Hearing that annoying man speak causes me to stop playing and open my eyes. A sight that has been wanted for five years but also fills me with dread, greets me. There are only a few changes in him. More of his hair has disappeared, and it causes him to look older than he really is, but other than that he looks very much the same. I don't say anything, I just take in this sight for a few second. It's rather shocking actually, and I don't mean seeing him after all these years, I mean his appearance. Seeing him dressed in olive green drab, that is stained with blood, mud, and who knows what else is very shocking. He honestly looks horrible. I have never ever seen him look anywhere close to this. He had always looked pristine whether he was inside the OR or out of it. This place had obviously done a number on him.
"Lea what are you doing here?" he asks, and this pulls me out of my observations. His voice doesn't sound accusing, or like he wants me gone. It just sound shocked. Well shocked and confused with maybe a little surprised.
"I'm here to help the patents that come through here," I tell him simply. I start to say something else when I'm interrupted.
"Wait you two know each other? How?" Hawkeye asks.
"Yes we know each other Peirce," Charles says and rolls his eyes. It's obvious that he has a lot of contempt for this man, then again Charles always did have a lot of contempt for most people. He looks like he is about to say something else but I cut him off.
"We knew each other through college," I tell him trying to end the conversation. They had no need to know what had happened between Charles and I, and I was going to make sure they didn't know. There was no point as far as I could see. That part of our lives had closed five years ago. Hence the reason why I said knew. I no longer know this man standing in front of me, and this was obviously not lost on him. His eyebrows go up, silently asking me what that was suppose to mean, but no one else notices.
"So what you went to college together or something?" Hawkeye asks, and this causes me to roll my eyes.
"No I went to a much cheaper college," I tell them, "I could have never made it into that one, but I did intern there a lot." I almost wanted to sigh. Not even five minutes into seeing him again and I'm already lowering myself, pointing out all my faults to anyone who was looking for them. Once again the only one who caught on was Charles. It almost looked like he was begging me not to say things like that. Oh well there was no point in hiding the truth, it was already shoved into my face five years ago.
"It's good seeing you again," Charles says in almost a whisper. This makes me mad, enraged. How dare he say something like that after what he did? If we were alone I would give him a piece of my mind, but luckily for him we aren't alone. So instead of tearing him a new one a smile slightly. All these years of psychology had really trained me on how to hide what I was feeling.
"It's good to see you again as well," I tell him, still with that fake smile on my face. He looks back at me slightly baffled. In the years that he has known me, I could never hide what I was really feeling, so I must be confusing him big time.
"So how long are you going to be with us?" he asks once he recovers.
"Well as long as the army believes I am needed," I say with a shrug. "I may be with you as long as this war goes on."
Charles looks like he is about to say something, but is once again interrupted by Hawkeye.
"Well if that's the case I'm sure you will be getting quite lonely out here. I can always keep you from that," he says while stepping forward around Charles. The look on is face is one I never wanted directed at me before. It was a look that said he though I was a piece of meat. I can see Charles standing behind him. He looks enraged, almost like he is considering beating Hawkeye. I can't let that happen.
"Peirce, many years have gone by and I have yet to get lonely enough to do anything stupid like what you are suggesting, I will not start now." The tone of my voice clearly says, 'do not bother because I am not going to fall for anything you have planed.' I just hope it's enough to get through his head.
"Well if you ever change your mind..." he begins to say but I cut him off.
"I will not ever change my mind, now you may leave."
I let out a sigh of relief when he doesn't say anything but actually leaves, and BJ follows him. Obviously this will not be the last time I have problems with him, but for now the problem has been resolved. Now I look at my other problem, the one called Charles Winchester. What am I going to do about this?
"I see you two have some catching up to do. I'll leave you alone for a while," Margaret says and then leaves. I almost want to cry out telling her to stay, but I don't. I honestly don't want to be stuck alone with him. Of course there is a really annoying part of me that does as well. I would love to find that part and kill it right now, but it is past my grip, so now I just look at him. I'm not really sure what to say. I mean what can I say? Luckily I don't have to say anything.
"It's been a long time," he mutters.
"Yeah it has," I reply quickly. My heart is pounding in my chest. I have no idea what he is going to say next.
"How have you been?"
I want to snap at him for asking that. I want to tell him I've been horribly miserable, and it's all his fault, but I don't. Instead I say, "I've been alright. You?"
"I have also been well," he says after a few seconds and then pauses. "You look really well.
"Thank you," I say and then smile. "I wish I could say the same for you, but you look terrible."
"All the joys of being in this place," he says with a dry tone. Knowing him as well as I do, he's actually laughing inside. His eyes tell me that, but he wont say it.
"So I'm going to look that bad by the time I get out of here?" I ask smiling. "I think I'm going to tell Sidney to find someone else."
This does case him to laugh a little. "Might be wise but if you do who am I ever going to have a intelligent conversation with?" he asks.
Immediately the smile goes off my face, and he stops laughing when he sees that. Finally it's too much. "Oh I'm sure you will find someone," I say bitterly. "Obviously you didn't need me around last time, so why would I be needed now?"
He goes over to me and puts his hand under my chin. I jerk away. "Do not touch me!" I tell him warningly.
"Lea please," he starts to say but I cut him off.
"No! Do not say anything! You said enough five years ago!" I snap at him. I stand up and put my instrument away. I need something to distract me.
