HONOLULU -- A Schofield Barracks soldier was killed Tuesday in Baghdad.

Spc. William L. McMillan III, 22, of Lexington, Ky., was on patrol when an improvised explosive device hit his group.

He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, and 25th Infantry Division at Schofield Barracks.

"I just miss him so much. He was the light of everybody's life," Sgt. Brandi Sohn said.

Tears swelled in Sohn's eyes as she remembered her best friend.

"The thing was he was this mister tough guy on the outside, but when you really got to know him he was just a big teddy bear that would do anything for anyone," Sohn said.

The two met while stationed at Schofield Barracks. She was his supervisor, but a friendship quickly formed.

He was an Army medic.

He spoke with his wife, Elizabeth, just hours before he was killed.

"He told me that he loved me, and I told him that I loved him too and that I missed him like always," Elizabeth McMillen said.

The two planned to move home to Kentucky and start a family together.

"He was a baby; he was only 22 years old. I know that everything happens for a reason, but I can't figure this one out yet," Elizabeth McMillen said.

Sohn remembers telling her friend goodbye when he left for war.

"I gave him a hug and told him I would miss him and told him to stay safe, but you never, you know, think it's going to be last time you talk to somebody," she said.