That Is How Long I Have Loved You: Chapter 14
….
Hi! I have to start with an apology as this chapter features only the sisters and is slightly filler (but contains vital information). Really I just wanted to the chance to use this great little book I found in my uni library. It's a copy of the manual that American servicemen were given on their way into Britain. A "How To" Guide to Britain, really. Fascinating reading, especially to me, as a Brit myself. All italic text in that section are direct quotes from the book.
Anyway, my next chapter is going to be full of Webster! Thank you for all of the lovely reviews. Every review I get for this story really means a lot to me : ).
…
November 12th, 1943- Wyoming
So the months came and went. Summer gave way to Fall and Fall slowly faded into Winter. With the change of the seasons came Amy's "passing out" Ceremony at the University, her emergence as a cadet into a fully-fledged nurse. The whole family made their way to Wyoming from Toccoa, and April even found the time to board a train from New York City to see her sister's big day. After the ceremony, during which their mother had cried, the family dined out together. April couldn't stay longer, however, having to get a bus straight back to the train station. She had to be back at work as soon as possible. Keen to spend some time alone with her sister, Amy took the opportunity to walk her to the bus stop.
"So do you know where you're shipping out to?" April asked, looking up into the clear night sky as they walked. "Or are you not allowed to say?"
Amy shrugged. "Still a mystery. I suppose we'll be placed in the US for a while before being shipped out anywhere."
"Well you make sure you take care of yourself, wherever you end up," April smiled, stamping her feet against the cold as they approached the bus stop. She blew hands in her fist to heat them up.
"And you take care in the City," Amy said, laughing slightly. "Look at us, would ya? To think we could be in our second year at Sarah Lawrence by now."
"Mmm hmmm," April nodded, adding with a laugh. "I hear Roseanna Caine goes there."
"Does she really?" Amy asked, intrigued. She bit her lip. "Still think we did the right thing?"
"I sure hope so," April nodded, laughing. "Cos it's sure as hell too late to go back on anything now."
Amy opened her mouth to respond, but was silenced by the noise of April's bus revving up and pulling to a stop.
Gathering her bag over her shoulder, April turned one last time to her sister, blurting out. "I've seen him, you know."
"Who?" Amy asked, playing dumb.
"You know who," April cocked her head.
"Oh, right," Amy's heart race. "How is he?"
"Shipping out, last I saw, but healthy at least," April explained, planting a kiss on her sister's cheek. She put a foot on the bus, looking back. "He misses you…but then, so do I…. See you at Christmas?"
"I might be working," Amy frowned apologetically.
"Then maybe I'll see you at Christmas," April smile, boarding the bus.
…
January 12th, 1944- New York City
April poured filter coffee into a mug, having just returned from her morning bagel run for Judy. Gripping the mug in one hand and Judy's bag of bagels in the other, she made her way towards Judy's office, frowning as she saw the "do not disturb" sign on the door and the blinds of the glass panels slanted down, blocking vision inside. She narrowed her eyes, trying to see through the tiny slats of the blinds. She could faintly see two men, one in a suit and the other in an army uniform. She turned to Judy's secretary, who reclined back in her chair, filing her nails.
"Who's in with Judy?" She asked, inquisitively.
The secretary barely looked up from her nails, clicking her tongue. "In an interview."
"An interview with who?"
The secretary's eyes lit up as she put her nail file away. She loved having the upper hand. "It's top secret."
"I'm Judy's intern," April reminded her, raising her eyebrows slightly.
The secretary shrugged. "Top secret is top secret. I can't tell you, I'm afraid."
April noticed her looking longingly at the brown paper bag in her hand. She beamed, holding out the bag. "Will a bagel make you tell me?"
The secretary made a pfffft noise, shaking her head dismissively. A moment later she bit her lip, her eyes full of longing. "Do you have cream cheese?"
"Mmmm hmmm," April nodded, wigging her eyebrows seductively. The secretary reached out for the bag but April yanked it back. "Uh uh! Information first!"
