"RON…would it kill you to put the toilet seat down once?"
Ron cringed and then let out a soft chuckle, "Sorry...You didn't fall in did you?"
"YES" was the aggravated voice from the bathroom.
Ron smiled and then muttered under his breath as he dozed back off to sleep, "Good thing I flushed."
A short time later, Bonnie walked into the bedroom from taking a shower, "Do you really have to go?"
"I was only supposed to be here overnight." Ron crawled out of bed and wrapped his arms around Bonnie, "I didn't think I was going to be here all week."
She smiled and folded herself into Ron's embrace, "So I have to drive you back to the Oster's…Then I will take you to your post."
He smiled, "Yea, I have to admit leaving here will be tough, you've really looked out for me Bonnie."
Bonnie pouted and looked down at the floor, "Yes and now you will let me be lonely for the next three weeks."
Ron smiled and cupped her chin so he could look her in the eyes, "I'll be on post for the next three weeks and then I should be able to get leave and live off base for a week…Then I can take care of your loneliness."
Bonnie frowned, "We could run away together Ron…You wouldn't have to go."
He shook his head, "Bon Bon, I did not spend all that time in the desert, eating crappy food to have to spend the rest of my life worrying about going to a military jail."
"I guess we have to get dressed?" Bonnie said reluctantly as she broke from Ron's embrace.
He nodded, "Yes Bon Bon…It is time to get dressed"
The couple got dressed, Ron made them breakfast, "Eggs and toast, not much but it's quick."
Bonnie smiled and ate the food, "You know Ron, you need to really start looking at finding that right girl to settle down with."
He nodded as the two began to washed dishes Bonnie began dropping more hints about marriage. Ron picked up on the hints and promptly ignored them.
After the dishes were done, Ron packed his things back into his duffle bag, all except for the Ronnunicator that Bonnie had hidden beneath her couch to keep Kim from contacting him.
Bonnie then drove Ron back to Tel Aviv and they made small talk, "So will they let you off for Chanukah?"
Ron shook his head, "I don't think so, I wish they would but I think I will be doing whatever it is I'll be doing during Chanukah."
They pulled up in front of the Oster residence and Ron got out of the car and walked up to the front door and knocked.
Sima opened the door and then crossed her arms and glared at him, "I thought you was only be gone over night…You left and didn't even say goodbye."
Ron chuckled and patted her on the head, "What could I do, she wouldn't bring me back."
Sima followed him back up the stairs, "So you are getting ready to go again?"
"Yes, I have to report tonight, get new gear, and find out what they want me to do…IDF stuff."
Ron packed quickly and looked around to make sure he hadn't forgotten anything and then looked over at Sima, "What?"
Sima smiled, "You look much happier now, so is Bonnie your new girlfriend or just a pillow friend."
"Like it is any of your business." He told her as he moved past her to go back down the stairs.
She followed him back down the stairs and gave him a hug before he left with Bonnie for Tulkharm.
"Kim, we can't be certain, that it's not the chair that's causing you these problems." Dr. Wong explained to Kim once again why she can't be exposed to the mental focusing device.
Kim shook her head, "I think it's natural, I haven't sat in the chair in close to two weeks…and I'm only experiencing strong emotions….I don't think it will get any worse."
Dr. Wong was looking over her data, "Kim what sort of emotions have you experienced from Ron?"
Kim laughed bitterly, "Well I have experienced Ron's…sexual urges, sadness…That's about it for right now."
Dr. Wong rubbed the bridge of her nose, "I think we need to keep you out of the chair…I'm not real comfortable with the whole situation."
Kim turned away from the doctor, "I really need to do this Dr. Wong…My nerves are shot and I've got the shakes and…I've smoked all my cigarettes."
Dr. Wong was observing how she was reacting, "Kim would you say this is a psychological need or a physical need?"
She let out a deep breath and rolled her eyes, "I…I'm not sure."
"Let's head upstairs to my office." Dr. Wong motioned for the elevator.
Kim backed up and shook her head, "NOOOOOOO DON"T DO THIS NOT HERE…NOT NOW!"
Dr. Wong was becoming concerned about Kim's reactions, "Kim…are you feeling alright?"
"N…N…No…I…NEED to see Ron…I…need…to…see…Ron." She said desperately as she began to shake.
