in his green cammies.

This was it. Today was the day.

He reached for her, taking her face into his hands and kissing her lips lightly before wrapping his arms around her warm body. She sighed into his chest and held onto him, that unique scent of his filled her lungs. They stood there in the middle of the living room, holding each other in silence. His hands started to glide up and down her back, and her fingers dug into the fabric of his uniform.

Morgan began to tremble a bit with every breath she took, and his arms tightened in response. Justin dug his fingers into her hair, massaging her scalp. He kissed her forehead lightly, smelling the scent of warm vanilla. That was probably going to be the thing he missed most about her, that beautiful brown skin. It was soft, and smelled amazing, and always gave off a subtle glow.

"I don't want you to go," she said, her voice muffled against his chest.

"I know," he told her, releasing his grip a little. "I wish I didn't have too. But when duty calls-."

"You must go."

"Exactly," he said.

She felt his fingers comb through her hair once again, and lips planted a kiss on her forehead.

"So, what do you want to do while the little monster is asleep?"

"Well," he started.

His grin was menacing, and she knew then that she was in trouble. The familiar tingles of excitement, arousal, and anticipation started to creep over her.

"We still have a few hours before I have to report. We could go in my room and play a round of Bash the Beaver."

"Seriously? Bash the -- you know what, I'm not even going to ask where you heard that," Morgan shook her head.

Justin laughed along with her.

"Yeah, you probably shouldn't."

"You're not tired after all that 'fun' last night?"

"Well, yeah, I'm tired," he admitted. "But I could always sleep on the plane. I can only have you while I'm here, so I've got to get my fill while I can."

"And you're not full yet?"

"Of you?" He snorted. "Never."

Morgan smiled coyly, a deep red blush rising in her cheeks. With one hand she reached up to undo the top button on his uniform. He had a good point: he was leaving indefinitely in just a few hours, so what was one or two more hours in bed going to hurt? Justin grinned as well, leaning down to pull her into a kiss as his body slowly backed her into his bedroom where the door shut clicked behind them.

The sun was sitting blindingly low on the hills, just behind the administration building on base. It was past 5:30pm, and would be dark before too long. They'd taken Morgan's car there, Chloe eager to show off the new spotless white paint job. Justin drove, since he knew the route better, and found an empty spot off to the side. The parking lot was flooded with mini vans and compact cars as families gathered to send their Marines off. A silver van parked in the back of the lot had jackets covering the windows, and was rocking back and forth - a Marine enjoying one last encounter with his significant other before shipping out. Chloe asked what was happening inside, and Morgan asked her if she wanted a piece of gum in order to change the subject.

The usually talkative threesome exited the car slowly, trying to make each second stretch longer than the last. Most families were keeping to themselves, trying to find a quiet spot to spend their last few moments. Goodbyes were the hardest part of this lifestyle. No matter how early you started, there never seemed to be enough time. It was the first time for Morgan and Chloe, and Morgan felt like she still needed weeks to adjust where there were only minutes left.

Justin pulled his bags from the trunk of the car and lead them over a spot on the grass, off to the side from the rest of the men. He set this things on the ground, looking around at the rest of the men.

"Looks like everyone's here," he said to himself. "We'll be loading up soon."

"Where do you go from here?" Morgan asked.

"We'll head to the airport, take a civilian flight down to Pendleton, then hop a military jet out of here."

"To where?"

He smiled, a glimpse of the sheepish boy he'd been as a kid coming through for just a moment. Morgan was too caught up in his looks to care that she'd failed in her meager attempt to trick him into telling her where he was going.

"Hey, Serge!"

They all turned to look when they heard the voice in the distance. Wilson was there, waving an arm in the air as Elaine hugged his side and April latched onto his leg.

"You ready?"

"Almost!" Justin called back.

Wilson nodded, hugging Elaine again before calling Billingsley over and heading toward the busses. Justin could only guess what they were talking about since they kept glancing back at him over their shoulders while they walked. Whatever they were saying, he was just glad they couldn't rag on him about being picked-up and dropped off by his Dad anymore.

Turning back to his girls, his heart sank when he saw their gloomy faces. They looked like he'd just run over a puppy or popped the last balloon at a birthday party. Justin knelt down on one knee, lowering his head to look Chloe in the eye. She glanced up at him briefly, through thick black lashes.

"I'll see you in a little while," he told her. "And when I come back, I'll bring you a surprise."

"Promise?"

"I promise. I'll be back in no time."

Her sad face nodded.

"Bye Daddy."

Chloe stepped forward, wrapping her arms around his neck. He heard Morgan draw in a surprised gasp. She hadn't heard Chloe use the sentiment toward Justin before.

"Not goodbye," he shook his head. "It's 'see you soon'."

"I love you, Dad."

"Love you too, baby girl."

Even though Morgan knew Justin had been playing the role of a Father, she hadn't realized until now that Chloe thought so much of him. Morgan buried her face in her hands, trying to hide the tears falling from her eyes. Her little girl finally had the Daddy she deserved - one she loved, and who loved her back just as much.