"She's in with some men from the War Department," The secretary said, accompanied by a deep sigh and outstretched hands. "Now gimme!"
The War Department, April thought to herself, intrigued.
….
About an hour later April was on tenterhooks, sitting behind her desk and boring her eyes into the door of the office, which remained firmly shut. As she began tapping a pencil distractingly against the wooden frame of her desk, the door suddenly burst open. The two men, straight-laced and official, made their way out of the door, closely followed by Judy. April couldn't help but watch, hawk-eyed.
"We trust we'll be hearing from you soon, Ms Orr?" The man in the regular suit said, holding out a hand to her in what was a somewhat unusual gesture.
"You will," Judy shook both of their hands firmly, before folding her arms across her chest. "I'll need to put my affairs in order before putting pen to paper, of course."
"Naturally," The suited man nodded. "That's as to be expected. See to your business, Ms Orr, and then be in touch. You have our contact details."
With those passing words, the men left. Judy shifted her eyes to the side, noticing April sitting, her eyes and mouth agog as she watched. She raised her eyes, amused.
April realised she'd been spotted, quickly shifting in her hair and smiling sweetly at her boss. "Errr…can I get you anything?"
Judy smiled at her inquisitive intern. "No thank you. I'll be in my office."
….
January 21st, 1944- Boat en route to England
Their orders had reached them just ten days earlier. Amy and her fellow nurses were being shipped off to England as a base before being shipped out further afield. Whilst the news that they were finally getting somewhere had been welcome amongst most of the girls, Amy included, the harsh realities of the transit boat were far less pleasant. Whilst the attention from the amorous soldiers also in transit was welcome attention for some and an annoyance for other, it was on that fated journey that several girls, novices to boating, discovered that they were seasick. Whilst those girls collected below deck, nursing their tummies as they lay on their hammock beds, the other stayed above deck, breathing in the fresh sea air as they chatted animatedly about what awaited them. On that particular cold and breezy day, Amy sat on deck with some of the other girls, wrapped up in their winter cloaks. She had on her lap a manual which they had been given upon boarding the boat. A guide to life in Britain. Amy read it with intrigue.
"You are going to Great Britain as part of an Allied offensive- to meet Hitler and beat him on his own ground. For the time being you will be Britain's guest…," She read aloud.
"What is this thing anyway?" One of the other girls asked with a frown, thumbing through the papers.
"A guide to Britain, apparently."
"You will be welcome in British pubs as long as you remember one thing. The pub is the "poor man's club", the neighbourhood or village gathering place, where the men have come to see their friends, not strangers." Helen read aloud., clucking her time suggestively as she giggled. "I'm sure the "poor man" wont mind some female-shaped strangers….nor would I mind him."
"So long as the poor man is a handsome man," Another girl piped up, causing fits of giggles from the others.
"The British will welcome you as friend and allies. But remember that crossing the ocean doesn't automatically make you a hero. There are housewives in aprons and youngsters in knee pants in Britain that have lived through more high explosives in air raids than many soldiers saw in first class barrages in the last war," Amy read, biting her lip.
"Listen to this one…You are higher paid than the British "Tommy". Don't rub it in. Play fair with him," Another girl laughed, rolling her eyes. "Clearly this pamphlet wasn't mean for us…the pittance we earn."
"But our job is spiritually rewarding," Another joked, making hand gestures as she spoke.
"Please, spiritually rewarding won't buy me dresses in the London boutiques," Helen sighed wistfully.
"You'll be lucky if you get the time to visit the London boutiques," Amy shrugged her shoulder sympathetically. She turned her attention back to the papers in her lap. "The British don't know how to make a good cup of coffee…""Oh no," Helen stamped a foot against the floor. "I don't operate in the morning with a cup of Joe."
"Joe who?" Another girl joked playfully.
"…Americans can't make a good cup of tea. It's an even swap," Amy read, laughing. "I resent that. I make a good cup of tea, if I do say so myself."