"Kim sit in the chair, I need to look at you." Dr. Won quickly took Kim's temperature and checked her blood pressure and then looked at her eyes.
Kim was sweating heavily, "What's wrong?"
Dr. Wong sat in a chair across from her, "I think you're going through some kind of withdrawals, which is good that means the effects of the chair are most likely temporary."
"So I can use it again?" Kim asked hopefully.
Dr. Wong sighed, "I have an egg timer, only one hour…I think it'll be safe for that short of an exposure, wean you off the chair without having you stop cold turkey."
"YES" Kim said excitedly as she lay back in the seat and put on the head gear.
Dr. Wong started up the three workstations and turned down the lights and then she set the egg timer for one hour, "Ready back here Kim."
Kim smiled and started to focus her mind and then she could see Ron and Bonnie pulling up in front of his new post.
Ron pointed towards the building, "I think that's the administration building…I need to report there."
Bonnie parked the car and they got out to say their goodbyes. Kim sat with her arms crossed in the chair, "Don't get mad…Just focus on obtaining information that will be useful for the kick Bonnie's ass mission."
She could see Bonnie's face in the early evening darkness, she could see that she was starting to cry and turned her face from Ron.
He reached over and brought her head to where he could look into her eyes, "It will be alright Bonnie, I will see you again in three weeks…Then we can be together a few days and then it will be just like going to work for a week…I will be with all week until you are sick of seeing me."
Bonnie looked up at him and smiled, "Call me during the week…Think about what we talked about on the way down."
Ron smiled, "I will Bon Bon, I promise."
He gave her a big hug and then a deep kiss that made Kim cringe, "I will get you for this Bonnie…You will pay for this."
Ron took a look around real quick while Bonnie got back in her car, "So this is the border of the West Bank."
Ron gathered up his gear and walked into the administration building, "Bonnie keeps throwing around the "M" word…It's just too soon after Kim for me to really think about that…Still Bonnie is right everyone is partnering up…Ned and Tina, Kim and Danny, Yori and whoever…Would life with Bonnie really be all that bad…Mom would be happy."
Kim twisted in the chair, "YES life with Bonnie would be that bad."
"Kim is everything alright; you don't seem to be talking much?" Dr. Wong asked as she walked in front of Kim to make sure she was OK.
She smiled and nodded her head, "Everything's fine…Just not a lot going on with him right now."
Ron saw Sergei as he walked in the entrance, "Shalom, it is good to see you."
Sergei smiled, "It is Big Time Ronnieeeeeee reporting for duty, I see."
He smiled as he saw his friend and the two hugged, "Shalom Sergei…Where do I need to go?"
"Follow me." Sergei took him to the base commander's office and Ron presented his orders, from there he went to the base officer that was in charge of the "Lone Soldiers" and then it was time to head to the quartermaster to requisition his gear.
Sergei smiled, "Now we get new stuff."
Ron received his new helmet which had a brown stripe around it and a brown spot on top to signify the Golani Brigade, he also received a unit Kippah or Yarmulke which was white with a brown circle in the center, body armor, and then he received all of the same gear he had left at Bezeq, packs, sleeping bags, mess kits, etc.
Then it was time to be issued their weapons, Sergei drew the M4 machine gun. A highly customized M16 that is built special for the Israeli military, the man was ready to issue Ron the same gun until he pointed at a different one.
"Excuse me…What is that small belt fed gun in the corner?" Ron asked pointing towards the gun.
The Quarter Master turned and with a bored expression shook his head, "That is the Negev Machine Gun, belt fed 5.56mm…You want that one?"
Ron nodded and was promptly handed the weapon, extra barrel, 1,000 rounds of belt fed ammunition in 250 round nylon bag magazines and a manual on how to maintain the gun.
"Booyahhhhhhh This gun is going to rock!" Ron thought as he waddled off with Sergei dragging all of his gear with him.
Kim lifted an eyebrow, "Well Ron sure does seem to enjoy guns now."
They went to the barracks and were shown where they would be living while on post, "Little more room than at Bezeq…We have foot lockers now."
They started to stow their gear and Sergei was in a talking mood, "So I hear you are over your lusting problem."
Ron smiled, "Yes…I was only supposed to be with her a day and I spent the week with her…I did not see this coming."
Sergei laughed, "You did not see it coming because you did not look for it…I heard about Kim too from Sima…I am very sorry."
