Five years had passed since she saw the soldiers going to fight. The town was still being rebuilt. Her father had been killed in the war and her mother was staying with her sister. Anna sighed as she walked through the town. Most of the soldiers had come back two years after but he had never come back. She was taking care of her sister's son for the weekend while Tristan and her mom went somewhere. She looked down at the four year old and held his hand as they walked down the sidewalk. She often thought about what would have happened if he hadn't had to go fight. She wished she had at least known that he had died. She looked at the engagement ring on her finger and sighed. Everyone had been more than happy to hear that she was engaged to the prince.

Five years.

It had been five years since twenty-five year-old Jeremy Hawke had been deployed as a Paratrooper in the United States Army. Now he was on his homeland, and even now it still seemed so surreal. As he casually strolled through the familiar streets, his nerves still standing on end, he begged and pleaded with the Good Lord to never let this dream end. The turmoils of war were things that he never wished any man would endure - but for the sake of his country, he had no choice. It was as though the time period erased part of his subconscious mind almost, except for a fading image of a beautiful young woman that always seemed to linger in his thoughts.

He looked at his wedding finger: it was empty. There was still a faint line from where the band had been, but for some reason he could not recall, it was no longer there. Many scars on his hands replaced whatever jewel should have been there instead, and he sighed, desperately trying to block out the bloody images of what seemed like yesterday. He ran a hand through his golden hair that he kept cropped short, continuing on his way toward the newspaper stand.

Once he reached it, his baby blue eyes scanned the front page - more depressing updates on the current condition of the ever raging war - then he simply left. He was not one to waste his money on sob stories. Through his peripherals, he could see the young woman and the little boy, and a familiar twang tugged on his heart. He disregarded it and kept going, searching for somewhere to eat.

She took the boy to the cafe down the street. It seemed to be his favorite place to eat. Lately since her mom had been getting worse and worse she and James spent more time together. Tristan always insisted that she should be the one to stay with mom. It didn't bother her that she wanted to stay with mom but she would have liked to be with her too.

She sat down across from James and watched as he looked at the menu. For being only for he was very smart. She could tell he was going to grow up to be handsome just like his father. Her sister's husband was constantly traveling so they didn't get to see him much but when he was home he and James had the best time.

She sighed as she thought about Jeremy and their talk about kids. That was only weeks before he left. The baby stuff still sat in her house untouched. She often tried to avoid passing that room or even looking down the hall towards it. It always filled her mind with pictures of Jeremy then pictured of the limp body laying in her arms.

She looked at James then got up. Tears were filling her eyes and she tried to hold them back. "Stay right here." She looked at him before turning and walking into the bathroom. She grabbed a paper towel and dabbed at her eyes. She was working at the hospital as a doctor. She enjoyed helping people. It got her mind off of all her problems.

He entered the cafe nonchalantly, glad to find that it was practically vacant of customers. His eyes briefly scanned the interior as he made his way toward the cashier, unaware of the young boy sitting alone in the corner of the building. He ordered his drink of choice - plain black coffee - paid, and was about to leave when he spotted the child. It would be very unlike him, prior to the war, to just ignore the lonesome boy; so, fighting himself the entire way, he approached him, trying his best to look genuinely polite.

He cleared his throat and allowed his lips to turn upward in a smile before he spoke to the kid. He was adorable, and something about him rang familiar to Jeremy, but he couldn't quite pinpoint it. The kid seemed focused on reading the menu, which elicited an amused chuckle from Jeremy. For some reason, he absolutely believed that this toddler could practically understand it.

"Hey there," Jeremy said softly, still grinning. "Why are you sitting all by yourself?"

James looked up at the man. "Mommy told me not to talk to strangers." He looked back at the menu before laying it on the table and pointing it to what he wanted. He enjoyed staying at Anna's house. There was always so much to do and they got to hang out all the time. Sometimes she didn't make him go to school. She was so much fun to be with.

He wondered what the man wanted. He looked up at the waiter to came over to the table. The waiter asked what the boy wanted and the boy pointed to it. The waiter nodded and went to go get it. James folded up the menu and put it to the side. He left the second menu out for when Anna came back out.

Anna looked at herself in the mirror and put some lipstick on and fixed her hair before walking out of the bathroom. She saw a man standing by Jeremy. She quickly walked over and tapped the man on the shoulder. "May I ask what you are doing?" She didn't recognize him after all these years. The war seemed to have changed him.

