IV – George
He'd always planned to follow in his father's footsteps, but it had to be put on hold because of the damned war. But now it's over, he got out of it scarred up but alive, and he's achieved his BA in Medicine. A first, just like his father got all those years ago.
His girlfriend, Rose, managed to get a second, and they stand together on the lawn in front of the main building of the university of Edinburgh in their sweeping black gowns, families and friends crowing around them and congratulations filling the air like dandelion fluff.
He looks over towards Rose, clinging onto her friends and laughing, her cheeks flushed and her eyes bright, her wildly curly hair tumbling down her back like a waterfall. The ring is burning a hole in the pocket of his trousers, but he forces himself to forget about it. The war has taught him to grasp every moment and live in it forever, and with Rose's smile like the sun, his mother's arms around him and his father looking ready to burst with pride, he knows he couldn't be happier.