Break the Sky

They dragged in the wounded men, listening to them groan as they lifted these men onto the stretchers. The dead were placed into body bags after their dog tags were checked for identification. A good amount of the dead soldiers were new recruits, and the veterans shook their heads as they loaded these poor innocent things into the back of the trucks.

"I feel awful for these poor souls. I thank God every night that we're still here. Even Merrick." Merrick playfully hit Dawson in the arm as the three of them laughed. Alex's look turned serious.

"The war isn't over yet. We should continue to be careful." Alex helped toss another body bag into a truck. It started to drive off, and set up camp. The two followed Alex, their eyebrows furrowed. He was acting more uptight than usual. They didn't understand why he was acting like this.

"What's wrong?"

Already October, and they were fighting the Italians in the south. How was America? How was everything back home? The economy?

Penny.

He wondered what had happened to her. Rose, Jack, and he had all gone down to the police department to comprehend what was going on. That felt like years ago. The officers just shuffled around, rounding up more Japanese families, claiming they were spies. How ridiculous was that statement? Penny was not a spy. She couldn't have been.

I wonder if Penny has ever made any contact with Rose...

}{

Thanksgiving at the Clive household was awkward. The turkey was passed around silently, quiet "thank you"s murmured by Mrs. Clive and Rose. They did not bother starting up a conversation. It was awkward enough as it was. The phone rang, and Rose jumped up to answer it. "Hello?" she greeted, thanking God that someone had allowed her to escape from the horrible family dinner.

"Rose? It's Alex."

Her heart skipped a beat. She squinted. "Is this a joke? It's not very funny."

"Rose, I'll be by your house in a minute. Just let me put my shoes on. I want to speak to you. I miss you."

She held the phone to her ear and heard the line die. Her mouth hung open slightly, not knowing what else to do. Finally, she hung up the phone and told her parents she would be going out, because something important was going on. Mrs. Clive nodded, and Mr. Clive did not look up from his plate.

Rose stepped outside in her petticoat and scarf, spotting Alex's outline close by. She ran to him, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Oh my God, I've missed you." Rose buried her face into his chest. "I'm glad you're okay. Oh Lord, Alex. I..." She let go of him and took a step back. "Are you hurt? Are you injured?"

He laughed lightly. "No, Rose. I'm on home leave. I'll be here until next year, in January. Then I'll have to leave again." He smiled. "Rose, I've missed you too." He took a step towards her and pulled her into his arms. "How's your family? Are they all right?"

She shook her head. "You have no idea what it's like in there right now." They started to walk down to the lake area near Alex's house. No one was outside tonight; everyone was in his house, eating a quaint dinner with his family. Alex turned to Rose. "Are you hungry?" She replied with a polite "no."

"Why aren't you home eating dinner with your family?" Rose looked at him: Alex's facial expression was cold. His eyes seemed glazed over in thought, she supposed. Alex could not be much different than the last time he was home. Hopefully, war had not changed him too much.

"I just missed you. I needed to see you as soon as possible." He squeezed her hand. Outside, some children were still out playing a game of baseball. Surprisingly, there were no broken windows. Not yet. They slowly made their way down to the lake area, sitting on the bench. They kept a small amount of space between them, still holding hands. Rose sighed, staring at the silvery moon. The sky was clear tonight but had very few shimmering stars. The trees were growing barren, with most of the leaves on the ground. Some of the children were not playing baseball were jumping into the piles of leaves. They screamed and hollered from a distance.

"A part of me doesn't miss this place at all." Alex watched the still lake, reflecting the night sky. Ripples appeared from the slight breeze. "But a part of me is glued to Maryland. It's such a strange feeling."

Rose furrowed her brow. "Do you like fighting, Alex?" She turned to face him. "Do you like killing people?" The idea was horrifying. Dear innocent Alex existed no more; his blood-stained hands disgusted her. She retracted her hand from his.

"No. I didn't mean it like that." He reached for her, but Rose jumped off the bench. "Rose, what I meant was--" She was on her way back home. She was starting to believe Lauren's words about men: They are pigs. "Rose, I meant that I hate being known for how poor I am!" he shouted, making her stop in her tracks. "But when I'm overseas with all these other men, and we talk about our lives, I realize something: We're all the same. These men in the army....they're like me. They come from poor families and are sick of lacking money." He paused. "Rose, don't you understand?"

"Apparently, I don't, because I'm not as poor as you are." Rose shook her head. "Alex, I don't understand you. You love Europe, because there are people who understand you there? Jack and I understand you!"

"Jack's father is a rich politician, and your father's desk job earns more money than my father and mother put together. Neither of you could understand what I go through!"

Rose's eyes were brimming with tears. "We may not understand your family's financial problems, Alex," she choked. "But we love you very much." She turned around and marched back home as Alex stood there, wondering what to do.