John Walton Junior was glad to be home. Glad to be hearing the birds in the trees and see the sun beginning to set over the top of the mountain painting the sky in orange and pink. Glad to be full of his Mama's home cooking completely with chocolate cake made by his youngest sister. He had a whole week to spend at home and he was going to show Janet everything. He just hoped she'd love it as much as he did.
Thanksgiving was his favourite time of year. He had a lot to be thankful for. It seemed November was a pretty important time in his life – aside from his birthday there was the year he got the concussion and the year they found him when he was missing during the war.
"…They used to tell me to go and hide and never came to find me," Elizabeth was saying. Yes when she was little she was often left behind as they all raced to catch up with one another.
The telephone interrupted their reminiscing and Elizabeth excused herself to answer it. The conversation continued quietly when the youngest Walton went to the phone but soon stopped when they heard her speak.
"Mrs Cutler? No I can talk. Is everything alright?"
John Boy looked to his parents puzzled.
'Drew's mother,' Olivia mouthed, watching Elizabeth closely. Ruth Cutler was a lovely woman and treated Elizabeth like a daughter when they were together. But she had never called before. And since Drew's parents moved to Richmond they had not seen each other.
The boy had only been back to the Mountain a handful of times since he was drafted and had been shipped out to Korea three months earlier. That's when Elizabeth started to worry about his letters.
"He's what?" Elizabeth's voice turned into a whisper and the coloured drained from her face. "Mrs Cutler I haven't heard from Drew in weeks.. That makes sense then.. Where is he? Can I visit?… Thank you Mrs Cutler." Elizabeth put down the telephone but didn't turn around. She clasped her hands together, trying to make sense of what she had just been told.
"Elizabeth? Honey?" John asked, he stood up and walked over to his daughter. She turned around and looked up at him, brown eyes welling with tears.
"Drew was injured. He's in an army hospital in Washington," she said, letting her father wrap her in his arms.
"Oh Elizabeth," John said.
"Is he alright?" Jim Bob asked.
"I think it's worse than Mrs Cutler said. She said he didn't want me to know," Elizabeth said. "Why?"
"I don't know," John replied.
"I have to go," Elizabeth said. She stepped back and headed for the stairs. She could pack and be on the first bus in the morning.
Elizabeth Tyler Walton prided herself on being fearless, but as she stood at the front of the bustling army hospital in Washington, her courage faltered. The constant fluttering of butterflies in her stomach during the war had left her with a permanent state of unease. Her mind was always consumed with thoughts of John Boy, Jason, and Ben fighting overseas. When John Boy went missing, her imagination ran wild with vivid scenarios of his fate. Was he still alive or had died and his body was lying somewhere unidentified? And when Ben was taken as a prisoner, she couldn't help but imagine the horrors he must be enduring.
But through all those worries and fears, Elizabeth never expected to have to face the possibility of losing Drew. He was supposed to be safe, pursuing his dreams after college and building a life together with her. He was seventeen when the war ended. He should have been safe. But then came the draft notice, summoning him to fight in Korea.
"Elizabeth?" A familiar voice broke through her thoughts and she turned to see Ruth Cutler waiting for her at the bottom of the steps. Elizabeth tried to smile and walked towards the older lady who took her hand upon arrival.
"Mrs. Cutler," Elizabeth greeted politely.
"I've told you to call me Ruth," she scolded playfully.
"Sorry," Elizabeth chuckled. "How is he?" Her heart clenched in anticipation as they started walking towards Drew's hospital room.
Ruth let out a heavy sigh. Her son wasn't himself - how could he be after what he had been through? And now being confined to a hospital bed only added to his distress.
"He'll be better once he sees you," Ruth said with hope lacing her words. "Come on."
"How's your family?" Ruth asked as they made their way inside.
"They're doing well. John Boy is actually home for Thanksgiving," Elizabeth replied, though she hadn't had much time to spend with him. As soon as she received Ruth's urgent call, she had rushed to Washington.
"He's your oldest brother, right? The writer?" Ruth checked, trying to keep track of all the Walton siblings.
"Yes. He lives in New York," Elizabeth confirmed. They took the elevator up three floors and walked down a sterile corridor. Elizabeth couldn't shake off the feeling of unease that always came with being in a hospital. It reminded her of her own experience as a child, spending weeks in a hospital bed after breaking her legs.
"It's this one," Ruth said, stopping in front of a door. She pushed it open and announced, "Drew, you have a visitor." Elizabeth followed her inside and found herself face-to-face with Drew for the first time in six months. She couldn't help but take in his appearance - thinner and paler than before, his legs now encased in casts. But his face was still the same Drew she knew and loved.
"Elizabeth," he spoke her name softly as she made her way over to sit in the chair next to his bed.
"Hey," she smiled weakly.
"Andrew," Mrs. Cutler signalled for her husband to leave them alone and he obediently stood up.
"What are you doing here?" Drew asked once they were alone.
"Your mother called me," Elizabeth explained as she gazed at his injured legs. "Can you feel them?"
He shook his head sadly. "No."
"It's strange isn't it," she commented sympathetically.
"I'm just grateful I can still see them," Drew said, knowing that many others were not as lucky and had lost limbs in battle.
"Doctors say if they'll get better?" Elizabeth asked quietly.
"They're not sure," he replied with resignation in his voice.
"But I'm sure," Elizabeth declared firmly, her eyes locking onto his, filled with determination. Drew searched her gaze, finding a spark of hope in her unwavering confidence.
"How can you be sure?" he questioned, curiosity sparking in his own eyes.
"Because mine did. And I know yours will too," Elizabeth affirmed, her words carrying the weight of her unwavering faith in him.
A small smile tugged at the corner of Drew's lips, a flicker of hope igniting within him. "Thank you, Elizabeth. For coming."
His hand reached out to grasp hers and she stroked it. "Drew. I'll be by your side every step of the way."
"Really?" He shouldn't have been surprised, but so many negative thoughts had been running through his head – he didn't want Elizabeth to see him laid up in a bed and he didn't want her to feel obligated to stay with him.
"Of course. Where else would I be?"