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❝ letter three ❞

28th December 1943

Dear Steve,
                      I know it has only been a little while since I last wrote to you but Christmas has just passed and I feel that I should tell you about it.

Heath has gone home and it was a rather confusing time. I missed you and James dearly. Your jokes and James' smuggled alcohol always served to make the holiday season much more bearable. I understand that you are doing very important business but it is so odd for you to be so far away.

Christmas Day was an exciting day. We did everything we usually would and my Aunt came down to visit and gave me a new poetry collection. Some of the poems are rather dark but many are beautiful. It is love poetry and I'm not sure whether this was all some ruse to try and get me to accept Heath's proposal but I refused.

It was the evening of Christmas Day and we went out on a walk. It was when we returned to our house that he proposed right in the doorway. At first, I was confused and I didn't quite know what to say. It was so unexpected. He had been so quiet most of the day but I had to refuse. He understands. His ego is likely hurt but he understands when a heart belongs to another.

My father doesn't. He is so angry at me for refusing the proposal that I'm not sure what to do. New Years is coming up and I'm hoping my Aunt will allow me to travel upstate with her before then. I need some time away from the city. Everywhere reminds me of you and our friendship and I cannot stand to see it anymore.

We are becoming victorious in this war or the tide seems to be turning in our direction but it still terrifies me that you have already been lost to the battlefield and nobody has been informed. I have had no response in these long months and Connie has heard nothing from James. That leads me to believe that you have not received my letters yet. This time of year is very busy so it is understandable that there was a delay but it worries me nonetheless.

But I know all be well. I would have heard about your passing if something horrible had happened. Connie still talks to James' parents regularly but even they have heard nothing from him. It makes me ever so worried. I know that I shouldn't be and you will be perfectly fine but still. There is a part of me that is scared.

The thought of living a long life without you makes my heart ache. I could not spend a life with my heart belonging to you but having no choice but to move on. There is a hole in my chest where your soul intertwines with my own. I cannot bear the thought of our souls never crossing paths again.

It is becoming clear to me as I write that I have been reading far too much poetry. So, I will instead say, do not worry about us back in Brooklyn. Many of us are fine and Connie visited yesterday. She had news and it seems that she may be coming to you rather than receiving any letters from James.

The Army Nurse Corps is taking her overseas to assist with a battalion. They recognised her talent and knew that she would be perfect. Connie claims that it was not something she had anything to do with but I know she is lying.

Connie has a way of manipulating people and she knows so much more than she is telling me. I saw her having a meeting with an Army General not a few days ago. There is something more to her and I really hope that she keeps herself safe on the front lines. I know she is a plenty good fighter for a girl but war is not like here. It is harsh and brutal and she will be surrounded by death. I told her this but she claims that she knows.

There was always something about her that made it so easy for her to be a nurse and to be surrounded by death so I'm sure the front lines will be exactly how she expects. I trust that she knows what to do with herself and how to keep herself safe. Even when she is surrounded by tuberculosis and infections, she has never gotten ill.

Have you ever seen her ill? It is a miracle, I think. I know so many nurses who have fallen ill to their patients' diseases. But not her.

She is an enigma but that is Connie after all. We always joked about how she seemed to just walk into our lives without seeing it coming. She never went to school with us and she claims to be an orphan. Some would find that suspicious but I think she is perfect for our little clan.

I hope you'll get to see her at some point. She misses you both dearly and I remember that night at the Stark Expo, she wanted to talk to you. I'm sure she still does, so please talk to her if you ever get the chance.

My father does not like that I am wasting his ink so I will have to leave my letter here. I hope the next time I send a letter, I will be upstate with my Aunt. Take care of yourself and remember that I am so very proud of you.

With all the love in this world,
Josie