Suzanne Q. Langston (suzieq) wrote in theheartyearns, @ 2009-01-07 01:28:00 |
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Entry tags: | character: robbie, character: suzie, pairing: robbie/suzie |
Who: Suzie
What: Reminiscing
Where: Hawaii
When: February 1945
Suzie had been stationed at Tripler Army Medical Center at Fort Shafter in Honolulu for almost two years now; the daily crises and death of the intensive care ward were rather numbingly normal for her. War changed lives, that much was obvious- God knew that it had changed hers. She had grown up a simple small-town girl, and now here she was, a war nurse at the busiest army hospital in the Pacific... and a single mother. Her son Daniel, of course, was the absolute light of her life- there were some days that it felt like he was the only thing that truly kept her going. He had this perfect optimism about the world- she'd had that, once, but it had faded since the war began. Suzie had done her best to preserve it in Daniel, however- he spent most of his time with the rest of the nurses' children, so he had playmates, and she was always on time to pick him up and bring him home each night. Even if "home" was a small apartment on the base, it was theirs, and she was thankful for it.
Daniel's father, Robbie, was out of the picture- though not by his, or Suzie's, choice. The war, again, was at fault- he had been drafted shortly after turning eighteen, and was a member of the Sixth United States Army, currently... well, somewhere in the Pacific. The Philippines, judging by his last letter- though that had been several months ago, now. Suzie had never breathed a word to Daniel about his father, or vice versa. Robbie had more than enough to worry about as a soldier without knowing that he had a son, too. Maybe she was foolish for not telling him, Suzie didn't know. If- when- Robbie came back, it wasn't as if she'd be able to hide Daniel from him, nor would she want to. It just... didn't seem right to tell him in a letter, especially one that might not even make it to him.
This day in February started as any other. She had to report to the ward very early (her price, for wanting the evenings off to be with Daniel), so Suzie woke before sunrise, wrestling a groggy Daniel out of bed and into his clothes. He fell asleep on the sofa again as she made her coffee- she only had time to drink half a cup before they had to leave, so the rest came with her in a small thermos. Daniel was still asleep when she dropped him off at child care, but she kissed his forehead and whispered that she loved him, the same as she did every day. Across the hospital in the intensive care ward, she picked up a clipboard to check the list of incoming patients- these were the ones who had come in or been upgraded to this ward since her last shift, and usually the ones that needed the most attention.
Anderberg, Martin L.
Barritt, George A.
Doyle, Lewis R.
Goddard, Harry J.
Langston, Robert D.
Nelson, Herbert E.
Schnell, Fritz W.
Vestal, Charles I.
Beside each name were notes on the man's injuries and condition. Suzie was about to tend to Schnell, Fritz W. when her eyes caught another name on the list. Langston, Robert D. Her mind raced. Robert D. Langston. Robbie. Her Robbie. Oh God. It couldn't be, could it? Her hands slack, the clipboard fell to the counter with a clatter, causing a nearby nurse to startle and glance over, confused. "Suzanne?" But Suzie didn't answer- her hand was over her heart as she turned and raced toward the curtained area at the end of the ward that had been marked on the sheet as belonging to Robbie. She stopped just at the head of his bed, almost afraid to pull the curtain away- but she did, a choked sob coming instantly to her lips. Every ounce of professionalism had left her- tears were coming down her cheeks, and her hands covered her mouth, muffling the sound.
It was him. His eyes were closed and he was dirty and his head was bandaged and it looked as if he hadn't shaved in two weeks, but it was him. Oh, she'd know him anywhere. Oh, God. She wanted to run. She wanted to kiss him. She wanted to crawl into the small bed beside him, wrap his arms around her, and just stay there all day. Suzie took a step backward, shaking her head- her back hit the wall and she slowly sunk down to the floor, her face buried in her hands.