"Yes…well…it was going to happen, I just hoped me and Kim could beat the odds and stay a couple…It just was not meant to be." Ron said sadly as he looked over the pictures and letters from Kim and then put them in the bottom of his footlocker.
Sergei watched him going through his photos, "I left someone behind in Lithuania too, I did not try to hold on to her…She is married to a man that works in a tractor factory…Probably has a fat baby by now…I hope she is happy…That is what you must do…Wish her the best and move on."
Ron nodded, "I understand, it is so hard though…I spent so much time with her and then to have it end in silence…is very frustrating."
Kim shed a tear as she watched the letters and pictures being buried beneath all of Ron's gear, "He's trying to bury my memory."
He stared at the foot locker, "Kim is gone…Bonnie is here and wants to have a relationship, and the way she was hinting she wants more…I…I wish Kim wasn't getting married."
"Forget her Ronnie, she loves another and not you now…This Bonnie sounds nice…Get to know her, marry her and then have fat babies."
Kim pressed her lips hard together, "I do not love anyone else, you will not marry her, you will not have fat babies with her…Bonnie is so dead."
Ron nodded, "Yes…I will…have to do that…Bonnie's really been good to me since I found out about Kim…Maybe she always cared for me and was afraid of Kim?"
Kim's eyes shot open, "THE HELL SHE DID."
Dr. Wong looked up, "Times up Kim…How are you feeling?"
"I feel a little tired, not as bad as before…It was good to see Ron…I feel much better." Kim said as she took off the head gear.
Kim lay back in the chair and closed her eyes, "He's okay…He still misses me…I need to find out how to write him…Bonnie has probably found a way into his email or he would know what is going on."
Dr. Wong came and sat down with her again and checked her vital signs, "So how do you feel emotionally?"
She smiled, "I feel much more relaxed, I don't want a cigarette…Even though there is some stuff going on that I don't want to talk about…I still feel at peace…very calm."
"So you would say that your hour was a positive experience?" Dr. Wong asked as she was scribbling notes.
She thought about it for a long moment and then smiled, "Yea…Being with Ron was…wonderful."
Ron finally had his gear put away and was looking over the manual for his new machine gun, "It's the commando version, collapsible stock, short barrel, 250 round nylon pouch...LASER SITE…Cool…bipod…selective fire...Oh this gun is going to kick ass."
Sergei was looking over Ron's rifle, "They are replacing all the MAG's with that gun now, I think you need to switch with me…Small man like you needs to carry the M4."
Ron smiled and shook his head, "Pissoff, this is my gun…This gun is great...I can not wait to run some rounds through it."
Sergei laughed, "The minute we have to go on patrol and you have to pull point, you will come begging me to take that gun away."
Ron wore a tight smile and his eyes grew big, "Oh No…This gun has Ron Stoppable written all over it."
Ron kept reading the manual and then looked up at Sergei, "What?"
"I want the shiny new gun." He said as he started to pout.
Ron looked around the barracks to make sure no one was paying attention to them, "Look Sergei, if you are really nice to me…I will let you touch the manual."
Sergei starting laughing, "You are a bastard Ronnie."
He smiled and nodded, "Maybe…but I have the cool gun."
A group of men entered and the Sergeant called the company to attention, "I am Sergeant Mohammad Shubaki, as you can tell I am an Arab…I have also been in the IDF for ten years, so get used to being screamed at by an Arab."
Ron looked over a Sergei and he lifted an eyebrow, "Corporal Pelzner will read out your duty assignments for the week so listen up and do as you are told. If you behave as men I will treat you as men…If you don't…well it will be ugly for you."
Corporal Pelzner read out the duty sheet, Ron was on morning KP and Sergei was assigned to toilet duty, "Ronnie…I will trade you…"
He smiled, "No…No gun…no toilet duty...I'll stick with the kitchen."
Kim got off work and headed to the nearest hair salon, "Rita's, the place looks kind of rough but Ron always gave her credit for the great haircut…and for not wearing a bra…Ron, Ron , Ron…we are just going to have to do something about you."
Kim walked into the run down store front in the old part of Middleton, Rita was giving a haircut and nodded at a book by the cash register, "Sign in, I'll be just a few minutes."
She sat in an old red plastic chair and thumbed through a magazine that was three years old, "I don't know about this, it's so close to Christmas, what happens if the hair cut is a disaster."
