As much as Hawkeye's hand had trembled before operating on the man who killed BJ, somehow it was shaking far worse as he picked up the telephone, having decided after a long evening to call Trapper.
Why was this so hard? I mean, he'd one time been the best friend a guy could have asked for.
Trapper had saved his life, at least his mental well being, during their brief time together in Korea. It was funny how the war had brought so much pain, so much loss and suffering to Hawkeye, the people he worked on and with..and yet some of the best memories of his life came from living around the people he had during his time overseas.
Even Frank Burns, Hawkeye chuckled to himself. Wait until Trapper found out that not only was Frank around for him during his time of need, but he'd managed to go beyond winning back Margaret- he'd managed to get her to marry him as well.
Life was surely funny. Not always ha ha funny, often times ironically funny, even tragically funny, sometimes hard to believe things happened the way they did funny...
such as Charles himself turning out to be homosexual.\\
Klinger having stayed behind in Korea for a time, well, even Trapper would appreciate the irony in that one.
Frank and Margaret finally together,..
Hawkeye Pierce, legendary ladies' man, having found the love of his life with his best friend..his best male friend.
Life surely was strange indeed.
The voice picked up, and Hawkeye knew immediately that he'd reached Trapper himself. His accent wasn't hard to place, even after all these years.
"Hello?" Trapper repeated himself several times. It was all Hawkeye could do to keep from hanging up and unplugging the telephone, then hiding under his bed covers for some time. Why was this so hard, exactly?
But finally Hawkeye gathered his courage, and he spoke up. "Trapper? It's me. It's Hawkeye."
Silence for what seemed like a small eternity.
"Hawk? Is that really you?"
Taking a deep breath, Hawkeye replied. "Yes, it's me. How the heck are you?"
Trapper broke into laughter, which actually helped to break the ice. Before long Hawkeye was hearing all about his friend's kids, his wife, his life...
Trapper asked if Hawkeye had heard from any of their friends in Korea.
It was the segway Hawkeye needed to explain his current situation.
After admitting to Trapper, Hawkeye's fellow philanderer, that he was a homosexual, Hawkeye closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and waited for the worst.
To each man's surprise, Trapper didn't even hesitate. "How soon do you need me there?"
And Hawkeye didn't even think himself before responding. "Yesterday."
and within 24 hours, Hawkeye found himself on the long-awaited, the long-time-in-coming, long- thought about but never expected reunion embrace from a Dr. Trapper John McIntyre.
It was yet another funny, strange moment in the weirdness that had become Hawkeye's life.
00000
They caught up over drinks on Hawkeye's porch, with Pierce telling Trapper about how their friends had pulled through for him, how they had supported him and hadn't judged him, well, except for Frank in his usual way. But what did he expect- Frank Burns was nothing if not still Ferret Face.
Trapper drank down his beer, slapping his knee in the process. He started laughing hysterically.
Which struck Hawkeye as odd as he'd just informed Trapper about his life with BJ and his orientation.
It was confusing, and almost insulting. It was not the reaction Hawkeye had been expecting or hoping for.
But then again, did anything in his life ever work out the way Hawkeye had anticipated?
"What?" Hawkeye asked. "I have to tell you, I pour my heart out, telling some dark truths about myself that very very few people know...and you laugh? I'm a bit perplexed.."
"You're perplexed? What about Ferret Face?" Trapper laughed heartily. "Let me get this straight.. he finds out that BJ had passed away, then he finds out you and BJ were a couple...and he still stayed? I would have loved to see the look on his face when you told him about, you know.."
Hawkeye wasn't sure how to respond. But shockingly, he found himself actually joining in with Trapper's contagious laughter. "Yeah...that was something for sure."
"I got to hand it to you, Hawk...I don't know which would be harder...having to give up the ladies, or to have to sit through one of Frank's sactimonious, hypocritical ethics sermons...you really do have some guts, don't you?"
Hawkeye looked at his friend, then kept on laughing. That Trapper had always had a way of helping Hawkeye deal with things, even the dark side of life.
"Have I told you how much I missed you?" He finally asked Trapper.
"Me too, old buddy. Me too." Trapper sighed then helped himself to another beer.
"You okay with me...after what I told you?" Hawkeye turned a bit serious, suddenly very much caring what his friend thought of him.
"Why wouldn't I be? You ain't going to put the moves on me, are you?"
Hawkeye's jaw dropped, then he saw the gleam in his friend's eye. "Not today, my friend."
"Then hey, I don't have no problem with you. You have a problem with me?"
"Just that you've drunk all my beer. I think I have a few squared away. You're an expensive friend, you know that, right?" Hawkeye smiled as he stood to go raid his refrigerator.
"Yeah, but ain't I a kick in the pants?" Trapper smiled, and nearly fell out of the porch chair that he'd been sitting in.
Hawkeye shook his head then went into his kitchen.
He sure missed BJ.
He had sure loved BJ.
He surely wanted to still be part of Erin's life, and thought of her often.
It was at this dark hour of Hawkeye's life that he realized that he'd been dealt some tough, tough blows.
But he'd also been given the best friends a guy could ever ask for.
If BJ could see him now...
tbc
