Megan Morse rounded the corner to see her best friend Artemis Crock and her fiancé Wally West waiting for her in front of their favorite restaurant, the one their gang used to go to all the time when they were in high school. Megan had dozens of photos in her scrapbook of them dancing and smiling, even when times were tough. Most of those pictures had Conner in them.
She and Conner had been going steady for five years when they broke up. He'd had trouble getting close to anyone after his dad moved out when he was thirteen. Clark Kent had lost his job in the Depression, and had moved out east to find a new one. For years, he sent his wife money to support herself and their son, but he never once visited. Because of this, Conner grew up with feelings of anger and abandonment, always afraid to get close to anyone in the fear that they would one day leave him, too.
Megan had had an unhappy childhood. Her unemployed parents had taken her and all her brothers and sisters out of school to work at twelve. After her fifteenth birthday, Megan, believing her presence to be a burden to her financially struggling family, had run away from home to relieve them of one more mouth to feed. She came to live with her single uncle John, who was doing very well, considering the circumstances. He helped Megan catch up in her studies, then sent her to the local high school for an education and a chance at a better future.
That was where they had met. Neither Conner nor Megan had been watching where they were going, and had crashed into each other in the hallway. She had bent down to gather her fallen books, and he to help her. They lifted their heads, their eyes met, and sparks flew between them. "I like your jacket.", she'd said, referring to the letterman jacket he'd earned in football. He'd smiled, something he hadn't done since his father left. Two months later, they started dating, and on their one-year anniversary, he'd given her the letterman jacket she'd said she liked and asked her to go steady with him. She'd screamed her acceptance.
They had been through so much together. Megan had helped him forgive his father when he moved back, and paved the way for them to become close again. In turn, Conner had helped her through when her parents died, and her older siblings sent their little brother Garfield to live with her and John. They had hardly anything in common, except for one thing—they were crazy about each other.
But as time passed on, the couple faced challenges. John was laid off, and Megan feared he might send her and Garfield away from Happy Harbor and all their friends. She was so afraid of being forced to leave, she resorted to pickpocketing to help her and her family get by. One day, Conner caught her in the act. They had gotten in a big fight over it. Megan kept saying that taking the money from other people helped her, her brother, and her uncle, who needed it the most. But Conner kept saying it was wrong no matter what. Finally, after weeks of fighting, Conner asked her for his jacket back.
The breakup had broken M'gann's heart. She cried in her room for days. That's when Lagan made his move. Lagan was a friend of Kaldur Durham, who was one of the gang, from their hometown Atlanta, who, like Megan, had run away to lighten his family's burdens. They bonded over this, and became closer and closer. He offered her his Atlanta Academy class pin, only a week after her breakup with Conner, and asked to be her new steady mate. She accepted.
Megan took every opportunity to rub her new steady in the face of her old one. She and Conner rarely talked anymore, and when they did, it ended in a fight. But deep down, Megan missed Conner, and often found herself wishing they were still together. It was only after she pick-pocketed from Kaldur, who had seemingly turned on them, only to find out he was helping them, did she realize the error of her new ways. She gave up stealing forever, but still couldn't bring herself to forgive Conner for abandoning her.
Megan met up with Wally and Artemis. Artemis gave her a hug, as did Wally, before going into the restaurant. Soon, they were laughing and chatting and eating (Especially Wally was eating). It was just like old times. If Megan closed her eyes, they were teenagers again, talking about perms and who was taking them to the school dance. After asking for the check, Megan got both their attention. "Okay, guys...what did you call me here for?"
Artemis looked at Wally, who was patting his lips with a napkin. He sighed as he put it down. "Its about Conner." On instinct, Megan's gloved hand flew to Lagan's class pin that sat on her red velvet coat. "Guys, Conner and I are through. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. He doesn't want anything to do with me, and I don't want anything to do with him."
Wally reached into his pocket. "He wanted to give you this, but he was too afraid, so he asked me to do it." He pulled out a folded piece of paper and placed it in front of Megan on the table. Hesitantly, Megan unfolded it and read the letter.
My dearest Megan,
I've written this letter a hundred times, but I could never find the right words. My father sends me letters from his time in the war, and it has compelled me to do my part for my country. A few days ago, I went to the recruiting center, and signed up for the U.S. Army. If you are reading this now, I ship out on the four o'clock train at the station on Justice Avenue today.
But before I join the fight, I need you to know a few things. Megan, I love you. I never stopped loving you, even after we broke up. And I will continue to love you until I die. I regret breaking up with you, and I realize now I should have tried to help you see my point of view instead of leaving you stranded. I have looked at you everyday since with longing. It takes everything in me to not run to her and take you in my arms, pleading for your forgiveness and begging you to give me a second chance.