She crossed her arms and waited for an answer. James didn't seem to have been talking to the stranger and she was proud of him. He seemed very comfortable just sitting there and she could tell the stranger hadn't hurt him or anything so that was good. She shouldn't have left him out here on his own though.

His heart started to beat erratically at the sight of Anna; yet, he still had no idea why. His mind raced with a mixture of thoughts and appointed words to say, but for some reason he couldn't piece them together properly. She was an attractive young woman, but she had a child, so that probably meant that...

She's married, he thought, catching sight of the wedding band on her finger.

His heart sank a little, but he made it a point not to broadcast it on his face. His blue eyes stared directly into hers, and he continued to smile before he responded. Though the woman seemed oddly familiar, and he could swear he had her name on the tip of his tongue, he behaved as though he never knew her. And at this moment, he was absolutely certain that he didn't.

"I thought I'd keep him some company," he replied gently, understanding her defensive nature. "I figured he's a bit too young to be alone. You've taught him well - he never answered me."

He shot James a grin and a playful wink, and was about to turn on his heels before he looked at Anna, and suddenly wanted to stay. But another look at the handsome ring on her delicate finger made him decide otherwise. He took a sip of his coffee, then scratched nervously at the stubble on his chin before he figured he would leave them.

"I'm sorry I bothered you," he said. "Have a nice day."

She smiled when he told her that James hadn't even answered him. She reached her hand out to the boy and smiled as he gave her a high five. She couldn't help but feel that she knew him. The sound of his voice reminded her of someone. "I'm Anna." She looked at him and waited to see if he would tell her his name.

When he said that he would leave them she turned and watched as he left. She could sense that he didn't feel right around them. She figured that she could have been more welcoming towards him. She watched as he walked out the door then looked back at James. Obviously he could tell what she was thinking and motioned her to go.

She ran out after the man and stood outside the door. "You know you could come in and sit with us if you'd like." She waited to see what he would do or say. She knew there was always the chance that he would just ignore her and keep on walking. She didn't mind she just thought it would be nice to invite him to hang out with them for a little bit.

James sat there for a moment before his food came. He thanked the waiter then picked up his fork and knife. He started to eat the pancakes. His orange juice was sitting in front of him untouched. He looked up as he watched Anna. He wondered what they were saying.

Pepper stumbled into the cafe, hand on her old wound by instinct. She frowned at the sight of no open tables. Then someone caught her eye. He looked rather firmiliar as if she had seen him multiple times. In a nonchalont way she walk around to the side of the door until she could see his face. Yes, she knew him! "Jeremy?" she called, confused. Had they worked together? She knew his name but wasn't fully firmiliar with him.

[I hope that's alright. If not I'll edit and you can just ignore me?]

Ooc: Ignore the double-post, my computer decided to be retarded for a few minutes. Sorry for any confusion!

Anna.

The name repeated itself over and over in his mind as the wind whipped his cheeks from outside. The wheels in his head were turning like complicated machinery as he thought to himself where he had heard this name before. But it was a common name, right? He had probably meant dozens of women named Anna during his five years of service in the military. But none with a gorgeous child, and none as beautiful as this particular Anna.

He kept walking a little even after she called out to him, but something told him to stop, and before he could fight himself, he did. An audible sigh escaped his nostrils as he pondered the option - although he found it quite curious that a married woman would be inviting him to sit with her. He turned around and smiled.

"I wouldn't want to impose," he responded sweetly, noticing she had left her child again.

His eyes wandered over her shoulder in search for the kid. Maybe he would sit with them, just for James' sake. Something told him the poor child didn't exactly have a stable father figure in his life - so, assuring himself it was for the well being of the boy, he agreed and followed her back inside. He caught sight of the odd girl stumbling in, and his smile widened so much that it threatened to split his face in two. He embraced the girl heartily, recognizing who she was instantly.

"Pepper!"

She watched him and the other girl. She smiled a bit before going over and sitting down next to James, leaving the other side open for the other two to sit in case the girl wanted to join them. She watched as James ate. She looked over the menu herself and ended up just ordering a salad. She wasn't very hungry anyway. She couldn't understand why her sister would want to leave her son all the time. If he was her son she would want to spend every second of the day with him.