Rita finished with the person she was working on and rang him up on the cash register then when she cleaned up the hair from the floor she looked at the appointment book, "Hey…new customer named Kim, follow me."
She led Kim over to a barber chair and sat her in it, "So what do you want me to do today?"
Kim nervously squirmed in the chair, "uhhhh…ummm…I'm…bored with my look, I've had this look forever and I want to look different."
Rita looked her over, "We could thin out the hair, straighten it…You want to change the color?"
She nodded, "I was thinking…blonde?"
Rita shook her head, "No…black, long thin straight black hair…Those green eyes would just pop…You would look sooooooo Goth."
Kim smiled, "That sounds sooooo cool."
"What's Goth?"
Rita brought out a magazine and flipped through it and showed Kim a photo of one of the models. She smiled and nodded, "You would look great…with black hair."
She took the magazine and looked closely at the picture, "Ohhhhhhhh I like this…dark, mysterious…pissed off…it's a look that says look bitch get your hands off my man look." Kim looked around quickly, "Did I just say that out loud?"
Rita giggled, "Yes you did, let's go back and wash your hair...Then get ready to go Goth."
Two hours later Kim was staring at a different person in the mirror; her hair was now shoulder length, thin and straight, "Booyahhhhhhhhhh…I look so different…Ron was right…You are good."
Rita smiled, "Ron MacIntyre?"
Kim shook her head, "No Ron Stoppable."
Rita rolled her eyes, "That boy has serious issues, last time I cut his hair; he kept looking down my shirt and making smacking noises."
Kim nodded and said dryly, "Yep…that's my Ron."
Rita rang Kim up at the register and sold her some hair care products to help keep the look, told her to start wearing black and black lipstick, eye shadow and she would look tough.
Kim thanked Rita and left the hair salon smiling, "Yeaaaaa tough…heh, heh, heh, time to go surprise Monique at the mall and see if anyone recognizes me."
She drove over to Middleton Mall and parked her car near the entrance where Club Banana was located; she zipped her winter coat up to cover the white mid rift shirt with the red star in the middle.
Then she walked into a mall that was packed with Christmas Shoppers, and she walked in the entrance to Club Banana and right past Monique.
"Ha…She didn't notice me." Kim thought happily to herself.
Kim looked thru the racks of clothes, "So many new fashions…So little time."
She was beginning to enjoy the new found freedom of being able to shop in her favorite store again, and then a voice broke her tranquility, "Anything I can help you find?"
Kim shook her head, and looked at the tag on a black mid rift shirt, "No, just looking."
Monique turned away, "If you need any help just let me know."
Kim was privately ecstatic, "She didn't recognize me…Booyah."
Kim picked out several items and took them up to Monique at the cash register, Monique rang up the sale and read Kim the total, "That will be $43.20."
Kim handed Monique her bank card and Monique looked at the back of the card to make sure it was signed and then did a double take and looked up at Kim, her mouth fell open and in a hushed voice said, "NO WAY"
Kim smiled, "Told you we were going to have to have disguises to go…You know where."
Monique completed the sale, "I'll call you later, now get out of here before someone recognizes you."
Kim walked out of Middleton Mall, pumped a fist in the air, "BOOYAHHH"
Ron crawled out of bed at 04:00 hours, took his shower and got himself ready for the day, he made his bed and made everything ready for morning inspection and then made his way to the kitchen to report in.
The Sergeant Major in charge of the cafeteria put Ron on the serving line serving luff and eggs, after serving hours Ron was given the job of pulling the trash taking it out in back of the building and slinging the bags into the bed of a smelly old white Toyota pickup truck.
Once it was loaded up with trash the Sergeant Major let him know where to take it, "Now you will drive this about 8 kilometers up the road till you find the garbage dump throw it out and bring the truck back and go report in to Sergeant Shubaki…You do have a driver's license, correct?"
"Yes Sergeant Major" Ron was then dismissed and Ron crawled behind the wheel and discovered there was no key to start the truck it was a push button.
He got the old truck started and it lurched forward, "One thing for sure, I'll know how to drive a stick shift by the time this is all over."
Ron ground his way through the gears as he headed out towards the land fill, "I wonder how I'll spot the dump?"
Then he spotted it, there was trash and refuse lying around all over the ground and there was two men chasing Arabs out of the dump, "I wonder what that's all about."
