I pressed the rollup to my lips feeling the warmth enter my lungs and flood out through my nostrils, before I went to go see Victorya I went to the nearest town to pick up certain things.

I had to pay for parking, I didn't want to get robbed while I ventured around town so I rented out a little garage to store my weapons and armor for a good two hours.

There was christmas decorations lighting up the whole town, I tightened up my jacket and thrown my scarf around my neck. I had a good chunk of money saved on me so I wanted to go pick up things for presents.

But there was something beautiful about this place, maybe it was the fresh snow sticking on the pavement or the lights illuminating the streets made me have a more jolly mood. I wanted to hold Victorya around me as we both had a blanket around us, maybe even a fireplace would be nice.

Having thoughts like that were nice, but they were unrealistic. It would be far fetched thinking how the 203rd had a fireplace, for all I know they might not even have any barracks to sleep in..

I walked to the nearest corner store, the air was cold causing the snow to not disappear or go sluggish. But it was still hard to trek through, but the thought of getting what I needed pushed me forward.

There was a loud ding from the bell as I pushed the door open and entered the store as I began to walk the aisles, I walked over towards the cash register.

A woman with red hair and soft brown eyes was reading a newspaper, she sluggishly stared up at me like I was some pest bothering her.

To be fair, that would be my thoughts. A teenager dragging snow into her store that needed a haircut seemed like a pest to me.

"I need this gift wrapped." I bluntly said, the lady was taken aback as I saw her close her newspaper

"That is going to cost you, and it might take a while."

"That's fine." I answered as I reached into my pocket and fished out the ring. I had been clutching it in my pocket for the whole trek through the snow, there was no way in hell I was going to lose it.

The lady stared at me strangely as she would take occasional glances at the ring and back to me.

"Fine, geez kids are really getting married this early" she muttered as she reached under her counter as she pulled out plain red wrapping paper.

"Huh?"

Married what was she even talking about, there was no way that Claire gave me an engagement ring to give to Victorya.

I was nearly sixteen and she would be seventeen soon so we were still pretty young, but not young enough to kill for the empire.

"This is an engagement ring, you could tell from the banding." she pointed out as she stuck out her finger towards the little curves of the ring

I gulped, I was actually going to give Victorya a wedding ring for christmas. I had no idea what I was getting into. When Claire gave me the ring at first I thought the ring was just expensive not Anes and Claire's engagement ring.

But was I really that shocked, I was practically like a son to them. No, there was no way in hell that Claire gave me an engagement ring.

"You must be mistaken...I am going to get some other stuff now." I stuttered as my body felt awkwardly heavy as I began to walk through the aisles again.

She was just a small shop owner, there was no way that she knew what she was actually talking about. I picked up a new pack of cigarettes and even got a new lighter, with just a flick it was ready to be lit up.

I also picked up a bottle of vodka, I knew Victorya's roots so I thought me and her could have enjoyed it together. Sure I had no idea if she even drank, but a part of me felt cheap for only getting one present.

Who knows maybe having a bottle of alcohol would be able to help break the tension of us being apart. Me and her haven't uttered a word or even sent a note to each other for a whole month, for all I knew she could have completely forgotten about me maybe even found somebody better.

No I couldn't think like that, I grabbed the bottle of vodka and walked over towards the clerk to see the ring neatly wrapped into a little cube. I picked it up observing the wrapping paper, I lightly shook it content to hear the ring shambling inside.

"It is to your liking, sir."

"Yeah, also add these things to your tab." I said as I layed out the items on the counter

She observed the items as she lifted the vodka turning it around twice, she stared up at me as both of our eyes met.

"I can't sell you this, your barely eighteen…I could…"

I dropped a handful of coins that instantly closed her mouth. Usually these items would go around sixty dollars with the vodka being the most being easily over fifty dollars.

But I was giving her basically ninety dollars now, this would have caused peoples wallets to sigh but I have been saving my money for years so I could afford this purchase.

With a sigh she bagged everything as I walked out of the store, I was lucky how the snow began to melt as I began to trek back towards the motorcycle. But with a quick side glance I saw something that instantly made me run back into the store.

I bolted into the store and kneeled in front of the flowers, bouquets of red, yellow, blue were neatly organized in the corner of the store. I didn't know how you could grow flowers during winter.

My fingers traced along the stems of the white roses, they were truly pretty and perfectly matched the winter wonderland that was outside.

I heard the faint footsteps of the shopkeeper behind me, she was probably going to scold me about barging into her store like that.

"You know there meanings?" she asked me, I instantly shook my head as I redirected myself back to the flowers. I wouldn't care how much but Victoria was going to get a baquet as a third present.

"Blue means peace and tranquility, yellow means happiness and joy, and red means romance and true love." she purred

"And white?"

"Innocence and purity."

I was about to grab the red roses, but I stopped and my hand awkwardly hovered over the air as my mind went into overdrive.

Red roses were so common, but what about yellow, white, or even Blue? There were way too many to choose from as my eyes frantically darted throughout the room.

