Chapter 4
Narrator
Patsy returns to the tent Delia busies herself in consulting patients on their condition as the only patients presence are those dying from disease. Patsy finds herself dormant with no task needing her attention, leaving only one thing she can think to do to occupy her mind. She silently approaches Delia who's conversing in a discussion with a middle aged male with a simple mind.
"You're suffering from Dysentery, inflammation of the intestine which causes your stool to consist of blood" Her welsh tone explains to a carefully listen sufferer who's grasping his abdomen, whilst Patsy stands by intrigued. "Sadly we don't have the resources to treat it, but increasing your consumption of fluid will help" on that note Delia leaves the patient to conceive the news and retreats to the tool table. Patsy gives Ralph a sympathetic smile before joining Delia and grilling her with questions.
"Dysentery, whatever is that?" Delia gazes upon Patsy, then spreading her gaze around the tent to check how secure their conversation was from soldier's ears.
"Dysentery is basically diarrhoea; however blood or mucus can be present in it due to the presence of a pathogen in the body" Patsy frowns, taking her time to understand the concept of Dysentery "Tonight, I shall lend you a book it has a better description of Dysentery and many of the other diseases you'll come across in this tent"
Patsy's features spring into a smile as she was struggling to comprehend the brief explanation and Delia had saved her the embarrassment of admitting so. "Thank you" Patsy whispers into Delia's ear and a shiver shoots down Delia's vertebra, she unconsciously tenses her jaw and stops breathing until Patsy's face retains its distance and she now free to let out a heavy breath before composing herself and leaving the tense atmosphere with Patsy watching her go. Patsy stands idol watching Delia work, until her attention is diverted to a group of soldiers and prisoners invading the tent and carrying the decaying pile of dead bodies out, two to a body- arousing Patsy's tireless curiosity resulting in her following behind them and witnessing them dumping the bodies in a mass grave not far from the medical tent and chucking soil on top and leaving them. She was shocked at how the dead were treated but she found it hard to expect any different soon relaying the feeling of tolerance and rejoin Delia in the medical tent unmoved by the witnessing of burials.
The afternoon is filled with suffering patients, decaying with diseases or from being struck by the hand of Japs. Patsy and Delia aid the best they can, whilst the foreign doctor performed "surgery" on the patients in need of it.
Patsy P.O.V
The doctor resides in his hut whilst screaming echoes out endless screaming is all we hear, concentration proving impossible whilst it continues and the naive patients becoming unsettled by such horrific sounds burdening Delia an I with the task of calming them, reassuring them that their conditions wouldn't result in the same agonising cries, but I'm not dishonest by nature so I help to block out the terrible wails but I leave the lying to Delia her efforts being of a greater value than mine.
"Miss. please lay back down" Delia begs with the patient she's currently dealing with, struggling to get the stubborn woman off her feet and onto her bed, I see it advisable to help and grasp at the other woman's arm giving Delia a reassuring smile and following her direction sitting her back down on the makeshift bed.
"You're gonna let that butcher have me!" The woman wallows trying to fight against mine and Delia's grip upon her arms "Nonsense! Lay back down or you'll make yourself worse" Delia objects and our combined strength restrains the woman onto the bed who gradually accepts Delia's lie and finds herself relaxing.
With one patient took care of, the screams continue to distress others and singularly taking care of each patient seemed an idiotic idea to me, as it would result in myself and Delia running ourselves rigid however when I tried to suggest different Delia wouldn't hear of it, saying "It'll just make things worse, catalyzing the panic" and that being that last spoke about it, she wouldn't accept any different and I witness her bouncing from patient to patient without being able to make an observation, concern gradually building in me.
The doctor continues his butchery and myself and Delia do all we can for the dying patients bed bound by illness who have to listen to him at work. Soon night falls and the doctor's work is complete leaving the butchered patient to recover in a makeshift bed with us to aid him, I keep my distance allowing Delia to treat the butchered prisoner but what looked like a scrapped out wound lays bare on his leg combined with a sweat across his brow concerning me dearly. I take up a cloth soaked with rancid liquid and gently patting his brow down with it.
"Thank you" the man breathlessly speaks struggling to hydrate his mouth, causing me to drip some of the liquid onto his lips and into his mouth.
"Just doing my job" I say smiling politely at him, feeling sympathy for him, his leg looking so unimaginably painful and imprinted by the instruments used causing its continues flow of blood.
"You're of youth… You mustn't see such frightful things" he gazes at me with aching eyes and an innocent look exhausting his features.
"Neither of us should, but we're forced to" my body shudders with the thought of my younger sister being forced to see 'such frightful things' at a younger youth than myself- I wished my father had took her with him like he usually did with the excuse of needing a 'travelling companion' now he's alone and we're in hell.
"Penny for them?" the man interrupts my thoughts, noticing my silence and lack of movement thrusting me back to reality.
"I was just searching for a way to ease your pain… my efforts resulted as useless" I was on the brink of tears, just thinking of my father and my fate I couldn't take the embarrassment of people witnessing me crying on top so I pick myself up off the side of the mans bed and attempt to stride away to then have my arm grasped by the man who holds me at a halt.
"Don't let this place break you" I frown at the man's insinuation and he releases my arm to lay back down, perhaps my weakness visible to him as he is in a weakened state or my 'innocent' features betraying me. I leave him and find sanctuary at the instrument table, taking a cloth and cleaning them to occupied my restless mind it works but my scrubbing doesn't go unnoticed and Delia soon takes up a stride towards me, I can feel her gaze on my skin like rain on a hot summer day and soon her she's burning next to me I turn and bless her blue purls with mine, she glances around to see if observing eyes had caught sight of our proximity reassured they aren't.
