'Did you see this?' Henry asked Hawkeye and Trapper, throwing an old
Stripes and Stars newspaper onto his desk. Trapper picked it up, and
Hawkeye looked over his shoulder. It was opened to page sixteen, and there
was a small article about how one of the MASH units had been over taken by
the enemy, but luckily for the captured nurses and doctors, troops came in
to claim the camp back. One of the six small photo's was of a nurse,
supporting a black eye, and a long bloody cut on her left cheek, blood
dribbling onto her chin. Her face was streaked with tears and dirt, and she
had a blood stained shirt on.
'Hey, that's Alex,' Trapper said, swallowing hard when he saw how beaten up she looked.
'Did either of you two know she was part of the unit that was attacked?' Henry asked them.
'Yeah, we did,' Hawkeye said, taking the paper from Trapper and reading the blurb under the photo.
ILutienant Dustin escapes with her life after a doctor was killed./I
'Why didn't anyone tell me she was in the unit that was attacked?' Henry asked.
'Alex doesn't like people making a fuss over her. It's why she didn't tell anyone about her brother,' Hawkeye said.
'Brother?' Henry asked.
'Alex's brother died up at the front and that's what Frank was comforting her about. She doesn't want anyone to know,' Trapper explained. Henry sat down at his desk.
'I wish people would tell me these things!' he said angrily, staring at the paper Hawkeye just put back onto the table. 'She could have been shipped home by now. Stars and Stripes says everyone in that MASH unit were sent home.'
'She wasn't,' Hawkeye said.
'I know that, otherwise she wouldn't be here!' Henry snapped. 'RADAR!' he yelled as Radar came in the office.
'I've sent for Alex,' Radar said.
'Good, but I wish you'd let me give the order before you do it,' Henry said in a tired voice.
'She lied!' Trapper hissed to Hawkeye. 'She lied to us when she said she wasn't offered a discharge!'
'There'll be a good reason for it,' Hawkeye whispered back. Alex came into Henry's office a minute later, followed by Klinger who was wearing a new, very frilly, dress.
'What's up, Henry?' Alex asked cheerfully. Then she noticed the paper on the desk, still opened to page sixteen. Her smile fell from her face, and she stared at her army boots. Klinger picked up the paper and whistled loudly when he saw the picture of her.
'That says everyone from that unit was sent home, back to the states, or from wherever else they came from,' Henry said in a dangerously low voice.
'I insisted on staying in Korea,' Alex replied, refusing to look at anyone.
'Why?' Henry asked.
'I didn't want to leave my brother here by himself,' Alex said, snatching the paper from Klinger, who was reading the article in it and scrunching it up in one hand. Henry stopped and looked at the nurse. The scar seemed to stand out more noticeably to him after seeing what it looked like with blood pouring from it, and Alex still seemed determined, even though she had her eyes to the floor.
'Do you still want to stay in Korea?' he asked.
'What?' Alex asked, looking up quickly.
'Do you want to stay here in Korea, or go back home?' Henry asked.
'You can't just send me back like that, can you?' Alex asked.
'These two,' Henry paused to jab a thumb in Hawkeye and Trapper's direction, 'told me about your brother. You could go home on a section DA7.' Klinger put his hands on Alex's shoulders and whirled her around to face him.
'You get to go home! Alex, you get to go home!' Klinger shouted happily. Radar walked in with the forms to send Alex home. Henry filled them out quickly and signed them before handing them to Alex. She stared at them for a moment, and looked around the room. Henry was regarding her quietly, Radar watching her, and glancing at the paper now on the floor every few seconds, Hawkeye and Trapper were smiling at her from the side of the room, and Klinger had a look of delight on his face. Alex sighed before ripping the paper's in half. There were a few gasps around the room as Alex put the ripped up forms on Henry's desk.
'Alex, what are you doing?' Hawkeye asked.
'I can't go home, knowing the people over here, risking their lives every day. I'll go home when everyone else gets to go home,' Alex said. With that, she left Henry's office.
'She could have gone home,' Klinger said quietly.
