The Wilmington morning star., 1947-12-27
(SU1l'GtHL@I|]n-g{YmO0n
,:. K: e: .::: %s::: GEORGIA CRAIG

Il1111, Can just barely endure
it,"
Cathy said quietly, "This hap
pened so suddenly, Elaine. May
be it isn't real"
"That happened very sudden
ly in Cypressville, too, Cathy,"
Elaine stated. "Can you doubt
that was real?"
mo, of course not, only I al
ways felt that love was some
thing that required a lot of -
well, cultivation - in order to
grow strong and real"
Like you and Bill?" Elaine
asked quietly. "Wel' 80 danger
about that is that sometimes it
stops growing and sort of fades,
don't you think? Like - we'll.
like rose that grows and
blooms and reaches it's peak of
beauty onlv If YOU don't gather
it, the first thing you know. it's
full-blown and then shattered.
That sometimes happens, too,
Cathy-or did you know"
Cathy stood quite still. her
head up, her eyes closed. And
then she nodded and said faint
ly, eyes, Elaine. I guess l knew
that, too"
Elaine said after a moment,
BILLS a good egg, Cathy. I
hope you're not going to over
look that little point"
Cathy's mouth frightened as
she bent to thrust her stockinged
feet into the low-heeled white
nurses slippers that completed
her uniform.
"a very good egg, and I'm
net going to overlook the point
she said grimly, and stood up.
"Shall we get started?"
At the door, Elaine put a swift
hand on Cathy's arm and held
her back for a moment, her
eyes anxious and pleading.
"Cathy, you aren't going to
tell Mark about what crazy
things I said?"
''I'm not going to tell Mark
anything at all, Elaine. Marks
quite able to handle his own af-
fairs without help from me.
Furthermore, I think it's very
foolish for any innocent by
stander to try to interfere in
anybody's affairs of the heart"
"You despise me, don't you?"
said Elaine huskily.
Don't be nitwit. I don't de-
spise anybody-un]ess it's Cathy
Layne," answered Cathy, and
went out of the room and down
the stairs.
Bill was waiting at the foot
of the stairs, his hat in his hand
and when Elaine and Cathy
looked at his hat, Bill said de-
fensively. "After all, I do have
a slight interest in what's hap
pened at Cypressville. It's just
barely possible I might be able
to offer some slight assistance,
so naturally I'm going. too"
The two girls led the way out
of the house, and Bill slipped
beneath the steering wheel of
the station wagon as they got
into the seat beside him.
They drove in silence into
town. At the hospital, as Cathy
g t out of tn car, Bill whisper
ed, Remember, Cathy, nothing
is settled"
"I'm afraid it is, Bill
Nothing of the kind - but
We'll postpone more discussion
until better time" He
watched as Cathy went swiftly
up the steps, through crowds of
anxious relatives, who gave way
almost humbly against the elo-
quent if silent authority of her
crisp uniform.
Bill and Elaine, watching her.
saw her shoulders 90 back and
her head 60 up as she walked
through the hospital door. Anc
each of them sensed that the
moment she stepped into the
she ceased to be just
Cathy Layne, the girl Bill loved,
and became instead a nurse on
duty, forgetting everything save
the job ahead, her heart and
her mind and her hands too
busy with her task to have time
or thought for her own personal
problems.
Vaguely Cathy heard the
sound of the car driving away;
and then she was presenting
herself to the harassed girl at
the reception desk, and a mo-
ment later to a haggard, red
eyed doctor who almost wept.
at her announcement that s h e
was ready for duty. The hospi-
tai had been understaffed to be-
gin with, and the disaster had
overloaded it's facilities to th e
breaking point. Doctors and
nurses had been on duty for
more than twenty-four arduouS
hours, and the sight of skilled
competent nurse, fresh and ca
ger for any duty that awaited
1er, was heartening to all of
them.
The hospital was filled to
more than capacity. There was
no longer such a thing as a pri-
vate room, for beds had beer
moved into each cte them an d