A*F*T*E*R*MA*S*H
July 4th, 1968
Candlestick Park, San Francisco
Erin "Rainbow" Hunnicutt had just turned eighteen years old in the City of Love. She was tuned in and turned on (but she hadn't dropped out yet) and anxious to spread her freaky, psychedelic wings.
She was a little worried about what her dad would think, though.
He was a pretty cool guy for a 48-year-old. The Hunnicutt Free Clinic near the Bridge was a favorite with flower children and street fighters alike, hippies, Yippies, and just plain street people. For a lot of the kids on the street, B.J. Hunnicutt was a father figure and a point of stability in their lives. He was the only person over 30 that it was really OK to trust. Part of this was his gentle nature and tolerance, but it was also because of the way he agreed with the kids on political issues. He had been a medic in the Korean War, and knew how wasteful political hostility could be.
The free juice and cookies were always a hit, too.
Even though Rainbow tended to brag about her dad a little, she was careful not to let him in on her unusual social life. He had often warned her of the dangers of the lifestyle, and to him she appeared to be a straight-laced Berkeley medical student.
July 4th was shaping up to be a pretty good protest. From her vantage point standing on the bench, Rainbow could see all sorts of people. Longhaired folksingers carrying guitars with red-white-and-blue ribbons tied onto the pegs, Yippies in war paint and camouflage, monochromatic Black Panthers and colorful peasant-clothed hippies, old women carrying signs and small children with braids, and even a few Vietnam vets who had come to bring their brothers home. Some Diggers were passing out candles and cups of water.
Rainbow had walked up with some of her classmates, but most of the guys had wandered off to score some weed and most of the girls had gotten bored. She couldn't blame them; there didn't seem to be anything happening.
She felt a tap on her shoulder. "So…do you protest here often?"
Rainbow turned around. "Scuse me, but was that supposed to be a pickup line or something? Cause I think you should know that I am a liberated woman and I don't fall for that kind of stuff."
The man looked startled. "What, you didn't like that one? What was wrong with it—too topical?"
Rainbow couldn't help grinning. He was sort of cute, and he clearly wasn't being serious. And—he was a vet. Pretty well-adjusted for one, too. Most of the vets she saw hanging around were either strung out on something or in wheelchairs.
"You were in the war, huh?"
"Yeah," he said. "A medic."
She nodded. "My dad was in the Korean War. He was a medic too. He runs a free clinic on Bridge Street now."
"Oh, I don't know where that is. I just got here."
"Where are you from originally?"
"Maine. I went back there, but I just couldn't stay…" He shoved his hands into his pockets. "Well, you know how it is. Everyone thought I was some kind of big hero when I was just trying to stay alive."
Rainbow had heard the same thing from a few hundred vets when she helped out in the clinic. "So you came all the way out here."
"I heard it was a nice place."
"You should have been here last year," offered Rainbow. "It was really happening in 67. There are more pigs and dealers around now and it's not as safe."
"Ain't it the truth. So what's your name?"
"Everyone calls me Rainbow. How about you?"
"Just nicknames, eh? You can call me Hawkeye."
Rainbow took him back to the pad that some of her friends kept in Haight Street. She dug out some of the hash they kept in the pantry, thought better of it, and pulled out some weed.
"Here," she said. "This is some pretty good stuff. We scored it off a Mahareshi in Chinatown."
"Shouldn't he have been in—ah, screw it." Hawkeye took a puff off the joint and coughed. "I'm not used to this. I prefer alcohol."
"Alcohol kills brain cells and deadens the senses," lectured Rainbow.
"Yeah, that's why I prefer it," Hawkeye deadpanned.
Rainbow raised an eyebrow. "You gonna bogart that all night, or can I have some?"
"Sorry." Hawkeye passed the joint to her.
They got high, and Hawkeye told her about the guys he had known back in the war. "This guy Klinger, he was always trying to get out on a Section Eight. Tried to fool the CO into thinking he was a cross-dresser. It never worked."
Rainbow told him about some of her friends. "I was going out with a guy named Sky Starsword who was really into Tolkien. One day when he was tripping out of his mind, he dressed up in my grandma's fur coat and grabbed great-grandpa's sword and started screaming about killing Ringwraiths. He hit a pig with the sword and took his wedding ring, then put it on and streaked around peeing on things because he thought he was invisible." She paused. "He isn't my boyfriend anymore."
Hawkeye thought that was hilarious.
They made out for a while, then Rainbow suggested they screw. Hawkeye was a little surprised. "I like my cars and my women fast, but this is a little much even for me. We've only known each other for what, three hours?"
"I am a liberated woman and I can make my own choices and I believe in free love, okay? Anyway, you're cute, and I really like your sense of humor."
"Just making sure," said Hawkeye. He leaned over and kissed her again. Rainbow really liked the way he kissed—it wasn't slobbery or too tonguey.
She sighed. "I think this is going to be nice."
"This isn't the first time you've done this, is it?" Hawkeye asked.
"Don't worry about it. I'm used to this. I've had a few boyfriends."
Afterwards, Rainbow realized that it was later than she had thought. "Listen, I gotta go, okay? You can stay here for a while if you like."
"I should get going too," Hawkeye said. "Buddy of mine invited me over for dinner."
When Rainbow got home, she brushed her hair, took a shower, and changed into a polo shirt and chinos. She was now Erin and had to help her mother with the pot roast.
