Alex was in the mess tent, looking at the food on her tray.
'I hope you're not thinking about not eating,' Trapper said, sitting opposite her.
'If I was, I'd know you'd trick me into eating like last time, and there wouldn't be much point,' Alex replied as Hawkeye sat down beside her.
'What was Frank comforting you about in the supply tent a while back?' Hawkeye asked. Alex's cheeks turned a little red.
'None of your business,' she said, not looking at either of them.
'We've asked Frank and Klinger, neither of them would tell us,' Trapper said, trying to catch her eye.
'Good, I asked them not to tell anyone,' Alex said, looking up.
'We find it very suspicious that you won't tell anyone what it was about, when you want to prove you and Frank don't have a thing going on,' Hawkeye said. Alex turned to stare him in the eyes. Her green ones locked onto his blue eyes and Hawkeye noticed they weren't as soft as they usually were.
'It's my business, and I'll tell whoever I want to know about it. You are not one of them.' Alex turned to Trapper. 'And neither are you. Now leave it alone, or let me eat in peace.' Hawkeye sighed and gave Trapper a look.
'Ok, we'll let it lie,' he said.
'I'm sure you won't,' Alex said, eating calmly. Trapper and Hawkeye got up to leave, but then noticed Margaret leaving her tent.
'Let's get Hotlips in on all of this. I'm sure she'd like to know what it was about as well,' Hawkeye said to Trapper.
'But she doesn't know Alex and Frank were together in the supply room,' Trapper said, a confused look on his face.
'Not yet, she doesn't,' Hawkeye replied, and Trapper grinned when he realised what he meant.
**~~*~~*~~*~~**
'They were WHAT?' Margaret yelled.
'I knew you'd be upset. Alex insists nothing happened, and we can't get anything out of Frank or Klinger, so we thought we'd give you a try at Frank. He'd tell you anything,' Hawkeye said, sipping a martini.
'Why. . . how dare they. . . I'll have her shipped out to a different unit!' Margaret was pacing the Swamp.
'Not yet. We want to know if Alex is telling the truth first. We want to know what Frank was comforting her about, if anything at all,' Trapper said.
'You can bet I'll be finding out!' Margaret said before storming out.
'And now, we wait,' Hawkeye said, lifting his glass a little.
**~~*~~*~~*~~**
'What's the matter, cupcake?' Frank asked when Margaret pushed him away after he tried to give her a hug.
'Pierce and McIntyre say you were with lieutenant Dustin a few weeks ago,' Margaret said sourly.
'That? That was nothing!' Frank gave a nervous laugh.
'They told me that the lieutenant claimed you were giving her consolation about something,' Margaret continued. 'For me to believe the lieutenant's story, I want to know why you were giving her your sympathy.'
'Margaret, I promised I wouldn't tell,' Frank said, moving around to face Margaret in the eye.
'Tell me, or I will be ringing your wife to let her know about what's been going on between you,' Margaret insisted. Frank looked around nervously to make sure no-one was standing in Margaret's tiny tent.
'You can't tell anyone, I swore I wouldn't tell!' he said in a high pitched voice.
'Frank!' Margaret said warningly. Frank sighed. There was no escaping it.
'She had just got word from another MASH unit that her brother had died,' he said quietly. Margaret looked stunned.
'And out of all the people in camp, she told you?' she asked, as if she couldn't believe it.
'It was a case of me finding her first,' Frank explained. Margaret sat down on her cot.
'The poor girl,' she said to herself.
'You can't tell anyone!' Frank said frantically. Margaret nodded, thinking about Alex and not fully listening to Frank.
'Uh, Frank, why don't we hold our date until tomorrow?' she asked, realizing he was still there. 'I have a lot to think about.' Frank looked a little put down, but nodded dejectedly before leaving. Margaret waited a minute after he left before pulling her army boots on and heading towards the nurse's tent.
**~~*~~*~~*~~**
Alex was laughing at a joke when Margaret knocked on the nurse's door.
One of the other's answered it, and Alex heard Margaret ask 'Is lieutenant Dustin there?'
'Can I help you, Major?' Alex asked pleasantly.
'I'd like to talk to you privately, lieutenant,' Margaret told her.
'I'll be with you in a moment,' Alex said, going back inside and pulling a light purple dressing robe on and her boots without doing up the laces. She wrapped it around herself more tightly when she stepped into the howling wind outside.
'What is it?' she asked Margaret.
'Alex, I heard. . . I heard you lost someone close to you, a week or so back,' Margaret began. Alex stared at Margaret curiously.
'Go on,' she urged.
'Frank told me he gave you solace when you found out your brother died,' Margaret continued.
'I asked him not to tell! I'll kill him. . .' Alex started angrily, but Margaret stopped her.
'He only told me because I threatened to tell his wife that he was having an affair with you if he didn't tell me. Before he told me, all I knew was that Klinger walked in on you and Frank together in the supply room,' Margaret explained. Alex looked at her superior officer, her head tilted to the side.
'Who told you about that? Not many people know, because when Klinger accused me and Frank. . . well, being together, he only told Hawkeye and Trapper, and they believed me when I told them it was nothing,' Alex said. Margaret looked a little embarrassed.
'They were the one's who told me you and Frank were having an affair,' Margaret admitted. Alex sighed, obviously annoyed.
'They're going to tell the whole camp Frank has dumped you for me unless I tell them why Frank and I were hugging in the supply room,' Alex said. 'Thank you for telling me, Margaret.'
'I'm sorry about your brother,' Margaret said. Alex sighed again, a low, unhappy sigh.
'It doesn't matter. He died, and there isn't much I can do about it,' Alex said, a tear dribbling down her cheek. Without another word, Alex stormed off towards the Swamp.
