The Kids Are Alright

June 30, 1941

A gentle knock on his door made Harvey jump. The tear stained letter fell from his hands and he looked up. He wiped his cheeks, but knew there was no hiding.

"Who is it?" He called, harshly.

"It's Marilyn." Her sweet voice called.

He took a deep breath and pressed his palms into his clenched shut eyes.

"Are you alright?" She called through the door. "I went to surprise you after my shift ended, but Leroy said you hadn't shown up today."

He picked up the letter and shoved it into his back pocket. With trembling hands, he pulled open the door.

Her eyes, which were overflown with concern, widened in shock, "Harvey, what's wrong?"

He opened his mouth to respond, but the only sound that escaped was a sob. His head fell onto her shoulder. Immediately her arms wrapped around his wide torso. "Harvey?" She whispered, "What happened?"

He pulled away, as if just realizing who he was standing with. He wiped the tears from his cheeks. "I have to find Grace."

"She's at the hospital." Marilyn said quickly. "Do you want me to go with you?"

He shook his head, "Will you go find Marvin and tell him to meet me here?"

Marilyn nodded, looking nervous about leaving him alone, but did as he asked.

Harvey turned the other way, and shakily made his way down the hall. When he got outside, his eyes squinted against the harsh sunlight. People gave him strange looks, but moved along, afraid to talk to the unstable lieutenant. He quickly walked towards the hospital, aware of how heavy the letter was. Not heavy in weight, but heavy in matter.

He pushed open the door roughly, causing the secretary to jump. "Lieutenant Becker? Would you like me to fetch Grace?"

He nodded, and dropped heavily onto one of the solid chairs. He dropped his head into his hand.

"Grace Becker, you are needed at the entrance. Grace Becker, you are needed at the entrance."

Harvey sat, twitching, hoping no one recognized him.

"Harvey?"

He looked up and saw his concerned sister. He stood and wrapped his arms around her.

"Oh God, Harvey, what happened?" She whispered.

He pulled out the letter and handed it to her. She took it, but didn't take her wide eyes off of her brother. She slowly began shaking her head, pretending that this wasn't happening.

Harvey was the first to look away. He fell back into the chair. Grace sat down gently beside him, and with trembling hands, she unfolded the letter. As she read, tears built in her eyes. Her hand covered her mouth to cover the sound of cries. When she finished reading, she dropped the letter to her lap and squeezed her eyes tightly. She silently sobbed while Harvey sat beside her, quivering.

She gasped for breath and finally opened her eyes. "Have you told Marvin or Wes?"

Harvey shook his head. "Marilyn went to find Marvin, he's probably waiting at my bunk. I'll go-." He had to stop to take a breath, "I'll go tell him."

Grace nodded, trying to blink the tears away. "I'll go find Wes."

Harvey nodded, stood, and walked out of the building.