1941.

After having endured such a cold winter in New York, Sandra O'Connell reveled in the warm spring.

It was late April and she and the other nurses had arrived in Hawaii just a few short weeks ago. They had been lucky with the quarters they had been assigned because they were close to the water and from where they were they could see the entire Pacific Fleet from their back lawn.

They had been assigned to duty at the Pearl Harbor Naval Hospital and when they'd arrived in Hawaii on a late Saturday afternoon in the middle of March, they didn't have much time to unpack. They barely had time to find their uniforms before they started their first duty shift early that Monday morning.

So they unpacked as they had time, though they really didn't have much to unpack. Other than a couple of suitcases with their meager civilian wardrobe packed inside and their nurses uniforms, a box or two held their personal possessions and a garment bag contained their Navy dress blues.

They didn't have to worry about furnishing their quarters because the Navy had taken care of that. The cottage was small as quarters went. They'd had a house in New York, but it had been two stories and plenty of room for all of them. The place they lived now had four small bedrooms and not much else. The kitchen was also small and Sandra wondered how five girls were going to share one bathroom. At least with the house in New York there had been two, but there had also been more girls living there. There had also been more privacy.

There was some question as to who would share a bedroom because there were obviously not enough for all of the girls. But Evelyn and Barbara said they wouldn't mind sharing because they had roomed together when they'd gone through nursing school.

So that left Sandra, Martha and Betty with rooms of their own.

The first few weeks at Pearl Naval were a busy time for Sandra and the other nurses because not only did they have to learn the routine of the hospital, but to learn where everything was. It was small as hospitals went, but it seemed that what it lacked in size it made up for in hallways. She had never seen such a maze as Pearl Naval was and while she settled into her routine easily, she invariably got lost on her way from one ward to another.

And so it went until they were given their first real day off.

None of them had had the chance to get to the beach and so it was on a late morning that they decided to drive down to the beach and let the warm water of the Pacific Ocean wash over their tired feet. They'd brought a picnic lunch with them and each girl had brought a book that they'd been trying to finish. It was a relaxing way to spend the day and before they realized it, it was coming to an end.

On their way back to their quarters, Barbara had the idea to stop at the Black Cat Cafe for a soda. She added that it was also a place the sailors and the flyboys frequented.

"I thought you already had a pilot Barbara." Martha smiled at her.

"He's a sweet guy, but we haven't seen much of each other since we got here." She answered.

"How did you know he was here?" Evelyn laughed.

"He told me the Air Corps was transferring them here before we left New York." She turned to Sandra and said pointedly. "That means that one Lieutenant Danny Walker is here."

Sandra could feel her face flush and it irritated her. "And why are you telling me?"

"Because the two of you seemed to really hit it off and I thought it was a shame that you didn't start seeing each other."

"He really did seem to like you Sandra." Betty added with a shy smile.

"And what about you Miss Betty?" Martha asked, turning to face the youngest of the nurses. "That redheaded pilot seemed to take to you too."

Sandra felt sorry for the girl as her face flamed a beet red. "His name is Red and he's very nice."

"Leave them alone you two." Evelyn interjected. "This is the first day off we've had since we got here and I really don't want it to end in an argument."

"Ev..." Barbara began.

"Unless you want me to start teasing you about Billy, I'd let them alone."

It looked to Sandra that Barbara wanted to say something, but decided against it and she nodded.

She smiled at her friends. "So are we still going or are we going home?"

Barbara seemed to recover her good spirits and smiled at the group. "Well it was my idea, so I say we go."

They collected the picnic basket, the blankets and their books before they trudged up the beach to stow the items in the trunk of the car. Barbara took the wheel and after Sandra, Martha and Betty had gotten in the back seat, Evelyn took the passenger seat and they were off.

It didn't take long to drive into town and find a parking space near the cafe. They all piled out of the car and headed inside. To their surprise, the pilots they'd met in New York plus a couple of new additions were there and each had a bottle of soda in front of him.

Sandra could hear Sentimental Journey playing on the juke box while three couples danced on the small section of the floor that had been set aside for that reason.

The pilots stood up as they passed and while Anthony grinned and said hello to her, Danny Walker said nothing and she could see his face flush.

"Don't be a dope Walker, say hello." A pilot that Sandra didn't recognize elbowed him.

Danny raised an embarrassed hand in greeting and smiled.

"That was smooth Walker." The pilot told him.

She could sympathize with his shyness and returned the greeting.

"That wasn't so hard, was it?" She heard Barbara whisper. "So what do you boys think of Hawaii?"

"Well, what we've seen of it isn't too shabby." Anthony grinned at Sandra. "What about you girls?"

"This is the first day off we've had since we got here." Martha told him. "We we're just enjoying a day at the beach."

"That sounds swell." Billy commented. "They're still training us and we haven't gotten a day off yet. I thought this was supposed to be paradise."

"Hang in there sweetie." Barbara smiled at him. "They have to give you a day off eventually."

"Yea, when we're old and gray." Another pilot Sandra didn't recognize shook his head.

"Well, we'd better grab a booth before they're all taken. See you boys later." Barbara said with a wave and walked away to claim the last open booth.

Betty gave Red a small wave before she and the other nurses followed like ducklings after their mother. The other pilots had sat down and for some reason she couldn't explain Danny remained standing. He looked like he wanted to say something until one of the unfamiliar pilots told Danny to sit down. "Come on Walker, let's finish these before we have to get back to Wheeler."

Danny looked at her again.

It dawned on Sandra that Danny was getting some unwanted attention and she turned away from the table and walked to the booth that Barbara had claimed for them.

"What was that all about?" Barbara leaned across the table.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Sandra answered.

"Yes you do. I'd bet a dollar to a doughnut hole that he wanted to ask you out."

"Don't be silly." She answered and her face was beginning to burn. "He wasn't going to do any such thing."

Barbara sat back and smiled." Whatever you say sweetie."

She got a glance of sympathy from Betty before the waitress came over to take their orders. As they told her what they wanted Sandra watched as the pilots got up from their seats and filed out of the cafe. Danny was the last one out and turned to look at her before he followed the pilots out the door.

An odd feeling came over Sandra and she began to wonder if perhaps what Barbara had said was true.

Danny Walker wanted to ask her out.