The next day passed in an utter whirlwind. Bonnie was hoping that due to her injury she would be sent back home with a medal and a release from service. These hopes had been dashed when Henry had taken some time to come and talk to her about the situation. As soon as he closed the curtain and turned to face her, Bonnie knew she wasn't going home any time soon.
"Under normal circumstances you would either be sent to Japan for recovery, or home for good. Unfortunately our M*A*S*H is lacking in surgical talent of your caliber so you're to stay put. I've been watching over your recovery and you seem ready to move into your tent for extended rest...that and we're expecting a load of casualties later tonight. We'll get a nurse to take you there and set you up. We'll have regular check-ins with you throughout the day to administer the antibiotics, give you food, and help you with anything you should need." Henry patted her blanketed leg and turned to leave. "Physical therapy will be next; we're hoping to shoot for crutches this week and assisted walking the next. In no time you'll be working with the rest of us!"
"Thanks a lot for everything, sir," Bonnie said, beaming at him. She was finally going to get some real privacy! No more would she toss and turn at night listening to everyone else in the compound snore or talk in their sleep.
Henry smiled bashfully at her. "You can call me Henry, everyone else does."
"Thanks, Henry. Really."
Blake nodded at her and ducked behind the curtain. A few minutes later the same nurse from before opened the privacy curtain with her hands full of a multi-piece olive drab uniform for Bonnie. She shut the curtain behind her and dropped everything onto the chair next to the bed.
"Hey, Jamie," Bonnie greeted, sitting up and pulling the covers back. She sat on the edge of the bed and let Jamie dress her.
"How's everything been? Haven't been able to come by for a minute." Jamie made quick work of removing the gown, throwing it on the bed. She picked up the pants first, carefully slipping the material over Bonnie's wound. Bonnie herself put the shirt on, slipping the soft cotton over her head. The trousers seemed a little big, but that was probably due to not wanting to irritate the wound more than necessary. "Don't worry, we'll put you in a nightgown once you're resting in your tent and out of the public eye."
Bonnie nodded, bunching the extra material in her hands. "Everything has been going better than expected, I think. I'm excited to get my own tent. Feel free to stop by anytime, I could use a female friend."
Jamie seemed a little taken aback by the offer of friendship from a ranking officer. "I just might do that," she said, returning the smile.
When they were sure everything was set, Jamie pulled back the screen from the bed and pulled a wheelchair around that had been stationary in front of the cot. Bonnie stood up on her good leg just long enough to pivot and drop lightly into the seat. Some of the military casualties looked around when this happened, eager to see the dame that had been shot in the field.
A few of them whooped and saluted as Jamie wheeled Bonnie passed them. Not enjoying, nor trying to encourage the behavior, Bonnie slumped down in the chair and waved feebly as they went by. Another nurse that was working by the door hurried to open it for them so they could leave. Bonnie couldn't help but return the bright smile the nurse shot at her.
Once they were outside, Bonnie nodded back at the recovery room. "Have I met her?"
"No, but you'll probably get that from a lot of the women around here; we havent seen one of you around here before."
"What do you mean?" Bonnie was not completely taken off guard by this information.
"Because we've never even heard of there being female surgeons in this war. You know someone?"
Bonnie felt herself slump down more in the chair. She didn't want to mention her military connections; all she needed was for someone to think she was only in the position because of a favor. The truth was that her father was the surgeon general for the sector of combat they were in. Bonnie was a brilliant surgeon who had worked hard to make her way up to this position, and she wanted to help with the war effort. Her father had already sent her to two other outfits, but they didn't appreciate her gender being linked to her skills. They knew she wasn't being properly utilized, so her father asked around and heard that M*A*S*H 4077 was liberal enough to allow for such a thing.
"I might," she mumbled, and Jamie dropped the subject.
On first impressions, this camp seemed like the other camps she had been in, but it was a little different. Everyone seemed more relaxed: there was music playing over the announcement speaker, some fellas were tossing around a football, and she could have sworn she saw man dressed up in a lady's summer dress patrolling the area. She noticed a few people nudge each other and point her way so she tried to casually hide her face in her hands. Her tent was mercifully close to the recovery suite, so she wasn't spotted by too many people.
Jamie softly rammed the wheelchair into the door to push it open, the hinges moving silently. The tent was roomy with enough space for all her belongings and then some. If she lasted here long enough, she might even buy a desk and a few bookshelves. Her suitcase had been put under her bed for her, and a fresh bedspread was all made up. The experienced nurse made quick work of Bonnie's clothes again, working her into a normal nightgown, soft and comfy, perfect for rest.
Jamie pulled back the cover to accommodate for Bonnie, and heaved her onto the bed. Bonnie sat down hard and used the momentum to swing her legs up. Jamie pulled the covers up for Bonnie, fluffed her pillow, and gestured to the water on the table behind the bed. "I'll be back in a few hours at 1 o'clock to check on you. If you need anything...just yell I guess and someone will come and get me."
"Will do." Bonnie lay back on the pillow, excited for some uninterrupted rest.
Jamie did one more sweep around the room, pulling down all the drapes and then exited, shutting the door firmly behind her.
Bonnie lay there in the pseudo-dark, trying to fall asleep. How lucky was she to have her own room? She slowly drifted off thinking about where she was going to hang all of her things, picturing the layout for her home-away-from-home.
A soft rapping at her door woke Bonnie from her sleep. She started awake, her heart racing; that probably meant she was having another nightmare. Groggily, she sat up, taking a moment to stretch her limbs. "Come in," she called, straightening the blankets into neatness.
The door opened a little and Jamie stuck her head inside to have a look. "Lunch and meds," she said, pushing through with a tray. The nurse crossed the room and set the display onto Bonnie's lap. With a fluid motion she took a few more steps to pour Bonnie a glass of water, and set it down on the tray as well. Jamie pulled over a metal fold-up stool to sit beside Bonnie and pointed at the tray. "I'm not leaving until you finish all the food, take the pill, and drink all the water; in whatever order you please."
Bonnie looked down at the food, her appetite only now apparent to her. How many days had it been since she'd had a real meal? Warmth radiated off of the metal holding tray, the food was still fresh. Meatloaf never had appealed to her before, but she could eat ten full pounds of it at this moment. There it sat, drenched in ketchup, steam rising, ready to be eaten. Beside it was a spoonful of green beans, a dinner roll and mashed potatoes. Bonnie didn't have to be told twice, and dug in.
"Don't choke," came Jamie's reproachful voice.
"No need to worry, I've had a lot of practice eating like this before," Bonnie said through a mouthful of everything together.
Within a matter of minutes the whole meal had been devoured, not even one smear of ketchup left. Bonnie dabbed daintilly at the corners of her lips and threw the napkin on the plate. "My compliments to the chef." She grabbed the antibiotic pill and popped it into her mouth, draining the last of her water in one big gulp.
"Well, that sure was a sight to see."
"Best meal I've had in days...wait...its the only meal I've had in days."
Jamie let go a small smile and went to collect the debris. She left the glass on the table next to Bonnie, making sure to fill it up again. "Someone will be here at 6:30 tonight for food and meds. Stay in bed, don't do anything too crazy, you're still recovering even if its at super-speed." She held the tray balanced on her hip as she opened the door, sticking her foot as a doorstop. "A doctor might come in before that to check your wound and infection." Across Bonnie's vision flashed a light as Jamie pivoted with the metal tray, the sun catching the reflective surface. Once her eyes cleared, Jamie was gone, the door tapping closed.