The warm glow of the bar offered a comforting contrast to the harsh memories of Normandy. Eugene Roe, freshly returned from the front lines, sat at a corner table nursing a drink, trying to unwind and adjust to the relative calm of civilian life. The clink of glasses and murmur of conversation created a backdrop of normalcy he was desperately trying to embrace.

His gaze wandered around the room, landing on a woman sitting alone at the bar. She was absorbed in a book, her presence calm and unassuming, a stark contrast to the chaos Roe had known. Despite his attempts to relax, he found himself drawn to her.

Roe shifted nervously in his seat, the familiar pang of shyness surfacing after so long. He took a deep breath, trying to steady his nerves. “Hey,” he said, rising and approaching her with a tentative smile. “Mind if I join you?”