"So, you need to fill me in, Red." Luz explained to me as we were both sitting outside of a small cafe in Rhode Island, late in the morning as Luz and I were having breakfast. Joe went off with Archer on a walk, not needing to eat that early. It felt off without him there, but Joe snuck in a kiss on my shoulder as he got up earlier than me, telling me that he needed to go make a phone call with Bull and then call his own parents, since they were more worried about him.

"Fill you in with what, Luz?" I asked him after taking a bite from my toast. We were sitting at a small table, Luz leaning back and looking at me up and down again as I was wrapped up in a jacket and pants along with my own pair of sneakers and my hair up in a ponytail then.

"How you're doing since we came back on the boat," he explained to me, his tone was still light but I knew he wanted to talk about something serious, "Since from I could gather from talkin' to Joe last night, it's been not a smooth ride."

"When did you—" I stopped myself, then realizing what he was talking about. Last night, while we were waiting to get popcorn and pop from the concession stand at the movies, Luz and Joe were talking together and I was with Delvina, getting to know her more. They were talking about me then, which was why I saw Luz look over at me every once in awhile when the movie was playing. I was too wrapped up in the movie and being snuggled into Joe to see how Luz was too watching me with haunting and scared eyes.

"Goddamnit Joe." I muttered, closing my eyes in frustration and mentally kicking myself in the head. When Joe would get back from his trip at the phone call, I would have to have a talk with him.

"Don't blame the kid for caring, Red. He didn't tell me everything, but I figured there was more to it." Luz said back to me in a reassuring manner. I looked back at him through my fingers, seeing him eye me some more from across the small table and then see him take a sip from his orange juice.

"What did he tell you?" I asked him carefully, seeing him shift in his chair as he then looked down at first as if he was trying to find his words.

"That you were sleepwalking, and you were having nightmares of Grant," Luz replied back, having me watch him from my own seat and feeling a bit squeamish that he was knowing all about this, "But hey, that's nothing, really. I know you're a strong enough woman who can take anything thrown at you, right?" The last part was a question of my own will, having me look down at my plate and then think back to the past weeks that Joe and I have been together, all of the restless nights and the flashes of images that were of bloody corpses.

"It was bad at first, Luz. Believe me, I thought I was living a nightmare." I explained to him slowly, seeing him watch me from his spot and eat another piece of his scrambled egg, "There were nights where I was afraid to just close my eyes, because I knew that when I did, I would be back in Bastogne or even in the prison camps." I paused after talking about the camps, having me then think of Joe and his face was filling my brain and seeing the pain on his face.

"Joe would dream of the camps," I breathed out, looking at the plate of food in front of me as Luz was still watching me as I kept talking, "He would see their faces, how they were looking at him as if they had no ounce of hope left in their lives. He tells me that he can hear them, crying out in German for him to help them.." I stopped talking, not thinking of anything else to say or do at that moment since I then pictured the many nights Joe would wake up screaming, sometimes in German. I hated it, since I was now on the receiving end of the situation, seeing someone in pain from a nightmare and somehow trying to find a way to make it better.

"Hey, Red," I heard Luz say at first, but I was too deep in thought with the past burdens, "Look at me, Marley." He finally used my real name, having me look up and over at him. He wasn't looking anywhere else, but me, his hands were still on the table, not touching his plate and his stare at me was more of a friend than of cockiness.

"You are okay." He stated to me, his voice was not laced with cockiness or light jester, but it was serious and honest, "I don't want you to think that you're not okay, you get me?" I knew where he was coming from. He never wanted me to go through the thought of self-denial, to have my insecurities get the best of me and beat myself up over and over until I was literally nothing in the world around me. He knew that was where I was going to go if I didn't have someone to snap me out of it. There was more to Luz than I gave him credit for, much more.

"Are you okay?" I asked him, finally breaking the silence that was coming over the both of us. He looked a bit longer at me for a moment, and then I saw him take in his own deep breath before the focus was now going over to him.

"I've had my fair shares of nightmares myself really." Luz replied in a somewhat light tone, trying to make the conversation more pleasant.

