I'd Give Up The World For You

Daisy was a bit surprised by Conrad's analysis of his friend. She knew Leo had the tendency to be serious but he was so lighthearted around her most of the time that she hadn't realized he was still that way with other people by default.

Weren't those two close though? He was one of the few people who had been mentioned by name in Leo's letters and they had gone on a hunting trip together for crying out loud!

Though it was entirely possible Leo had gone solely at Conrad's request. That seemed like the sort of thing he would do. He was the kind of person who would go out of his way to do something for someone he cared about.

"Is he really that serious around all of you?" Daisy asked curiously.

Conrad raised his eyebrows. "Are you kidding? Pretty much the only times I've ever seen him smile are when he's talking about you or just got a letter!"

Despite herself, she nearly laughed. That seemed oddly in character for him. He had always been politely distant to the Krinzels as well even though they all worked together. Why had she expected anything different when he went off on his own?

He latched onto her because he had been able to trust her with some of his secrets. It was the same reason she preferred being around him than others. They were able to be themselves more.

Leo was a major, which was no small feat at his age. He had a lot of responsibility since way back when he was promoted to captain without warning in the middle of a war.

Based on the way they were all treating him, his former men respected him very much. Which meant he had to have been the sort of leader who took good care of his underlings. He always had to be responsible for their safety and well-being so he hadn't been able to get close to any of them. And that was without factoring his secrets into the equation!

He did seem to trust Conrad in some capacity though. Maybe that was because he had been his lieutenant and had been able to rely on him before his promotion. That would explain why there was a bit less of a wall between those two.

Poor Leo. He worked so hard but couldn't get close to anyone because of the nature of his job. After all this time he still only had her to be himself around.

The young man she knew was serious and responsible but he was also sweet, a bit silly, and loved to laugh. It was a pity he didn't show that side of himself to anyone else but she could understand why he didn't. The military was a serious place that would bring out the more dominant side of his personality full force.

Daisy had worried the war would change him but after continuing to write him he acted much the way he always did. But it seemed that was reserved solely for her. It had changed him after all.

"You'll take care of him for me, won't you, Mrs. May?" Conrad asked with concern in his eyes.

She hadn't realized she had been lost in her own thoughts for so long and thought it was sweet that he cared so much. Leo had really lucked out finding a friend like him. She didn't have anyone like that aside from her new husband.

Daisy smiled. "Of course I will. A long time ago I told him I'd have his back no matter what and I meant it. He's my best friend."

Conrad seemed relieved. "Good. He needs you more than you know."

What a strange thing to say to your friend's brand new wife. He had been through a lot with Leo…he must have seen ways the war changed him that she hadn't. Suddenly she found herself wishing all of these people were gone so she could give him a big hug.

It seemed her husband was tired of all the attention because he shooed all of the soldiers he knew away and told them to get back to work since they had only taken a half day off. Nia and Miette left too with another round of congratulations for the "happy couple" and Daisy found herself alone with Leo.

He sighed and flopped onto the couch with an arm over his eyes. "Those guys are so tiring."

She couldn't help but laugh as she sat next to him and patted his head. "Well, they're gone now. You can relax for the rest of the day."

"But I'll have to endure their ribbing again tomorrow if I run into them. I may have to barricade myself inside my office to avoid well wishes from nosy people but I doubt that will keep them all away."

"Hang in there."

Daisy was exhausted too but more from the emotional upheaval of the day than having to deal with so many people crowding her. She had fully intended to hide away in her room to process everything but now that they were alone together she didn't want to do that.

She was still thinking about her earlier conversation with Conrad. It must have been even more lonely for him to be struggling with all of that responsibility and memories from the war—he had lost a lot of comrades—without being able to talk to anyone about it even more than she had been. Having to be strong for everyone else was a hard thing to do.

She didn't want to bring up an uncomfortable topic for him on their wedding day but she did wish there was more she could do to help him. When he asked her to marry him he said she was 'the only thing in this cruel and miserable world that makes me happy.' A rather pessimistic view of life in general but considering he had lost his whole family and participated in the horrors of war before he was sixteen it made sense.

Leo had said he needed her. Then Conrad said he needed her more than she knew. What was she supposed to do about that?

He was willing to be unselfish and let things remain as they had been even though he wanted more solely to keep her by his side because he needed whatever happiness she was able to bring him. He might be struggling with things more than he let on.

Daisy's heart ached for him. She wasn't sure what she could do to help. He knew she wasn't in love with him and she had to be true to herself. She couldn't pretend. It wouldn't be fair to either of them.

Would she have fallen in love with Leo if she had met him back in her world and they were around the same age? Without the age barrier giving her that mental block there was a good chance she would have. He was kind, funny, understanding, and willing to do silly things with her on a whim. No one else in her life had ever been like that.

Daisy sighed and leaned her head against the back of the couch too. It was a moot point because she hadn't met him as a man. She had met him as a boy.

Even now he was only nineteen. That was barely considered a legal adult in her world. He wasn't old enough to drink alcohol! He might have old, world-weary eyes that had seen too much but he was still a kid.

She couldn't love him the way a woman loves a man but she would do anything else for him. If he was having a hard time she wanted to help. But would he let her? Or simply tell her some iteration of 'just be yourself' that wouldn't actually make a difference?

Leo was an incredibly private person but everyone had to have someone they could rely on. It wasn't good to keep things too close to your chest. She might not be able to understand everything he had been through but she could at least try to support him, couldn't she? Anything would be better than nothing.

"Leo, is anything stressing you out lately?" Daisy asked hesitantly.

He removed his arm and looked at her with a furrowed brow. "Why do you ask?"

So something was bothering him. He wouldn't be so evasive if the answer was no. She scooted closer to him to initiate better eye contact. It would be harder for him to lie to her that way.

"I worry about you. You never tell me what's going on with you. I'd like to help though so can you tell me?"

"A lot of what I deal with is confidential," Leo hedged. "What I'm worried about is work-related. You don't need to worry about that stuff anyway. All I need from you is your presence. Your being here helps me a lot already."

Daisy pouted. She had expected an answer like that from him. She hadn't considered the confidential part of the equation though. He was a major; it made sense he would have high security clearance.

"Come on, Leo! You need to give me more to work with than that!"

"Like what?" he asked in confusion.

"Tell me something specific I can do to help you. You might not be able to tell me what's going on but at the very least you can do that much!"