Sandra sat next to her father's bed. He was bed stricken for 2 weeks with a post stroke. He was a general of the Korean War. 4 stars on his helmet too.
Sandra was the natural enemy of anyone who hated the war and the idol of anyone who loved it. She was soft spoken with an hour glass figure and dark blonde hair. She herself hated the war. There was no winner or loser with a lot of casualties and riots. Not her life. Her mom had pretended to like it. A woman's libbers she was. With straight black short hair. Ideal for a general to love. Though she was divorce and never heard of again.
"Sandra. It is time to go back to Seoul where we can tell the other generals the news," said the colonel. He was in an army base. His commander was General Brandt. Whatever. Sandra got it all confused. And politics to go with it the ones who romanticized and put glory to war (most like her father) and those who saw it.
She stood up and walked out the door thanking the colonel for holding the door open and stepped outside the tent. A khaki jeep with a khaki person in khaki clothes was driving it. She sighed. It was going to be a long war.
The man was a corporal, a clerk for the colonel. He was also a MP. She swung her luggage on to the back of the jeep and sat in the backseat.
They were driving for sometime with the colonel blabbing about his achievements and victories with the corporal humming. The only woman started to yawn and fell asleep.
"So anyways there were 7 casualties and 10 men wounded and we were at the front. Being the highest rank officer I had to have a cool head. The Chinese were there and we fought and we fought…Sandra?"
Then there was a screech of tires and bullets in the air. The road was clear but in the bushes there were snipers.
"Sandra!" She woke up and a bullet hit her chest.
"Is there an MASH unit near by?" asked the higher rank officer.
"Yes sir the 4077th."
"Well what are you waiting for? Step on it."
She was bandaged up as best they could and stepped on the gas.
That was all she could remember.
They reached the MASH unit as she started to slip in and out of consciousness.
A short man in glasses swore as he saw her and called for a doctor to come. A way, way, way taller man came. He had black hair.
"It will be alright. Chest wounds are my specialty." He had a charming smile that lit his entire face.
Pain gripped her more than ever as they took the bandage off and examined it.
"What kind of blood are you? You have no dog tag," asked one of the nurses.
"A, positive," croaked Sandra. She hissed and then swore worse than a sailor.
The next she new she was under a green blanket in a room full of other sick people. The same doctor was checking her stats on the green clipboard. The dirty blonde closed her eyes tight from pain and disbelief. He came over.
"Who are you?" he asked.
"Only if I now what you are doing tonight at …say… 6 o'clock," she teased. He smiled again.
"Nice try."
"I hurt." She finally said though she didn't want to say it. Her father always said to be strong. It's only a cut her dad would say.
Then she saw the tubes in her arm. She had never been to the hospital for herself.
"Holy crap."
He followed her gaze.
"That's my life. All the IVs and things. I have seen so much blood. He looked weary at the thought.
"I'm sorry."
He looked at her sharply. "Why"
She hesitated. Like her almost every single doctor hated the war. They saw the butt end of it. "You don't want to know." And that was it. He stood up shaking his head and walked to the next patient.
(The doctor's POV)
Benjamin Franklin Pierce was back at his tent with his white robe off and drinking a large glass of gin. He was the doctor (A captain) of that curious woman back at post-op. She was beautiful even her blood. But her last remark had caught him off guard. Usual he made jokes but that was just weird.
Frank Burns walked in chuckling. To Ben he was a laughing idiot. He was a major with no brains in his body and a passion for war and honor.
He looked at Ben and chuckled louder.
"Going to go out with that patient of yours. I bet you don't even know her name."
"Still kissing Hot Lips behind the latrines Ferret Face?" His humor was back. Finally.
"I do not!" He took out his chin or his would be chin if he had one.
"Then why do you have her bra in your foot locker Frank?"
"It It's my mother's," he stammered.
"Having an affair with your mother to?"
He stamped out and went to Margaret's tent. The head of the nurses, a major and his Hot Lips. After drinking the rest of his clear alcohol drink he walked out of the tent to eat some lunch.
The mess tent was crowded and as he reached the line to the food he suddenly lost is appetite. The bread was stale the meat was green and the vegetables were gray. The surgeon walked away without any comebacks to give to the chef. The officer's table held BeeJ Hunnicut, Sherman T. Potter and Radar the short guy with glasses.
"Hello Hawkeye. No lunch to make you nauseous. No comebacks to make people throw a chair at you," asked his best friend. BeeJ was his friend though his first was Trapper. He just smiled.
"So how is the young lass, Sandra doing?" asked Potter.
"Fine. Her pulse is fine and a little bit of a fever but that's it."
2 weeks later ….
Sandra sat on her bed. Well the post-op bed. She was hungry and wanted to go to the mess tent.
"Nurse," she said.
"Yes"
"I am going to go to the mess tent."
"Okay but if you are tired come straight back okay."
"Yes"
She got up and walked out. Stretching her legs as she walked. The compound was green and the people were green. But the blood was red. The general Brandt's daughter reached the hall and spotted her doctor immediately. She was thrilled. The past 2 weeks she began to like the tall man more and more. The way he stooped over as he walked or his jokes.
Sandra sat down and he smiled with pride. She was doing all right.
An enlisted man came over and saluted her.
"What is this about?" asked BeeJ with mild surprise.
"Oh nothing…" she answered timidly.
"Nothing! This woman is the daughter of General Brandt. The one that is recovering from a stroke." Said the over zealous man.