Ron shook his head and turned into the entrance, "I wonder what that is all about?"
He drove until he could proceed no further and began slinging the bags out onto the ground with the other trash, suddenly the two men chasing the Arabs came charging forward, "Stop, Stop, You are disposing of secret documents."
"What are you talking about, this is kitchen trash." Ron told them with a sick grin as he watched the men in suits pick their way through the garbage on the ground.
They were both taller than Ron and slender, with service haircuts; their suits looked to be about two sizes too big and they were moving in a hurry, "You are throwing away top secret documents and then the Arabs come out here and pick through the trash and take the documents back into the West Bank for examination."
Ron shook his head, "So what are you guys, Mossad or what?"
The man with the thin moustache laughed, "He asks us if we are Mossad…No we are not Mossad if we were Mossad we would be digging through trash in some other country."
The other man quickly chimed in, "No we are Shabak internal security, I am Raffi Levine and he is Georgie Burger…Now that we have that established, who are you?"
He stared at the two for a long moment, "Great Shin Bet…These guys are like stupid or something no wonder they're out picking through trash."
"Private Ronald Stoppable…currently stationed at Tulkharm."
Raffi walked up to Ron and sniffed him, "He smells of over ripened fruit…He is a pink sloth."
Ron recoiled at his observation and blurted out in English, "DUDE…I am not a pink sloth."
"…and you are an American or Canadian…See we really know our business about these things." Raffi walked over to the truck and started looking at the trash in the back, "It is food trash, and very smelly food trash at that."
Georgie nodded, "Throw the trash out over there and return to your base."
He nodded and started to throw the trash where he was directed, and then Georgie became curious, "What is it like?"
"What's what like?" Ron asked as he slammed the tailgate shut.
Georgie came closer, "You know…to be a pink sloth."
Ron shook his head, "I am going back to base."
He returned to base and parked the truck, ran back to the barracks and put on his body armor and grabbed his pack and gun and then he found Sergeant Shubaki, "You are late what took you so long? You were goofing off."
"No sergeant there was these two men at the dump that were accusing me of dumping secret documents." Ron said in his defense.
Sergeant Shubaki rolled his eyes, "Georgie and Raffi….Ignore them they are idiots, that is why they pick through trash and they are too stupid to figure it out."
Ron nodded his understanding, "I knew it…"
Sergeant Shubaki looked around, "Everyone is paired off now, you will work with me…I will teach you how to look for bombs on buses and check documents of people as they come thru the check point from the West Bank."
A large bus pulled up to the check point and Sergeant Shubaki looked at Ron, "Load your weapon and follow me."
Ron pulled out one of the nylon bags that held the ammo belt for the rifle and loaded the gun. Then he and the sergeant boarded the bus, "Everyone hands in the air and clap."
Then the two walked down the isles doing a visual examination of belongings, if anything looked suspicious the sergeant would pull it out and look at it, "Ok enough of the clapping, present your papers."
He showed Ron what to look for with the documentation that the passengers were supposed to be carrying, and then they exited the bus and waived it through.
"So do you think that you can do the next bus by yourself?" The sergeant asked.
Ron looked at him uneasily and shrugged, "I will try"
The next bus pulled up the sergeant looked at him, "Your turn."
They entered the bus and the sergeant walked to the back, Ron stood up front unsure of what to do first, "Oh Boy"
The bus was full of Arab women on holiday and they were all looking at him, he cheared his throat, "Yo', listen up, have a howler from Ron." Ron then raised his hands and started clapping, "Everyone hands in the air and clap, clap, clap, clap."
Ron and the sergeant began looking between the seats and at packages while the women clapped, once they were satisfied that there was no bombs on board, Ron raised his hand in the air, "PAPERS"
They checked the papers and then exited the bus, the sergeant shook his head, "English and Hebrew, It is a wonder we were not there all day with those women…You are going to have to learn Arabic or at least some Arabic."
Ron grimaced and nodded, "Word to your mother."
After his duty shift was over Ron finally caught up with Sergei, "Your day as bad as mine?"
Sergei sat on his bunk, "Bad…I do not know…dull…yes."
Ron unloaded his rifle and sat it by his foot locker, "Dull probably is a better word…I was on buses today….Think we can get some range time? I want to see what this gun can do."
