𝘾𝙃𝘼𝙋𝙏𝙀𝙍 𝙁𝙄𝙁𝙏𝙀𝙀𝙉
—𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦—
𝘿𝘼𝙉𝙉𝙔 𝘼𝙉𝘿 𝙍𝘼𝙁𝙀 had taken out the remaining Japanese bomber aircrafts. It wasn't without difficulty, because of course they both could've died along the way, but they made it, and that's all that mattered at the moment. They are both currently entering the hospital, moving past all of the injured victims to find Evelyn and Bryce. Danny's heart aches, only imagining all the things Bryce had seen today, and wished with everything in him that she didn't have to. She was too pure for something like this— to even know about something like this.
And to think, she could've gotten hurt . . . no. He couldn't think about something like that, because something inside him told him that she was okay, and bustling away with Evelyn at her side. But when Rafe finds Evelyn, Bryce isn't with her.
"I'm so glad you're okay," Rafe says to Evelyn, pulling her into his chest. "Where are your friends? Where's Bryce?"
"Alyssa . . . she didn't make it," Evelyn's voice cracks as her eyes find Danny. "And Bryce— she got shot. She's down the hall, Danny. The moment Candice brought her in, I sent the surgeon to help with her. But he . . . he should be finished by now."
Danny felt as though he had been the one that got shot. His heart burned, and suddenly he couldn't breathe. Without another glance at the couple, he takes off in the direction Evelyn had pointed him in. Glancing into every room he passed, Danny tried to keep himself upright. He stops at the last open door, freezing when he finds Candice sitting in a chair, crying over a limp body on a hospital bed. He swallows, before entering.
Candice glances at him upon hearing his footsteps, standing from her spot. "Danny, thank God you're here. Bryce is awake."
Danny notices the cast on Candice's foot first, then the blood that stained the cloth of her shirt. But not only that; it was on her jeans, covering her hands, and smudged on the side of her face. It was absolutely everywhere. And since Candice wasn't wounded, that could only mean one thing— all of it had came from Bryce. He wanted to ruin all of Japan. He wanted to yell at the top of his lungs, to destroy the person that dared to do this to her, to his Bryce. The woman that he was going to marry one day, who would be the mother to his children, who he would spend the rest of his life with.
That person had tried to take her away from him.
"Bryce," his voice shakes as he steps over to the bed, scanning her.
"Danny?" She asks, her voice cracking in her throat. "You're here?"
She felt as if a weight was lifted from her shoulders as she sees him; but Bryce was having a rough time breathing, and could still feel all of the pain she had when the bullet had first entered her body. The woman couldn't describe the pain in words if she had to— but, to put it simply, it hurt ten times worse than any pain she had ever felt in her lifetime. But now that Danny was here, some of it subsided, as she had something else to focus on other than the throbbing that came from her torso.
"I'm here, sweetheart," he nods, placing a hand on her cheek. "I'm here now. How are you feeling?"
Her stomach was exposed; luckily the bullet wound was covered by bandages, or else Danny might've started crying in hysterics; much like Bryce had during the surgeon's bullet-removal procedure. Her yellow dress had been ripped open, exposing her chest— blood soaked the whole thing.
"Not too great," she replies, blinking rapidly. "My whole body hurts, and I'm cold."
"Candice, where are the blankets?" Danny asks, pulling up a chair to be at Bryce's side.
"I'll go get some," the blonde tells him, wiping away her tears before leaving the room.
"I'm so sorry I wasn't there to protect you," Danny begins, taking her hand in his. "I shouldn't have went out with Rafe last night, I should have went home and went to your house early in the morning like I usually do. I am so so sorry, sugar. This is all my fault."
"Danny," the raven-haired woman stops him, her pale hand reaching up to touch his cheek. "None of this is your fault. Things like this happen; and I'm okay, so don't blame yourself."
"I'm so glad you're okay," he says, feelings his eyes begin to burn. "I don't know what I'd do without you, Bryce."
"There won't be a day when I'm not with you," she tells him, smiling as he leans into her touch. "No matter where you go, I'll always be with you. Forever, right?"
