A Day Best Forgotten
By: AliasCWN
Tully Pettigrew was having a bad day. It started when he went to pick up his mail. The package from home that he had been expecting finally came. But the box was all torn up and taped. When he opened it, the box of cookies was empty except for a few crumbs that someone must have picked up off the ground because they were mixed with dirt. He found an envelope inside but the letter that was supposed to be in it was nowhere to be found. The socks his mom had knitted for him were cut and the yarn was coming unraveled. His dad had sent him a picture but someone had spilled something all over it. He could barely make out what it was supposed to be. Leaving the package on his bed, he went for breakfast.
As he stood in the waiting line for his breakfast, a private fresh from the states got into an argument with someone about the proper way to deal with the heat. The shouting was giving Tully a headache. He was about to settle the disagreement his way when the shoving match started. And wouldn't you know, a tray of food went flying through the air and Tully ended up wearing most of it. The argument moved outside after that since no one wanted to argue with Tully.
Breakfast was cold by the time he got to the selections, the ones that were left, that is. Half of the food was already gone and the cooks weren't planning on making any more until lunch. He had to sit crowded between two big guys who ate with their mouths open and chewed like the cows at home on the farm. And that got him thinking about home again and the disappointing package.
Still hungry but not willing to stand in line for anymore of the cold, unappetizing food, he headed back to his tent.
He was walking past some tents when one of the occupants threw out his basin of shaving water. He apologized to Tully, who was soaked to the skin, before ducking back into his tent to hide. All Tully could do was wipe his face on his sleeve and keep walking.
Deciding to get cleaned up and change, he gathered his things and headed for the shower. Again, he had to wait in a long line. There were only a few more guys in front of him when a captain banged on an empty barrel to get everyone's attention. He promptly announced that the showers were out of water and the truck bringing more was broke down. They didn't expect the showers to reopen until after lunch. Tully trudged back to his tent feeling more depressed than before.
Thinking that hanging out with his friends might help , he went in search of them. He walked from one end of the camp to the other and back again. He didn't see any of them. After making the rounds again, he finally spotted someone he thought might know where they were. He stopped a friend of Troys' and ask if he had seen any of them. Unfortunately, he was told that Troy and Hitch had been sent on an errand for the Colonel and the guy didn't know when they'd be back. Moffitt, he was told, had been called to headquarters and no one had seen him since.
Not knowing what else to do, Tully decided to head to the tavern for some company. He walked across the base to the tavern in the blazing heat thinking about the cold beer he was going to drink. When he walked in he was disappointed that the place was almost empty and there was not one person there that he knew. He nodded at some of the soldiers at the tables but they all stared without returning the greeting or they ignored him altogether. Finding a seat at the bar, he ordered a cold beer. The one he got was room temperature, and it was warm in there. It tasted so bad he had to force himself to drink all of it. He only ordered the one drink before he decided that this had been a bad idea. Pushing the empty bottle away, he climbed to this feet and made his way back to his tent.
A glance at his watch showed him the time to be after lunch. Thinking he might be able to get that shower now, he headed in that direction. When he got there it looked like half the camp had had the same idea. The line was even longer than it had been the first time. With a disgusted snort he returned to his tent.
Since breakfast had been less than satisfying, he decided to get lunch. With half the camp waiting for a shower the line at the mess tent would probably be a short one. Wrong! Apparently the other half of the camp was lined up for lunch. He had to stand in line for half an hour to even get close enough to see the food.
Two soldiers in front of him started a friendly argument, but, one look from Tully ended it quickly. He noticed that everyone was giving him a wide berth when they walked past. After finally getting his meal he had to take it outside to eat because there were no seats left in the mess tent. Deciding it was just as well, he wasn't in the mood for small talk anyway, he went in search of a seat in the shade. Even after he finished his meal he was having a hard time figuring out what he ate. He decided it was some kind of cardboard in a salty gravy with warm coffee grounds on the side. Filling but not too tasty.
Another trip to his tent found it still empty. It looked like Hitch and Troy hadn't made it back yet. Trying to think of something to do, Tully decided to take a walk and see if the motor pool had finished the work on the transmission of his jeep. It wasn't where he'd left it so he expected them to have at least started it. When he ask, they didn't even know where it was! According to the corporal he talked with, they didn't have any work order for his jeep either. If he wanted them to work on it he'd have to get them a work order telling them what needed to be done. Grinding his teeth at the muddled affairs of the army, he headed out to find someone who could authorize the work. At least that kept him busy for a while so he didn't miss his friends so much. With the work order authorized and in the hands of the corporal at the motor pool, he again found himself at a loss as to what to do.
Deciding that a nap might fill in some of the time, he once again returned to his tent. Leaving the flap open to let in the little bit of breeze there was, he stretched out and fell asleep.
A tap on his foot woke him. He opened his eyes a crack to see Hitch, Moffitt and Troy standing by his bed.
"Hey Tully, get up. What are you trying to do, sleep the whole day away?" Hitch pushed his legs to the side and sat next to Tully on the bed. "We're bored, and we had a real bummer of a day. Do you want to go out and do something?"
Tully smiled up at his friends, tempted to tell them about his day. All three of them were looking at him expectantly. Rolling his eyes, Tully pushed Hitch off the bed onto the ground.
"Sure. I've got nothing better to do. What do you have in mind?"