“I love you, Aldo.” The out-of-the-blue statement hit him like a fist to the chest. He stared dumbly at her.

“Not like that,” she corrected, rolling her eyes. “You’re the closest thing to a brother that I’ve ever had, and I love you.”

“Well, shit. I love you, too, Harpsichord,” he said, gruffly.

“Don’t say it because I said it.” She punched him in the arm.

Aldo retaliated the way any good big brother would and put Harper in a headlock, ruffling her hair. “I didn’t, dummy. You’re the little sister I never wanted.”

Laughing they worked their way back up to speed. “So are you planning to surprise Luke when he comes home?” Aldo asked, enjoying being diabolical.

Harper snorted. “Can you think of anything he’d hate more? No. In fact, he told me he doesn’t even want me to meet the bus. He wants to meet me at the house.”

“You know why he wants it that way,” Aldo reminded her. Thinking of Karen. Of that day. Of the years that followed.

“I do. But it still hurts my heart to think of him coming home with no one there to greet him. It’s been so long. I don’t want to waste the time it would take him to drive home. Ever since he told me that he’s coming home, every second feels like half an hour. I just want him here. I want to look into his eyes and…”

The sun was peeking over the trees as they broke through the woods. A lone figure in camouflage stood facing them, his back to the lake and the sunrise.

“No,” Harper gasped. “I…”

Captain Luke Garrison opened his arms, and damned if Aldo didn’t feel himself get a little teary-eyed as he watched Harper run into those arms. They collided in mid-air. Luke boosted her up and wrapped his arms around her.

Aldo heard the first sob from Harper, and then they were kissing. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and snapped a shot of them, backed by the sunrise. Their new beginning on the horizon. He gave them their moment until it looked like their moment might turn X-rated and cleared his throat as he walked up.

“You guys are ruining my view of a perfect sunrise,” Aldo teased.

Luke let Harper slide down to the ground but kept her anchored to his side. And Aldo knew his friend was in love.

“You knew, and you didn’t say a freaking word!” Harper reached out to smack Aldo in the arm.

“Surprise!”

“Thanks, man,” Luke said, stepping forward to wrap Aldo in a one-armed hug.

Aldo clapped his best friend on the back, and then they were hugging. The crushing embrace of brothers. “You look good, Moretta,” Luke said, pulling back to ruffle Aldo’s hair.