Justin saw Morgan turn her back, and her shoulders shake with sobs. He hated to see that he was the cause of so much worry for them. More than once he'd wondered if maybe it was best to break it off with Morgan, but he couldn’t imagine her with anyone else or some other guy around Chloe. They'd transformed every element of his life. He had a reason to come back home, a reason to stay alive, a reason to enjoy life, and a deeper reason for serving his country.

He let Chloe hug him for as long as she wanted, until her arms grew tired and she pulled away from him. Then he gave her a kiss on the cheek, she gave him one back, and he stood up to look at Morgan.

She couldn't speak, didn't even know where to begin. So many feelings were bubbling to the surface, she was afraid that if she opened her mouth she would scream, burst into tears, or any number of other inappropriate actions. Instead, she repeated her daughters actions, throwing her arms around his neck and pulling him into a hug.

"I'm going to miss you so much," he whispered into her hair.

"I'm gonna miss you too. Who's going to keep me up past my bedtime every night?"

She felt him laugh, his chest vibrating against hers.

"I'm sure Char is anxious to have you back to herself."

He felt her laugh too, and laid a kiss on the side of her head.

"No matter what happens from this moment on, I want you to know that you and Chloe were the best things that ever happened to me," he whispered. "Always remember that. I've never regretting spending a single moment with you, bad or good. Okay?"

She nodded against his chest.

"Okay."

Justin tilted her head back, and pushed the hair from her face so he could see her clearly.

"Did I ever tell you about the mottos?"

Morgan's brow furrowed, and her expression grew curious. That was another thing he was going to miss about her - the way her thoughts radiated out of her eyes.

"No, what mottos?"

"Every branch has a motto that they live by, whenever two lovers are apart. The Army has Army Strong. That's creative, right? They were obviously thinking out of the box with that." He rolled his eyes, signaling his sarcasm. "Air Force relationships go by Above All. And, the Navy? They live by Ocean Deep. But, the Marine Corps has the best of all: Semper Fi. Always faithful. That's us, Morgan. Our love is Semper Fi."

A tear threaten to trickle down her face once more as she struggled not to cry. She was a Marine girlfriend now, she had to be strong. It broke Justin's heart every time she shed a tear, and he knew that she was trying to hold up a tough front for him. They were two birds of a feather, able to see through each other's poker faces.

He kissed her damp cheek, tasting the saltiness of her tears, and then kissed her lips. He couldn't break down in front of his men and superiors, but he wanted her to feel that he was going to miss her just as much as she was going to miss him - maybe even more. So he kissed her again, and again. Then he pulled back, and looked her right in the eye.

"I love you," he said. "I. Love. You."

His words were firm and sure, his eyes boring into hers. He'd never spoken those words to Morgan before, hadn't said them to any woman in a very long time.

"I love you too," she whispered.

She held onto him with a growing sense of desperation starting to course through her veins. Morgan’s legs grew weak underneath her, threatening to buckle, but Justin wrapped his arms around the small of her waist steadying her against him. He nearly took her very breath as he kissed her one last time. She almost grew light headed from the pressure.

"Twenty-third, load up!"

The voice of the deploying commanding officer, Major Roark echoed through the air.

Justin pulled back from her and gazed into her eyes. He was going to miss those eyes, and she was going to miss that handsome face. His look had been soft and nostalgic, then a flash of recognition washed over him.

"Oops, I almost forgot."

Justin reached into his pocket, pulling out a silver key ring. It held a large black key with buttons on it, a regular gold house key, and a tiny silver key. He took Morgan's hand, placing the ring in her palm and closing her fingers around it.

"The key to my car, the key to my place, and the key to the gun case on the top shelf in the closet. Use whatever you need, whenever you need it. I won't ask questions."

Morgan nodded.

"Okay."

She squeezed his hand and he squeezed back before letting go and stepping away. If he didn't let go of her now he never would.

"I'll see you soon."

"See you soon, Serge."

He smiled down at Chloe again, then without another word he slung his backpack over his shoulder, picked up his duffle, and walked off toward the waiting busses. Morgan's mind flashed back to the first time she'd seen him walking across the lawn at the apartment complex. Rigid back, head high, all serious business. She never would have guessed back then that she'd be here now, feeling like a completely different woman. It was amazing what a difference a few months could make when you meet someone spectacular - someone who made you realize that all the bullshit you went through before was worth it because in the end it brought you to their door.

Through the bus windows Morgan could see Billingsley and Wilson, shoving each other back and forth out of the way as they waved goodbye to their families. Elaine was at the front of the family crowd, pressing herself against the guard rails to blow kisses at her husband.

"Mommy?"

A tiny voice pulled Morgan from her own thoughts, and she reached down to pick up Chloe. Together they watched as Justin climbed the steps onto the first bus, followed by Maj. Roark, and the doors closed behind them. A moment later the busses started to pull away, heading toward the airport.

"Mommy, Daddy's coming back, right?"

Morgan turned to look into her daughter's big brown eyes, and tried her best to smile past the pain.

"Yes baby, Daddy's coming back."