A few years earlier (flashback):
My outfit: floral 40s dress, nude t-strap pumps (40s curled hair, red lipstick)
A car honked causing me to look up from my book, startled. I smiled when I saw John in the front seat of the truck. “You going to the dance tonight?”
“Yeah.”
“Can I pick you up at eight?”
“Sure.” He blew me a kiss as he started to speed up again.
“I love you,” he shouted over the radio.
“Love you more!” I blew a kiss back as he disappeared from sight.
Present time: May 7, 1945
Sighing, I shook the memory from my head as I straightened out my sweetheart ring. It had been 2 years since he left and it seemed like eternity. While he was fighting overseas in WWII, I was here finishing up high school and working for the American Red Cross whenever I had free time. My mom came in from working on her victory garden and sighed when she saw me sitting at the dining room table.
“There’s a dance tonight. Do you want to go?” I shook my head. She put the basket of vegetables on the counter before looking at me.
“There were some leftover onions for us this time around. I could make your favorite, French onion soup?”
I gave a small smile to satisfy her. “Sure. Thank you.”
“The war is going to over soon. I know it.”
I said nothing as I went upstairs to my room. I pulled out the last letter I had gotten from him and smelled it. It smelled and tasted like him, peppermint. Always peppermint.
“When I get back we are going to get married and we are going to have tons of babies and we are going to live in a big old house like you’ve always talked about,” he told me in between kisses. He lifted my chin so my watery eyes could look into his green ones. “I promise, Mary.” He rubbed the ring on my finger. “Just look at this ring every time you doubt that, okay?” “
Okay,” I croaked. He crushed me in his arms before kissing me one last time.
“I love you.”
“I love you most.”
“Good-“
“Don’t. I’ll see you soon,” he replied with a small smile.
I gave a small smile as well. “See you soon, then.”
The next day: May 8, 1945
My mother shook me awake early the next morning. “What? What’s going on?”
“The war is over!” she yelled excitedly.
“Really?” She nodded as she pulled me out of bed. We ran downstairs and joined my father who was listening to the radio while smoking his pipe.