"I have to site my gun in too; we have to find Corporal Pelzner." Sergei said as he got up off his bunk and grabbed his gun; Ron followed him after he retrieved his rifle.
Once off work Monique headed straight for Kim's house, she rang the door bell and Kim answered the door, "GIRL what did you do?"
Kim smiled, "Like the new look?"
Monique nodded, "Yea it, I didn't recognize you…You have that whole, dark, mysterious, pissed off look down."
She chuckled and bobbed her head from side to side, "Yeaaaaaaaaa"
"I want to be a blonde, I want to be a blonde, tell me where you got your hair cut done." Monique danced around excitedly.
Kim shook her head back and forth, "Girl named Rita opened a place in old town, she did Ron's haircut."
"She did a good job on Ron…I'll never forget that first time we seen him at the Odyssey he looked soooooooo good." Monique smiled at the memory.
"I remember he helped me out with that drunk guy…I wanted to slap Lacey…Sad about Lacey." Kim said quietly remembering the night.
Monique nodded, "Yea…It just devastated Ron."
Kim nodded, "Yea" Then it was time to get down to business, "So what have you learned?"
"Oh yea, Tulkharm is refugee camp and village in the West Bank...Ron is stationed at a border crossing about 25 or 30 miles from Netanya, I think it would be best to let Ron meet up with Bonnie and then spring the trap." Monique said with an evil grin.
"Hmmmm…Not a bad plan, I think we'll have to probably develop a good plan once we're on the ground and know what we're facing." Kim said as she was trying to work out what to do in her head.
She pulled out the Kimmunicator and pressed the connect button, "Wade, anything on a ride to Israel yet?"
Wade's image took form on the screen and he jumped in surprise at Kim's new look and then he shook his head, "Whoa…Great new look there…Sorry Kim…We've never really done much in that region of the world…I think you guys will have to fly commercial over there."
Kim blinked, "Commercial…as in airplane?"
Wade nodded, "Sorry Kim."
Monique held up a hand, "Hold on…How can we afford to pay for this?"
Wade's voice was low and conspiratorial, "Wellllll…I've kind of created a…false Master Card account that you guys could use to get the tickets and use for your expenses while your over there."
Kim and Monique looked at each other before Kim voiced an objection, "Wade…that's credit card fraud."
"Shhhhhhhh Not so loud." Wade told them as he looked around to make sure his mother hadn't heard them.
Monique looked at Kim and shrugged, Kim nodded, "Wade it's a lucky thing for you that I've learned to become morally flexible about some thing."
Wade looked around cautiously, "Kim…It's a victimless crime."
Kim smiled, "Wade, can you come up with passports for us…Say with different names and our new looks?"
"Different names…Why different names?" Wade asked more than a little confused.
There was an uncomfortable silence and then Kim smiled sheepishly, "I'm kind of…sort of…not supposed to leave the state."
Wade heaved a sigh and shook his head, "I'll see what I can do Kim."
The screen went blank and Kim smiled, "I think its best we have a few weeks to work on this."
Monique looked at herself in the mirror, "Maybe I should just do a blonde wig?"
Chanukah, the Festival of Lights, is a celebration of the victory of the Maccabees and the rededication of the Jerusalem Temple. It also commemorates the miracle of the oil that burned for 8 days
The last day of Chanukah arrived and Ron had fallen into the daily routine of Tulkharm, his KP duty had ended, so he was a free man for a week or so until he was assigned to toilet duty or unloading trucks or KP again.
He was picking up a few words of Arabic, so he could ask for papers, tell people to clap or ask very basic questions. Ron was working the pedestrian gate where Palestinians would come thru on their way to bus stops to take them into Netanya or one of the villages along the way.
Once he was relieved he went to find Sergei, "Shalom Sergei…Any word on when Tirza reports?"
Sergei smiled, "Oh so you are not concerned about what kind of day I had?"
Ron shook his head and smiled, "You are as bad as the old Arab women…Sergei, What kind of day did you have?"
Sergei chuckled and pulled the front of Ron's field hat over his eyes, "Boring and Tirza reports in a few weeks, once he finishes the advanced medic course."
"I was wondering what happened to him, I didn't think he would go AWOL…So what are we going to do for the rest of the day?" Ron asked as they walked into the barracks and began stowing their gear.
Sergei shrugged and started to remove his body armor, "Same thing we do every day….Go play soccer with the Arab kids."