She sat there silently and picked at her salad. James would reach over with his fork and pick something out of her salad. She smiled as she watched him finish his pancakes. She wondered what her life would have been like if Jeremy had stayed. She put her elbows on the table and rested her head in her hands. There she was thinking of Jeremy for again. She thought back to when the girl had called out the man she had been talking to. It couldn't be could it? She thought of the way his voice had sounded and how he had seemed so familiar. She figured she would ask him when he sat down. She didn't want to sound dumb and it not be him.

She let James take her hand and smiled as he examined the ring on her finger. He looked up at her and she understood what he wanted. She nodded her head and felt him pull the ring off her finger. For some reason she felt somewhat relieved when he had taken it off. Maybe she wasn't meant to be with this prince. She had also thought a lot about that lately too. He was a nice kind man and she knew that money wise she would never do any better than him. But he just didn't seem to be the right man. Maybe it was because she was comparing him to Jeremy.

His eyes lingered over to Anna for a moment, catching the little boy pulling the ring from her finger. His brows furrowed in confusion - now why in the world would a toddler have done that? He suddenly felt a little uneasy thinking of all the possible reasons behind the action, but he shrugged them off to acknowledge his old friend. She hadn't changed since he last saw her, but he couldn't remember when that had been anyway. She was still the same tiny, feisty comrade he had known those years ago.

He looked back at Anna again.

Jeremy just couldn't stop watching the woman. It was as though he knew her, or knew something about her, but for some reason couldn't remember. It killed him, and he found himself growing frustrated with each passing moment. Had he even introduced himself? He waited for Pepper to say something, a thousand thoughts swirling in his mind like violent winds.

"Ow," Pepper said stupidly as he hugged her. She took a step away to give them space. "Sorry to bud in, I just can't believe you're here. I havn't seen anyone since..." She trailed off and patted her side. It occurred to her that she must introduce her to the other girl standing with Jeremy. "Sorry, I'm Pepper. I used to work with the military but was pulled out for a battle wound five years ago." She smiled, eyes floating back to Jeremy momentarily. Finally someone she could relate to. Finally someone she knew.

"That's right," Jeremy replied, suddenly recalling the incident. "How have you been since then?"

He looked pleadingly at Anna, as if asking permission to sit, following Pepper regardless. His smile seemed to become awkward when he was around Anna, and it started to bother him. He looked back at James, the warmth returning to his features as he watched him picking at Anna's salad and enjoying his pancakes.

"Sorry, this is my comrade," Jeremy said to Anna, grinning. "We fought in the war together. Girl sure knows how to hold her own!"

He playfully nudged her in the shoulder, careful to watch her tiny frame. She looked so fragile, and he knew that she wasn't. Jeremy returned his focus to Anna, feeling his cheeks burning with flush. Boy, he was acting strange today.

"I'm Jeremy, by the way. It's nice to meet you, Anna."

She nodded towards the girl. So that proved it. He would have known her in the military. She didn't want to act stupidly so she stood up. "Well I'm Anna. Nice to meet you. This is James, my sister's son." She figured everyone thought he was her son. He seemed like he should be her son instead of her sister's.

She looked over at Jeremy and took a step towards him but left enough room so she could also see the girl so it didn't appear that she was being rude. "Is that really you?" She wanted it to be him. She wanted him to have come back and to be with her again. She didn't want to have to marry that prince. He might be nice and all but she wanted Jeremy back.

Te prince had known who Jeremy was and had often described him as brave, caring, and would do anything to help anyone out. She had often talked about him in the beginning but as she realized that he wasn't coming back she talked less and less about him until she said nothing about him and only thought about him.

So Pepper HAD intruded on something. She could see the tint of red in Jeremy's face almost immediatly. When he nudged her she grinned. "I'm supposed to go back this summer. I'm almost fully recovered." She once again patted her side. It tingled every now and then, reminding her it was still there. Patting it was her only relief. Her eyes floated around the group before falling on Anna. She didn't say any more, just waved for a water to grab her some water. She was known well around these parts.

He watched Anna curiously, having heard her strange question. He couldn't even answer Pepper as he pondered the oddity of it.

"Is it really me?" he repeated awkwardly. "Well, yeah... I'm Jeremy Hawke. Have we met before?"

His heart started beating oddly again, and his hands began to tremble as he extended it to shake hers. His baby blue eyes looked over to the oblivious child, as if seeking comfort in the only thing he knew how to do: protect. Then he looked back at Pepper, who wasn't listening anymore.

"Your sister's son?"

