Someone To Watch Over Me
Chapter 1: Something Goes Wrong
It was a typical day at the 4077th MASH unit, just a few miles from the front of the Korean War. There had been several strong offensives in as many days so the unit had been loaded with casualties. The heavy workload had taken an exhausting toll on the staff, so they were extremely relieved when they finished operating on the latest wave of wounded soldiers and were finally getting a well deserved break.
"I feel like I could sleep for a week." Hawkeye Pierce declared tiredly as he stumbled into the Swamp and flopped onto his cot.
"Don't I know it. We've been operating for 36 hours straight. I don't know about you, but I could use a drink. You want one, too." BJ Hunnicutt said as he poured two drinks from the still, handing one to Hawkeye, before sinking wearily into a chair between the two cots.
"Maybe a drink will help settle my nerves so I can sleep better. Thanks, Beej."
"Sure."
As the two sat drinking together and trying to unwind after such a long OR session, they talked about pleasant things and happier times. After a time, BJ realized that his bunkmate had gone quiet. Glancing up from the martini glass in his hand, he couldn't help but smile as he noticed that a drink was all it took for Hawkeye to succumb to his exhaustion and the other man had fallen asleep, mumbling softly. BJ stood up and crossed to his friend's cot and covered him lightly with the blanket. Then he picked up the glass that was teetering precariously in Hawkeye's limp fingers and placed it on the table next to the still. Once he made sure Hawkeye was settled, BJ could no longer fight back his own exhaustion and he collapsed onto his own cot, dropping into his own sound sleep as soon as his head hit his pillow.
At about 8:15 the next morning, the whirring sound of chopper blades in the distance pierced the quiet and rudely awakened the surgeons and nurses from the peaceful respite of their slumber and brought them all stumbling out of their tents and into the compound to start another grueling day.
"Okay, give this man a quarter grain of morphine and get him into pre op. I'll take him first in OR." Hawkeye said as the nurse and two corpsmen he had addressed carried the wounded soldier off of the compound and into the pre op unit.
"Let's keep an eye out, people. Radar got a call on the radio this morning that MPs have spotted sniper activity in the area. Make sure you keep your eyes open." Colonel Sherman Potter shouted from where he knelt on the ground taking care of another wounded soldier who had been brought in with the latest round.
"Okay, let's get him inside." BJ said, noticing that there was only one corpsman in the vicinity of where he was working. "Can I get some help over here."
"On my way, BJ." Father Mulcahy called as BJ rushed past him on his way to tend to another patient.
It was then that the sound of sniper fire rang through the compound, causing everyone to rush for cover. The top priority on their minds was making sure that the wounded soldiers remaining in the compound got to safety.
"Let's get the rest of these people into pre op right now! We'll finish checking them inside." Colonel Potter yelled as he grabbed the end of a stretcher and moved toward the safety of the building.
"I need some help over here."
As everyone rushed around him getting wounded to safety, Father Mulcahy rushed forward to assist the corpsman who had cried out for assistance. Just as he was bending over to pick up the end of the stretcher, however, the sound of a gunshot rang through the air yet again and things seemed to move in slow motion as Mulcahy dropped the end of the stretcher that he had been holding and collapsed slowly to the ground.