Remember Everything

The grinding of the coffee machine hummed in the background of the conversations between the customers who filled the small coffee shop. Lieutenant Compton greeted everyone upon entering, leading me to believe he's a regular around here. I've never seen this place before. It looks like it used to be a small house. The walls were painted a forest green and the furniture was probably some sort of mahogany wood. My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Lieutenant Compton's voice.

"Scout!" Lieutenant Compton called from across the room. I looked in his direction and noticed a much smaller man next to him. I made my way over and half-smiled at the man.

'There she is!" Lieutenant Compton beamed. "This is Scout." I stuck my hand out to greet the man. He was a scrawny little thing. His complexion was fair and he had small freckles on his cheeks. His hair and beard were an auburn color. I noticed that his thick frame glasses had been taped in the middle. Classic.

He and I were about the same height. He wore a grey button up shirt and a bow tie with khaki shorts, grey crew socks, and brown Toms. He was quite stylish. He looked like he stepped out of a commercial for the newest Apple product.

"Hey, Scout. I'm Tucker Westfall." He shook my hand and smiled. "I own this cute little place." He placed his hands on his hips and he looked around.

"It's wonderful." I blurted as I looked at the stacks of cinnamon buns being placed on a tray. My mouth began to water. Tucker mumbled something but I was too fixated on those damn cinnamon buns. I felt a tug on my arm that seemed to pull me out of my trance.

"Come on. Let's find a place to sit." Lieutenant Compton gestured to the small tables near the front windows. I really did like this place. It felt very comfortable.

"So, I take it you know Tucker pretty well?" I said as I scooted closer to the table.

"Yeah, actually. He dated my sister back in High School."

"You have a sister?"

"I did. She passed away recently." Lieutenant Compton sighed.

"I'm sorry to hear that." I sighed. I knew how he felt.

"It's perfectly fine. She died doing something she loved."

"Oh, really? What happened?"

"She was a nurse at a base camp for the Seals." My heart stopped beating. "She and the Seals were ambushed while transporting supplies to the next camp over. No one survived. Six Seals and three other nurses were found dead." I literally choked on the air. "I was good friends with every one of those men. It kills me knowing that none of them got to come home."

My world stopped. My heart stopped. I forgot how to breathe.

"Did you know Connor Lewis?" I managed to say.

"Connor. He died that day. He was a great man and one hell of a Marine. Why?"

"He was my fiance." I mumbled. Lieutenant Compton went quiet.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to br-" I cut him off.

"Don't worry about it. I'm okay." I totally wasn't. I could feel the burning in my eyes. I wiped away a tear with the sleeve of Connor's flannel. Lieutenant Compton stood up and reached his and out to me. I looked up and he nodded his head to the door. I followed him out of the coffee shop and back to his car.

"I'm sorry, again. Let me make it up to you." He pleaded.

"You don-" He cut me off.

"I want to. I feel bad. Let me at least make you something to eat. I've been told I'm pretty good with the stove." He chuckled. I thought about it for a second. It's been a while since I've had a real dinner that didn't consist of takeout or microwaveable food.

"Fine. But we go to your place." I didn't want him to see my house in its current state.

"Fair enough. Just follow me, okay?" I nodded and headed back to my car. I realized that we never did get coffee..or that damn cinnamon bun. I sighed and pried open the door to my car and flopped inside. I slammed the door and put the key in the ignition. The purr of the engine was so relaxing to me. It reminded me of Connor.