My Soldier Mate

CHAPTER ONE: THIRD PERSON's POV: In the little town in Ohio called Marietta, there is a girl named Nala Aston. At that time, she was seventeen, about to turn eighteen years old. She has a mother, a stepfather and a younger half-sister. Nala has blonde hair with blue eyes. She is fit and is looking forward to the day she can leave the house with her so-called family. But soon everything is about to change. NALA POV: I was downstairs folding laundry in the kitchen while I was cooking spaghetti. I had to learn how to multitask because if I didn’t, I would get hurt pretty badly because of my family. While I was cooking, I was thinking about everything that has happened to me since my father passed away. You see, my mother and my father had me when they were teenagers, and my mother always told me when I was a child that it ruined her life. And she never became as successful as she wanted because she couldn’t go to college because she had to take care of me and spend every cent that she had on me because my father pressured her into keeping me because he really wanted to be a father. My father was my best friend. The day he died was the worst day of my life because my dad was putting me asleep because, once again, my mother left me alone to fend for myself because she had “more important things to do.” But when I was seven years old, my dad asked me his work number, cell phone number and to call him if my mother left me home alone again. But anyway, she left me alone, so I called my dad at work to let him know I was home alone once again. So he came home right away. I knew he was mad at his mother. My father wasn’t supposed to come home from work until 10pm because he had to work double at the factory he was a supervisor at. So when my father was putting me to bed after dinner was over, my mother came walking into the house singing and stumbling around. My dad told me to go to bed. So I laid there listening to his footsteps descend the staircase. That is when I heard my mother say “Charlie, what are you doing at home so soon? " Weren’t you supposed to work a double?” My father said, “Well I was, until our daughter called me at work to let me know you left her home alone. Why would you leave a seven-year-old home alone when you are a stay-at-home mom like you wanted? What was so important when taking care of our daughter?” My mother said, “My best friend was having a bad day, and she needed me at that moment.” My father said “I don’t believe you. What friend did you go see?” My mother replied “Kelly. Why does that matter?” My father said, “So I am going to call her because I want to know if you tell me. The truth.” My mother freaked out and asked “Why would you do that? You don’t believe me?” My father replied, “If you were where you said you were, there shouldn’t be a problem, right?” My mother yelled, “Put your phone down, you don’t have to call anyone, because this is ridiculous. Fine, I was not with Kelly. I was with someone else.” My father asked “with whom?” My mother answered “with a guy named Caleb.” My father replied, “So you were cheating on me then?” My mother said, “It was only this one time. I promise.” That is when I heard someone walking up the stairs and straight to my bedroom. I closed my eyes to pretend I was sleeping, so I wouldn’t get into trouble. That is when I heard my door open, and my father said “Nala honey, wake up, we have to go.” I rolled over and asked “where are we going?” My father said “somewhere, come one.” I did as he said. I got up and put my shoes on and my coat when I was ready. My father and I walked down the stairs, where my mother was sitting there crying. When my mother saw me and screamed “YOU, YOU COULDN’T JUST KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT. THIS ONE TIME. I DID EVERYTHING FOR YOU.” My father said “don’t yell at her," because she didn’t do anything besides call me for help. Nala baby, go to the car.” My mother yelled “Where are you going with my daughter?” My father replied, “I am taking her with me because I am not staying here with you. And tomorrow I am going to file for a divorce. Because I won't stay with a cheater. And she deserves to be loved and cared for.” My mother replied, “You can’t take her. She is all I have. Please don’t leave me, we can fix this. That is when my father took my hand and started to walk out the door, and we got into the car. The next thing I knew was we were driving and then everything went back. And the next thing, I knew I was in the hospital with my mother sitting right next to me. She looked really, really mad at me. She told me when she noticed I was awake that I would regret what happened. Then she told me my father passed away because a drunk driver hit the car that my father was driving, and he didn’t survive. Since that day, my life has been through hell. My mother brought the guy she was cheating with on my father into the home, and he beat me. He has been making my life a living hell. A few years later, my stepfather Caleb and my mother had a daughter whose name was Carrie. Carrie was nine years younger than me and their little princess. She could do no wrong. Anyway, back to the present, with me doing laundry and making dinner for them. Caleb made me get a job and go to school because he refused to work. He refuses to let my mother work. So I had to work to pay the bills to make sure food was on the table and to go to school. And all my chores have to be done, or I will get beat. But they didn’t know that in just four days, I would be turning eighteen years old, and I would be leaving, because I enlisted in the United States Army. And once I leave, I will no longer be helping them with anything. I came out of my thoughts when my “sister” Carrie came in and asked “what is for dinner.” I replied “spaghetti.” Carrie asked “how long?” I replied “ten minutes,” Carrie then asked, “So, I have a party to go to. I need you to do my homework for me since you get straight A’s.” I replied “Carrie, I can’t. I have to finish dinner, I have to finish all the chores plus my homework, plus I have to get my work clothes ready for tomorrow, and your schools ready.” Carrie called for our mother. She went into the kitchen and asked, “Carrie, you called Honey.” What happened?” Carrie replied, “Well mom, I asked Nala here if she could do my homework because I have a really important party to go to tonight, and she told me no. Can you please make her do it?” My mother replied, “Nala, really. We have been over this. " You will do anything your sister says with no hesitation because you have no choice, or you can sit in the basement for a week while your stepfather deals with you.” I replied “fine.” With that, Carrie went and got her homework.