blondexhurricane:

soldierheartcd:

“Why, so you can sit here and
feel sorry for yourself all night,
too?”

“I don’t care what you want. Stop trying to push me
away when I’m all you have left.” Delia was quickly
growing frustrated, but it was more with herself than
Teddy. Fresh tears stung at her eyes, and she tried
desperately to blink them back. No matter how hard
it was, she had to be the  s t r o n g  one. “I won’t be
better off without you ever. I wasn’t when you left for
Iraq, and I won’t be now. I love you, Mommy. I love
you so much. Please give me a chance to prove to
you that I can do this. At least until you’re all better
and finally able to walk again.”

The  defeat  in  her  cheerless eyes was potent in a
way that drained the very l i f e out of her. Glancing
at  her  daughter in unbridled contempt, Teddy spat:
“Don’t be so goddamn stupid,  Delia.  Does  it  look
like I’m going to be able to walk  again?  And  even
if  I  do,  it  won’t  be  like  I  used to.”  Better to turn
Delia  away from her now,  before the hope had her
thinking that her mother would  e v e r  come  back
from  this. Teddy knew well enough that it was only
a  matter of time before they took away her job, her
pride,  and everything else that made her life worth
living — there was no use for a fallen soldier when
 there were so many wars left to fight.