Timeless

Chapter 1

Spring 1943:

    Kathryn Egan was one of four nurses being shipped over to England in the spring of 1943. It was true, she had received the same schooling for being a doctor prior to the American involvement in the war, but that was of little to no consequence for a man's world.  She was fast-tracked to go through the nurse courses in order to follow her older brother over to Europe.

    There was rarely a day in her life where she hadn't been by her brother's side and she intended to keep it that way.  If he was going over to fight for freedom, then she would follow him there. You'd never see one without the other—always thick as thieves and with matching grins to go with the mischief.

    Now though, sitting in the car full of nurses headed to the bar—she was on her own.  For the moment anyway.  Almost certainly, she would find her brother already within and probably partying up a storm. Such was his New-York centered personality. And she could already guess who was bound to be by his side—

    Gale Cleven was an oddity next to her brother in the same way that she was.  John Egan was some kind of a burning star that seemed to take up everything in his path.  He had more energy than anyone she had ever known in her life and exuberantly and seamlessly made friends wherever he went. Gale Cleven didn't smoke, he didn't drink, he didn't gamble, and he didn't even care about sports. 

    In that same vein, Kathryn found herself enjoying his company.  She was quiet—which is probably why she got along with Gale Cleven so well.  The two of them would watch as John put on a show every single time he got out in public.  There was also the fact that her brother had given Gale a nickname that was practically repurposing his own name.

    Buck and Bucky—it was something out of a novel, she was certain. And once Bucky had introduced Gale to Kathryn, the trio had seamlessly found their footing.  It was easy with them around—she didn't have to mingle much or say much.  She much preferred watching and listening to doing her own kind of talking anyway.

    But right now, she was with the nurses.  Right now, she was sitting in a car with Nurse Laura Wilde from Arizona, Nurse Becky Rogers from Pennsylvania, Nurse Poppy Wright from Texas, and Nurse Annika Miller from California.  They were a crew of young women, all unmarried and all heading to Europe together—they had been in the same group of training nurses, though at 23 and already gone through a medical training program, she was on the older end of the spectrum here. 

    "Kitty, can I borrow your lipstick?  Mine smeared and I must've left mine back at the hotel." Poppy questioned, glancing into the mirror in the car with a huff.

    Kathryn wordlessly handed over her shade of Victory Red.  "All yours."

    Poppy began touching up her makeup as Annika put the car into park.  "Darn, I wish mine just stayed where it was supposed to be like yours does. This is our last chance to bag—"

    "If you say my brother, I will literally throw up in this car." Kathryn deadpanned as Poppy handed her back the lipstick.

    At that, all of the nurses' heads swiveled towards her.  "We know you don't approve, but your brother is just—" Becky started.

    "Too big headed for all of you.  Trust me on that.  Now let's go!" Kathryn insisted, opening up the car door and gesturing for the other nurses to roll out.

    It was getting dimmer by the second as they stood out in that parking lot, but all five nurses just stood there for a moment.  The swing of the music was building inside and the smell of cigarette smoke wafted through the air.  "Well, what are we waiting for?" Laura grabbed Kathryn's hand and tugged the girl inside the party.