Rated M.

If you recognize it, it is not mine.

The following chapter contains references to the episode Hepatitis.

Please, pleeeeeeease review!

He quickly abandoned the idea of writing a letter to Claudia because he couldn't figure out what to say. He had even sat down to write it, but ended up just staring at the blank piece of paper. He simply missed her, what else was there to say? That he needed her presence to feel alive himself, that when he couldn't see her, he was restless and sad? He was never one for love letters full of cheesy phrases. Sure, he knew what women wanted to hear and what was expected of him to say, but it had never occurred to him that he might ever mean all those cheesy phrases. God! How many days together they had left was anybody's guess and right now he couldn't even see her without endangering her.

Well, seeing her wasn't the problem. Theoretically, he could go visit her and if they didn't have any physical contact whatsoever, it should be perfectly safe for her. Although it was hard enough to be near her without being able to hold her in his arms, to feel her heart beating next to his, making sure she was okay. Maybe he could just see if she needed anything.

But right now he had to see how Father Mulcahy was doing and then go visit the kitchen, where Klinger was keeping the cockroaches busy. His tour of 4077 personnel's behinds was almost over, he only needed to see Klinger, Radar and BJ. The last one in line was Colonel Potter. By then the results of all blood test should be available and he should be able to go visit Claudia, even if only to give her a shot and check her out (medically).

He was way too tired after he finally convinced the Father that he needed to rest to be better. And that was before he practically had to wrestle with Klinger to get a blood sample. By the time he sat down opposite of Radar to give him an examination, he was done. And not just medium rare, but truly well done and squished for all his juice.

Good little Radar was somewhat squirmy, which was not unusual, he was always uncomfortable when he had to give blood or drop his pants, but this time it seemed like something different. And then he started asking about what could be found from one's blood, and if it could be found out that a guy has any 'special problems'. Hawkeye didn't follow Radar at all, so he asked what the problem was and as the little company clerk kept going, Hawkeye's heart almost broke. The little kid was growing up, thinking there was something wrong with him because he didn't sleep around as everyone seemed to. He suddenly felt guilty, wondering whether it was his fault. Radar always looked up to him for some reason, coming to him whenever he needed advice. Sometimes he behaved really crappy towards the women he was dating, if one could call it that. But that was all BC, before Claudia. And he couldn't imagine anything after her.

His back was killing him more and more, and of course he had to wait to examine BJ and Potter. So he grabbed a disinfectant, rubber gloves and the only thing in the kitchen that was packaged carefully, which turned out to be crackers. Before heading out, he checked on BJ's progress in the OR. It would take more time to finish such a difficult operation and Potter stayed behind even though he was done with his patients, just in case BJ needed help. After making sure he wasn't needed, he set the course for Claudia's tent.

The light in her tent was on, so that was a good sign. His heart made a couple somersaults, he was looking forward to see Claudia again so much.

She was lying in her bed, reading what looked like an official letter. Next to her, on the pillow laid a blank sheet of paper. So she was doing correspondence, always being the good worker. Her face lit up when she noticed him coming in.

"Oh, hi! Thought I was a forbidden territory." She sat up, dropping the letter and the blank page on the cot next to her. "How's your back?"

"Not great." Hawkeye admitted. "But I am definitely feeling better when I see you." He couldn't help but smile at her.

"Did you need anything?" She asked, noting his rigid stance and the way he looked at her. He seemed on edge. "Hawkeye?"

"I don't know what I was thinking, but I just… I needed to see you."

"That's okay." She gave him an adorable smile, which made his hear jump again. "You should get some rest, so your back doesn't get worse."

"Yeah." Hawkeye's gaze dropped to the floor for a moment. "Oh, I brought you something." He reached into his pocket and donned rubber gloves and then made some room on her table and put down a little plate. Then he opened the packet of crackers and let them fall on the plate.

