Chapter One
Vietnam. Not a place that Lieutenant Dan Taylor would have visited normally, but, seeing as it was his duty, his destiny to be a part of this war he was just going to have to put up with it. It wasn't that bad of a place; his platoon seemed to be in pretty high spirits, even with a war hanging over their heads. Music was playing in the background; some of his men were playing a game of football. The smell of steak was filling his nostrils, and a small smile came to Dan's face.
"Yo, Lieutenant Dan, you want a steak?"
Dan turned around and looked at the young man cooking up said steaks. He remembered this man coming in for the first time. That had been about six months ago. This kid, no more than nineteen had been a blubbering mess. That was until Dan sat him down and talked to him, asked him why he'd come here in the first place. Drafted, he said. Kids name was Miles Darwin, but they usually called him 'Kid' as he was the youngest one here.
"Yeah, sure kid. You got one on there that's well done?" He asked.
"Anything for you, Lieutenant. It'll take about five more minutes." He grinned.
Dan clapped him on the back and walked on, checking up on his men. The most important thing was to make sure they were happy when they weren't working, and that he had a good relationship with them. They didn't need someone to coddle them, no, but they didn't need some hard-assed Marine type with a stick up his ass. No, they were the Army; they were better than the Marines. And his platoon was going to win this war once and for all.
*
"Get out of here God Damn it! Go, run!" Dan shouted at his men.
Forrest Gump was beside him, helmet gone and dumb look on his face. Dan growled and grabbed his vest.
"Run you idiot! Run!" He yelled, giving him a push.
His heart was hammering in his chest, and he was scared. But if he was going to die in the field, then he was going to do so with honor, not crying for his Mother like some half-assed Marine. With a final deep breath, Dan pushed himself off of the ground and started running. He was half way through the thickening trees and bushes, and he thought he was in the clear. Not quite, it seemed. One minute he was running, the next he was on the ground, pain shooting through his legs. To his right was Miles, the kid. Dead. Dan grit his teeth. He was just a fucking kid!
Reaching over, he grabbed the pack off the kids back, and called in for backup. IF he was going to die, then so were those assholes that had attacked his platoon and killed three quarters of them. Nuke the fuckers. That was the plan.
*
He would have been more than happy to have died in the field. But no. That damn idiot Forrest Gump just had to have gone and saved his life. And what was worse? He'd gotten himself a bed right next to his good ole pal. He would have been fine if those sons of bitches called Doctors hadn't cut off his legs. Bastards. Depressed wasn't even the half of it.
After about the seventh day being housed up in the hospital, and after having his little 'talk' with Forrest, Lieutenant Dan had been set up in a bed, watching on and off as Gump played ping pong… all by his lonesome.
"You're not that bad at this, Gump." He muttered.
Forrest grabbed the ball mid-air and put it down on the table, turning to look at his Lieutenant. This was the first time he'd spoken to him in three days!
"Thank you, Lieutenant Dan. Would you like to play with me?" He asked.
"No. You go on… I'll just watch." He smiled falsely.
Two days after that he'd been sent home… as a cripple, a legless freak.
*
"Daniel Taylor?"
Lieutenant Dan look sighed, annoyed. He had been moved to a vet hospital near his birthplace, and he'd been getting visits from different physiotherapists every damn day. Could have been because not one of them could put up with his attitude. They were mostly young men, who'd never seen a day of war. Momma's boys, that's what Dan referred to them as. But this one… well, she was no man that was for sure. His eyes ran over her, taking in her appearance. She had long, Auburn hair that was pulled back into a ponytail. Her eyes were a soft blue, framed by well cared for eyebrows. High cheekbones and a slender jaw line made her one of the most gorgeous gals he'd seen in a long time. Her slim frame put her at five foot six, but the white nurses gown she wore made her long legs look even longer.
When his eyes reached her face again, he could se the amused smile she was fighting hard against.
"You can call me Dan if you want. Most people do." He nodded.
She walked into his room and sat on the chair by his bed.
"Well, Dan it is then. My name is Eileen McDermott, and I'm going to help you to get back on your- um…" She paused.
"It's okay, you can say it. You're gonna help me get back on my feet. 'Cept I don't seem to have those anymore, do I?" He snarked.
Eileen's cheeks colored mildly and she ducked her head.
"I'm sorry, Dan. But, I do plan on helping you any way I can. You'll still have to exercise, keep your legs healthy. And we'll get you set up with a wheelchair until you're ready to be fitted for prosthetics." She explained.
Dan rolled his eyes.
"Look, that all sounds fine and dandy, but I'm fine by myself. I don't need your help, and I don't need your pity." He explained.
"With all due respect, Mr. Taylor you're not going to get rid of me that easily. I'll be coming to see you every day for an hour, helping you learn how to cope on your own whether you like it or not. I'm not like any other physiotherapist you've had or you'll ever have. I'm not going to spoon feed you; I don't think you'd put up with it if I tried." She said haughtily.
And, for the first time since that fateful day, Lieutenant Dan smiled a true smile.
"What a relief."
"Oh. I, I thought you were going to fight me more." She said, shocked.
Dan smiled.
"I'm not a complete hard ass. I can be nice, and I know when to back down."
Eileen smiled and nodded. She had read the Lieutenant's file, given to her by her boss. He had warned her that he would be a hard man to get along with, but when she looked into his eyes, she knew that wasn't going to be the case. He just needed someone who would treat him like a regular person. And she intended on being that person.
*
True to her word, Eileen was in every day with Dan, helping him learn how to get from his bed to the wheelchair, how to maneuver around things in his wheelchair, among other things. So far they hadn't had to deal with how he was going to use the bathroom without pissing in a pan.
A knock on his door tore Dan away from his solitaire game, and he smiled up when Eileen came in.
"Hi Dan. How are you doing today?" She asked.
"I'm doing good, Eileen. How are you?" He asked.
"Oh, fine thank you. I have a feeling though, that you're not going to feel so happy with me at the end of this week." She said, sitting on the chair.
"Oh? Why's that?" He asked.
"I think you know why." She said.
Dan sighed, feeling a blush starting to rise out from beneath the collar of his shirt.
"Isn't there someone else who can help me with that stuff? A man, maybe?" He asked.
Eileen sighed and moved to sit on the edge of his bed.
"Dan, there's nothing to be embarrassed about. These are things that you have to know how to do, especially on your own. God forbid if you were by yourself and you fell, or hurt yourself… I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I knew that you had gotten hurt." He admitted.
Dan smiled at Eileen, and shook his head.
"I won't have to take anything off, will I?" He asked.
"No, you can keep everything on. So how about it? Let's give this a go." She grinned.
Dan sighed, but nodded. They'd give this a go, as she said. Eileen stepped back and waited until Dan had moved himself into his wheelchair before going into the bathroom attached to his room. Dan looked up at her, as if to say 'now what?'
"When you move into, wherever you're going to bed, you'll have to make sure that there will be a handle or something near everything, so you can help yourself move. The bathtub is going to be the easy part." She said.
"Yeah, the toilet's gonna give me hell." He muttered.
Eileen smiled at him, and he smiled back. As embarrassing as this whole situation was, Dan felt a lot better knowing that Eileen was honestly trying to help him, and not just make him feel retarded.
~T.B.C.~