"Pats, everything okay?" Pats? She called me pats… I wasn't expecting such informality; I was prepared to answer any questions she had falsely but now… I couldn't dare lie, her welsh tone speaking the nickname my mother gave me, caused unimaginable chills to spread across my body throwing my head into a spin of confusion to as why she causes me such infliction's. I give no answer, trying to control my body's reactions to her closeness and hypnotising speech and then I feel her hand lay upon my arm, catalysing everything.
"Can we talk later?" I ask feeling overwhelmed by her presence, my mind becoming extremely clouded by all the desirable features she possess.
"Tonight" She says rubbing my arm reassuring me, concern sparkling in her eyes and my heart sinking with her touch until she releases me and my mind springs back to its senses, quickly finding something to occupy it until it can be dispensed later.
Narrator
Night falls quickly, however the flow of patients never stops and the girls hurry to each ones side, patching up and calming down until finally there's a break in the chaos and the girls can finally retreat to their sleeping quarters, eating the small amount of food supplied and drinking the little water they're given to regenerate their energy.
Delia remains silent awaiting Patsy to speak, considering the time to be fitting for the talk Patsy had wanted. In her wait she picks up the book she was previously reading and begins scanning it with her eyes whilst Patsy sits staring at her silent perhaps trying to find the right words to speak and contemplation whether Delia will be intrigued or not. They both felt mutually about the awkward silence that had now built between the two and neither of them could bare it any longer.
"My father" Patsy abruptly says, relaying a confused look from Delia who lowers her book and gives Patsy her full attention. "My father doesn't even know where his family is- where I am" Delia lifts from her seat, leaving her book behind on her bed and sitting beside Patsy. "He's going to return home to an empty house" Patsy's tears begin to fall uncontrollable and Delia lays an arm around her pulling her into her shoulder.
"Not exactly a fairytale I know, but at least he's safe Pats…" Patsy lifts her head so her gaze joins Delia's and a smile plays across Patsy's lips hearing the nickname said by the infectious accent Delia renders confused at the smile she's receiving as she didn't say anything comical. "What?"
"You called me Pats... something I've only ever heard my family say" Patsy tone beholds a hint of distaste for Delia's use, whilst also fancy for her welsh accent.
Worried to displease, Delia finds herself regretting the use of the nickname as they're not family. "I'm sorry, I shan't use it again"
"Nonsense, I like hearing you speak it" Patsy's gaze pierces into Delia's both oblivious to the heat building between them and the dangerous thoughts beginning to invade each of their minds and Delia begins to unconsciously analyse Patsy's lips.
"You're truly beautiful Patsy…" Delia's eyes prove to be magnetised to Patsy's lips, whilst her own are parted and her breath escaping her. Patsy responds with silence, shocked by Delia's directness but her mind and heart now at war.
"… Nothings beautiful in here" Patsy bitterly stated removing her gaze for Delia's, trying to ignore the beatings of her heart and the spinning of her mind.
"I thought so to… until I seen you" Delia's comment, raw and as honest as Pinocchio takes Patsy by surprise. Patsy picks her head up and looks at Delia with her eyebrows crooked although she questioned the honesty of Delia's words, she is certain that the gleam present in Delia's eyes made it impossible for her to be lying.
Patsy struggles to find words, the compliment silencing her mind and making it impossible to reject Delia's affections as her cheeks flourish into a blush "You render me speechless Delia"
Delia P.O.V
Her sweet elegant voice, spoken so tenderly clouds my mind and my thoughts are scrabbled making it excruciatingly hard for me to construct a sentence something only ever achieved by Patsy who drops her gaze and relaxes into me perhaps enjoying the silence as our days never consisted of it.
"Do you hear Delia?" Patsy suddenly speaks and I'm instantly confused by the questions as I hear nothing.
"Pardon?"
"The silence, like of a morning when I was back home" Her mind has obviously drifted off as mine was dominated to the thought of her, now she spoke like a child recalling the privilege she had before her capture until the silence is interrupted by a soldier walking past, surveying the grounds causing us to jump out of our skins but closer to one another as I still held her in my arm my nose inhaling the scent of her blonde locks. "Crikey!" She calls in her refined English voice and I allow myself to release a giggle of endearment "Did you just giggle?" her eyes pieces into mine, the look of a serious nature as if I had offended her and I instantly swallow my giggles.
"As I am no liar, I may have done" I say crinkling my nose and biting my lower lip nervously as I couldn't lie to such a handsome girl who's heart intrigued me.
"It's a sound I had nearly forgotten" her eyes looking at me with astonishment, our mouths drying up as our star lingers and I take my hand placing my thumb upon her bottom lip whilst my palm brushes against her pale, cold face which flinchers at my touch but isn't retracted instead lent into, the reaction I had hopped for and gratefully received. "Your touch is heavenly" her lips speak as I take my thumb from upon her lip and cup her cheek with my entire hand.
"You're heavenly" I unconsciously comment, unaware of the leaning my body had begun to do in the direction of Patsy's lips. She remains in place not pulling away but looking me directly in the eyes, my lips getting closer and my breath heavier. "Delia, no! She's a girl... you never kiss a girl!" My mother's voice echoes through my mind distracting me from my target when I instantly remember the taste of that girl's lips and how comfortably soft they were encouraging me to continue when I feel a hand lay upon my cheek pushing me back.
"Delia… I've never… " Patsy turns her gaze away and her innocent features relay worry.
"Pats" I take her chin lightly in my hand and force her gaze upon mine "it isn't rocket science- You simply can't disappoint" her cheeks flex into a smile and I retracted my hand brushing her hair lightly out of her face with it to reveal her magnificently shaped cheek bones before attempting to lay my lips upon hers, and finding my lips placed upon her cheek as she had turned her lips away however the connection just as precious.
"I'm sorry Delia, I'm not ready"