"You didn't tell me!" asked Hawkeye.
"No. You didn't ask."
"Well what happened."
"Nothing! Seriously!"
"Tell me and tell me now," said the doctor. He was angry. And she was more scared that he wasn't yelling his head off.
She hesitated. "Come on hawk. It's just her family," said BeeJ the other doctor.
He glared daggers at his friend for taking her side. "Well," she began. "Like he said my father had a stroke and a colonel wanted to straighten things out with his friends so I, he and his clerk drove to Seoul. On the way we were hit by snipers. One wounded me."
"That's it! The daughter of a general down plays something. That's new!"
"How would you like it to have your mother walk away from your father when you were 11 and have to live with your father? An over patriotic soldier that moves from place to place! Never living up to his standards because you are a girl! I happen to hate this war as much as you. But no. You don't care. All you care about is how un-blue your blood is." She was breathing fast and had stood up without realizing it.
He stood up but BeeJ was quicker and lead Sandra out the door.
"I am sorry. That's Hawk for you. He can be very professional and then when he hears about the war…" said BJ.
"It's okay if I were someone else I would also hate me."
A day later…
Wounded were getting shipped by the numbers. Sandra not healed completely stayed in the VIP tent instead of going to another post. All of the medical staff was in pre-op or operating. Sandra bored out of her mind helped the medical staff with wounded and chores.
It was chaos. If you didn't know your way around than you'd better learn.
After she had scrubbed and put a face mask on she helped with the sterilizing of the instruments. Hawkeye was making jokes and poking fun of Ferret Face when he saw Sandra. The room was dead quiet. He looked at her with those blue eyes and looked away. They were pained. And when she put the utensils on the metal tray it went even quieter.
"Attention all personnel. General Brandt is dead. If the war ever stops we can got to the officers club for a drink. No offence Sandra," Came the speakers and she looked her doctor straight in the eye.
"I hope your happy." she said and walked out the door.
The next few more days went uneventfully. Of course if they were eventful she wouldn't of known because she kept to herself a lot. Only going out to use the latrine. Nurses came in to see if she wanted to go into there tent and even Father Mulcahy came to comfort her but to her it was sweet but it didn't move her at all from the tent.
(Hawkeye's POV)
He had exploded that few days ago. She seemed sweet and pretty in her pink sweater. No one would know she is the daughter of the late General Brandt. What am I thinking! He thought. Okay so she is the same age as me and things but that doesn't give her an excuse.
Colonel Potter walked in.
"I can't believe you! You are like a school boy that hurt feelings and gets away with it but if you get in trouble you run away! She wanted to make things better for everyone but no someone had to come in and ruin it. Sandra Brandt is not in the VIP tent to mourn for her father. She never liked him. It is because of you. A grown man," he stared at the raven haired man and walked out.
Potter walking into the swamp to yell at Hawkeye has only happened once. It was when he lost his nerve when Radar got hurt and yelled at him Potter walked in to tell him to apologize he was the third to do so. Father and Margaret had also.
The doctor looked at how he had treated Sandra in the past. She was alright and everything he thought. Though her father was a general…
(Sandra's POV)
She sat on her bed rubbing her eyes. Wincing as she switched positions. Someone knocked on the door. She looked at the door in the space of ten seconds and told however it was to come in. It was not anyone from the hospital or Hawkeye but a tall Korean lady. She was not from here. She had almond eyes and long black wavy hair. She was beautiful.
"Hello" said the lady in perfect English.
"Hello" Sandra answered back.
"Are you Sandra?"
"Yes"
"I am Phan General Brandt's wife and your mother."
"Why are you here though. You left 18 years ago."
"It is because I could not live with him. I am sorry you had to. As soon as I left I went to Korea to my family. Then the war started and the General died. If I came to you before hand though he would know."
"Okay well sit down and lets exchange stories. Fill in 18 years."
Phan had left Washington D.C. and took a plane back to her family. She worked in Seoul as a waiter. Hearing the news she came back. They talked for hours and as Sandra got tired she fell asleep with her long lost mother by her side.
3 day later…
Sandra walked into Radar's office as he was sorting files.
"Colonel Potter would like to see you miss," said Hawkeye's friend
She nodded and went through the double doors to his office.
"Sit down please" the senior officer said and motioned to a chair.
"I understand you are completely healed and ready to move out."
"Yes sir" was the reply.
"Well I am here to ask where you will go."
"Well sir I am going to go back to Washington or Maine and start a new life with my mother Phan."
"I thought your mother left you?"
"She did but three days ago she came back. She just didn't want to be with my father. And I can agree."
"Okay well tomorrow at 13 hundred hours and jeep will pick you up to go to Seoul and there you can take a helicopter to the states."
"Thank you colonel," she said and walked out.
As she walked out Hawkeye came up to her and asked her to come to the swamp. She agreed.
They walked and he offered her a martini. Eyeing the still she said no.
"Sandra?"
"Yes"
"Will you forgive me? Knowing that you were a general's daughter I immediately thought the worst of you."
"Yes"
"I am so sorry"
The next day she left. She kissed Hawkeye and hugged everyone as they waved goodbye. Two hours later she came back. Another sniper shot her left shoulder. Hawkeye her boyfriend patched it up and she left again this time and returned with Phan to the United States. She and Hawkeye broke up. He was too dedicated to his work and long distance relationships never work out.
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