Ben = Fox
Lewis = Wolf
Chris = Eagle
Sam = Snake
New Year's Eve and K unit have the week off.
The flat they live in has many decorations hung up, mainly by Chris, who got a bit over excited. They had all invited a few old friends over that night for a small party. Lewis had brought plenty of food and was setting it out on the table in the kitchen. There was all the standard party food including, sandwiches, cakes, sausage rolls and biscuits. Ben was tidying up, and was having trouble working out how to use the Hoover; it was something they didn't use often.
"Sam, any idea how to turn the Hoover on?" Ben asked.
"Hmmm, I think it's this button." He pressed it and the Hoover sprang into life.
"Thanks!" Ben shouted over the noise.
Sam went back to the computer where he was picking some music for the night.
It was nearly noon. They still had a lot of tidying up to do, food to prepare, music to find and according to Chris more decorations to put up.
"Hey, Chris, I think that's enough decorations." Lewis announced.
"Awww!" It was like talking to a little kid the way you spoke to Chris.
Sam had finished making his CD and came to join the rest of the Unit in the lounge area. Ben had finished hoovering and was sat on the blue sofa, watching the football.
"What drinks do we have for tonight?" Lewis asked, grabbing the buttons off of Ben and changing the channel so the Rugby final was on.
"Loads." Chris replied. "Anyone for a beer?"
"No thanks, it's only lunch time. We don't want to be drunk before the party." Sam instructed. He was always looking out for his team mates even when they weren't on active service.
Later...
The door bell rang and it was Ben's guest who came first, it was an old friend he used to know in secondary school and they had kept in touch since. Harry Thompson was short and muscular. He had joined the Parachute regiment in the British Army when he was nineteen and he had the week off as well.
"Hey, how you doing mate?" he asked cheerfully.
"Fine thanks, come in." Harry stepped inside, wiping his feet on the rough, brown doormat as he did so.
Ben led him into the lounge where all the others were waiting.
"This is Harry." Snake and Wolf nodded and Eagle held up a hand and waved.
"Hey."
"Sam, Lewis and Chris." He told Harry pointing.
The doorbell rang again.
"Hold on a second." Ben said.
He reached the door and opened it. Standing there was a beautiful, young woman; she was black and had long frizzy hair. Her eyes were deep chestnut brown and mesmerising.
"Lewis, I think this is for you!" He called through the flat. Wolf came jogging through the hall way and Ben tapped him on the shoulder on the way. Lewis glared at him with his gunmetal-grey eyes.
"Hi, Michelle." He embraced her and they kissed each other. Ben felt a little awkward.
"Hey, babe." Lewis took her to the lounge and introduced her to the others. They didn't realise Lewis had a girlfriend.
They sat and chatted for a while before there was a knock on the door. Once again Ben answered it.
A man was standing there. Oddly he thought he was looking at Sam with hazel-green eyes and fair hair.
"Hi, I'm Owen" He had a strong accent.
"Sam, there's a guy with the same accent as you standing at the door."
"Hey, don't be rude." Sam was coming through the hallway.
"Owen, glad you could come." He said. "Good drive down?"
"Yeah, not to bad."
"Well, how've you been then?"
"Good. Thanks got promoted to Sergeant Major in July. How have you been?"
"Well done. I have been fine thanks. Come through." Ben had gone back to the lounge.
"Everyone, this is my twin brother Owen."
"Hi," Lewis replied in shock, Michelle sat next to him on the sofa.
"Hey" said Eagle, whose guest had yet to come.
Sam and Owen sat on the sofa opposite Lewis and Michelle.
Finally the last guest arrived and Ben went to the door. It was a young looking woman, she had a pale complexion and straight blond hair which was long and tied back in a red hair bobble. She was tall and skinny. Her eyes were blue and electrical.
"Chris!" Ben shouted. Chris jumped up and ran to the door where his girlfriend was waiting.
"Hey Chris!" her voice was bubbly – just like Chris'.
"Hello, Sammy." He took hold of wrist and dragged her to the sitting area.
"My girlfriend, Samantha."
"You can call me Sam." She said.
"Well that's gonna be confusing." Sam said.
"Well then, you can be Samuel tonight." Chris said and the Unit laughed.
Now everyone was here the party could start.
It was getting on for seven and so Chris announced the food could be eaten and the drink was on the side. Chris had a bottle of beer in his hand already, as usual.
By eight, Chris had had four beers and a few shots of whiskey. Sam hadn't touched the drink and the rest of them had only had a beer or two.
"Chris, you better slow down buddy."
"Sam you ain't no fun, ever."
"He's right," Samantha told him. Chris huffed and turned up the music.
By eleven they were all partied out. The music was switched off and the food was tidied away.
They sat in the living room with Jules Holland on the TV doing his New Year Count Down.
"... and now with twenty seconds to go." Chris didn't listen to either Sam or his girlfriend and was on his sixth beer.
The count down started.
"10...9...8...7...6...5...4...3...2...1..." They all said in unison.
"HAPPY NEW YEAR!" Wolf and Michelle kissed each other.
No one had noticed Chris going to the bathroom. But the sudden silence in the lounge was when they heard the retching noise.
Sam went to investigate. Sure enough it was Chris.
"What did I say mate?"
"Don't drink too much!" he said coughing
"Yes. And...Well stick to water now."