Helen opened her mouth to speak, but a gust of wind blew her cap off of her head before she could do so. She raced to the railings, watching in dismay as the hat landed on the water down below. She turned back to the girls. "Do you think they'll give me another one of those when we get to England?"
"You shoulda clipped it to your hair like everyone else," one of the girls held up her hands dismissively.
With a groan, Helen turned back out towards sea, leaning on the railings as she watched her hat fade away into the distance. "So long America…and so long my hat."
…
January 21st, 1944- New York City
Whilst unbeknownst to her the her sister was currently sailing the high seas, April was stuck archiving old photographs in Judy's filing cabinets.
Judy stuck her head out of her office door. "April, a word?"
April winced slightly as she clamoured to her feet to follow Judy into her office. Usually when Judy asked for "a word" it meant that she'd done something wrong. As April took a seat, Judy shut the door with a click before making her way to her plush leather desk chair. She was about to ask something of April that she couldn't predict a response to. Still, she wasn't one to pussyfoot around the issue, and so placed her hands square on her desk. "So…enjoying the internship?"
April nodded. "Of course?"
"Getting boring?" Judy asked, arching a brow. "Tell me honestly."
"Boring?" April shrugged. "It's never boring being a photographer, but the City is a little more deserted than it was in the summer, naturally."
"Right, well…," Judy got straight down to business. "I'm going to let you in on a little top secret information, since I trust you. Mark my words though, April, this has to stay within these walls. No one finds out about this, understand?"
April shifted in her chair excitedly. "Of course."
"The men that I had a meeting with the other week were from the War Department," Judy explained.
"Oh, I didn't know that," April lied. "What did they want?"
"Well, as America advances into this war, we need evidence that it's going well to show everyone at home that our boys are doing well and to keep morale up…that's how they flowered it up, anyway,"
"Right…," April said, trying to keep up.
"…and photographs are the way to do that," Judy filled in the blanks. She leaned back in her chair, crossing her legs and looking pointedly at April. "Anyway, they want me to go abroad to take said photographs."
April's eyes widened, her face crestfallen. At the same time however, she felt almost jealous. "What? You're leaving?"
"Fraid so," Judy nodded. "Couple of weeks time."
"So you're working for Epoch or for the War Department?"
"Not Epoch. The photos will end up in majority of the papers, I'm sure,"
"Wow," April breathed. "Good exposure. Sounds like a real adventure."
"That's what I'm hoping," Judy said with a sigh. "This city is becoming old to me. I need something new, something more challenging. I hope you understand."
"Understand?" April's eyes widened suddenly. "Does this mean I'm fired?"
Judy shrugged, her eyes twinkling slightly. "Perhaps…although, not if you'd like to come with me, of course."
"Come again?" April blinked.
"You heard,"
"Go with you?" April repeated, feeling as though all of the breath had left her lungs momentarily. "To war?"
"I'm not asking you to fight," Judy said, joking coolly. "Taking photographs. You'll be safe."
April looked at her doubtfully.
"Well," Judy shrugged. "As safe as the US Army can keep you, anyway."
"I don't know what to say…," April shrugged.
"Of course you don't," Judy laughed, standing up and turning her back on her intern, looking out of the window into the city. She glanced down at her watch briefly. "That's 4p.m. Why don't you go now. Take the weekend to think and let me know on Monday."
"O-okay," April found her way to her feet. She shook her head, her head trying desperately to convince her that this was a stupid idea. "My parents wouldn't like the idea…."
"Isn't your sister an Army Nurse?" Judy reminded her. She turned back to face April. "We all have to leave the nest sometime, April. Your sister clearly knows that. Don't you want to do something in this war? To play a part at least? If anything else, it'll do wonders for your career."
April opened her mouth to reply but Judy simply held up a hand to silence her, repeating. "Take the weekend, April. Let me know on Monday."