"What were they about?" I asked him casually, drinking from my Orange Juice and watching him as he too was thinking about what was haunting him since we saw each other last.

"Bastogne, how Muck died." I was frozen then in my spot, having me see him push some of his food around with his fork and look rather grim about it, "I was there, Red. He was gone within seconds when a grenade went off, and there was nothing we could do. I thought I was bad with it, but Malarky was a wreck, and hasn't been the same since."

"None of us are never going to be the same since," I reminded him, seeing him now looking right back at me and having me feel as though I just slapped him in the face, "It's going to be too fuckin' long until we can all have a somewhat a normal life."

"And who knows how long that will take." Luz commented though I then had a small smirk on my face.

"When Rita Hayworth gets married again." I said back to him in a light tone, having me see him slowly break into a smile and then the both of us were grinning at the table. As soon as I said the name of Rita Hayworth, I then thought of the memory of all of us sitting together in front of Nixon, both singing to Oklahoma and then hearing that she was getting married. Now that was a pleasant memory, hearing all of the Easy Company men laugh and singing together as if the war has no touched us. Maybe it did, and we were just having a breather.

"Well, if we're going to go off of that, then it'll be another year or so, what do ya think?" He then asked me in a John Wayne accent, having me finally laugh for the first time all day and Luz laugh with me. We both needed to laugh at that time since we were both so filled with woe that all we needed was a laugh. I was glad to have that with him.

Beyond glad.


"So this is Arkansas eh?" Joe asked me, though I knew he was talking out loud from his own thoughts as we were rolling through the corn fields that were surrounding us both left and right, the sun high above us as we were rolling down the highway and heading over to Bull's house. There were no more mountains to see, and it was all smooth around us since I was used to plenty of colors. With Arkansas, it was different. There were only green trees, plenty of them as we sped past and having me also see a lot of rivers and lakes that were plentiful and blue, filled with rocks and fish. I could see Bull growing up here, exploring the woods and hiding in the trees with any playmates that he had in the past. This was his element: the raw country and frontier.

"Never been I take it?" I asked him, seeing him at the wheel as I had my feet on the dashboard, one arm out on the window in the wind and the other across the backrest of the seat, my hand on Joe's neck and running it through his brown hair as he drove. Archer was in the front seat with us, right in the middle and was gnawing on a bone that we got him before we started our journey for the day.

"You haven't either." Joe replied back to me with his smirk, having me smile as I then looked over at him, seeing him in his button down blue shirt and his brown hair flowing with the wind that was coming through the car.

"Listen, I know you went to talk to Luz that night at the movies. You talked to him about what was happening with me." I stated to him, knowing that it was more of a statement than a question. Joe shifted a bit in his spot in the car, having me watch him as he knew where I was going with the conversation.

"He just wanted to know how you were doing, Marley." Joe explained to me in a calm tone, trying to seem laid back, though he too was trying not to go into his hotheaded side when it came to an argument with me.

"You told him about how I was sleepwalking and dreaming about Grant, dead in front of me." I said to him again, looking forward at the scenery passing us by. Joe sighed from next to me, having me clearly see that he was trying to decent himself with what he did with Luz.

"Look, the guy was concerned about you, not knowing how you were dealing with being home and all. I wasn't going to lie to the bastard, he outta know about you since I know you care for the kid. And for Christ's sake, It wasn't something that bad—" Joe said to me in a bolder tone, but I cut him off.

"Thank you." He went quiet, looking over at me for a long mount before his eyes would go back to the road. I looked at him though, a small smile and a breath of relief was on my lips. It was true: I had to thank him for what he did. Sure I should be mad at him for talking about my personal life behind my back with Luz, but then again, it was Luz. I knew I could trust him with whatever baggage I had in my life since he wouldn't go and run with it. Hell, I trusted any of the Easy Company men with whatever I had on my plate, and I have done that before.

"If you hadn't of told him about what I was going through, then he wouldn't have helped me." I explained to him softly, feeling the wind in my hair and the hot summer air coming through. Luz did help me, having me hear him his own mouth that my insecurities were trying to get through to me and make me breakdown from just having nightmares.

