Endlessly [h.s.]

nineteen

"Rose, are you sure its a good idea for you to be here?"

Rosemary held her stomach as she sat down, "No but I have to make money somehow and I'm not close enough for them to pay me to be at home so, I'm working until I physically can't."

Mary frowned, she looked absolutely miserable at her tiny desk that definitely didn't have room for her baby bump, "At least let me run papers to you."

Rosemary sighed, there really wasn't a point in arguing with her and it would be so helpful, "Alright, alright. I need the telegrams from Steven."

Mary offered her a soft smile, "I'll be right back."

Rosemary frowned when she read recent war updates which prompted Mary to ask, "Have you heard anything from him?"

Rosemary looked up at her with tired, sad eyes, none of the current news was good and she still hadn't gotten any letters from Harry, "No, not since last month when they sent them out."

She was seconds away from crying, her hormones and her emotions being too much for her to handle, she didn't know if he was alright and it was eating her alive. She should have had two letters at this point and still she had nothing.

She'd thought she'd had it under control and could keep it together for just this once at work but she realized that she hadn't when Mary hugged her and she only felt worse.

Mary tried her best to comfort her, the best thing she could think of was a flaw in the postal system, "I'm sorry Rose. Maybe...they lost the letter in the post, it happens all the time."

Rosemary wiped her eyes, the thought was slightly comforting because she had known it to be true, "Thank you Mary and I hope so. He promised."

                                                                                                   . . .

"What's the ETA Styles?"

Harry looked out the window briefly, the height still giving him a slight anxiety attack, he liked the sky but he would have rather looked at it from the ground, "Five minutes at the most. Do you think she can handle the distance?"

He was referring to the planes which had taken quite the beating only mere hours ago. The war was getting intense and he prayed so much now that he felt like he could have been a priest by the time he returned.

Dylan glanced at him and then back at the controls, silent for far too long for things to be okay, "I sure hope so."

Harry nodded and looked out the window once more, it was nearly pitch black below, the people too afraid to have their lights on for fear of an air raid. He didn't like Dylan's answer but pretended that everything was fine to keep himself calm.

"I hope so too Dylan."

They were only three minutes away from the base when things started to take a turn for the worst, the plane making noises that definitely weren't normal or good news, and its crew sitting on the edge of their seats, ready to jump if they needed to.

Harry took out the photograph Rosemary had sent him with the previous letter, she was looking down at her baby bump and smiling, her hands on her stomach, and God was she stunning. He hated that he was miles and miles away from her and couldn't be there to place his hands over her huge stomach and sing their little baby songs that his mother had sang to both him and Gemma as a child.

He missed her so much, and, as his mind told him that the plane wasn't going to make it, he found himself near tears, her picture in his hands as he whispered to himself, "I'm sorry my Rosie."

The rest of the crew looked at him sympathetically, sure, they'd had girlfriends back home but he was waiting on a baby and it was beginning to look like he might not make it back to them. That was the worst possible situation for just about everybody and their hearts went out to him as well as their own families who might not ever see them again.

Dylan gripped the controls tighter as the plane started to shake, he was going to do everything in his power to get them all back to base safely and in one piece, "Don't apologize yet. We're going to make it back even if this plane is half of a plane when we get there."

Harry hoped that he was right. He hadn't heard from Rosemary yet and was already worried about her on top of everything else. Not knowing was at the top of the list of terrible feelings. Almost was at the very top.

Dylan was true to his word, one failed turbine and an engine failing later and they were back on base, no one quite sure how exactly they had managed to even fly the plane let alone keep it running long enough to return.

Harry thanked Dylan profusely before running off to check his box for mail hoping to hear from Rosie. It had been too long and he was terribly worried that something had happened.

He was disappointed to find the letter he'd sent weeks ago returned, somehow the address had smudged off and they sent it back.

"She must feel terrible..."

                                                                                           . . .

Rosie, my love,

       I am so so so so SO very sorry that you haven't heard from me for so long! Somehow the address got smudged off and they sent it back to me :( I'm perfectly okay and still VERY much in love with you I'm sorry to have you worrying :( It's so wonderful yet so frightening just to be up in those planes, I don't know how much longer I can do this before I lose my mind. How's your tummy? Did everything go alright at your last visit? I hope you're doing both doing very well! Oh I can't wait to meet our little baby! I look forward to it with each day that passes and I only hope that I can return to you in time. I'm sorry that I can't sing him/her lullabies at night or talk to your tummy like I should be, but I'll make up for it when I come home sweetheart, I promise. I hope to see you very soon my love. I love and miss you dearly.

                         Your Handsome Astronomer,
                                         Harry xxxxx

Rosemary smiled and wiped at her eyes as she set the letter down atop of the other one. He was okay and still very much hers. She felt much better than she had for days. The post really had screwed up and she was so thankful that it was just a simple mishap and that he was still alive and well despite the hell that was going on over and around where he was stationed.

She rested her hands on her stomach and smiled softly as she spoke to their baby, "Did you hear that sweetie? Daddy's okay and very excited to meet you!"

Rosemary had developed a habit for reading his letters aloud so that their baby could hear how he was doing. She sang to her stomach often and even read children's books aloud as well because Alice had told her that it was very good to interact vocally with her baby before he or she was born.

She felt a small kick and smiled brightly, Rosemary had thought loving Harry  was the best feeling she would ever experience, she was so very wrong, "Hopefully, he'll be here the moment you join us my sweet little baby."