Claudia watched him, as he took great care not to touch the crackers or anything else she might touch in the near future. It made her love him even more to know he just came here to give her a little treat and went to great lengths to do it safely. His movements were slow and sometimes it was obvious he was in pain. That back of his! She suspected it might not have been physical problem, but something else. Hawkeye was under enormous pressure on a good day, and there weren't many of those lately. Many people were counting on him and sometimes it was difficult to live up to the expectations of perfection.

"What?"

She heard his voice suddenly asking.

"Nothing I just like looking at you." She confessed with a grin and then burst into a fit of loud laughter.

"You're a great sight, too."

"There's a chair, make a use of it." She suggested, sensing an odd nervousness from him. That was unusual.

"Ah…okay." He grabbed the chair and set it down about five feet away from her cot. With a painful hiss he sat down.

"You know I don't bite, right?" Claudia said surprised at his actions. "Unless you want me to that is." She added in a whisper, blowing him a kiss afterwards.

"You're in quarantine, Claudia. I can't be too close, I wouldn't forgive myself if I infected you."

"I know. And you're being very sweet. Thank you." She reached for one cracker and bit into it, just staring at him as she chewed. "I'm glad you came to visit me."

Hawkeye fidgeted on the chair, trying to get comfortable, but his back hurt no matter how he sat.

"Did you finally x-ray your back?" Claudia asked, noticing he was in pain.

"Yes. But there was nothing unusual." Hawkeye shrugged it off, making it clear he did not want to talk about it.

"What else is going on around here?"

"BJ is in OR, working on a tank driver. He's working from the textbook and last time I checked it was going okay, but the injuries were pretty bad."

"So who was the one injecting every butt in camp, you?"

"Yes. Well, minus BJ and Potter and you, for now." He took his jacket off and let it drop behind him on the chair.

"Ah! Continue." She winked at him, finally getting a little smile from him.

He watched her tongue slowly wet her lips, making them more pink and shiny. He wished he could just sweep her off her feet into his arms and kiss her hard, pressing her body against him. He breathed out loudly, sighing.

She must have read his mind, because she chuckled and then untied her robe, revealing her underwear. It wasn't one of those sexy all lacey thing, but it hugged her body in all the right places. He felt his heartbeat quicken to an unbelievable pace. She was so gorgeous! Not minding his back, he swiftly got up and locked the door. He didn't want anyone else to her like this.

Running her hands along her body, she let the bra straps fall off her shoulders. Even more of her chest was revealed to Hawkeye, but not nearly enough. He felt as if he was being consumed by fire. A loud moan escaped him, when he saw her reached behind and unzip the bra altogether, making it fall into her lap.

He was mesmerized by her full breasts, which were now at display for him. There was deep ache inside his body, begging him to touch her. He wanted, no, he needed to caress and kiss her soft skin before his heart was going to explode out of his chest.

Claudia threw her bra away and lied down on her cot, staying all stretched out in front of him, staring right into his eyes. Hawkeye swallowed hard, his breath ragged. "Claudia…" He whimpered, not sure how long he could last.

"How about you lose some clothing, too?"

"Huh?" He couldn't really focus on anything but her nimble fingers making their way down her body, teasing one nipple, then the other and then continuing down. He could hear her panting, reveling in the breathless delight. In quick succession he stripped off his shirt, then lowered his shorts and started working on his own release.

He promised to himself that he'd make so much effort the next time they're together. He channeled all the anger and irritation at the situation into the harsh movement of his hand. It didn't take long before he let out a desperate groan and harshly slapped the side of his chair with his other hand in the throes of the passion.

He took a few deep breaths before cleaning himself up. Afterwards he turned the attention to the beautiful woman on the bed. Claudia was sprawled across the cot, her eyes half-closed and her lips twisted in a satisfied smile. He stared at her, savoring the sight before him. He knew her enough to know how she looked right afterwards, at that moment of total peace and contentment. He couldn't take his eyes off her. He hoped she saw the unconditional love in his eyes that he felt he projected to her.

After such experience, he couldn't even bring himself to be angry at BJ for forgetting about the examination and celebrating in the Officers' club instead. He was riding high at the moment, and for a short while, before he got to the colonel's office, even his back stopped hurting.