"Yeah well, I'm not gonna leave our friends out from what's killin' ya when I know they all care for ya." Joe said to me while he was still driving, a serious look on his face as I was still staring at him and just giving him a small smile on my face. I knew Joe had his own personal protection over me and my nightmares, but he also know I had other friends with Easy Company and they too cared for me.

"I know you wouldn't." I agreed with him, seeing him smirk over at me from across the seat.

"And besides, if I didn't say anything to Luz then I would have gotten an earful from him, and the last thing I would like to deal with, is a Lunatic Luz." Joe commented with his cocky tone, having me giggle from my spot in the seat and run my fingers over the back of his neck some more, the both of us settling back down into a sense of content.

"Thank you, though." I thanked him again, feeling good that we once again had a civil conversation with one another though I know that it could have been worse because we were both hotheads.

"You're welcome." He replied back casually, having me look back in front of me again and see the rolling green hills and a better view of life on my mind. It was now under the bridge.


"Come on in, meet the old man." Bull said to the both of us as we were brought inside the farmhouse that he called his home. He lived out in a good patch of land, a corn field near the backyard and a small enough lake that was on the left side. He lived out in the middle of nowhere, though the town of Rector was about a couple of miles away. He looked healthy from what I could see, his big stature and it felt very strong when he lifted me off the ground as he hugged me, and hearing the hearty laugh that he always had within him. It was good to see the giant again, no matter how gentle he was.

"Dad?' Bull called out loud as we went into his country style kitchen. His big stature made him look like he was literally a giant in this room because everything else look so small. It was almost comical, though he did fit right at him there. We walked into the kitchen, having me then see an older man at the table, sitting there and massaging his hand carefully. I saw his face, seeing that he was, in fact, a father and how worn tan face was from being out in the sun and the wrinkles there from mage past frustrations.

"Hey dad, these are my friends from Easy Company. This is my father, John Randleman." Bull said to him in his soft tone, though it still sounded like a rumble as his father looked over at us finally. I saw his eyes and it took me a second: he had the same eyes as Bull. It made me think, that Bull was going to look like his father when he was older. He father had that gentle stature to him.

"Oh, hello there." His father said aloud, and he was about to get up from the chair but Bull rushed over to him gently helping him back down in the chair and I looked with a bit of pain there.

"You need to rest up dad. You know what the doctor told you about your muscles." Bull explained to him calmly, but his father just smiled and nodded his head.

"I didn't want to me rude in front of your friends." John explained to Bull, but Bull shook his head.

"It's fine, dad. This is Marley and Joe." Bull said to him, then pointing to both me and Joe. We smiled at him, the both of us walking over and I shook his hand as gently as possible, since I could tell something was wrong about his hands. He just grinned at him, the same grin that Bull had whenever he was out and about with the boys.

"It's very nice to meet you, sir." I said to him in a sincere voice, seeing him then look over at Bull and point at me with his spare hand.

"I like this one: a polite young lady." He explained to Bull, having me see both Bull and Joe break out with big grins as I blushed in front of him, "And when my son told me about the infamous combat medic who was a girl, I could of never pictured a woman as beautiful as you."

"Yeah, she gets that a lot." Joe commented from next to Bull, having me then glare at him and see him wink at me.

"I would get up and greet you, but the doctor is making me rest. I haven't rested this much in about 30 years." he said in a grumble to me, though I knew he was playful with me since I was too polite to him.

"Hey Joe, I'll show you your room." Bull said to Joe, having me be left behind with Bull's father and I was fine with it. He was a great guy from what I was seeing in front of me, and as Bull and Joe left the room, his father looked back over at me and smiled widely at me.

"My son tell me you're a nurse." He explained to me, having me nod my head at him and the smile never leaving my face.

"That I am. I have been since I was 18 years old." I replied, seeing him look at me now with wide eyes.

"Quite impressive for a girl your age," He commented to me, having me smile widely from witnessing how youthful he was. He then leaned over to me, as if he was telling me secret, "Would you mind taking a look at my hand?"

