Ok everyone, one mistake in the last chapter. I inadvertently hit the wrong numbers for Crock's age. He is 19. Sorry.
Here is another chappie. Let me know what you think and how the pacing is going.
Enjoy! And thanks for ALL the reviews…I want to get this posted, so will thank everyone next chapter!
FYI: Cursing in this chapter also.
Peace!
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Pony:
"Welcome, welcome to my humble abode," Shepard Parks droned as I peered into his tent. I swiped my hand across my face to clear away the smoke. Already the party was in full effect; whoever could be crammed into the small lodging was.
"Get in there," Crock said from behind me, shoving me in. I hadn't really wanted to go for fear of being caught by our sergeant; however, as always I had allowed him to talk me into it. "They'll catch us standing out here just as much as they will in here," he hissed.
We walked through the dingy light, making our way over to Doug and the rest of the guys. "Hey Curtis. Crock." Doug handed us each a beer. I swallowed some, trying to ignore the warm bitterness.
"You sprung for the classy stuff," Crock told him as we sat down.
"Enjoy it while it lasts kid." Doug told me. "You won't be getting any of that once we're out in the field."
"When do you think we'll go?" I asked nonchalantly.
"Any day now. They won't let you sit around here too long."
"Yeah. Send us out like lambs to the slaughter," Crock chimed in. I shifted uncomfortably. That was the last thing I wanted to think about. Finishing my beer, I took another.
While I was in mid-swallow, Doug said, "Since you took the last beer, get some more Curtis." He nodded at a cooler in the corner of the room.
On my way across the room I ran into a few unknown guys from another unit. "Want a shot?" a rough-looking boy asked me. The needle in his hand and the track marks on his arm caused me to back up suddenly.
Bad memories.
"No. Oh, hell no." I grabbed as many beers as I could and hurried back to Crock.
"Here you go." I dropped whatever I could carry on the floor and started on my third beer. Feeling pleasantly warm and buzzing, I wished Two-Bit were here to enjoy it with me.
"I broke up with Lori again," Doug slurred. I looked up in surprise that he had volunteered this personal information. Must be the beer. Crock shot me an evil gleam.
"Really?" I asked, not knowing a thing about his girlfriend.
"Yeah, we need to take a break until she gets her mind sorted out."
"Then you're gonna be waiting a while. She's fucking Looney Toons, man!" Crock yelped with laughter. Amused by Crock's daring I slowly joined in on the laughter.
"Screw you," Doug said, flipping Crock off. But he had a smile on his face.
"Man," AJ said coming up and interrupting us, "did you hear about Joey Adler?" Shep was behind him; both of the guys wearing serious faces. Crock shot AJ a warning glance but AJ continued. "He and some guys from C-company got ambushed a few nights ago. Damn gooks. Joey's dead and the rest are…" he trailed off.
"POW's…" Shep put in.
"Way to kill the mood you two," Crock said resentfully. "Assholes." I stared down into my empty beer can, knowing the color had drained from my face.
"All I can say is that you two had better wise up before we go out there. I don't want to get killed because of your stupidity," Doug said harshly. Standing up, he marched angrily out of the tent.
As suddenly as he had left, he was back again. This time followed by our sergeant. Sergeant Caplan. "Oh shee-it…" Shepard exclaimed slowly. The guys with the needles hastily stuck them in some random bag.
"Damn it," I whispered fiercely to Crock. "I knew this would happen." We all jumped to our feet and I swayed dizzily. Shoot, only three beers and already I was buzzed. Bitterly, I cursed Darry for never letting me drink in excess; having a tolerance sure could have come in handy about now.
Sergeant Caplan was in his forties. He was tall and in shape with leathery skin tanned dark by the sun. He reminded me a lot of Darry; I think that was why I feared him and respected him at the same time. Like Darry, I tried to listen to him and I hated disappointing him.
Strolling up to us he surveyed the scene with quiet concentration. "Well I guess you never learn do you?" he asked the whole room but looked pointedly at Doug. No one said a thing. "You'll all have mess hall detail and latrine detail this week. And for as long as I see fit." Muffled groans came from the room. Apparently, this sight wasn't new to Caplan.