Nodding obediently, April turned on her heel and left the office. Judy watched her go with a smile. She was an influential woman, and she wanted April to go with her when she left. Why? Because she was a damn good intern and photographer. More importantly, in the year that she'd been working under her, April had proved herself to be more than just an employee…but a trusted friend. Judy knew she was embarking on a dangerous venture, and as such she wanted someone in whom she could trust and rely on.
….
January 24th, 1943- New York City
Judy's words had reverberated in her head the entire weekend and, by the time that Monday morning had came and she made her way into the photography department of Epoch with a bag of bagels under one arm, April was almost positive that she was going to be making the right decision when she accepted the offer. Still, she couldn't help thinking to herself that she was being stupid and would be better suited to stay on home territory. She wasn't even sure that it was even the thought of the project that made her want to go but, rather, the thought of losing Judy as a mentor. The moment that she'd met the crop-haired, leggy woman, she knew that there was so much she could learn from her. Setting her bag down on her desk, April looked at the memo Judy had placed on her desk of her tasks for the day:
Finish archiving December's photographs
Brooklyn Bridge 1 p.m…photographs for feature on the man with the largest badge collection in New York
Develop said photographs
Scratch that. Perhaps it was the idea of the project too that excited her. As she spread cream cheese onto some halved bagels on a plate, she knew for sure that she had made her mind up. Picking up the plate, she marched to Judy's office, not even knocking but simply walking in.
Judy looked up from her notepad. "Morning."
"Alright," April put the plate of bagels down and flopped in a chair in front of the desk. "I'll do it."
"Sure?"
"Yes," April nodded resolutely.
"Excellent," Judy leaned triumphantly back in her chair.
"But first…," April held up a hand. "You mentioned on Friday that this little venture would help my career. I want to know exactly how? I need to know that I'm putting my neck on the line for something worthwhile."
"As if I need to spell it out for you?" Judy asked with a laugh, but stopped when she realised from April's expression that she actually would have to spell it out. She sighed. "Come on, April. Once this war is over and all those soldiers come home, it's going to be harder than ever for you to survive in the Photography business."
"You seemed to do fine without it," April noted.
"I've worked damn hard for it, and I've made a lot of enemies on the way," Judy admitted rawly. "…and it's still not that easy for me. Everyday I'm put down by my male peers who don't think I should be sitting in this chair. I'm not going to lie to you April, this'll do my career wonders just as much as it will yours. Experience of this kind will really make you stand out to employers."
April forced a smile, as she jokingly put a hand on her chest. "What? You mean I'm not getting a job here after this is all over?"
"Not if you don't come with me," Judy joked.
"Well, I'm coming," April said with a smile, reaching forward and picking up a cream-cheese covered bagel.
"Uh-uh," Judy shook her head, reaching out and taking the bagel.
"Why did you do that?" April asked, frowning.
"One little drawback of this entire thing is that we'll have to be fit…and that means passing an Army fitness test…which means saying goodbye to the snacks. Don't think I haven't noticed that since that David left that you've been suppressing your feelings with food."
…..
February 1st, England
Amy couldn't disguise her mix of nervousness and excitement as she lined up with her fellows nurses for inspection on their first day of duty in England. They'd be stationed here for a while before moving on. All of the girls had taken real care in their appearance that day to pass their first inspection, neatly pinning their hair and applying a thin layer of red lipstick to their lips.
Their excited chatter stopped as soon as the footsteps of the Matron click-clacked into the room. She was hard-face, large woman who looked like she would be no pushover. She wore a pair of wiry spectacles over her stern face.
She looked at her clipboard as she looked at the girls. She stopped at Helen, the first girl in the line. "Is that lipstick, Nurse?"
Helen gulped at the tone. "Y-yes, ma'am."
"Well you can start by taking lipstick off of your face. All of you can start by doing that, I see. Rule number one on my ward: if you've got time in the morning to put lipstick on your face then that means you're not focussed on the job. On my ward, the job is the main focus. Memorise that rule, ladies."
Amy gulped from further down the line of girls. What had she let herself in for?
…