Was this normal? Why was I really thinking hard about getting flowers for Victorya, they were a kind gesture but they were still a symbol of what she meant to me.

"Fuck it." I murmured as I closed my eyes and grabbed at a random bouquet, I guess I would let fate decide what I would get for Victorya.

Blue, just like her eyes, a nice array of different flower types in shades of light and dark blue were present in the bouquet as I began to walk towards desk. I payed again as I left the store holding the bag in one hand and the flowers in the other as I began to trek back through the snow.

It took longer than I thought, luckily the roads weren't that blocked up but I still would have to be careful maneuvering my bike throughout the tough terrain.

I packed everything into the back of the cycle as I readjusted the bandana and goggles, I placed the flowers in the bag so they hopefully wouldn't get squished or fly out when I would go really fast.

The ride took me maybe an hour to complete as I stopped in front of a military checkpoint, the guard was stationed as he began to look me over.

I had all the right credentials but I was a nervous wreck, after each mile I passed I had this horrifying pain in my gut as I got closer.

The last time that me and her talked resulted in us getting into an argument, and even worse it resulted in me and her never too smooth things over. The thoughts of her being held by somebody else after all this time horrified me, a month apart could have broken what we had.

My body felt strange as each stepped weighed down on me, it didn't take that long for the guard to check my id. But as I passed through the gates he strangely commented on not realizing there being another recruit.

As I sped down the road I began to quickly realize something, Tanya probably hid it from the other members of the 203rd. I had no idea why she never told them but as I pulled into the camp the uneasiness began to overwhelm me.

It was Christmas today and the soldiers were surrounded around a roaring fire, there were drinks and food displayed across multiple tables.

Right before I explored more I walked over towards the barracks, I stored the armor and the gun in the locker room so I wouldn't have to carry it around while I looked for Victorya.

I took out the flowers, I ran my fingers over the ones that were slightly bent and tried to straighten them. I walked over towards the bathroom and turned on the faucet, I ran my fingers along my hair and splashed water on my face to make me more alert.

It was the afternoon now and the sun was dipping over the horizon, the sky had a peach colored look to it as I adjusted the bag along my back as I cradled the flowers in my hand as I began to walk around the faculty.

For a while I felt that I was never going to find her, and I was too nervous to ask anybody for questions. Nearly everybody there was pretty drunk, so I was able to walk by unnoticed as I searched for Victorya.

The 203rd site was strangely big. A fence that surrounded the camp, men and female barracks, a firing range, even an area for practicing flying. Then it occured to me, why don't I just wait for Victorya to return to the female barracks.

For a while I laid my back down on the adjacent wall as I waited, why couldn't I just ask somebody where she was?

Just seeing all these new people just made me so nervous, and when I get nervous I stutter and don't think about what I am going to say. Wait what am I going to say to Victorya when I see her?

Holy crap, I haven't even spared a minute into thinking about a conversation starter, or even how I was going to apologize to her. Wait the gifts and the rings would get me out of a bind if the conversation was going to turn sour.

As I was about to strike up a cigarette to kill time, snow began to fall darkening the skies with dark clouds.

For a second I was just planning on leaving, sure it was christmas but I would just give Victorya her gifts tomorrow, it would beat getting into a socially awkward situation.

As I was about to leave this situation witched I dreamt of for months, somebody in a green jacket began moving towards me.

They stopped for a second, I could hardly see them now because now the sky was dark and without the moon to illuminate I was dealing with cheap lamps that could barely see in front of me.

"Soldier identify yourself!"

It was a girls voice that was so recognizable, for a second I thought it was Tanya that was speaking but it couldn't be her. The figure of this person and Tanya were completely different.

That voice sounded mature, ready to lead. But as cogs in my brain began to work again I realized I knew who it was.

"Victorya!" I screamed out as I ran towards her

"Frank." she murmured in shock as she pulled her scarf down so it wouldn't muffle her voice

I stopped right in front of her, observing her like she was some alien or some undiscovered species that had never been seen before.

Visually she looked the same, but there was an aura of maturity that beamed off from her as our eyes connected. I wanted to pull her into an embrace, I wanted to tell her how much I missed her, and how the distance between us was unbearable.

But now I was standing right in front of her, and the distance was still great as I stared into her blue eyes.

She stuck out her right hand as her delicate fingers skimmed my chin like I was just some dream, the moment her hands touched she instinctively hesitated as she made sure that I was real.

I could feel the heat radiating off of them as I clutched it with both of my hands as I held them too my face, a part of me still couldn't believe that this was real. And even worse I just couldn't understand what else to do.

She began to instantly tear up as she pulled her hand away, I thought she was going to hit me but instead she wrapped her arms around me and buried her head into my chest. I lightly soothed her back as I clutched her tighter.

"Can you...come inside." she sobbed as I held her

"Yeah, but won't the lieutenant get mad?" I asked

"She was promoted to major, but she rarely sleeps in the barracks so it would just be me and you for tonight."