I know that you probably don't feel the same way anymore, that you're probably in love with Lagan now, but I needed you to know, in case I never return from war, which I hear is very likely. Goodbye, Megan. If I never come back, I wish both you and Lagan the best in life. I will always love you.
Yours forever,
Conner
Megan looked up from the letter, trying to process what he'd written. "Conner's gone off to war?" Wally and Artemis reluctantly nodded. Megan felt tears leak from her eyes before she could stop them. "He-He can't! He can't go! He'll die!" She stood on her feet and looked at the clock on the wall. Three-thirty. And the train station was all the way on the other side of town. But that didn't stop her from saying, "I have to stop him!"
Wally jumped to his feet. "We'll give you a ride! Flash is the fastest one around!" "Flash" was Wally's pet name for his beloved yellow Cadillac car with red racing stripes. He was constantly bragging how fast Flash was after it beat the car of Cameron Mahkent, Artemis's old flame, in a race to defend her honor. After paying the tab, the three friends hustled out if the restaurant.
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Conner checked his bags and belongings as the train pulled up to the platform. He looked around at the other men saying goodbye to their girlfriends, wives and fiancés. He looked down at his new uniform and sighed heavily, wishing that he had someone to say goodbye to. Sadly, his mother had passed away years ago, prompting the return of his father, and he had not found anyone new since the breakup.
He was just about to hop onto the train when he heard a familiar voice call his name. He spun around to see Megan running frantically up the steps, her red hair out of it's usual bun, falling past her shoulders, and her outfit in disarray. She saw him standing nearby and ran up to him, her high-heeled shoes falling off. "Conner, no! Don't get on!"
He nearly pinched himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming. "Megan? Wh-What are you doing here?!" He stepped away from the train and took a step towards her. She hurried over and flung her arms around him, holding on as if she'd never let go. "Conner, please! Don't go! You can't leave me!" Conner pried her off of him. "Megan, I have to go. I'm needed out there on the front lines."
"You're needed HERE!", she cried. "By ME! I love you, Conner! I never stopped loving you!" She grabbed him by his uniform and clutched the material with her fingers, tears running down her face. "Don't do this to me, Conner! I've already lost you once, and I'll be damned if I let that horrible Hitler take you away from me for good!" She collapsed into his chest, sobbing into his shirt.
He pulled her away and cupped her face, gazing into her eyes. "Megan, you're with Lagan now. There's nothing keeping me here." Megan shook her head. "No. I gave Kaldur his pin to give back to him.", she said softly, motioning to her chest, where Lagan's class pin no longer resided. "And I would give up a thousand more pins from a thousand more men if only you'd stay."
He blinked twice, staring into her eyes. He was pulled out of his thoughts by the engineer calling out, "ALL ABOARD!" He sighed and looked back at her. "Megan, I'm going no matter what. The troops need me." More tears fell down her face. "I need you." Conner bent down and reached into his duffel bag. "I was gonna bring this with me, but...I think you need it more."
He held it out in front of him, and Megan gasped, her hands flying to her mouth, the tips of her fingers brushing her lips. "Your letterman jacket." The black sports jacket with yellow sleeves and a big yellow H on one side lay in his hands, slightly wrinkled from all the years stored away. He smiled as he held it out to her. "Megan Morse...will you wear my jacket while I'm gone?"
She smiled through her tears as she gingerly took the jacket from him and slipped her arms through the sleeves, her eyes still locked with his. "I'll be wearing it the day you come home." He took her face in his hands and closed the gap between them in one final kiss. She closed her eyes and concentrated on the warmth of his lips against hers for what she prayed would not be the last time.
"ALL ABOARD!" Conner broke the kiss and looked into her eyes for what he knew could be the very last time. "Goodbye, Megan." He gathered his things and hopped onto the train as it let out some smoke. Megan waited until he poked his head out the window and leaned out towards her. She reached out and took his hand, fresh tears rolling down her cheeks. She walked along the platform as it began rolling down the tracks, refusing to let go until she got to the very end.
Then and only then did she release his hand, watching with sadness as he rode further and further away, waving to her and blowing kisses until he couldn't see her anymore. When he was finally out of sight, she pulled his jacket tighter around her petite form and began the walk home. "I'll wait for you, Conner...I'll wait forever if necessary."
If you guys want me to post a part 2, I'll be glad to oblige! Comment if you want me to continue this! I'm gonna do more AUs that take place in past era. What can I say? I'm a history geek. I do not own YJ or DC.