Years ago, George had tried to leave Winona.
It was the night before she was set to graduate. The two lay in Winona's bed, tangled in Starfleet regulation sheets and each other's warmth when it hit him; she wouldn't be a cadet tomorrow night. Come tomorrow night, they would both be Starfleet officers, with responsibilities and stations and, while he'd been able to stay at the Academy during her final year, there was no guaranteeing they would be stationed together.
And frankly, the idea of being apart from Winona terrified him.
Pushing the covers off of him and untangling his legs from her's, George slipped out of bed. He'd hoped to snatch his clothing and leave before she woke up, wanting to simply remember her as she was at that moment, peaceful and dreaming.
"George, what're you doing?" Winona's voice was thick and scratchy with sleep as she rolled over to watch him.
"Nona, I -" He bit down on the inside of his cheek, shaking his head as he tugged his boxer-briefs on. "Winona, we can't do this anymore."
She laughed, that airy sound that drove George absolutely wild. "Look, George, I know a dorm isn't ideal, but-"
"No, I mean us. This…" He sighed short and stared at the door as he fastened his belt over his pants. "It's gotta end."
George could hear the bed creak beneath Winona as she sat up, the soft crisp sound of sheets being pulled. "Excuse me?" her voice had lost its rasp, small and confused.
"Just -" George let out a frustrated groan, shaking his head. "You know how this is going to go, right? I'm going to be here, you're going to be stationed Lord knows where and we'll be okay for a little. But then we won't talk as much and we'll start finding little excuses not to spend our leaves together. And, eventually, we're just going to be over. Could take months, maybe a year or so, but it's going to happen."
He tugged his t-shirt over his head, smoothing out the creases, as if he could push the words bubbling in his throat back down. "And shit, Winona, I don't want us to fade out. D'you know how much it's going kill me to just forget about you? So why bother? Let's just end it now while the going's good, right?"
George sighed heavily, nodding his head. He was right, wasn't he? He had to be. She was smart, she'd understand.
"Nona?" He turned back to the bed and his heart split in two.
At some point during his little speech, Winona had climbed off of the bed, her sheets tucked around her body like a Grecian robe. She pressed her hands to her chest to hold her make-shift dress up as she approached him, her steps tentative and small. Her eyes peeked through her fringe, deep, grey oceans with waves crashing against her lids, tears slipping over her reddened cheeks.
"You…" Winona swallowed hard, her throat dipping. "You really would let that happen?"
George's lips began to move, but her sturdy glare stopped him.
"George, I love the hell out of you. I… You're right. We might be apart and we might not get to see each other for a bit. But I'll be damned if I let myself forget about you!" She gave a wet, humorless laugh that made George's stomach clench. "I couldn't forget you if I tried. You're everything."
Her tears were falling faster and all George wanted was to reach out and brush them away. Winona shook her head slowly, pursing her lips together.
"I'd gift wrap the world and give it to you for Christmas if it meant making us work," her shoulders began to shake, those soft cries quickly turning into harsh, angry sobs. "Look me in the eye and tell me you wouldn't do the same, George!"
And he did. George looked straight into her eyes and every plan he'd had was gone. He was hers for good, they both knew it.
Stepping forward, George cupped her face in his hands, the pads of his thumbs sliding over damp cheeks. He leaned down and pressed his lips to Winona's, tasting her tears and tasting his own.
The next night, dressed in a Starfleet uniform and graduation robes, with only a town justice and a notary to witness, George Kirk married Winona Shaw.
And while George was transferred to New York City a week later, Winona stuck by his side, spending countless hours on video calls with him. The separation was short lived, with the two of them being assigned to the USS Kelvin less than three months after she graduated. And while Captain Robau swore up and down that he simply believed the two to be the best in their field, when George saw the man bring his own wife on board, he knew that love was an important factor. Not that he would complain or anything.
That first night back together, they christened their new quarter and George cherished every moment with her, the girl he'd almost let get away.
Now, three years later, as his new son's cries filled his ears and the lights flashed around him, George smiled back on those memories, at how oddly amusing it all was. He'd once been so ready to pack everything and wash his hands of her. But in that moment, he would give back the earth she had promised him if it meant seeing her and his boys just one more time.
Winona Shaw Kirk was the girl who came to stay. And he didn't regret a single thing.