One of my favorite moments between Bill and Julie…
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He pulled her to him and held her tightly. She knew how torn up he was about everything and she hated to add to that pain. “I’m okay,” she said softly.
He just held her and didn’t say anything.
“You’re squishing me,” she said and grinned at him. He let her go and she turned to face him. “Want to talk about it?” she put her hands on his chest.
He shook his head.
“Okay, so how about if I talk and you listen,” she said. He didn’t object, so she continued. She turned back around and leaned against him. “Am I hurting your chest?”
“No,” he wrapped his arms around her and she took his hands in hers.
“Good,” she sighed. “I think you need to understand something. No matter how hard you try, you can’t change what people see when they look at you. You are the epitome of what it means to be strong and to be brave. I know you hate the hero word, but seeing as I am a teacher, I need to educate you on something. My students often have to look up the word hero and figure out what it means. Being a hero doesn’t mean that you don’t lose sometimes. Being a hero doesn’t mean that you can’t doubt yourself. Being heroic certainly doesn’t mean that you can’t get mad at what happens. A hero is simply one who thinks more of others than themselves and no matter what the cost is to them personally; they do what they can to ensure the people around them are safe,” she kissed his hand.
“It also means that after the battle, when everyone doesn’t come home, the hero may feel like he failed. What’s worse, when the people try to thank him, it makes all of his perceived failures so much worse. The fact that the hero takes such grief in each and every loss is what really and truly solidifies him as a hero.”
She turned around and saw his blue eyes glistening with tears. “When people want to honor a hero with medals and titles, it is because they know how much it takes to be someone heroic. They need to honor you because it is all they can do to show you just what it means to them to know you and to learn from you. They aren’t forgetting the ones lost and they aren’t suggesting you deserved to be here more than anyone else. It is a tribute to you and a reminder to them to be the best in all situations,” she felt her own tears fall and he cupped her cheek in his hand. “I am so proud to be your wife and I am most proud to be someone you feel is worthy of your love. I will never apologize for having you back and wanting you to survive,” she sighed. “But I need you to be happy. I need you to be able to move on and to know that you deserve all of the love and all of the honor you receive.”
He leaned down and pressed his mouth to hers, gently at first and then with more intensity. She felt her fingers and toes tingle with his kiss. He looked at her and smiled.
“Thanks. I needed to hear that,” he said softly.
She nodded. “I know,” she smiled. “But just remember. You may be a Sergeant, but I will always outrank you.”
He grinned and pulled her to him again, crashing his lips to hers.
I love Julie and bill so cute and funny