'I hope you're not thinking about not eating,' Trapper said, sitting opposite her.
'If I was, I'd know you'd trick me into eating like last time, and there wouldn't be much point,' Alex replied as Hawkeye sat down beside her.
'What was Frank comforting you about in the supply tent a while back?' Hawkeye asked. Alex's cheeks turned a little red.
'None of your business,' she said, not looking at either of them.
'We've asked Frank and Klinger, neither of them would tell us,' Trapper said, trying to catch her eye.
'Good, I asked them not to tell anyone,' Alex said, looking up.
'We find it very suspicious that you won't tell anyone what it was about, when you want to prove you and Frank don't have a thing going on,' Hawkeye said. Alex turned to stare him in the eyes. Her green ones locked onto his blue eyes and Hawkeye noticed they weren't as soft as they usually were.
'It's my business, and I'll tell whoever I want to know about it. You are not one of them.' Alex turned to Trapper. 'And neither are you. Now leave it alone, or let me eat in peace.' Hawkeye sighed and gave Trapper a look.
'Ok, we'll let it lie,' he said.
'I'm sure you won't,' Alex said, eating calmly. Trapper and Hawkeye got up to leave, but then noticed Margaret leaving her tent.
'Let's get Hotlips in on all of this. I'm sure she'd like to know what it was about as well,' Hawkeye said to Trapper.
'But she doesn't know Alex and Frank were together in the supply room,' Trapper said, a confused look on his face.
'Not yet, she doesn't,' Hawkeye replied, and Trapper grinned when he realised what he meant.
**~~*~~*~~*~~**
'They were WHAT?' Margaret yelled.
'I knew you'd be upset. Alex insists nothing happened, and we can't get anything out of Frank or Klinger, so we thought we'd give you a try at Frank. He'd tell you anything,' Hawkeye said, sipping a martini.
'Why. . . how dare they. . . I'll have her shipped out to a different unit!' Margaret was pacing the Swamp.
'Not yet. We want to know if Alex is telling the truth first. We want to know what Frank was comforting her about, if anything at all,' Trapper said.
'You can bet I'll be finding out!' Margaret said before storming out.
'And now, we wait,' Hawkeye said, lifting his glass a little.
**~~*~~*~~*~~**
'What's the matter, cupcake?' Frank asked when Margaret pushed him away after he tried to give her a hug.
'Pierce and McIntyre say you were with lieutenant Dustin a few weeks ago,' Margaret said sourly.
'That? That was nothing!' Frank gave a nervous laugh.
'They told me that the lieutenant claimed you were giving her consolation about something,' Margaret continued. 'For me to believe the lieutenant's story, I want to know why you were giving her your sympathy.'
'Margaret, I promised I wouldn't tell,' Frank said, moving around to face Margaret in the eye.
'Tell me, or I will be ringing your wife to let her know about what's been going on between you,' Margaret insisted. Frank looked around nervously to make sure no-one was standing in Margaret's tiny tent.
'You can't tell anyone, I swore I wouldn't tell!' he said in a high pitched voice.
'Frank!' Margaret said warningly. Frank sighed. There was no escaping it.
'She had just got word from another MASH unit that her brother had died,' he said quietly. Margaret looked stunned.
'And out of all the people in camp, she told you?' she asked, as if she couldn't believe it.
'It was a case of me finding her first,' Frank explained. Margaret sat down on her cot.
'The poor girl,' she said to herself.
'You can't tell anyone!' Frank said frantically. Margaret nodded, thinking about Alex and not fully listening to Frank.
'Uh, Frank, why don't we hold our date until tomorrow?' she asked, realizing he was still there. 'I have a lot to think about.' Frank looked a little put down, but nodded dejectedly before leaving. Margaret waited a minute after he left before pulling her army boots on and heading towards the nurse's tent.
**~~*~~*~~*~~**
Alex was laughing at a joke when Margaret knocked on the nurse's door.
One of the other's answered it, and Alex heard Margaret ask 'Is lieutenant Dustin there?'
'Can I help you, Major?' Alex asked pleasantly.
'I'd like to talk to you privately, lieutenant,' Margaret told her.
'I'll be with you in a moment,' Alex said, going back inside and pulling a light purple dressing robe on and her boots without doing up the laces. She wrapped it around herself more tightly when she stepped into the howling wind outside.
'What is it?' she asked Margaret.
'Alex, I heard. . . I heard you lost someone close to you, a week or so back,' Margaret began. Alex stared at Margaret curiously.
'Go on,' she urged.
'Frank told me he gave you solace when you found out your brother died,' Margaret continued.
'I asked him not to tell! I'll kill him. . .' Alex started angrily, but Margaret stopped her.
'He only told me because I threatened to tell his wife that he was having an affair with you if he didn't tell me. Before he told me, all I knew was that Klinger walked in on you and Frank together in the supply room,' Margaret explained. Alex looked at her superior officer, her head tilted to the side.
'Who told you about that? Not many people know, because when Klinger accused me and Frank. . . well, being together, he only told Hawkeye and Trapper, and they believed me when I told them it was nothing,' Alex said. Margaret looked a little embarrassed.
'They were the one's who told me you and Frank were having an affair,' Margaret admitted. Alex sighed, obviously annoyed.
'They're going to tell the whole camp Frank has dumped you for me unless I tell them why Frank and I were hugging in the supply room,' Alex said. 'Thank you for telling me, Margaret.'
'I'm sorry about your brother,' Margaret said. Alex sighed again, a low, unhappy sigh.
'It doesn't matter. He died, and there isn't much I can do about it,' Alex said, a tear dribbling down her cheek. Without another word, Alex stormed off towards the Swamp.