Feeling wobbly, I grabbed onto Crock's shoulder to steady myself. Seeing me, a tiny smile played on Sarge's face. "Private Curtis. Come with me." My face paled as I dejectedly left the tent, trying not sway as I followed him out.
Outside, Caplan held the door of his jeep open and I got in. Silently he drove through the camp. On the dash there was a picture of a boy in an army outfit. He held a gun and was looking away from the camera.
Stealing a quick glance at Caplan's face I tried to get a read on him but it was useless. I sat there in that silent car, trying to keep from throwing up. Whether my nausea was caused by fear or alcohol I couldn't tell.
After about five minutes, we arrived at the field where we had our drills. By then it was raining and I drearily remembered the night of the rumble. "Get out," he told me. I did as he said and then waited.
"Ok Curtis," he said rocking back and forth on his heels, "run."
I blinked. "Wh-what?"
"You heard me. Run laps. Get that shit out of your system." Caplan leaned against the car.
Deciding not to ask any more questions, I took a few quick breaths and sprinted off. I ran the perimeter of the field, my feet pounding as well as my head. The trees and night noises all became a blur to me as I did what I did best. I ran.
I ran for an hour and finally came back to the car when Sergeant Caplan waved me over. Thundering to a stop, I leaned over to grab my knees, breathing heavily. When I looked up, Caplan had a huge grin on his face. "You run fast kid. Real fast."
"Yessir," I panted. "I ran track in high school." Sweat dripped from my nose mixing with the rain on the ground. Shivering I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to keep my teeth from chattering.
Caplan nodded ponderously, his gray eyes glittering in the moonlight. "That'll come in handy. Now just keep your head on straight and you'll be fine."
I ran a hand through my faded peroxide hair and said earnestly, "I'm sorry, Sir." I felt that I was apologizing to him as much as to Darry.
"Curtis, save the apology. Just be as fast as you were tonight and outrun those gooks. We get into the action next week. Orders came out."
"I'm ready as I'll ever be," I said bravely.
He smirked, raising an eyebrow. "This from the mouth of a fifteen year old."
My jaw dropped open and before I could stutter out a response Caplan said, "Yeah I know. Get in the car. I'll tell you all about it."
"See that there?" Caplan began, jutting his chin toward the picture on his dashboard. "That's my son. Killed two months ago in Cambodia. He was 18 and had joined the army because of me. I pushed him into it, wanting him to work his way up like I did." My eyes flicked to the sullen boy in the picture and then back to Caplan's taut face.
"So when your brother, Darrel…" Caplan held his hand up to stop me before I could even bring up my brother, "…came to me, asking me to pull you out, I refused. I'd rather have a young kid who came willingly over someone who didn't. Those are the ones who make it," he said quietly, almost to himself.
I gave him a few moments before I jumped in. "You talked to my brother? Darry?"
"Curtis, I almost got into a fight with your brother. Not by choice mind you." Caplan made a sharp turn to the right and pulled the jeep into a garage. He turned and looked at me.
"Your brother had come down to HQ right after you checked in for Sodapop." Feeling myself blush, I averted his eyes.
"He was torn: wanting you back, not wanting Soda to go. Finally I told him you'd be staying and there wasn't jack shit he could do about it." Chuckling he shook his head. "That sure pissed him off. However, I did tell him I'd try and look out for you if I could."
I sat there quietly letting this information sink in. I didn't feel so alone since someone knew my secret…who I really was. He sure had hid it well. For the last two months he had treated me the same as everyone, never once singling me out.
Caplan leaned back in his seat and lit a cigarette. "Let's keep this between us. The army has enough bad press as it is," he said. "Go on back to the bunker, get some sleep. I'll be seeing you tomorrow. Latrine duty."
I slid out of the car as he paused. I was dog-tired. I sure would be sore tomorrow.
Then Caplan said, "So far you've done me proud. Try and keep it that way."
His cigarette wiggled between his teeth as I laughed with exhaustion and disbelief; even over here Darry had found a way to protect me.
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