He couldn't help but chuckle to himself. But that still didn't explain why the kid had pulled the ring off her finger.

Pepper raised an eyebrow. The waiter brought her the water quickly and as he left he saluted with a smile. She grinned and took a thirsty sip from the glass. Then she re-focused herself on the conversation. "If you don't mind me asking, are you two here on a date?" She wasn't trying to be rude and she hopefully didn't sound it either. It was just human curiosity.

"Anna Montgomery..." She waited to see if he would recognize her name. She was surprised that he didn't remember her. She hadn't change that much in the past five years. She wondered if he had purposely forgotten her. After what they had shared all those years ago she would have never forgotten him no matter how hard she tried.

She looked over at Pepper and smiled. She seemed nice. She wondered if he was going to go back. She just wanted him to stay here so they could catch up and get to know each other again. She wished he had come back earlier or had at least send a letter every now and then so she knew he was still alive.

She glanced at James who was spinning her ring on the table. She wanted to see what was going on with Jeremy and see if they could start a relationship before saying that she didn't want to marry Jason. Cause if anything at least she and Jason would have a chance of being happy if Jeremy didn't want anything to do with her.

His heart stopped beating for several seconds, and his flush disappeared to turn ice cold. He appeared almost frightened as he looked over to Pepper and slowly shook his head, his lip twitching in a weird smile. He tried hard to recall this woman, and it seemed after a several seconds had passed he could remember a few moments they had shared - talk of children - before he left for war.

Anna Montgomery.

"Anna Montgomery..." his words came out shakily as he finally collected his memories and pieced them together. "Oh my God."

He didn't know if he should hug her, especially after pondering what he thought was their past relationship. But he fought himself and did it anyway, nearly knocking over the table as he wrapped her in his strong arms and breathed in her familiar scent. He hadn't seen her in so long... but when he caught sight of the ring, his heart seemed to drop. She was engaged to someone else.

Pepper took an alarmed step backwards as Jeremy hugged Anna. Now her confusion was more evident on her face. Hadn't he just said that they weren't on a date? Then why were they hugging? They could be old friends, she told herself. Yes, that was it. She side-stepped out of the way and sat down next to James.

She smiled when he seemed to remember. She hugged him back and smiled. She was so glad that he remembered and that he was happy to see her. She wondered how long they would have gone on without knowing each other if Pepper hadn't come in. She looked over at the girl.

She felt his sadness when he put her down. She looked at the ring that James was still spinning. She looked into his eyes. "I still have a chance to say no." She looked over at James who had put down the ring and was now watching the two of them. Sometimes she wondered how he could just sit there and not feel left out. He never craved for attention. It was as if he liked just watching others.

(Sorry Short.)

Jane walked into the cafe and saw two people hugging. How sweet, lovers most likely. While looking, she ran into a man that was carrying an order.
"Filthy scum! Watch where you're going! Wait, now that I think about it...you're a woman. You should be cleaning this up!" He yelled at her.
She laughed. "If you think that being a woman makes me your servant that you are entirely wrong!"
"Stupid..." The man raised his hand but before he could do anything, she kneed him in the groin.
"I would appreciate you cleaning that mess up." She said through clenched teeth as he rolled on the floor.

He swallowed a hard lump in his throat. His sadness was quickly becoming irritation; she had moved on to someone else it seemed, but now that he was back she would accept him? It came across as a little unfair, and he tried his best to mask his nerves, only to fail miserably. The wrinkle in his forehead increased in depth as he frowned at Anna.

"That wouldn't be right," he said, his heart breaking. "You're his... fiancee."

That last phrase hurt him more than any bullet wound he had ever endured in the rage of war, knowing that she was once his own. His eyes traveled to Pepper, seated quietly by the child. He was tempted to leave and ask her to follow him to the bar, but he wasn't a man to run away either. He knew Anna couldn't chase him to a bar with the kid.

"I- uh... I..."

His sentence was cut short by the obnoxious commotion at the side. Knowing Jeremy, he would have ran to help the woman, but she seemed to be handling herself just fine. He looked back at Anna, mustering all the courage he could.

"I'm sorry I stopped writing."

Pepper's impassive face grew amused. She stood up and approached the girl who had just entered. She stopped beside the waiter and picked him up easily. Her strength was amazing, though it hurt from her injury. "Go back to work," she ordered gently. He nodded in thanks as she handed him his belongings and at that he limped away. "Nice entrance," she added to the girl.