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Departures by Beth Arritt Copyright 1998
"As they say at The Buttery, Betty, I'm ready to take your order."
Betty gaped at the two men for a long moment. They were serious. They actually wanted her to decide which one should stay and which one should go to London to possibly be bombed or worse....
"Why don't you both go to London and escort celebrities around? I'm sure you'll be very happy," she yelled before she stormed out of the room.
Both men stared after her. Before either could say a word, the phone rang. Victor answered it automatically. "Oh, hello, General." He turned to ask Scott to leave, but he was already gone. After a moment's hesitation, he decided he couldn't hang up on a general. Even if he wanted to.
Scott tried the writer's room, the studio and the green room before deciding that Betty must have taken refuge in the ladies' room. He was standing outside the door wondering if he could get away with going in there when Maple came out.
"Scottie! What's with the uniform?"
"Mapes, was Betty in there?"
"Yeah, she came in a minute ago madder than a hornet. I asked her what was so bad, but she didn't want to--"
"Is she alone?"
Maple gave him a strange look. "Yeah, but--hey, you can't go in there." By the time she'd finished the sentence she was talking to the door that had closed behind him.
Scott hesitated inside the door, then made up his mind and turned the corner. "Scott!" Betty dropped the paper towel she'd been holding. "What are you doing in here? This is the ladies' room!"
"I know, and it really wasn't fair for you to hide in here when I was trying to track you down to apologize."
"I wasn't hiding, I had something in my--what did you say?"
Encouraged by her reaction, Scott moved closer. "I said I wanted to apologize. It wasn't fair of either of us to ask you to make a decision like that. I just got caught up in the moment and...I wasn't thinking. I'm sorry."
Betty blinked at him. "Well...thank you for apologizing, I guess. But I'm still not making that decision. I won't. I can't."
"Forget about it. It doesn't matter anyway. I'm not taking either job. I'll get my orders when I arrive at the base."
"What?"
He stood as straight as he could. "With our firepower added to the English, how long can it be before we beat Hitler and things go back to normal? I'll be home in a few months; what difference does it make where I spend the time in between?"
"But...you'll be in the line of fire."
"The United States is at war, Betty. Everywhere is in the line of fire."
"Oh...I hadn't thought of it that way."
Maple's raised voice outside the door caught their attention. "I'm sorry, Hilary, the bathroom is closed for--hey, I said it was clo--"
Hilary flung the door open. "Sorry Betty, Scott, but I have to find a place to--Scott, what the hell are you doing in here?"
"Long story. Come on, Betty." He grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the ladies' room. He ignored Gertie's startled cry as he led Betty through the reception area and down the hall to the writer's room. He had to stop suddenly when he opened the door and was greeted with the sight of Eugenia throwing her arms around Mr. Foley.
"Sorry," he mumbled, backing into Betty as he closed the door and turned around. He started to pull her back down the hall, then stopped, looked around, and pulled her into Studio B.
She jerked her arm out of his hand as he shut the door. "What was that all about?" she demanded, as she rubbed her shoulder. "You nearly pulled my arm out of the socket."
"It was about finding some place where I could say good-bye to you without an audience. How was I supposed to know there's an epidemic of private conversations around here?"
Both of her hands dropped to her sides, her sore shoulder completely forgotten. "You're really leaving?"
"I only have about 4 minutes left, Betty. If I don't leave then, I'll be AWOL."
"I'm beginning to understand Hilary's chaining Jeff to a sideboard," she muttered.
"What?"
She shook her head. "Nothing," she answered quickly. "If you have to go, then take the job Victor offered you in London. After all, you did set it up for him, didn't you?"
Scott's head lowered, his eyes studying the floor. "Okay, so I set it up. He would have been safe there, though."
"Sure, as safe as he was the last time he went to London to broadcast. Safe...and away from me."
"You always were too smart for me Betty," he said quietly as he met her eyes. "Guess that's what I liked so much about you." He glanced at his watch. "I have to go."
"Just like that?"
"You know me. I hate long good-byes. Besides, the last time I left, you slapped me. I figure this won't give you time for a repeat performance."
Betty blinked back the tears that were threatening to fall. "Last time you left you'd just admitted to being a creep."
A small smile hovered around Scott's mouth. "Does that mean that you won't slap me this time?"
"If I did, would it convince you to stay in Pittsburgh?" He shook his head. "Then no, I won't slap you. Although you might deserve it for springing this on me at the last minute."
He checked his watch again. "I really have to go," he said as he turned toward the door.
"Wait!" He turned back around. "I...um...." She took a few steps forward. "Be careful," she said finally. She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek.
He looked at her for a long moment. "There's a limit to my nobility," he said before he leaned down and swept her into a long kiss. True to her word, she didn't slap him this time when he let her go. She just followed him silently out of the studio and down the hall to the lobby.
"Scott!" Gertie exclaimed. "What are you doing in that uniform?"
"I'm off to join the army."
Gertie's eyes widened. "Just like that? With no warning?"
"You know me, Gertie. 'Impulse' is my middle name." He turned back to Betty. "So long, Betty Roberts."
"Not so fast, Sherwood." Victor's command startled all three of them.
"Sorry, Vic, I've got a train to catch."
Victor shook his head and leaned against the doorway of his office. "Not anymore. That was the General on the phone. I've been ordered to London." He looked at Betty. "Apparently I have no say in the matter after all."
Scott shrugged. "So how does that affect me?"
He pushed himself away from the doorjamb and walked over to stand next to the two of them. "It seems the General heard you used to run this station. They seem to think they need me to head the whole thing in London. But they also want a strong military presence who knows what they're doing here on this end. They settled for you."
Betty looked between the two of them before her eyes settled on Victor. "So, Scott's staying here, and you're going to London?"
"I'm afraid so, Betty." His normally stoic expression was practically morose. "At least until the whole thing gets rolling. Then I may able to come back."
Scott seemed to be having a hard time keeping his mouth shut, but was doing an admirable job of it in spite of himself. Betty's brow was set in a deep furrow. "When do you leave?" she asked.
"If I leave in a few minutes, I can catch a transport plane out in the morning."
"Just like that?"
Victor nodded. "Betty, I..." he looked around at Scott and Gertie. "Can I speak with you in my office for a minute?"
She followed him into the office. "You have to leave?" she asked after he'd shut the door.
"I have no choice." He sighed. "If it were up to me...."
"I know. It's just such a shock. The last time you went to London...."
"I'll be careful not to let that happen again." He took her hands in his. "If all goes well, I'll be back in a couple of months."
She nodded. "I'm sure it will go well. You're a passionate man when it comes to your convictions. You'll have everyone working around the clock within a day of your arrival."
He smiled. "If it will get me home faster, then that's what I'll do." He leaned down to kiss her, but her lack of response made it a short kiss. He gave her a long look as he straightened up. "It isn't often I make the same mistake twice, especially in one day. I guess I don't have to wonder who you would have chosen to stay behind."
"I would never have made that choice."
"I know. It was wrong of us to ask. But I think I know what your preference would have been, if you'd felt free to voice it." He picked up his coat, hat and briefcase. "Good-bye, Betty. For now."
She watched as he walked out, then she shut the door and turned out the light. Her feelings were clearer to her than ever as she sat down behind the desk. But how to deal with them was something she was going to have to figure out in a hurry. And she wasn't sure she knew where to start.
One thing was certain as she heard the knock on the door. She'd better find the answer quick, because if her feelings were as clear to everyone else as they were to her and to Victor, her day of reckoning with Scott Sherwood was very near.
The knock came again, louder this time. Oh yes. Very near.