Going against his parents and half of Lancaster's wishes, Winters and Holly decided to join the Paratroopers. As did Nixon, only his town wasn't fighting against him. The three of them planned on signing up close to graduation. Though, Holly wasn't sure what she was graduating as. Neither did Stuart or John. Holly tried to keep up with Winters and his training with Nixon. But life as a medic was proving to be extremely busy. Lieutenant Mathews had Holly almost living in the hospital. She could practically move in. But Holly didn't mind, she liked working there. The challenge was fun, and Holly liked figuring things out and thinking on her feet.
Picking up a new chart from the desk, Holly made her way down the corridor and entered the ward. Inside, it was empty. Save one man, who was sitting up and staring blankly ahead. With a tiny frown, she closed the door and walked over to him;
"David Johnson?"
The man blinked and whispered;
"yes".
With a small smile, she told him;
"you're stuck with me tonight, mate".
Opening his chart, Holly peeked inside to read the doctors notes.
They were very brief. And there didn't appear to be much medically wrong with him. Expect that he was having trouble sleeping and concentrating. With a tiny frown, she closed the chart and looked at him again;
"feeling tired, David?"
David nodded;
"but I…I can't sleep". He croaked.
"That's annoying". Holly mumbled softly, "what keeps you up at night, mate?"
Slowly, David looked at her;
"I can't tell you". He whispered, "I'm not allowed".
"You're not allowed to tell a medic?" Holly questioned gently, "that's weird, David".
He looked away from her.
David blinked and Holly could see a tear roll down his cheek.
Frowning she sat on the edge of his bed;
"maybe I could help". Holly said to him, "maybe I'll understand".
He swallowed what was probably a lump in his throat;
"that's a lot of maybe's, medic". David whispered tearfully.
"Well, let's start it off easy". Holly suggested, "you're here as an Officer Candidate?"
David nodded;
"I was". He said quietly with a sniff, "not anymore".
Sighing softly, she opened the chart again;
"David, I can't see anything that tells me you're ill". She mumbled, confused, "is it something else? Something I can't see?"
David looked at her again;
"if you look at me…can you tell that I'm crazy?"
Looking up from his notes, she shook her head;
"no…but why would you be crazy?"
He blinked; another tear rolled down his cheek;
"there's something wrong with me, medic". David whispered, sounding scared. "And I can't stop it. It won't go away".
Licking her bottom lip, Holly checked his chart again;
"eh…well…I can't see anything-"
"for goodness sake". David whispered, "of course, you can't see it. It's inside of me".
"What, like internally?" Holly asked, "like your lungs…heart…kidneys?"
He searched her eyes and eventually said;
"my head".
"You mean like…your brain, David?"
David nodded;
"yes". He whispered, "my mind it's…it's not working correctly. It's not working as it should".
Holly frowned;
"and how should a mind act, mate? Cause the way I see it; no two people are the same".
"I don't want this". David whispered fiercely.
His eyes were shinning desperately against the lamp by his bed.
"And I…I told them". He said, "I was stupid".
Her frown deepened;
"told who?"
Swallowing thickly, he replied;
"the Minister". David said, "which of course, he informed the Sargent".
His bottom lip quivered;
"and now, I'm where I belong. Away from anyone, so I don't cause them harm. I'm a monster".
Holly shook her shook;
"you don't look like a monster". She said quietly, "you look like a normal person".
David huffed;
"right". He said tearfully, "well, I'm not normal".
"Normal is boring". Holly told him, "but you thinking you're a monster, isn't normal. You haven't done anything wrong, have you? You haven't murdered anyone or caused anyone any harm".
David shook his head;
"you don't understand, do you?"
"No, I don't". She confirmed, "cause you won't tell me the issue, David. And I'm meant to help you tonight. Lieutenant Mathews told me to sit with you until-"
"until they come". David cut her off, "the police, they're going to take me away".
Holly rubbed her lips together and did feel a little nervous;
"oh, right". She said, trying to sound light. "Well, I suppose that's an easy job".
David snorted;
"I guess".
Sighing quickly, she placed David's chart on the bedside table.
"You need anything to drink or eat?" Holly asked him, "could get us a coffee?"
David shook his head;
"no, thank you".
