charlotte tarvers is only 14 when the war breaks out, but 17 when she signs up. she's heard the stories from her parents, lovers who found each other by chance on the front lines in world war one in the country of france, now passing down the storie...
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" Fears are nothing more than a state of mind."
- Napoleon Hill
***
In reality, she didn't have to go to CP, she had to make rounds essentially like with the foxholes, but it was such a normal thing to do that she'd stuck with it. She hurried up the CP steps and hurried inside to find that Nixon had opened the door to Winters' 'office where Speirs and Zielinski were.
" President's dead." were Nixon's only words as he was met with silence. She decided against going into the CP at the moment and opted to trail back to the aid station in hopes of finding Gene with a few replacements medics. She was correct as she watched Gene demonstrate how to wrap a bullet wound and how to correctly treat it. Gene dismissed them to practice on each other as he walked over to Charlotte with a smile.
" Any news?" he asked.
" Well, Oklahoma's on broadway, Rita Hayworth's getting married, as well as MJ is, break out in Remagen, the 17th jumped in after the Krauts forgot to break one of their bridges, so they seem ok, but that's pretty much it, I started Crazy Eights with some of the guys. Couldn't take some of the depressive stuff anymore." she said removing the helmet that sat now on her head and the medic satchel.
" You hear the President's dead?" Gene asked the girl.
" Yeah, I went to CP and heard Nixon say it before I walked in and decided against asking questions to the CO." she explained. She felt a few beads of sweat begin to drop from her hair and she decided to hastily put it into a messy looking low bun, but she really didn't care at the moment so she let it be.
" We might be moving out tomorrow, guy came in from patrol rambling how about 300,000 germans surrendered." Gene explained as he starting inventorying supplies from the crate by his side.
" Jesus Christ, really?" she asked, sitting on the counter, and pulling her legs up to criss-cross applesauce. Gene nodded.
" No word from CP yet on that, but I have a feeling we are moving out tomorrow, so we should pack some of this stuff up just in case, cherie." he said, standing and placing the crate next to about 10 others.
" Bien sur monsieur." she said with a smile, standing and slowly helping Gene pack crates away. It rained that night, and even though they hadn't been in actual combat, Charlotte found she couldn't sleep that night as the rain battered down on the windows. She was billeted in one of the houses in the village, about 5 of the other guys passed out in the room with her. Yet she couldn't sleep. She knew she was safe, she had the other 5 guys with her, and she knew they were no oncoming attacks, but her heart raced and she just had this feeling that she couldn't fall asleep. The girl crawled out from under the covers in her shirt and shorts, before slowly pulling her boots onto her bare legs, and pulling her OD top for protection from the rain. She grabbed her helmet and then walked out of the room, hopefully not waking any of the boys. She thought about long pants, but figured they'd be soaked and it was fine if it was just her legs. So she crossed her arms as she slowly crept downstairs and out of the house, shutting the entrance door with a click. The rain continued to drum down as she stepped outside for real and it pounded her helmet and her boots and OD jacket. She sunk under the big shops and their overhang as she walked along the road. There was no one out on the streets at the moment as she walked. She then sat down on a bench and sat huddled as the rain poured down, and she could do nothing about it. She stared coldly ahead.