Ron stopped him, "We are on alert again, best to leave it on."
Sergei tightened up the body armor, ;"We are always on alert for something, when we get our next leave we could go to Yad Hannah and look for an apartment."
"I am supposed to go visit Bonnie." Ron told him as they left the barracks.
They walked out to a large empty parking lot that was next the PX, Palestinian kids hung out, they would goof off with the off duty IDF soldiers.
Sometimes they would be in a good mood, curious of the soldiers that they were raised to believe were monsters. Sometimes the mood was darker and they would taunt the soldiers telling them they would be coming back to blow them up. These moods made Ron nervous.
The kids roamed around the border crossing, they came from large families in Tulkharm refugee camps. The kids weren't very well fed so today being a Jewish holiday they knew that there would be lots of food around.
Ron remembered how they went thru a box of donuts that were dropped off for the soldiers from the citizens of the nearby villages. The kids devoured the donuts as though they hadn't eaten in weeks.
There was food from many different organizations to feed the soldiers that were away from their homes. It was more than they could eat so they gave the donuts away to the Palestinians as they came through the crossing and of course to the kids
It was also the first time Ron had been confronted by extreme poverty, he had noticed that many of the children wore the same clothes day after day, and it wasn't only the children it was their mothers and fathers as well.
Ron's thoughts were broken by Efi Shapiro, "Ronnie we need another player."
"You know I am not a good soccer player." Ron reminded him as he walked further out into the parking lot.
Efi laughed, "Americans, football not soccer."
Ron met Efi shortly after arriving at Tulkharm, Efi's family owned a clothing store in Haifa, just north of Tel Aviv. He was tall, good natured and always gave Ron trouble for being an American.
"You Americans don't do well at football because you are obsessed with your upper bodies, hitting small white balls with sticks, throwing American footballs and nonsense like that."
Ron smiled, "I'm not a sports guy…I did that once and it wasn't fun."
"I think it is because I quit playing keep away when I was a small child…That is all your football is the world's largest game of keep away."
Efi laughed, "You don't understand football at all."
They played soccer for a while, the game abruptly ended when Sergei kicked the ball into one the concrete road barricades that lined the parking lot and popped the ball.
The kids were upset wanting to know who was going to pay for the ball. The soldiers took up a quick collection; Ron pitched in a couple of shekels and the kids ran off giggling.
Ron looked over at Sergei, "I think we paid too much for that ball."
Sergei nodded, "Probably, I am hungry, and when I am hungry it is time to go eat."
Efi walked over smiling, "He only wants to go there because Bina is pulling evening KP."
Sergei stiffened, "That is not true…I am hungry."
Ron chuckled, "A big guy like you is always hungry."
They started to walk towards the cafeteria, "I do not like Bina…She is hateful woman."
Efi laughed and jogged ahead of the others and turned and pointed at Sergei, "That is why you always walk with her in the morning to the check point?"
Sergei gave Efi a dirty look, "Look we are going to the same place nothing more."
Ron chuckled, "Sergei the building where they do the strip searches is barely in the same direction"
The entered the cafeteria and the line was small, it was always small when Bina worked because she had the nasty habit of slinging the food at the person holding the tray rather than into the tray where the food was supposed to go.
Sergei grabbed his tray and quickly got in line, "Bina how are you today."
Bina looked at Sergei and grinned picked up her spoon and then "Splat" slung a large portion of mashed potatoes right onto Sergei's chest, "I am not interested you, I am going to marry a rich doctor and he will take me away from this and I will never have to look at another naked Arab women again."
Ron looked at Efi and they quickly vacated the line, choosing instead to pick over the left over food that was brought in for Chanukah.
Efi looked back towards the line and chuckled as Bina and Sergei kept arguing back and forth, "I don't think she likes him very much."
Ron who was busy picking a couple of the less stale looking donuts looked over, "She likes, she likes him so much she feeds his clothes."
They sat at a table where they could watch the show in the serving line, finally Sergei walked away and over to the table where they were sitting. Ron smiled at the large round stain in the center of Sergei's uniform, "I am not sure Efi do you think the potatoes are less watery here or at Bezeq?"
Efi just about spit his donut out, "I am not sure either, What do you think Sergei? Are the potatoes here…"
"Shut up." Sergei said sternly as he began to eat the food that actually made it to the tray.