"Sorry." He stood up and wiped his mouth on his sleeve before flushing the toilet. The two of them came out of the bathroom and joined the rest of the group.
"You OK?" Samantha asked.
"Yeah."
His head was starting to ache and he was beginning to feel tiered; he sat on the comfy, blue sofa to rest. Sam came over to check on him.
"You feel better now?" The Scot asked.
He opened his eyes. "Sort of."
"I'll take you to your bedroom."
"I can walk."
"Yeah, but it saves you from falling over."
"Fine whatever.
Everyone else was busy watching the Jules Holland show. They went out the door discretely.
Then it was so fast Sam had no time to react.
Chris fell and whacked his head against the floor and knocked himself out.
Sam knelt down and turned him over slowly. There was blood trickling from his forehead onto the beige hallway carpet.
"Chris, Chris? Can you hear me?"
Nothing.
He checked his pulse and made sure he was breathing. That was all fine.
"Lewis!" he called
"Yeah!"
"Come here a sec. We have a problem."
He came – only to see Chris lying on his back, eyes closed, and his face unusually pale.
"I'll call the ambulance; it'll be their first casualty this year." He joked. Sam glared at him.
"This is no laughing matter."
"Sorry." He picked up the phone and dialled 999.
"Hello."
What service would you like?
"Ambulance please."
Where do you live?
"7 Cashmere Court, on the second floor."
What's their name and how old are they?
"Chris Jones – 23."
What happened?
"Fallen over, he's bleeding from his head."
Is there anyone else there?
"Yeah, Sam is looking after him, he's an SAS medic."
Is he conscious?
"No."
Is he breathing?
"Yes."
You need to turn him on to his side. In the recovery position.
"Ok thanks,"
The ambulance will be there soon.
"Sam, turn him on his side." Sam did so and tilted his head back.
Samantha and Ben came to see what all the commotion was about.
"Chris...?" Samantha went towards the man on the floor. Ben following not far behind.
"Stay there Sam, he's fine, the ambulance will be here in a minute."
Sirens could be heard outside. Ben edged passed Sam and went to the front door to wait for the paramedics. They came quickly enough, with their fluorescent jackets and big medic bags.
"Over there." Ben instructed pointing to the casualty.
"Hello, I'm Cassie, I'm going to help you." She bent down and turned her attention to Sam.
"Was he drunk?"
"Yes," He replied. "I was taking him to his room and he fell over, it was too quick I didn't have chance to catch him and then he hit his head against he floor."
"OK... Aiden, could you bring the bed in here."
The hallway was crowed with people and it was too much for the paramedics.
"Can some of you move out the way please there are too many people."
Michelle, Owen, Ben and Samantha moved themselves into the lounge. While Sam, Ben and Lewis stayed with Chris, who was being lifted up onto the bed.
"I'll go with him," Sam said. "Can someone get Samantha please?"
"Sam," Lewis said from the doorway. "Do you want to go with Chris to the hospital." She nodded and as she did a tear rolled down her face."
"He'll be fine." Lewis whispered as she went past him.
Chris was taken down the flat's stairs strapped to the bed, still unconscious.
They reached the ambulance. Sam offered Samantha his jacket as she was wearing a beautiful thin strapped purple dress.
They pushed the bed in and Sam and Samantha got in afterwards. They sat on the seats to the side. Samantha reached out a hand and took hold of Chris'. More tears flooded out her sapphire-blue eyes. Sam put a hand on her shoulder and she looked at him. Sam's eyes were hazel and green.
"He'll be fine, trust me." She nodded sadly and looked back at Chris. The siren whirred in the background and they came to a steady halt. The back doors were opened and the two paramedics hauled the bed out of the back and onto he solid tarmac. He was the wheeled into the hospital and more nurses gathered round Chris who was being closely followed by Sam and Samantha. They took him into a room that was labelled trauma. Transferring him onto another bed, they gave him some morphine and cleared the wound on his head.
Slowly he began to wake up. When he did, Samantha was right there at his side looking into his piercing green eyes.
"Samantha?" His voice was croaking but you could still hear his long distanced Italian accent.
"I'm here," she told him stroking his auburn-brown hair.
"What happened?"
"Sam said you drank too much and then on the way to your bedroom you fell over and smashed your head on the floor." Samantha burst into another flurry of tears.
"Hey, hey. Don't worry I'm fine now." Samantha sniffed and leant over to give him a hug.
The nurse came in with some water, but it wasn't just water. Salt had been added, so Chris could get rid of the excess alcohol.
"Thanks," He said unaware of the salt in the water.
He drank the whole lot quickly and didn't realise the salt until the last second. He heaved and was finally sick in the bowl the doctor had given him. The doctor took the bowl away and gave a piece of paper to Sam, who was sat on the other side of the bed. It was Chris' discharge papers. He could go home.
He slipped his clothes back on along with a fresh green t-shirt Sam had brought with him. They were going to be picked up by Lewis, who at three in the morning wasn't very happy. He had been happily sleeping his nice warm bed with Michelle. Then out of the blue the phone rang and he was asked to pick Sam, Chris and Samantha up from the hospital.
They returned to the flat and Lewis climbed back into his bed with Michelle who was still asleep. Chris and Samantha got into their bed and Samantha fell asleep almost immediately, while Chris stayed up, he just couldn't fall asleep. An hour later he was dreaming peacefully.