I held her around my arm as I used my sleeve to wipe away her tears, her military cap was uneven due to her long hair, it was a little detail but I was happy that she didn't take the armies advice and cut it short.

The woman barracks was shockingly small, there wasn't really anything in it that stood out. Two beds on opposite sides of the room, and there was a desk for what I assumed was writing reports pressed against the wall separating the beds.

"I'm really happy you are here."

"I'm glad I got too see you."

She perched herself on her bed as I walked over towards her and took off her shoes, I took off mine and I placed them on the doormat so the snow would melt off without wetting the wooden floors..

I gave her the flowers, and the happy Victorya filled with joy replaced the mature one. She pressed them to her face as she sniffed them, it was kind of funny really seeing her get that happy about flowers.

She placed them to the side of the bed as she scooted further across the bed, she lightly patted the bed with her palm inviting me to sit next to her.

It must have been really awkward for her to see me like that, just standing in the middle of the room watching her. But I could hardly take my eyes off her, for a whole month she was my greatest dream and one of my biggest regrets but now she was standing right next to me.

With her uniform she was dressed for respect and maturity, but she couldn't have looked more than a girl than ever. The way her nose was red from crying, her hair the color of an autumn leaf, her face that didn't belong to the Empire but to a different nation.

Right now she wasn't a soldier, rathor a girl with a boy in her room as the tender silence enveloped the pair.

It was dark and she was shivering from the cold, as the light slowly dimmed I put my arm around her shoulder and drew her towards me. I wasn't thinking about Tanya, the war, or even the situation with Anes and Claire.

Now I was just thinking about how I could make this girl that I was holding happy in my arms, she leaned into me gently as her grip tightened around my jacket pulling me closer. I reached into my bag giving her the gift, I wasn't going to open the vodka tonight, we were already both happily drunk off of each other..

I think me and her were both feeling nauseous from the surprises that we were having during this late afternoon. Victorya's face sparkled as I handed her the gift, she turnt the gift over and over into her hands as she rubbed her fingers against the smooth paper.

"What is it?" she eagerly asked me

"That's for you to find out." I chuckled as I kissed her forehead, I moved a strand of hair from her eyes as she stared eagerly at the box.

For a second she stared at it until she immediately began to rip it open, until the ring collapsed into her open palm.

Her mouth was open as she picked up the ring and brought her face closer to see if it was real, she began to glow red as she stared at her palm.

"Are you okay?" I asked, did I mess up?

Maybe the present was too expensive, maybe I should have just stuck with the flowers, Victorya was a simple girl that likes simple things. She was so happy with the flowers, but now I went overboard and gave her a diamond ring.

"I love it!" she screamed as she wrapped her arms around my neck and pulled my face closer to hers and she pecked my lips

I kissed her back, and for the first time I squinted my eyes open to see her. Her eyes were closed and soft pale tears began to stream from her face.

"Are you crying?"

I pulled away holding both of her hands, bringing her closer to me in a tighter hug, maybe if I held her tight enough I could make any wound go away or fix any pain that she had.

Cause no matter what, now I was her shield and it was my duty to protect her because I loved her, and what was even better was how she loved me.

"I am so happy right now." she muttered as she wiped her tears away, she ran her fingers through my hair, it felt nice as she rubbed it.

"You really need a haircut, but I like it." she smirked

I placed both of my hands along the sides of her face, I kissed her to fill the silence as she blossomed like the flowers casually thrown to the side of the bed.

We stayed like that for a while until I knew that I had been here for too long, if somebody caught us it wouldn't be good. She was now a lieutenant and if she was caught with a subordinate it wouldn't get her in trouble, but it would be frowned down upon.

I got up, casually picking up my thrown shirt as Victorya hungrily licked her lips. I put my boots on and began to tie up my laces until I heard her call me.

"You can stay here, it's really late and if the major hadn't come back yet then there is a good chance that she is sleeping in her office tonight."

I looked at the door and towards her, her jacket was casually thrown off and all she was wearing was a white tanktop and her pants, if this kept on going on something bad would happen. Or maybe something truly amazing.

I scratched my head, and I saw her eyes narrow as she elegantly got off the bed and wrapped her arms around my back as she began to lightly kiss my neck. When her chest pressed against my back, it felt like static electricity was shot through me.

"Just this once." she purred into my ear, and before I knew it, the lights were off and a blanket was thrown around us.

As we held each other that night, we both talked about the experiences that we had during the time that we hadn't seen each other.

The updated armor and gun, my arm being healed, and the situation with Anes and Claire made Victorya's story seem something bearable.

The hell she went with Tanya's one month boot camp seemed like a total hellhole, but as I stared into her blue iridescent eyes I knew that if she could make it through that then she could make it through anything.

"Victorya Graham, has a nice ring to it doesn't it Frank?" she chuckled as she wrapped her body tighter around mine.

And as the moon enveloped the camp, I drew her even closer because I knew that in this darkness she was my light. And if I had her being my sword and me being her shield we could conquer anything in our way.