Alex was laughing with Kellye and Jefferson the next morning. Hawkeye went up the their table and stood there awkwardly for a moment.

'What?' Alex asked, not entirely in a nice manner.

'I'm sorry about last night,' Hawkeye mumbled.

'Oh, weren't you at the poker game last night? I didn't notice,' Alex said icily.

'I said I was sorry, didn't I?' Hawkeye yelled. 'Isn't that enough?'

'Look, I know you think all of this is my fault, and maybe it is. But you don't make it any easier,' Alex said. 'Just because you've been here the longest, doesn't mean you've been put through the worst of the war.' Hawkeye looked away guiltily, remembering Alex's scar and eye. Alex turned away as well, and went back to eating. Hawkeye left the Mess hall.

'You can't be mad at him forever,' Jefferson said.

'Watch me,' Alex replied, viciously stabbing a piece of bread.

'Look on the bright side, he'll be gone for a few days after today,' Kellye said.

'Why, what's happened?' Alex asked in surprise, looking up.

'Didn't you hear? Potter gave Hawkeye a week of R and R for him to cool down,' Jefferson said.

'I wish I got a weeks R and R,' Alex said.

'It could be worse,' Kellye said.

'How?' Alex asked.

'He could have sent you home,' Kellye said.

'Yeah, ha, ha, make fun of me because I've said no to a ticket home,' Alex said sarcastically.

'I didn't mean it like that,' Kellye said.

'Sorry,' Alex sighed. 'I guess I'm sour because of my liver. Just tell me to pull my head in next time I start acting like that again.' She put her head in her hands. 'I hate this stupid war.'

Charles was relieved Hawkeye had gone, but he didn't get the privacy he had expected from Hawkeye's absence. Alex had taken to sitting in the Swamp with BJ, an empty martini glass in her hand, pretending that she was drinking.

'Can't you go to Rosie's bar, or the officer's club?' Charles demanded on the second day.

'Too much temptation, Charles,' Alex said. 'Here, there's only one source of alcohol, and BJ's temporarily disconnected the Still.'

'The mess tent, then,' Charles suggested.

'What, and risk eating the food there?' Alex asked. 'No way. I don't need my stomach pumped.' Grumbling angrily, Charles stalked out.

'You really know how to push other people's buttons, don't you?' BJ asked Alex.

'Tell me if that's a joke, because if it is, I'll have to throw something at you,' Alex said. 'I could start my own war, you know. All I have to do is annoy someone into being the enemy.' She opened her eyes at the sound of a jeep. 'Jeeps bring bad things,' she said. 'Is it wounded or Hawkeye? I can't decide which would be worse, right now.'

'Looks like nurses,' BJ said. 'Isn't that typical? We ask for surgeons, they send nurses, and at a quiet time of the war, too.'

'Maybe if we ask for nurses during a quiet time, they'll send surgeons when we need them,' Alex suggested.

'Uh oh,' BJ said.

'What?' Alex asked, sitting up hurriedly.

'Carlye,' BJ said.

'Who's Carlye?' Alex asked.

'One of the new nurses, the blond,' BJ said. 'Hawkeye's ex. Closest thing he came to being married.'

'I might go say hi,' Alex said, standing up.

'What are you going to do to her?' BJ asked.

'Nothing!' Alex insisted. 'I just want to know if they're permanent or not.' She walked out of the Swamp before BJ could try and say anything else to talk her out of meeting Carlye.

'Hi,' Alex said as she approached them. 'My name's Alex, you temp nurses?'

'Lieutenant Thompson,' the brunette said, saluting.

'Carlye,' the blond said, taking Alex's relaxed attitude. 'We're just temporary. We go back to our unit in three days.

'Oh, too bad. You'll miss out on meeting Hawkeye,' Alex said, her tone not quite sarcastic.

'Who's Hawkeye?' Thompson asked.

'I know Hawkeye,' Carlye said.

'So you've been through here before?' Alex asked, ignoring Thompson.

Carlye nodded. 'And I knew him before the war,' she said.

'You an ex?' Alex asked. Carlye nodded again. 'I'm in the same boat as you then,' Alex said. She paused to give Carlye a look over. 'Not in the same league though, or so I hear.'

'We have to go see the CO,' Thompson reminded Carlye.

'Well, Carlye, maybe I could meet you somewhere, and we can discuss the infamous Hawkeye Pierce,' Alex said. Carlye picked up on the sarcasm this time when Alex said Hawkeye's name, but she nodded and smiled anyway.

'Officer's club?' she asked. Alex nodded.

'2000 hours,' she said, walking back towards the Swamp. 'See you Carlye, Lieutenant Thompson.'

Alex was surprised to see Carlye at the officer's club before her.

'I've asked around about you,' Carlye said when Alex sat down. 'You and Hawkeye are fighting, right?'

'Who told?' Alex asked.

'Lieutenant Jefferson mentioned it,' Carlye said. 'So why the arguing between you and Hawk? Sick of being second to his medical career?'

'I wish,' Alex said. She told Carlye the story briefly.

'Oh,' Carlye said.

'So, I've been told Hawkeye wanted to marry you,' Alex said.

'He loved being a doctor more than to be with me,' Carlye said. 'So we broke up. We met up again a year or so ago, and he tried to make it work again. I told him no. He told me there had been a lot of girls after me, but none were special like me. Oh, sorry,' Carlye said, glancing at Alex. 'I mean, maybe you're different.'

'No, I knew Hawkeye before he met up with you again,' Alex said. 'And I'm not special like you. Maybe that's why I gave up the baby. I knew I wasn't the one for him.'

'I think you should talk to Hawkeye again, try and at least be friends again,' Carlye suggested.

'Nothing works out for me,' Alex said. 'I'll be lucky to have a job after the war, if my liver holds out that long.'

'Look up,' Carlye said kindly. 'Maybe you could get a typing job somewhere.'

'I've been so… mean, no-one would take me,' Alex muttered. She smiled at Carlye. 'Sorry, I'm starting to be negative again. I keep telling myself I'd be nicer if I was drinking, but everything that's happened helps my bad mood.'

'You only get out what you put in,' Carlye said. 'Force yourself to have a positive attitude, and life will look up, eventually.'

'Thanks,' Alex said, semi-sarcastically. Sighing, she apologised again. 'I'm sorry,' she said. 'I'll do what you say, and try and talk it over with Hawkeye. If I manage to make a mess of it again, I'll tell Potter I want to go home. It's tough on the whole camp to have me and Hawkeye fighting.' Carlye smiled heartily at Alex, who slumped onto the bar. 'God, I hope I don't stuff it up,' she muttered loudly.

'So when are you going to talk to Hawkeye?' Kellye asked. It was a week later, Carlye and the other nurse had moved on, and Hawkeye was back from R and R.

'Never,' Alex said. 'I'm going to ignore him for the rest of the war, or my life, which ever is longer.' She flinched at the looks Jefferson and Kellye gave her. 'I'm kidding!' she said. 'I'll talk to him when I talk to him, ok? When I think I've cooled down enough.'

Kooshball: So how's my writing? Call 1800-leave-a-review!

Twist of Lemon chapter 5 is also up!