The war was ending. Or at least that's what everyone wanted to think.

Word got out that the men are to be deployed to the Pacific. The Germans may have surrendered, but that didn't mean the Japanese were letting up.

"How much longer are they gonna have us wait?" I groaned in agony.

"Wow, someone's out for some Jap blood!" Luz joked.

"I just wanna know when we're going," I put my hands over my face. "You don't?"

"Actually, I think I'm fine just staying here for now," Perco tossed the book he was looking through to the side. "Why you in such a hurry anyway? We have hot food, nice beds, hot showers..."

Truthfully, I wasn't so sure myself.

Sure, I wanted to go home, but if they were going to ship us out, might as well get it over with.

"She won't mind, so long as Grant goes with her," Babe elbowed my arm, making me glare at him.

"What, you don't want your best friend to be with you in combat?" I asked him.

"That's the last thing he's gettin' at, Y/L/N," Bull piped in from behind us.

"What the hell are you guys talking about? We're just friends," I said, looking at each man.

I love Grant. Don't get me wrong. He was the first friend I made when we both enlisted the same day.

I was standing outside the recruitment center, closing my eyes and taking deep breaths, occasionally getting distracted by men going in and out of the building. I may have zoned out for some time because I faintly heard a "hey... hey!"

I snapped back to reality and was met with a pair of blue-gray eyes.

"You alright?" the man looked at me intently.

He was tall with short blond hair parted to the side. His brows raised a bit, anticipating my answer when I opened my mouth to speak.

"I'm... I'm fine. Thanks," I got my head and back off the wall.

Funny, I hadn't noticed how much I was trying to keep myself balanced. My nerves were out of control, but I really wanted to do this. I needed to.

"You waiting for you brother?" he half-smiled, looking to the door and back at me.

As if I was suddenly remembering where I was, I laughed nervously. "Oh no. I'm, uh... I'm the one going in."

I was expecting it. The whole "but you're a girl!" spiel and every follow up argument as to why I shouldn't be doing this.

The man just nodded, still grinning a little. "Paratroops?"

I glanced at the brochure in my hand and blushed. "Yeah."

Not changing his tone or expression, I sensed something in him. Something comforting.

"I guess I might be seeing you again then," he stepped back and gave one last nod before walking away, hands in his pockets.

"Yeah, see you," I said under my breath.

I went in and sat in one of the empty chairs.

Turns out, I did end up seeing him again. Frankly, I didn't think I would make it that far.

After getting chewed out by Lieutenant Sobel for my out-of-regulation haircut, I went to change into my PT gear. When I stepped out and rejoined the company, someone called out from behind me, a few feet away.

"Hey, Stargirl!"

I whipped my head to the side and instantly recognized him.

"'Stargirl'?" I looked at him confusedly.

"Oh, I figured it was fitting," he shrugged and walked beside me now, "because of that necklace you wore."

I looked at him, surprised. It's something I always wore every time I left the house. I've been putting it on for a long time now that I didn't really think of it much.

"But since we're here, I guess I can call you by your real name now," he smirked and put his hand out. "Chuck Grant."

I clasped it with my hand and gave it a shake. "Y/F/N Y/L/N."

We weren't automatically inseparable, but he was someone I could fall back on when I felt lost with my new life. He started growing on me as we spent our time off the line talking about home and things we liked to do before the war. Eventually, I opened up about my dreams and the things I wanted to do with my life. He was a great confidant. There was another side to him that I didn't see when he was around anyone else. It was different, but in a good way. I thought about this once and concluded that I only got to see it because I was a girl. I loved the men, but there was something else with Chuck.

It was around this time that the guys teased us about being a couple. It was all in good fun though, because I earned their trust and they treated me as their equal, although at times they were more protective of me. That, I definitely didn't mind.

"Come on, Y/F/N," Perco laughed. "You don't think Grant's a good guy?"

"He's great, but—"

I didn't even get a chance to finish my sentence, as they all whooped. It was as if I just admitted my undying love for him.

I shook my head and scoffed playfully. "You're all a bunch of children."

"Just you wait, Y/F/N," Luz began, lighting the cigarette in his mouth. "You two are gonna hit it off. You love him!"

I was starting to think they weren't joking anymore.

"Babe, what happened?" I asked the redhead, slightly out of breath.

He looked at his feet and didn't say anything.

"Babe!" I gripped his shoulders.

This was really putting me on edge now.

"It's Grant," he finally sighed, still not meeting my eyes. "He's been shot."

Silence.

"He'll... He'll be okay though, right? It wasn't serious?" I was searching for the words to say.

This time, Babe made eye contact. "He was shot on the head."

My heart dove to my stomach, my jaw dropped.

"Where is he?" I felt my throat get heavy.

"Y/F/N, he—"

"Where?!" I threw my fists down my sides.

Right away, I backed away and put my hands over my mouth.

Despite being shocked, he tried to calm me down. "Speirs, Doc, and Tab took him to a doctor."

"I have to see him," I went for the door of the hotel lobby, but he was too fast, stretching his arms onto the doorframe to block my way.

"Babe, move," I pleaded, tears welling up my eyes.

"No, I can't do that!" he told me.

In the distance, I saw three of our men carrying a stretcher and a supply of blood.

"Grant?" I yelled. "Grant!"

I knew he couldn't hear me, but something in my mind told me to scream anyway.

Captain Speirs looked over his shoulder at us. "Heffron! Do not let her leave!"