"You're polite, aren't you?" Holly commented, with a tiny smile, "don't meet a lot of polite patients in here. They're all too eager to get out".
He sighed;
"there's no point in being rude, medic. I'm going to be locked up and I won't be coming out for a while".
Scratching behind her ear, she asked;
"why?"
David cleared his throat;
"I'd rather not tell you". He said, "you're being nice…and you're the first person to treat me kindly since I told the Minister".
"And you think if you tell me, I'd stop being nice?"
David nodded;
"yes".
Biting her bottom lip, she pointed out;
"you're religious".
"I am". David whispered, "though, I don't think God likes me at all that much now".
Holly frowned;
"that's messed-up, David". She whispered, "that you feel so badly about yourself".
His bottom lip trembled again.
A hand went over his eyes;
"I deserve it". He mumbled, while tears rolled down his cheeks. "I'm going to hell…and I deserve to die and rot".
Holly felt her eyes sting with tears.
Shaking her head, she placed a hand on his shoulder;
"David". She whispered, "whatever you think you've done, or think you are – you don't deserve to die, okay?"
David choked out a sob;
"I want to-"
"come on, David". Holly said softly, "come on, mate. Tell me, okay? I promise you; I'll be nice to you about it and maybe you'll feel a bit better".
He was quiet for a few moments.
And he tried to control his sobs.
Sniffing, he continued to cover his eyes.
Eventually, David told her;
"I'm gay". He said, "I have an illness…and I want to fall in love with men".
Holly felt a tear roll down her cheek.
Taking in a deep breath, she eventually said;
"that's not messed-up, mate. And you're not sick. You're not crazy. You're human and you want to fall in love with someone you want, not what society tells you".
Holly then added;
"it's how people react to this, that's what's messed-up".
David let out a tiny sob;
"I'm getting locked up".
"I'll bust you out".
"You can't". He cried softly, "what I am…it's against the law".
"It's a stupid law". She muttered, "they should be locking up Hitler, not you".
Holly looked at him;
"who's your Sargent?"
"Williams". David croaked, "why?"
"I'm 'gonna have a word with him".
Uncovering his face, he sharply looked at Holly;
"you can't".
Holly got off the bed;
"I can and I will". She told him, "stay here. You're not going to get locked up for this, David".
Holly walked out of the ward before David could argue with her.
The door slammed shut and she marched down the corridor.
There, she saw Lieutenant Mathews standing by the reception desk and looking over a few charts. Standing before him, Holly cleared her throat to get his attention. As always, Mathews gave her a kind smile;
"Duffy, enjoying the-"
"you gave me an impossible case, sir". Holly cut him off, "how can I help someone, who doesn't need to be helped?"
The Lieutenant frowned;
"he didn't tell you?"
"He did". She whispered, "he poured his bloody heart out to me, sir. He doesn't need help; he needs a pal and someone he can trust. His Sargent and the Minister have taken all that away from him, sir. And now, he thinks he's a monster".
Mathews sighed;
"Duffy". He mumbled lowly, "David needs help and he's going to receive help-"
"you're locking him away!" Holly exclaimed, "he doesn't need to be locked away!"
The Lieutenant cleared his throat;
"keep your voice down, Duffy. It's out of our hands. The police will handle the case".
"What case, sir?" Holly asked between gritted teeth, "I don't see a problem".
Mathews could see the tears in her eyes and anger.
With a frown, he told her;
"take the night off, Duffy".
She shook her head;
"I'm not finished, sir".
"You are". He told her firmly, "get back to your barrack. We'll talk in the morning".
Swallowing back a lump in her throat, she took in a calming breath.
Standing up straight, she saluted the officer.
And then left the hospital.
…
Creeping into the barrack, Holly carefully walked down the strip.
Reaching the bed, she gave Winters shoulder a gentle shake.
He woke up, almost instantly.
Sitting up, Holly took a step back and took his hand;
"follow me". She whispered into the darkness.
"Holly?" Winters whispered back, "what's wrong?"
"Not here". She mumbled tearfully.
Hand in hand, the couple left the barrack and walked into the night.
The sky was clear, and the stars were bright against the darkness.
And from the bright stars, Winters could see tears rolling down Holly's cheeks.
"Oh my God, what happened?" He asked, alarmed. "Holly, what's wrong?"
