Benjamin

There really must be something about Vegas, because it seems like all of my major life changes have happened there. At least, recently they have. It was...well, pretty close to around this time last year, give or take a month or two...when my son was conceived in Vegas. I can't help but wonder where, exactly, he was conceived. After all there were a lot of, shall we say, "exploits" in that city. Not all of which were in our hotel room, either. But, that's beside the point. The point is that Nathaniel is the result of a week long vacation in Vegas.

Then, a week ago, major life change #2 came...also in Vegas.

That story starts about two years ago, the first time I proposed to Sophia. It probably wasn't very fair of me. I propose, she accepted, and I left back to my deployment. She was left to plan an entire wedding, while I was off working. The problem was...without me around, that left her mother the ability to butt her nose in and try to plan the entire damned thing. Unfortunately my mother in law in your typical little snobby rich bitch. Everything has to be flashy and showy so that she can flaunt just how damned much money she has. I wasn't around so I was pretty much helpless to stop it. Fancy dresses, huge cakes, God only knows what else...all of it was being put into effect by Mrs. Beckett. I was miserable at the thought, but kept my mouth shut to keep the peace.

Fast forward to a couple of months ago, when I proposed again. I couldn't forget everything that we went through the last time around. I didn't want that kind of wedding...didn't even want to hint at it. Sophie and I fought about the upcoming wedding more than is probably healthy. Slowly but surely it was becoming a nightmare, and we hadn't even set a date yet. The last thing anyone wants is to have their wedding turn into a sour point. I mean, who wants to look back on what is supposed to be the happiest day of their life and hate everything about it?

So, we did the thing that made the most sense for us. Last Monday morning Sophia, Nathaniel, and myself got on a plane and flew to Las Vegas. By Monday night we were married, and we flew back on Tuesday. I've been married for a week and, honestly, things don't feel all that much different. We've been living together for awhile, we've got a son together. The biggest changes were the legalities. Now, if anything happens to me she'll get the money. She's covered under my insurance. I know that if I would ever be killed...her and my son will be well taken care of. Those are the most important things to me.

I know, it sounds uncaring and unromantic of me. The thing is...I already loved my wife. Having a ring and a piece of paper doesn't change that. So, yeah, for me this was more about the legalities than anything else. That doesn't change the fact that my wife and son are the two most important people in the world to me. I wouldn't be the same man that I am without either of them. I might not say it often, but she knows I love her. Or, I hope she does at least.

Benjamin Lockhart was born in the suburbs of Augusta, Ga. He knew from a young age that he wanted to get away and make something of himself, but he wasn't sure how. His parents weren't wealthy, at times it was all they could do to put food on the table for himself and his siblings. Ben, being the oldest, had started doing odd jobs when he was twelve in order to help pay the family's bills. As soon as he turned sixteen, he began working two jobs and gave almost all of his earnings to his parents. College was definately not going to be an option for him.

When the Army recruiters came to a job fair during Ben's Junior year in high school, it seemed almost a no brainer to him that he should enlist. He'd be able to acheive his goal of making something of himself, without having to worry about how he was going to pay for it. In addition, he would be making a decent pay that he could send home to his parents and siblings. It was an all around win/win situation for the whole family. So...he took the information and went home to discuss it with his parents. It took a little talking in order to convince his mother that this was a good idea, but finally she agreed that it made sense. By the begining of his Senior year, Ben had begun the ball rolling for enlistment and two weeks after graduation he was reporting to boot camp.

In July 2005, Ben was serving in Iraq when a series of events began to unfold that would change his life. Ben was in the first vehicle in a convoy that tripped a mine. The explosion didn't happen until the last vehicle was crossing, causing the Jeep to go flying through the air and into a water filled ravine. Ben, not thinking or caring about his own safety, Ben dived into the water and began pulling his comrades out to safety. Still, despite his best efforts, three soliders still died that day.

Because of his actions that day, Benjamin was presented with the silver star. It was to be awarded to him at a banquet held in his honor in December of 2005. While at the ceremony in Washington, Ben met Sophia. She was there because she had been dragged along by her grandfather, a congressman, and her father, a prominent senator. The two of them talked through most of dinner and hit it off almost immediately. They exchanged addresses, and phone numbers, and kept in touch after they went their seperate ways. Him back to base, and her home to Boston.

After several months of writing to one another, and several long weekend visits through out that time, Ben realized that he was more than interested in the beautiful girl he'd met briefly in Washington. He knew he wanted to get more serious with her, but she wasn't sure if it was a good idea. Finally, in August of 2006, he convinced her to try for a relationship with him. He was getting sent on another 18 month tour overseas and he wanted to know that she would be waiting for him when he came home. The entire time he was there, they kept in touch with constant phone calls, cards, and letters. By the time he came home on leave a year later, Ben knew that Sophia was the one he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. One evening while he was home, he proposed to her and she agreed.

Knowing that he had a fiancee waiting for him, made it easier to go back at the end of his leave. At first, things went just like they always had. He talked to Sophia on the phone at least once a week and wrote to her nearly every day. Then, about a month before he was supposed to be coming home (and, also leave the military for good), Ben suddenly stopped hearing from Sophia. Letters weren't coming, she wasn't answering the phone. He was, of course, paniced and imagining the worst. That something had happened to her, and he didn't know it. Phone calls to her family didn't help at all. All they would say was that she was fine and not to worry.

As soon as he was stateside, and free of military obligations, Ben went straight to Boston to try and find Sophia. At first, her parents weren't going to tell him anything. But, finally, they could see how just desperate he was. They told him things about Sophia that she had never bothered to disclose to him. Important things about her past, that he should have been told.

The last thing they told him, was where she had moved to. With the information he had found out and an address...Ben packed up and took off to California to seek out answers and get closure on the situation.