After the Christmas Holiday, Kim paid a visit to Rabbi Katz to gain information on where to find Bonnie and to ask a few questions that had been troubling her, "Hi Rabbi Katz…Do you have a few minutes?"
Rabbi Katz stared at Kim as he was trying to reorganize her, "The face looks familiar to me, I'm afraid I don't remember your name."
Kim looked around to make sure they were alone, "I'm Kim Possible…Ron's friend."
The Rabbi nodded, "Ahhhh yes, Kimberly…I thought you had red hair?"
Kim looked at the ceiling, "Ohhhhh well, you know us girls, I was just looking for a new look.
"Of course, it's a very nice look…Let's go into my office and see if I can help you." Rabbi Katz said as he turned and began to walk back to his office.
She had never been in the Rabbi's office before, she looked all the different books and scrolls, "I've got some questions…I'm not sure, what to ask first."
The Rabbi crossed his hands on his desk, "This wouldn't happen to do with Ronald and you knew look would it?"
"Well, yes…sort of…How does one go about converting to Judaism?" Kim asked in a very meek voice, she unsure if this was the right thing to start off her conversation with.
He was silent for a long moment, "Are you converting because you want to or are you wanting to convert because you have feelings for Ronald?"
Kim looked down at her feet as she struggled to find the right words, "Because of Ron…We…became very close before he left…We had talked of taking our relationship further…but…He was afraid I wouldn't let him raise the children as Jewish…I…I…want to…make him feel more comfortable."
Rabbi Katz smiled, "I think he would feel better about moving towards a commitment with you with that obstacle out of the way...I seem to remember having that conversation with him last year, when he broke his hand."
Her eyes shot open, "He talked to you about this last year…After the junior prom?"
He shook his head, "Not about children, no, he was concerned why his mother didn't like you, and about Bonnie calling him a stupid Jew."
Kim slumped in her chair feeling very foolish, "Oh…Ron's mom really doesn't like me does she."
The Rabbi shook his head, "Not you personally, she just wants Ron to marry a nice Jewish girl.
There was a long silence as Kim thought the answer over.
"Kimberly…Do you believe in God?" Rabbi Katz inquired.
Kim sat up straight in her chair and began to stammer, "I…Yes…I…believe there is something or someone watching over us…I…mean I don't go to church regularly or anything…But I do believe in God…"
Rabbi Katz nodded, "Now the next question I have for you is…How do you, feel about converting…Judaism is not just a religion, it's a culture, a way of life."
"I just want to make Ron happy…I don't know what to think of one religion or another…I just want to go to Israel and be with Ron." Kim said as she was trying to fight back her tears.
Rabbi Katz held up his hand, "Kimberly, I'm going to give you a few books to read to make you familiar with Judaism, these are the same books that I gave to Bonnie to educate her when she finally discovered she was Jewish."
Her mood brightened, "Bonnie is over there maybe…If I wrote her a letter…she could help me answer these questions."
"That is a wonderful idea Kimberly, I'm sure Bonnie would be happy to help you." Rabbi Katz said happily as he started going through his rolodex to find Bonnie's address.
"Ahhhhhh here it is." He then scribbled the address on a yellow pad and handed it to Kim.
Kim smiled and nodded, "Please and thank you...So this is the address to her apartment in Netanya?"
Rabbi Katz nodded, "Yes, I'm sure she'll help you with whatever questions you have."
She smiled and looked at the note, "Bonnie you are sooooo dead….I know where you are now."
Kim rose and followed the Rabbi to his bookshelf and took the three soft cover books the Rabbi gave her, "Thanks Rabbi Katz…You don't know how much this means to me."
Rabbi Katz smiled and showed her to the door, "I'm always happy to help, read those books over and bring them back and we'll talk further…Alright Kimberly."
She smiled happily having received what she had come for, "Thank you Rabbi Katz, I'll get the books back to you soon, I promise."
Rabbi Katz shouted after Kim who made her way to the exit as quickly as possible, "Take your time Kim, there is no hurry on a decision this important."
Kim hurried out to her car and slid behind the steering wheel, "I'll look over these books, I know how important this is to Ron now, I have to let him know that I have no problems with Judaism."
Kim let out a deep 'sigh' and nodded her head, "First things first…Get to Bonnie and get things straightened out with Ron…Then kick his ass for sleeping with Bonnie."