Sniffing, Holly wiped the tears from her cheeks;
"Mathews dismissed me tonight".
Winters face dropped;
"why? What's going on? Holly, why are you crying?"
Letting out a shaky sigh, she mumbled;
"David".
She almost sobbed;
"Christ, Dick…if you saw him…".
Winters felt his own eyes sting;
"oh, Holly". He whispered, "come here".
He wrapped her up into a tight embrace, with Holly's head securely against his chest.
Her arms went around him, fingers digging into his back;
"I can't do anything". She cried softly, "because the people around him…they've turned against him. And so did Mathews".
Winters kissed the top of her hair;
"but you didn't". He reminded her softly, "and he'll remember that".
"I wish I could have done more". She sobbed, "because…I'm worried he'll do something harmful to himself, Dick".
Winters buried his nose into her hair;
"you could pray for him". He whispered, "I'll pray for him too".
Holly shook her head;
"he told me God doesn't like him either".
Winters sighed;
"that's not true". He said, "what could he have possibly done, to-"
"he's gay".
Frowning a little, Winters said;
"so, he'll be going to prison?"
Holly nodded into his chest;
"yup". She mumbled thickly, "and I can't stop that".
"No, you can't". Winters agreed, almost sounding regretful. "But I hope one day, he can accept himself and know that he's not a bad person".
Despite it all, Holly felt her lips twitch.
A few more tears rolled down her cheek;
"you've not turned against David?"
Winters shook his head;
"I haven't".
Pulling back from the embrace, she looked up at him.
Sighing sadly, Winters wiped the tears from her face.
"You're amazing, Dick". Holly mumbled, "and beautiful, inside and out".
Winters kissed her forehead before he said;
"I'm going to give you everything you've ever wanted, Holly". He whispered, "when this war ends, we can get married and live on our farm. Like we always wanted".
A tiny smile reached her lips;
"with chickens?"
He chuckled sadly;
"yup. With our chickens".
"We're almost finished here". Holly pointed out quietly, "you'll be an officer soon".
"Well, maybe-"
"no, you will be". Holly said, "you and Nix. And then, we're off to Airborne training. Maybe we'll get a gap between that".
"Maybe". Winters mumbled, while wiping another tear from her cheek, "what are you thinking?"
Rubbing her lips together, she said;
"we should go on holiday. Like when we went to New York".
Winters smiled small;
"that would be nice, huh?"
"It would". Holly agreed, "get a car, go somewhere for a bit".
Nodding, he kissed her softly on the lips;
"then that's what we'll do". He promised her, "we'll get time off and have another holiday. Just the two of us".
After an awful night's sleep, Holly got dressed and left her barrack in the morning. She headed back inside the hospital, where Mathews was waiting for her. He didn't seem angry at her but did look a little apologetic;
"I'm sorry you wanted to help him". He mumbled lowly, "it's out of our hands".
Holly nodded;
"I shouldn't have acted the way I did, sir". She said, "it wasn't your fault. I was just angry".
"I understand". He assured her, with a kind smile. "It's good that you care about people and your patients, Duffy. It proves to me; you'd do a lot to save someone's life out in combat".
Mathews then told her;
"they want to transfer you". He said to her quietly, "to the Pacific theatre".
Holly's eyes widened;
"really?" She whispered.
"But I insisted on keeping you here". Mathews said, "I want you to graduate here as an Officer, Duffy. I want you to train the medics, give lectures and lead a small combat medic unit. You can't graduate as an Officer if you're not here". He then added, "besides, the more training you get, the better medic you'll become. And I've also heard you 'wanna join the Airborne?"
Holly nodded.
Mathews smiled;
"good choice, Duffy". He approved.
"What about John and Stuart?"
"They'll earn the rank of Staff Sargent". Mathews said, "you were going to be given that rank by the end of your thirteen weeks here, but I recommended you for 2nd Lieutenant and it was accepted. Providing you pass the rest of your training here".
With a nod, Holly smiled small;
"I won't let you down, sir".
Mathews smiled back at her;
"I know you won't, Duffy".
"I'll do night shift tonight, sir". She offered, "since I was early in leaving last night".
"Good". He said, "see you at seven, Duffy".
"See you then, sir".
Just as Holly was about to walk away, Mathews stopped her;
"one more thing". He said, "you can swim, right?"