"You don't trust your doctor?" I asked him in surprise, he shook his head in return.

"He's just as old as me, I think he's gone senile." He replied, having me chuckle and ten see him hold out his hand for me to take. I grabbed it gently with both of my hands, massaging it and feeling the muscles underneath me, looking at the hands with my skilled nursing eyes now and saying nothing at first. I didn't mind doing this to him, since this was what I was trained to do since I was 18 years old. But I didn't hear Bull or Joe walk back down, having me think that they were watching me the whole time as I then looked up at Bull's father, whom looked at me with serious eyes now.

"I can feel some tension in your hand near your tissues. It's probably Carpal tunnel syndrome, or even tendinitis." I explained to him using my nursing tone of voice and seeing him watch me as I was still holding his frail hand seeing him then look at his hand now, as if it was about to fall off.

"Working on a farm for 40 years can ruin a man." he explained to me in a lower tone, having me place his hand gently on the table and see him still watch the hand, the same brightness in his eyes that Bull had were dimming now from hearing what I told him. But he shook it off, looking back at me with the same grin on his face again.

"I'm gettin' old anyways. I knew one of these days my body was going to come back and kick me in the ass." He shrugged it off, having me only smile and place my hands in my lap as he went on with his rant, "But I know Bull told me what happened with him in the town in Holland. He almost died at the hands of Germans and that piece of metal in his shoulder would have killed him….if you weren't there to take it out safely."

"Sir—" I started, but he held out his hand for me to stop. I had to, since he was an elder and I respected him enough to not talk.

"You are the reason my son has both arms, whether you want to take that compliment or not. It takes guts, what you did there for my last born child. And I wanted to properly thank you…for saving him. So he can come home." I smiled widely at him, seeing that he was about to cry in front of me. I felt like I was once again being given a compliment and praise that I didn't deserve. But this was what Joe was talking to me about: taking compliments that I was meant to have and not turning them away for one second. I saw him then take both of his hands in my own, squeezing them tightly and I couldn't move at all.

"I'm just a nurse, sir." I confessed to him, seeing him shake his head at what I was trying to tell him, to move the spotlight away from me.

"Now I know that is a complete lie, young lady. From what my young Bull has told me, you are far more than a nurse: you are a true friend." John said back to me, having me hear how serious he was and I then looked over at both Joe and Bull. They both were looking at me, showing me that he was right with what he was saying. I just smiled, trying to break away from that habit of brushing away a compliment that was rightfully given to me.


"Red! Red, wake up you lazy ass!" I blinked and yawned, rolling over in the twin bed that I was sleeping and rubbed my eyes, trying to figure out where it was come from. It was in the dead of night, having me wonder why in the hell I was being woken up so late in the night. The night was cool, since Arkansas was already hot enough that we needed the windows open on the second floor.

"Over here." I looked over to the open window that was showing me a view of the wide grass field. I saw a silhouette of a head at the window, having me peer a bit more and see that it was an outline of Bull's head and shoulders. He was outside my window on the roof, having me sigh and about to roll away from him.

"What gives, Bull. I'm sleepin'." I said to him in a grumble.

"You don't wanna miss this, trust me. Come on." He said to me, having me decide to finally give in and get out of my bed. I walked over, wearing my long pajama pants and a t-shirt and seeing him at the window sill, looking at me with his own pi's on. He was acting like a teenager going to his friends house, out on a mission.

"What the hell Bull?"I asked him with a shrug of my shoulders, seeing him grin from ear to ear.

"Come out on the roof, you'll see. I'm gonna get your lazy ass of a fiancé and I'm gonna show you something that'll take your breath away." He explained, having me roll my eyes and move away from the window.

"He's not a lazy ass." I argued with him though he was already crawling away from me on the roof to the window of the next room over, where Joe was sleeping.

"Like hell he isn't." he commented. I quickly got my brassiere on and I got out on the slanted roof, finding my foot as I walked a bit along the wall of the roof to where Bull was. He was poking his head into Joe's room.

