'Where's Beej?' Alex asked Charles, stumbling into the Swamp. 'Never mind, you're just as good a doctor.'

'What is the matter?' Charles asked, sounding slightly annoyed. Alex sat down on one of the crates in the tent.

'Abdominal pains, since breakfast,' Alex replied, clutching her stomach. Charles rubbed the painful area.

'Have you eaten anything unusual in the last few days?' he asked.

'I don't know. Would call the green stuff from yesterday's lunch unusual?' Alex said.

Standing up, Charles said 'I believe your liver is telling you to stop drinking.'

'My liver?' Alex asked, standing as well. 'I didn't realise it was smart enough to know I drink too much.'

'Stay away from anything alcoholic for the next month or so, and it will calm down. For now, I'll get you some pills to dull the pain,' Charles said.

'You don't understand, I drink to forget this war. If I can't drink, I can't forget, and I may go nuts staring at this hell hole sober for too long,' Alex said.

'Unless you want to destroy your insides, you will stay away from the Still, Rosie's bar and the officer's club for a month,' Charles insisted.

'I think it's time for a new body. This one's falling apart,' Alex muttered, sitting down. She reflexively reached for a martini glass, but stopped when she realised what she was doing. 'This is gonna be harder than I thought,' she said to Charles.

'Coming to the poker game tonight, Alex?' BJ asked.

'I don't know. Who's going to be there?' she asked.

'Me, Potter, Sidney, Klinger and Hawkeye,' BJ said.

'Yeah, count me in, I guess,' Alex said. 'Twenty one hundred hours in the Swamp?'

'Or nine o'clock tonight, which ever comes first,' BJ grinned.

'Smarty,' Alex said, lightly punching his on the arm. 'I'll go swap my rooster duty. Shouldn't be too hard, since Stewarts has been sent back to the front.'

'Yeah, about that,' BJ said, stopping Alex from walking away. 'Are you sure you'll be right around Hawkeye after that?'

'Me? Yeah, no worries,' Alex said. 'We can still have a professional game of Poker without mentioning that, can't we?'

'I guess,' BJ said. 'But I'm not cutting my poker game short if you two start brawling.'

'Hey, you could bet money against that instead of the cockroach races tomorrow night,' Alex suggested. 'Cut me half, and I'll take a dive in round three.' BJ shook his head, smiling.

'You're so much like Hawkeye, it's amazing,' he said. Alex poked her tongue out childishly at BJ, then walked away. 'If you were any more like Hawkeye, I'd have to get you both name tags!' BJ yelled after her.

'I suck at Poker when I can't drink,' Alex muttered, putting her cards down on the table. 'I fold.'

'It's my lucky night with you and Hawkeye out of the game,' Sidney said, pulling the chips towards him.

'Where is Hawkeye?' Potter asked.

'Sulking. He found out I was coming tonight and refused to come. Said something about a date, or post op, or anything else that would get him out of seeing me,' Alex replied, staring down at the table.

'It can't be that bad,' Sidney said. 'Hawkeye used to be willing to do almost anything for you. Remember Dani?'

'That's the problem,' Alex said. 'I yelled at him after he tried to help me, and things have been awkward - MORE awkward - than before.'

'Bad breakup,' BJ muttered to Sidney as he shuffled. Sidney nodded in understanding.

'I can hear you, you know,' Alex snapped. 'Anyway, I thought we were here to play Poker, not discuss me and Hawkeye.'

'Sorry, Alex,' BJ said. He dealt the cards and Alex took a swift look at her hand.

'Or, in my case, lose at Poker. Why am I even playing? I can't play without a martini,' she said, pushing her cards away. She stole a quick glance at the Still. 'Maybe I cold just have a little-'

'No! Alex, your liver will try and punch a hole through you if you touch anything alcoholic in the next month or so,' B warned. Alex sighed.

'Yeah, I know,' she said. 'Nothing's going my way, my luck, my career, my liver…'

'It can't be that bad,' Klinger said. He reached for his pile of chips to find they were all gone. 'Have I really lost that much?' he asked the waiting table.

'You didn't come in with that much to begin with,' Sidney said.

'Hey Alex,' Klinger said, turning to the nurse. 'I got a set of earrings, just ten dollars.' He pulled a large pair of large earrings from his pocket.

'I thought you gave up the section eight?' Alex asked, taking the earrings from Klinger to have a look.

'I did. Don't mean I got rid of all my stuff,' Klinger said. 'What do you say?'

'I might as well go away with something tonight,' Alex mumbled, handing Klinger a few notes and pocketing the earrings. She stood up and stretched. 'I'm going home,' she said. 'I'll win my money back next poker game, when I can drink.'

'Night, Alex,' BJ called. Alex grunted and walked out of the Swamp.

'Where have you been?' BJ asked without looking up when Hawkeye walked into the Swamp.

'Oh, you know, about,' Hawkeye said airily. 'Is it too late to play a few hands?'

'I can't believe you'd avoid a Poker game just because Alex was here,' Klinger said, standing up. 'You gonna start ignoring me because I tell you the mail is late?'

'Clamp it, Klinger,' Potter said, staring hard at his cards. To Hawkeye, he said 'it's downright childish.'

'What did I do?' Hawkeye demanded.

'You realise Alex was upset because you weren't here tonight?' BJ asked. 'She was so upset, she was off her game really bad.'

'Which she blamed on not being allowed to drink,' Klinger said, sitting down again.

'Which meant she wasn't able to get drunk and forget you were ignoring her,' BJ said.

'And not drinking put her off her game even more,' Klinger added.

'Letting me win for a change,' Sidney said.

'Ok, so I was avoiding her,' Hawkeye snapped. 'What would you do in my position?'

'Try to talk it out like adults,' Colonel Potter said. 'Look, Pierce, I can't send Alex away, no other unit will take her, she won't go home, and I don't want to lose my best surgeon. You two are going to have to kiss and make up.'

BJ gave a small cough. 'Maybe not the best way to put it,' he said quietly.

'I'll talk to her tomorrow,' Hawkeye said, sitting in his recliner. 'Can you guys drop it until then?'

'You'd better, Pierce,' Colonel Potter said.