Sighing, Holly shook her head.
"Nope". She mumbled.
The Lieutenant grinned;
"well, it's time to learn, Duffy. Pick a man and get some lessons".
…
Standing on the edge of a lake, Holly looked at Nixon;
"you sure about this, Nix?"
He was in the water, treading. And had been doing so for over two minutes. Winters was sitting down on the bank, reading a book. Holly had a towel wrapped around herself. And she stuck a toe in the water before gasping;
"it's cold!"
Nixon laughed;
"don't be such a baby…it's fine, Holly".
Shivering slightly, Holly looked down at Winters;
"Dick?"
He looked up from his book, eyes landing on her;
"yeah?"
"Can you look after my towel?"
With a smirk, Winters nodded;
"with two eyes, Holly".
Dropping her towel, Winters blinked a few times. Having never seen her in a bathing suit before. Clearing his throat, with a tiny blush, he collected her towel. Nixon gave her a nod;
"good, you're ready". He said, "now, get in".
"That's it?" Holly asked, "just…get in?"
"Yup".
With a tiny sigh, Holly stepped into the water.
It was cold and got colder the further she went in.
When the water reached her waist, she stopped;
"now what?"
"Lean forward". Nixon told her, "kick your legs and move your arms, like this".
He demonstrated a basic front crawl.
"It's simple". He assured her.
"Don't leave me, alright?"
Nixon gave her a kind smile;
"I won't". He promised her, "okay, get into position".
Very slowly, Holly got into position.
She panicked at first, worried she'd sink.
But Nixon grabbed a hold of her, helping her stay afloat.
"Now, kick your legs". He instructed her, "and move your arms, like I showed you".
When she started to kick her legs, water splashed over her body.
And by the time her arms began to move, Holly was almost swallowing up the lake. She choked a few times, bringing the water back up, which didn't sit well in her belly. Nixon pulled a face but didn't let her go;
"you're disgusting".
Holly coughed and then huffed;
"yeah…I know that, mate".
She then asked;
"am I doing it?"
"Yeah, you're moving". Nixon told her, "want me to let go?"
Biting her lip, Holly then nodded;
"yeah but…stay close, eh?"
"I will".
Holly wasn't going to be a professional swimmer any time soon, but she could safely swim without drowning after about an hour or two with Nixon teaching her. Winters was impressed and when she got out of the water, he wrapped the towel around her tightly.
"Good job, honey". He said, while kissing her head, "how'd that feel?"
"It's bloody freezing". She mumbled, while pressing against his side.
Nixon grinned;
"not bad, Holly". He commented, "despite throwing water up on me…good job".
Winters chuckled quietly;
"what should we do now?"
"Have you finished studying?" Nixon asked.
"I'm never finished". Winters replied, "but I could take a break".
"Let's go back in". Nixon suggested eagerly.
Holly shook her head;
"get lost…it's too cold-"
"come on". Nixon urged, "Dick's going in too, right?"
Winters frowned a little;
"I am?"
"Sure, you are". Nixon grinned, "cause one day, we might not be able to jump in a lake as pretty as this one".
Holly frowned;
"that's a depressing thought, mate".
He shrugged;
"it's true".
Nixon then nodded towards the wide and long wooden board, which stretched out over the water;
"let's jump off that – all three of us".
Winters nodded slowly;
"that could be fun".
Holly pulled a face;
"I just learned to swim!"
Smiling, Winters told her;
"I'll be there. Nothing bad will happen".
Rolling her eyes, she caved in;
"doesn't take much convincing, does it?"
Dropping the towel, Holly took Winters hand.
The three of them walked to the end of the wooden plank.
Nixon smiled;
"I don't think it's too deep".
Shaking her head, Holly grabbed Nixon's hand;
"if I'm going down, then he's coming with us, Dick".
Winters chuckled;
"fine by me".
Out before them, the lake stretched on towards a tree line, which sat at the bottom of a mountain. It was a pretty sight and perhaps Nixon was right, they might not see another lake as beautiful as the one in Georgia.
"Ready?"
Holly took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly;
"up".
Winters grinned;
"one…".
"Two". Nixon said.
"Three". Holly said, before taking in a deep breath.
The three friends jumped into the lake.
And reached the surface, laughing and grinning.