"Forever," he nods, staring at her. She was still so beautiful, even with pale skin and blood all over her, she was marvelous. She was the same Bryce that he fell in love with on the first day they met.
"I got the blankets," Candice announces, holding up a stack as she makes an appearance. "And I also brought Bryce a gown for later, I know she needs to get that dress off."
"I just want to sleep for a bit," Bryce murmurs, her eyes drooping. "I'm so tired."
In fact, it was so much more than what she was actually showing. The aching started deep down in Bryce's chest, and swarmed to her bare stomach. She honestly wasn't sure if she could take much more pain that what she had already endured. But she would do it— for Danny. For Evelyn, and Candice, and Rose . . . she would be just fine.
The pain goes away as her eyelids shut, and Bryce finally relaxes into the mattress as a blanket is spread out on top of her. Now she was warm, and her body was numb, and she felt as if things could go back to normal. Maybe she could pretend all of this didn't happen, and could live happily with Danny for the rest of her life.
But, even in this drowsy state, she knew she couldn't. One day things would be peaceful. As long as Danny was by her side, she knew everything would be okay.
"Bryce—"
"It's okay, Danny," Candice assures him. "She'll be okay as long as I break her fever. Besides, she needs some rest. It's been a long day for all of us."
"Stay with me, Danny," Bryce says, her voice fading as her hand falls into his, "while I . . . "
"I wouldn't leave you for the world."
---
"There will be a shipment of medication in a couple of hours," Evelyn tells Danny, sitting down in the chair next to him. "We're doing what we can for her."
It had been hours since the bombing of Pearl Harbor, and some of the chaos had died down. Some. Bryce was still unconscious, her hand resting in Danny's. Evelyn and Rafe and just entered the room, and the nurses were filling Danny in on Bryce's current condition.
"She'll be okay, right?" He questions, rubbing circles on Bryce's smooth skin as she sleeps. "The doctor got the bullet out."
"She's lost a lot of blood," Evelyn sighs, running a hand through her hair. "But Bryce is strong, and I believe in her. She can do this."
"The next few days will be critical," Candice tells him what Evelyn can't. "So she'll need lots of rest and painkillers. And as of right now, we can't get her to the west wing to be examined— since it was destroyed. We can only hope the bullet didn't puncture a vital organ, or get too close to her spine."
"I'll be leaving tomorrow," Rafe tells them. "I just got back from a meeting with Lieutenant James Doolittle and wants the two of us to go on a top secret mission for the Air-force. He wanted me to ask you, Danny— since Bryce . . . since you couldn't attend."
"Top secret?" Danny asks, his eyes falling on Bryce. "And you're going?"
"I can only assume where we'd be going and what we'd be doing," Rafe says, "but yes, I'm going. And you have the choice to go too."
"How long will it take?"
"A couple of weeks," his best friend says, his arm around Evelyn's waist. "I know what will be waiting here when I get back."
"The I'm going with you," Danny says, not hesitating in the least. "I know Bryce will be okay. She's strong, and she's brave, and she will get through this. She's what I have to come home to."
"Danny, there's a risk that Bryce won't—"
"But she will." The man states, his honey-colored eyes meeting those of Candice. "And I'll write letters back to her. We'll all be okay, even Bryce. She's got this."
"We leave in the morning," Rafe tells Danny. "So you should go home tonight, and get everything packed up. I'll come back here with you in the morning so you can say goodbye, and then we're to meet with the Colonel at the docks."
"You'll watch after her tonight for me, won't you?" Danny asks Evelyn, standing from his spot. "I can stay the night here if I need to, I know you'll probably need some rest too."
"There are other nurses that will switch shifts with us in an hour or so," Evelyn shakes her head. "You go home and get some sleep, Danny. That's what Bryce would want. She'll be waiting for you in the morning."
"Okay," he nods, his eyes falling back on Bryce. He leans forward, placing a soft kiss on her forehead. "I'll be back in the morning, sweetheart, I promise."
And then he left.
_______