'First Klinger, who desperately wants out of the army, and now Alex, who wants to stay in the army,' Henry sighed.
'She didn't really just do that, did she? This is all just some wacko dream, right?' Hawkeye asked Trapper.
'Don't ask me,' Trapper replied, staring at the ripped up DA7 form on Henry's desk.
'Hey, that's Alex,' Trapper said, swallowing hard when he saw how beaten up she looked.
'Did either of you two know she was part of the unit that was attacked?' Henry asked them.
'Yeah, we did,' Hawkeye said, taking the paper from Trapper and reading the blurb under the photo.
ILutienant Dustin escapes with her life after a doctor was killed./I
'Why didn't anyone tell me she was in the unit that was attacked?' Henry asked.
'Alex doesn't like people making a fuss over her. It's why she didn't tell anyone about her brother,' Hawkeye said.
'Brother?' Henry asked.
'Alex's brother died up at the front and that's what Frank was comforting her about. She doesn't want anyone to know,' Trapper explained. Henry sat down at his desk.
'I wish people would tell me these things!' he said angrily, staring at the paper Hawkeye just put back onto the table. 'She could have been shipped home by now. Stars and Stripes says everyone in that MASH unit were sent home.'
'She wasn't,' Hawkeye said.
'I know that, otherwise she wouldn't be here!' Henry snapped. 'RADAR!' he yelled as Radar came in the office.
'I've sent for Alex,' Radar said.
'Good, but I wish you'd let me give the order before you do it,' Henry said in a tired voice.
'She lied!' Trapper hissed to Hawkeye. 'She lied to us when she said she wasn't offered a discharge!'
'There'll be a good reason for it,' Hawkeye whispered back. Alex came into Henry's office a minute later, followed by Klinger who was wearing a new, very frilly, dress.
'What's up, Henry?' Alex asked cheerfully. Then she noticed the paper on the desk, still opened to page sixteen. Her smile fell from her face, and she stared at her army boots. Klinger picked up the paper and whistled loudly when he saw the picture of her.
'That says everyone from that unit was sent home, back to the states, or from wherever else they came from,' Henry said in a dangerously low voice.
'I insisted on staying in Korea,' Alex replied, refusing to look at anyone.
'Why?' Henry asked.
'I didn't want to leave my brother here by himself,' Alex said, snatching the paper from Klinger, who was reading the article in it and scrunching it up in one hand. Henry stopped and looked at the nurse. The scar seemed to stand out more noticeably to him after seeing what it looked like with blood pouring from it, and Alex still seemed determined, even though she had her eyes to the floor.
'Do you still want to stay in Korea?' he asked.
'What?' Alex asked, looking up quickly.
'Do you want to stay here in Korea, or go back home?' Henry asked.
'You can't just send me back like that, can you?' Alex asked.
'These two,' Henry paused to jab a thumb in Hawkeye and Trapper's direction, 'told me about your brother. You could go home on a section DA7.' Klinger put his hands on Alex's shoulders and whirled her around to face him.
'You get to go home! Alex, you get to go home!' Klinger shouted happily. Radar walked in with the forms to send Alex home. Henry filled them out quickly and signed them before handing them to Alex. She stared at them for a moment, and looked around the room. Henry was regarding her quietly, Radar watching her, and glancing at the paper now on the floor every few seconds, Hawkeye and Trapper were smiling at her from the side of the room, and Klinger had a look of delight on his face. Alex sighed before ripping the paper's in half. There were a few gasps around the room as Alex put the ripped up forms on Henry's desk.
'Alex, what are you doing?' Hawkeye asked.
'I can't go home, knowing the people over here, risking their lives every day. I'll go home when everyone else gets to go home,' Alex said. With that, she left Henry's office.
'She could have gone home,' Klinger said quietly.
'First Klinger, who desperately wants out of the army, and now Alex, who wants to stay in the army,' Henry sighed.
'She didn't really just do that, did she? This is all just some wacko dream, right?' Hawkeye asked Trapper.
'Don't ask me,' Trapper replied, staring at the ripped up DA7 form on Henry's desk.