"Jesus Christ Bull. You gotta be kiddin' me." Joe said in a grunt in the room, having me grin and look around me at the scenery outside. There were so many stars out in the sky, not one cloud, and the whole sky was lighting the ground with a tinted blue from the vast amount of stars. It looked surreal from where I was, but then I heard Joe get out of his window as well, wearing his own pajama pants and shirt as we saw Bull scurry over to the other side of the house, having me crawl a bit over to Joe.

"What is he up to?" Joe asked me in a grumble.

"Beats me," I replied back as we both followed him along the wall of the house, our steps were quiet since we were in our bare feet, "But it better be good since I was actually having a nice dream."

"Was I in it?" Joe asked in front of me with a coy tone.

"When are you never in them?" I asked him hearing him chuckle as we found Bull sitting on the top part of the second-floor roof, elbows on his knees and looking at the sky in front of him. Joe and I sat with him, I was wrapping my arms around my knees and Joe was Indian Style.

"So what are we doing out here, Bull?" Joe asked, yawning then and having me notice Bull was pointing to the sky.

"Just wait for it." He replied, saying nothing more as both Joe and I stared at the mass amount of stars in the sky. I wondered what he was talking about, since nothing was happening. Not at first. But then I saw it, tucked away in the sky and it happened too fast as I lost my breath and I felt like I was dreaming again.

Meteor shower.

"Goddamn." I said in a gasp as I smiled, seeing another one to my left, shooting through the sky as if it was a blade cutting through something so sharp and sure. Joe saw it too, smiling next to me as we were watching the shooting stars around us for a good 30 minutes or so. We said nothing, but just looked as what we thought was not possible was happening. It made me feel so small since the world around us was so huge. It was like the war: we were mere pieces in the vastness that was the war. There were others, thousands of others fighting for America and were going through the same woes and pains that we were feeling. I never felt so small before, seeing something this beautiful and thinking that it was changing what I was seeing in the world.

"This is beautiful." I said to the both of them, seeing a huge one right across the sky in front of us and having me just grin from my spot. My chin on my knees and seeing it all in front of me. If there was ever one doubt about God, it was long gone now since He was showing me that I was safe in His arms.

"I would watch these when I was a kid," Bull explained to the both of us, and even though Joe and I were stills watching the show that was up in the sky, we were listening to him, "The best time is in the summertime, and I would sneak up here a lot when I was a kid with my brothers and sisters. And every after they all moved out, I would still watch the stars out here, even on a good day or bad day." It was nice to hear that from Bull, since he was showing us a bit of his world and how it was so simple for him, yet it was all that he needed for both the good times and the bad times. This was all Bull: a simpler life with great gifts and how he took that and never released that from his hands.

It was a good night for the three times.


"Hey, wake up sweetheart." Joe woke me up gently, running his fingers in my hair as I was resting against the window of the car, my arm as my pillow and I saw at first my visions as blurry. It's been another couple of days since we were with Bull at his house. Since then, we've been staying at motels every night, making our way over to California. Those nights were good for just the both of us, some of the nights just holding each other and talking to each other until one of us went to sleep, and other nights were filled with lustful kisses and holds. We didn't mind having those nights together, since it felt like no matter how many times we have tried, we could somehow never fan down the lustful side we had for each other. I still saw him as my best friend, though now there was another side to him that was now considering him as my lover now.

"What is it?" I asked him, moving my arm around from vein asleep as I saw him point ahead and have me look. As soon as I looked, my lost my breath and I looked shocked from what was in front of me. We were back on the highway, but there was something huge in front of me and I thought I felt like an ant.

It was the Golden Gate Bridge, and we were heading over to it. Which meant, that we were about to head into San Francisco: our ending point.

It looked so huge, having me heart swell as I saw the high beams and how vibrant look of the color against the fog that was rolling through. From all that he told me about it: that was nothing to what was in front of me. I just smiled widely, finally being able to see his perfect place.

Now there was another hurdle: to meet his family.


Author's Note: The next chapter is going to be the Epilogue, which means this tale must come to an end. Maybe I'll write another Band of Brother's fanfic, who knows, but let me know if you've like what I have written. Leave a review and some love!