At Your Most Beautiful
This story is completely Red/Betty. In my version, Betty does not die in the attack at Pearl, but is wounded. This is the story of how she and Red make amends and continue on with their lives. This story probably won't run too long, maybe an estimated fifteen-twenty chapters, if even.
Disclaimer: I do not own the Pearl Harbor characters. Credited to Randall Wallace and the various other creators.
Reviews would be wonderful.
.xxx.
The first thing that crossed Red's mind as he continued down the smoky path was that he hadn't seen Betty last night. They had made a date at the Black Cat for some coffee and pie, but Red had gotten tied up at the base and Betty phoned him, claiming that she had a headache and just wanted to spend the night in. That had been fine with him, and he promised that first thing, after services, they'd go out to a late brunch.
Well, that had been some fifteen hours ago, and after trudging back from Hickham base, he had decided to make his way towards the Naval hospital in an attempt to find Betty, or any of the other girls.
Red didn't know what to make of this attack. It had been so sudden and shocking that no one had been prepared for it. He just silently hoped that everyone he cared for had gotten to safer ground in time. He didn't even think of phoning Betty—he just walked straight towards the hospital as quickly and safely as he could.
He wiped his sweaty forehead on the sleeve of his shirt and almost wanted to stop and gape at the sight in front of him. Red had honestly never seen so much disorganized commotion in his life. People were screaming at each other and shouting orders, bodies were lined up outside the entrance, and men slicked with oil were struggling down the street supporting each other. It was an eerie and terrifying sight at the same time. The outside streets reeked of smoke, oil, and even worse—the scent of the dying. Pitiful wails and moans rose up from all potential corners.
Red closed his eyes briefly and continued towards the entrance, almost getting pushed out of the way by two men carrying a stretcher. He spotted Evelyn in front of him, her face streaked with dirt. The front of her uniform was tinged with spots of blood, and she was directing what seemed to be a group of wounded men and orderlies. He approached her quickly and grabbed onto her elbow.
"Red," she said softly, waving her arms to the side, trying to direct at the same time. "Over there!"
"Betty. Tell me you've seen Betty," he started, waiting for Evelyn to point him in the appropriate direction.
Evelyn stared at him hard and motioned for another nurse to take over for a minute. "It's…Betty…it's not good."
Red blinked and stared at Evelyn. "Wh-what? What do you mean it's not good? Is she all right?"
Evelyn looked down. "Come with me. I'm sorry, Red. She was wounded out in the courtyard. She's in surgery right now. They're trying to repair the damage, and that's all I know."
Red nodded and followed Evelyn down the hall. If he had thought the outside of the building was laden with commotion, the inside was certainly twice as worse. He couldn't even walk down the hall without almost colliding with another person. "How bad as it?"
"I'm sorry, I don't know anything. All I know is that she was awake and responsive before they started the surgery. Take the stairs to the third floor. She's up there." Evelyn gently rested a hand on Red's arm. "I have to go. Please take care of yourself."
He nodded and sprinted for the stairs, taking them two at a time until the third floor was within his reach. It was pure chaos, but he had to try. He approached the frazzle charge nurse and gripped the sides of the desk. "I'm looking for a patient—"
"Sir, please—"
"My fiancée. She was wounded outside in the courtyard. She may or may not be in surgery. Please, help me find her," Red begged the woman. "Please."
The woman nodded. "Can you describe her for me? We weren't able to get all the names."
"Betty Bayer. She's tall, with blonde wavy hair. Blue eyes."
"Betty Bayer! The nurse from downstairs. Yes, she was brought in here a few hours ago. Ward two, all the way down the hall towards your left."
"Thank you." Red ran down the hall, not caring who he knocked out of the way in the process. Betty was alive.
.xxx.
The ward was full, mostly with wounded soldiers. Many were heavily bandaged, others were being tended to by nurses, and some were barely hanging on. He passed row upon row before he saw a doctor hovering over a bed near the window. He spotted the familiar blonde hair and quickened his pace.
Betty had never looked so serene to Red before. She looked exactly like an angel in a white hospital gown. Her blonde waves had fanned across the pillow and her hands limply rested at her sides. She was so pale though, and that scared Red like he had never been scared before. It was as if all of her Hawaiian tan had disappeared that day and she was meant to blend in with the linen sheets. Her right arm was bandaged, and she had a few cuts on her face, but Betty was still beautiful to him.
"Can I help you, sir?"
Red was slightly startled by the doctor's voice. "She's…my fiancée."
"I see." The doctor marked something down on his clipboard and turned his back to Red. "She's been through quite an ordeal. I'm just making the rounds."
"What happened to her?"
"Two bullets lodged into her side from the strife. We removed them both and repaired the damage to her stomach and abdomen. As for her arm, a piece of shrapnel embedded itself into her skin. We removed that as well and irrigated the wound, stitched it up, and bandaged it."
"Is she in a coma?"
The doctor shook his head. "No. The effects from the anesthesia are still in the process of wearing off. She's asleep, and probably will wake up in a great deal of pain. We're running low on morphine."
Red glanced up at the doctor. "You can't give her anything for the pain?"
"We can try a local anesthetic and the limited morphine that we have available in this ward. We'll be getting another shipment in."
"Will she be all right?"
"In time, yes. I'd like to see her up and walking around as soon as possible, as long as she feels up to it. She will make a full recovery. She's very lucky. Any longer out there and she would have died from blood loss. It was a dangerous situation."
Red breathed a sigh of relief and sat down on the edge of the bed. He took Betty's pale hand and rubbed it between his own two hands in an attempt to warm it up. "Thank you."
He nodded. "My pleasure. However, there is one concern that has been brought to my attention. Betty…might not be able to have children. However, it is far too soon to tell for sure."
Red closed his eyes and nodded. They wouldn't be able to have children. He knew how much Betty wanted to children. They had talked about it one night. "How positive are you?"
"Very. I'm sorry." The doctor nodded curtly and walked away, leaving Red alone with Betty.
Red brought Betty's hand up to his lips and kissed it softly before setting it down. "I love you, Betty. And it's okay if we can't have children, because we'll adopt five of 'em, and we'll be the best damn parents on this side of Pearl. I promise. I'm sorry, Betty. I'm sorry."
He rested his head against the side of the bed and broke down. "I'm sorry, Betty. I'm sorry," he sobbed. "We'll adopt five of 'em."
.xxx.