I threw Babe a desperate look, but he only returned it with an apologetic frown. "I'm sorry, Y/F/N."

My best friend was dying and I couldn't be there for him.

"Babe, I need... to... go!" I tried squeezing through the space between his foot and arm, but he just put his arm down further.

By some miracle, I rolled through and got back on my feet. However, they were prepared, since Christenson held me back while I kicked and tried breaking free of his grasp.

I watched as the Jeep sped off and I stopped struggling, yet Christenson didn't loosen his grip on my arms.

There was nothing left to do but let myself feel the helplessness.

I fell to my knees and bowed my head, sobbing.

Grant got shot in the head and the medic at the aid station he was being carried out of told Speirs that he couldn't operate on Grant and that, even if they did find a brain surgeon, there was no chance of survival.

The men that accompanied him were searching for one.

I was so ashamed of what I did. How could I let myself be seen by the men in that state? All throughout this war, I tried not to outwardly express my emotions a lot. I didn't want them to think any less of me. But this was Grant we were talking about.

At least they trusted me enough to not lock the door to this room like an animal. I told them I just needed to pull myself together.

I jumped from my seat when I heard a door outside swing open and a bunch of footsteps rushing in with some faint groaning amongst them.

"Come on," I heard Bull saying.

"Over there. Put him over there," Liebgott ordered.

It was him.

I opened my door just enough to poke one eye out. I couldn't believe what I was seeing.

The NCOs dragged a soldier, beaten, his face covered in blood, into an adjacent room, pushed him down on a chair and started going at him. They yelled angrily and took turns throwing punches at him. Tab and Luz sat in the middle talking about something. It seemed like Luz was trying to talk Tab out of something, beckoning him with a card game, which they ultimately settled on.

I backed away, mouth agape, now knowing what to make of this. I was angry like the rest of the guys, but it made me think of how Grant would react if he were here. Would he want this?

Just then, I heard someone else coming in. Opening the door wider this time, I saw it was Captain Speirs, gun in hand. Tab and Luz stood up.

"How's Grant?" Tab asked.

Speirs ignored his question, instead wondering, "Where is he?"

"Is he okay?" Tab tried again.

In response, Speirs raised his voice. "WHERE IS HE?!"

He moved past Tab and went to join the rest of the men.

I stayed where I was, scared of how Speirs would react.

The one French door that was closed obstructed my view, but I could make out Speirs standing in front of the replacement.

I couldn't hear anything being said, but gasped when I saw Speirs raise his arm and pistol whip the replacement, sending blood flying off to the side.

After two minutes or so, he pointed the gun at him, the men backing away in horror.

Speirs' arm started to shake.

What was going on?

My hand gripped the doorknob for what felt like an hour, until Speirs lowered the gun and wiped the blood on his hand against the replacement's uniform. He stood up straight, looked off to the side and removed his cap.

"Have the MPs take care of this piece of shit," he ordered in his low, terrifying voice, walking past Luz.

"Grant's dead?" Tab inquired.

"No," Speirs stopped right in his tracks and looked at the men. "Kraut surgeon says he's gonna make it."

With those words, I put my back against the wall and slid down, sitting on the floor with my knees up. I stared at the ceiling and closed my eyes.

I heard someone whisper above me and shake my shoulder.

"Hey! Y/F/N, wake up!"

"Hmm?" I opened my eyes and squinted. "Doc?"

"You skipped breakfast," his Cajun accent was peppered with concern.

I picked my head up from the side table I was leaning on. Grant was on the bed to my right, still unconscious.

"Did you hear me?" Eugene crouched to my level.

I nodded and looked at him. "Yeah, breakfast... skipped."

He looked at Grant and then at me. "He'll be fine, Y/F/N. Come on, we're going for lunch."

"Just bring me back whatever you get," I yawned and rubbed my eyes.

"Y/F/N," he said sternly.

I sighed and got up, throwing the blanket off me and getting up, stretching. "Can I at least have a minute alone with him?"

Gene's lips spread into a straight line and he nodded understandingly. "Just one minute."

"Yeah, yeah," I fixed my hair and slipped my jacket on.

Once Gene went to wait outside, I walked around the bed so that I was on the side his head faced. He looked as if he was just sleeping, no signs of pain or distress scrawled on his features. I put my hand over his and kept looking at his eyelids. I couldn't wait to see those blue eyes again.

After making sure no one else was looking through the glass window on the door, I leaned down and gave him a light kiss on the cheek.

The boys were right. I really do love Chuck Grant.

I was home again.

Back in my old house, I was on the couch, flipping through the paper when I heard a knock on the door.

I was looking at the ads for any job listings, but that didn't mean this was going to be a productive day aside from that. So needless to say, I groaned to myself.

I ignored it, hoping that whoever was there would give up.

The knocking persisted though.

I got up from the couch and opened the door.

A pair of blue eyes was beaming back at me.

"Hey, Stargirl."

I threw my arms around him, tears rolling down my cheeks. He put his right arm around me and I could feel him smile into my shoulder.

"Oh my God... Grant," I held him tighter.

I pulled away to look at him again. "Grant I—"

"B-Before you say... say anything. There's something... I've been meaning to do," he put his forehead on mine and gently pressed his lips against mine.

I blushed and caught the star charm of my pendant between my index finger and thumb.

There were billions of stars in the sky at night, but there isn't one I'd rather be than his.