[When Jaime was flying around, he was able to numb himself. He's done this flight, searching and hoping and waiting how many times now? For Shinji and Akihiko and Minato, for Wally, for Armin, for Traci and Ellie and Isaac. This is just another flight, routine as any other, only this time? He knows he'll see his father again. He doesn't know when, or how, but he knows. So that means that this isn't a big deal. He can cope, just as he's coped so many times before. He'll tell people that no, he's gone, and he'll say it gently, but he'll be okay. He always is.
But then he comes home, and his Mom's been crying, and he thinks to himself: Oh shit, this isn't like the other ones.
(He's allowed to swear in the privacy of his own mind.)
He should have thought more about his mother, how hard it would be for her to be separated from Dad for the first time in... god, how long have they been married? That long.]
Mom...
[He looks at her, forehead creasing (he's going to have wrinkles by the time he's twenty-five), eyes softening in sympathy, swallowing past the lump in his throat that always appears whenever he sees any of his family in distress, no matter the reason. What does he say to this? He can't say much, not really, so instead, he reaches out and pulls her into a big, warm hug. If nothing else, she has him. She'll always have him. He's been here for so long now, so he's not leaving, right? As long as she's here, she'll have someone.]
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But then he comes home, and his Mom's been crying, and he thinks to himself: Oh shit, this isn't like the other ones.
(He's allowed to swear in the privacy of his own mind.)
He should have thought more about his mother, how hard it would be for her to be separated from Dad for the first time in... god, how long have they been married? That long.]
Mom...
[He looks at her, forehead creasing (he's going to have wrinkles by the time he's twenty-five), eyes softening in sympathy, swallowing past the lump in his throat that always appears whenever he sees any of his family in distress, no matter the reason. What does he say to this? He can't say much, not really, so instead, he reaches out and pulls her into a big, warm hug. If nothing else, she has him. She'll always have him. He's been here for so long now, so he's not leaving, right? As long as she's here, she'll have someone.]
I'm sorry. He's gone back home.