A friendly chat
Hawkeye made his way over to Margaret's tent. He could see the soft, warm glow spilling out making it look warmer than anywhere else at the 4077th.
It was the complete opposite of the swamp, it showed and expressed his and Margaret's difference of opinion more than words ever could.
Being here, in the middle of a rotten war, Margaret had made herself a home because she was an Army brat.
To Hawkeye, the swamp was his way of expressing his dislike of the war. The tent he was forced to live in was Army property and he most certainly wasn't an Army man. He didn't care if the swamp was wrecked most of the time because it wasn't his home. His home was in Crabapple Cove with his dad.
He looked at the tent from the outside, looked at this sad tent being Margaret's home and felt sorry for her deep inside. He knocked on the door before opening it stepping inside not waiting for her to invite him in.
Margaret sat at her dressing table and their eyes met in the reflection of the mirror. She made no attempt to look round at Hawkeye. "Can I help you, Captain?" She asked.
Hawkeye moved into the room, letting the door shut quietly behind him. He knew Margaret was upset at something, she'd used his rank in a way of distancing herself from him. She mostly referred to him as either Hawkeye or Pierce these days. He decided to plow on with what he came here for and see how she reacted. "I've been nominated by the CO of this unit to invite you over to the Officer's club for some light, or heavy, refreshments."
"Thank you, but no. I've a few things I want to sort out here." She said. She picked up her hairbrush and began running it through her hair in fluid motions.
"Are you okay?" Hawkeye asked her deciding the direct approach may work best for the moment.
"I'm fine." She replied. "Please make sure you shut the door quietly as you leave," She looked away from him and concentrated even more on brushing her hair.
"Okay." Hawkeye said. Some times it was worth arguing with Margaret and getting her to tell you what was wrong, but he could tell she was going to be stubborn today. He'd see what she was like tomorrow and try again then. "Goodnight Margaret." He said as he opened the door and stepped back outside.
He looked over to his tent and saw Gaby sitting on his cot looking at something in her hands. His mind wondered briefly if he'd left any of his 'specialist' magazines out on display. He knew he didn't have many left, BJ's paternal tendencies seemed to be rubbing off on him. It didn't help when the picture of wholesome Peg and cute little Erin were positioned so they were looking his way, he had ended up throwing most away, only keeping a couple, just in case of an emergency.
The walk across from Margaret's tent to his took a matter of seconds.
He came in and sat down on the chair between his and BJ's bed.
"Did you miss me?" He asked.
"It was the worse two minutes of my life." She joked.
The Martini glass was empty next to the still now and she moved closer to Hawkeye and handed him the object in her hand.
He took it from her, knowing what it was immediately, one of the few things that had real meaning to him here.
It was a worn photograph of his mom in front of the sea.
"Is that you're mom?" She asked gently.
Hawkeye nodded looking at the photo, a smile played across his features, thinking of his family and his home town.
"She's beautiful. I can see you have her eyes and hair." She commented. "Is it pre or post Hawkeye?"
"Actually she's pregnant in the picture. Er, yeah, dad said when they found out they spent a week or so just enjoying themselves, you know, before she got too big to do anything. I guess they realized that they may not get so much time together once they had a kid."
"She looks very petite. Is your dad as tall as you?" Gaby asked, trying to judge the questions carefully so she didn't upset Hawkeye.
Hawkeye laughed thinking about that image. "Yeah, she'd of hated that. My dad's a little taller than me, but just before she died I remember I was catching up with her. Dad used to say as soon as puberty hit I'd be passing them both by. Never could beat him though."
Hawkeye looked at the photo for a few minutes longer, before he put it to one side. He looked at Gaby.
"She'd be so proud of you." Gaby said. She slowly lent forward and kissed Hawkeye, a quick, gentle kiss. "Was that alright?"
"Are you kidding me, it was perfect. Just like you." Hawkeye leaned in and returned the favor.