Ed Falls In Love
This fan fiction features Florence, the character I made up. The other main character is Ed, who is a main character in Wake, a novel written by Anna Hope. The chapter depicts what I imagine Ed's time in a war hospital would have looked like.
Florence began prepping her nursing station with needles and IV fluids the moment she heard the ambulance sirens wail in the distance. And this was supposed to be a slow day the beautiful nineteen year old thought bitterly. It was only 11:30 AM and Florence had already assisted in two amputations and declared the time of death for four young men all under the age of twenty. She had just finished cleaning the table where another young soldier had bled out and she hoped she could make it through the rest of the morning without seeing it happen again. "Flo! Grab one of the IV bags stat!" The attending doctor shouted. "Yes sir!" Florence responded. This was her life, day in and day out.
Life as a World War I nurse was far from glamorous. It was heartbreaking. She held the hands of many men who never got to go home. The first month was the worst. It was impossible not to love each and every one of the men as they looked at her with vulnerable eyes and destroyed innocence. Her heart shattered piece by piece each time a life slipped out of the broken and battered bodies she tried so hard to save. The day finally came when so much of her heart had been torn up she was able to disconnect herself from reality.
War service was hard, uncomfortable and heartbreaking. Overseas the nurses faced raw, cold weather and shortages of water for bathing and laundry, long hours at work and little privacy or time off. They treated shrapnel wounds, infections, mustard gas burns, exposure and medical and emotional trauma (Military Nurses in World War 1).
The ambulance sirens arrived at the hospital doors and she rushed out to help assess the situation. There was only one patient.
"Damnit how many times do I have to tell you it's a flesh wound!" The enraged soldier told the ambulance drivers trying to attend the wound in his right shoulder.
"Major, we have to clean the wound! You were shot!" The exasperated driver replied.
"This is ridiculous. My men have suffered much worse" the soldier started, "I need to be back at base!"
This was Florence's chance to help. She tucked a stray piece of her curly brown hair up and said, "Major, if you would just shut your smart mouth for a second and let us clean you up, you could be back on your way!" Florence's approach seemed to appease the soldier, so she continued. "My name is Florence by the way".
"Well Florence, my name is Ed", the disgruntled soldier replied, "and has anyone ever told you that you have a horrible bedside manner?"
"Good thing you won't have to put up with more for more than a few days then!" Florence joked back.
Over the next few days, Florence and Ed grew close. In between the jokes and sarcastic comments, Florence learned Ed came from a rich family. He talked at length about his overbearing mother and his beautiful sister named Evelyn. She had recently lost her fiancé, Frasier, in the war and Ed worried she would not be able to cope well. They talked about their dreams and their fears; who they were before the war and who they had become since. A week later, Ed was healed up enough to be discharged. As Florence said goodbye to Ed, he pulled her into a close hug and whispered, "Just so you know, I plan on calling you when we get home from this war. I'm going to take you dancing."
"I'll hold you to it army boy" Florence replied quickly.
Ed leaned in for the kiss, and sparks flew between them like sparks flying on the battlefield nearby.
Works Cited
"Women in the US Military - US Military Nurses in World War I." George Mason University Historical Archives. George Mason University, Apr. 2013. Web. 9 Dec. 2015.