As she went downstairs, Dad came in the door. "How was your day?" she asked as she kissed him on the cheek. All very heartwarming and middle American, she thought.
"It was crazy. I got a bunch of kids from that protest in Candlestick Park. Apparently there was a riot, and the cops broke it up. There was tear gas everywhere…" He shook his head. "It's almost worse than it was in the war."
"Yeah. Um, Mom made pot roast and mashed potatoes for dinner."
"Great. I hope you made extra. One of the guys I was in the M*A*S*H with is in town for a few nights, and I thought it might be a good idea to give him a real home-cooked meal."
Erin shrugged. "Fine with me."
Dad went into the living room to read the paper, like he did every night. Erin followed him to snitch the comics.
After a few minutes the doorbell rang. "Erin honey, would you get that?" Dad called.
"Yeah, yeah." Erin opened the door and almost lost her balance. It was that vet she had met at the park. "Did you follow me home or something?" she hissed.
"Rainbow? Wait, I thought you lived in that apartment…" Hawkeye looked extremely confused.
"Some of my friends do! And they let me use it! And you told me you were a Vietnam vet."
"I said I was a vet. I never said which war."
"What the hell are you doing here anyway?"
"Having dinner, hopefully." Hawkeye sniffed. "Do I smell pot roast?"
"Hawkeye!" Dad was standing right behind Erin. "God, it's great to see you." He punched the vet on the shoulder.
Hawkeye grinned weakly. "Great to see you too, Beej."
"Come on inside, Hawk. Dinner's almost ready. Say, have you met my daughter Erin?"
"It's great to meet you, Mr. Hawkeye," Erin muttered through clenched teeth.
Dinner was long and weird. Erin tried to avoid meeting anyone's eyes, but Hawkeye kept giving her weird looks. Dad was cheerful and didn't seem to grok what was going on.
After dinner, Dad and Hawkeye went into the living room to catch up and reminisce. Erin stayed behind to help Mom with the dishes.
"You were quieter than usual tonight, Erin," said Mom. "What's wrong?"
Erin busied herself with scrubbing a spoon. Mom was a little savvier than Dad. She knew a little about Erin's double life, and while she was a little disapproving, she did try to be tolerant.
"You know the guy that Dad invited over?" she asked finally.
"What about him?" Mom asked.
"Well, I met him in the park today. I thought he was a Vietnam vet. And, um, I took him back to that apartment that Sky and Amanita rented."
Mom bit her lip. "Erin, I warned you about this kind of thing."
"Yeah, but he was really cute, and funny. And I thought he was younger!" Erin sighed.
Mom looked at her sideways. "Well…was it any good?"
"Mom!" Erin was shocked.
"What? You're young, Erin, and you live in this wonderful age where you don't have to worry about the kind of things I did. When I was your age, if I had done what you just did…well, I wouldn't have. We didn't do those kind of things, and if anyone had, her life would have been effectively over. But now you can do these kind of things and you don't have to worry about what anyone thinks. And honey, if you want to do those kind of things, you can! I just wish I was your age now."
"So what, are you living vicariously through me or something?"
"If you don't mind," said Mom.
Dessert was strawberry rhubarb pie and ice cream that Erin had picked up from a store on Haight-Ashbury that had just opened up. There had been a shift in the atmosphere—Dad was still oblivious and Hawkeye was still a little weirded out, but Erin was having fun.
"So Hawkeye," she asked. "Did you ever get married? Dad's told me some stories about you during the war. Apparently you were quite the ladies' man."
"No, I um, never found, you know." Hawkeye stuffed a huge piece of pie into his mouth. "Peg, this is really good. What kind of ice cream is this?"
"It's called Lennon Lemon. It's named after that Beatle, the one that just married that Japanese artist. Erin picked it up on Haight Street today."
"When were you on Haight Street?" Dad asked.
"Um, I went to pick up some friends." Erin stood up and picked up her dishes. "Can I take anyone else's plate?" She grinned at Hawkeye, who nearly choked.
"Oh, Peg. I nearly forgot. Is it all right if Hawkeye sleeps here tonight? You know, a nice warm bed in a nice house…"
Mom bit her lip. "I think it might not be a good idea. Do we even have room?"
"We've got that guest room, don't we? Come on, it'll be great. Anyway…" He lowered his voice. "I don't trust the hotels around here."
"Well…all right. I'll make up the bed. Erin, come and help me."
As Erin followed Mom up the bedroom, she heard Dad talking to Hawkeye. "I can take tomorrow off and show you the sights. It'll be great."
Erin couldn't sleep. Her room was right next to Hawkeye's, and she could hear him tossing and turning.
She opened the door to his room. "Hawkeye? Are you still awake?"
"Couldn't sleep," he muttered.
"Yeah, well, I got a good way to solve that." Erin lifted her nightgown over her head.
Hawkeye's eyes got wide. "Your parents are in the next room. This might not be a good idea."
"It's fine. Mom doesn't mind, and Dad's totally out of it." She hopped onto the end of the bed.
"You're a little young for this, aren't you?"
"That didn't seem to bother you before."
"Well, before I didn't know that you were the teenage daughter of my old war buddy. That almost seems…incestuous."
"I don't care and neither should you." Erin crawled up to where Hawkeye sat gripping the sheets and slipped her hand under the covers.
"Oh…" Hawkeye closed his eyes. "No. This is most definitely not a good idea."
"Oh, shut up."
A sigh. "Erin…"
"Call me Rainbow."
