I stared up from my bed through the uncurtained window, slowly watching the night being chased away by the sun. I was unable to find rest after the past had forced its way into my thoughts, poisoning my mind with the horrors of living nightmares.
The birds began to sing their praise for the new morning as the first rays of sunshine crept over my weary eyes, burning them and causing me to close them for the first time since my rather abrupt awakening the night before. I sighed and pushed my protesting body to a seated position then brought my hands up to my eyes and rubbed the crusty feeling from them before forcing them to open once more. As my sight focused I zeroed in on the lump of blankets that covered Gene's sleeping form, the gentle song of his breathing and soft snoring had been the only thing that had distracted me during the night, keeping me grounded so I did not lose myself in my own past.
The gentle half-Cajun had sat with me until I had calmed. He never once asked what I had dreamt of and never spoke more than a few soothing words in heavily accented French until I was able to assure him I was fine. He had returned to his bed and I laid in mine, staring mindlessly out our window. I felt his blue-grey eyes as they burned into me for nearly an hour before the rhythmic breathing of his sleep became the music that calmed my mind and kept the nightmares at bay.
I shook my head and grunted softly, forcing myself into the present and pushed my weary body into a standing position. My joints popped and snapped in protest and I winced as the arthritis I had developed over years of adjusting my own body made it hard for me to move. I rolled my shoulders and stretched my body before quietly grabbing my shower kit and my semi-clean uniform from where it fell on the floor in my haste to lose myself in the land of dreams the night before.
I made my way into the small bathroom I was in last night and glanced down at the toilet in disgust, more of me than anything, then stripped down, folding my clothes neatly and hiding my bandage within my shirt. I turned on the taps and winced at the pipes creaked and groaned. The water spurted out of the shower head and splashed against the cold porcelain tiles of the shower box. I stepped in and closed the dark curtain, feeling the icy water hit my skin. I sucked in air through my teeth, making a hissing sound as my body shivered and grew rough with goose pimples. I allowed the icy water to splash down my back and wake my mind completely. A few moments later the hot water finally made its way through the pipes and mingled with the cold and warmed the temperature of the water considerably. I moaned quietly in pleasure, enjoying the feeling as it loosed my tight muscles and eased the ache in my joints, before grabbing the soap and lathering it into my hair. I rubbed it in, massaging my scalp as I did so clearing away all the dirt and letting it wash down the drain along with my dark thoughts.
An insensate knocking interrupted my shower.
"Hey Jo, ya in there?" George asked and knocked again. "Jo?"
"Yeah, George." I called and heard the door open.
"Can I come in?" He asked.
"You already have." I said, rubbing the soap across the rest of my body.
"Good, 'cause I gotta piss like a racehorse."
"Thanks for sharing." I muttered as I rolled my eyes.
"Anytime, JoJo." I ignored the sound of him finishing his business. "Flushing." He warned just before the water's temp skyrocketed. I managed to step aside just in time.
"Thanks for the warning." I grumped.
"Not a problem." I heard him drop the toilet seat then smelt the familiar smell of burning tobacco.
"I'm sorry if the pipes woke you." I said as rubbed soap up my arms.
"Nah, I've been awake for a while talkin' to Perco." He assured. He was quiet for a moment. "But I did hear someone retchin' their guts out in her in the middle of the night last night."
"Did you?" I asked in mock curiosity.
"You alright?" He asked after a long moment. I ducked my head back under the water and pressed my hands to the wall. I watched my dog tags sway back and forth as the thrumming and warmth of the water eased my muscles and chased everything away, leaving my numb and unfeeling. I reveled in it, wishing it could last forever.
"JoJo." I jerked out of the water, shaking my head and bringing myself back to reality.
"Yeah," I answered as I wiped the water from my face. "Sorry."
"You alright?" George asked again.
"I'm alright." I answered as I turned the taps off before I could lose myself in the water again. George slid a towel through the shower curtain.
"I don't know how you do it, JoJo." He said as I dried the droplets from my skin turned pink from the heat of the cascading water.
"Do what?" I asked. He tossed my skivvies and my bandages over the shower rod.
"How do you treat people here and in Bastogne, and not lose your mind?" I finished tying my bandage around my chest and slipped on my skivvies before stepping out of the shower.
"That's easy." I answered while slipping my pants up over my boney hips. "I've got you."
George and I grinned at each other.
"And that statement just about sums up how far gone my mind actually is," I deadpanned. "Sad, really." George glared at me before grinning.
"Yeah it is." We both chuckled. I turned and grabbed my shirt from the cabinet. "Your bullet wound is healing well."
I reached behind and felt the jagged, puckered wound, tracing it from my shoulder toward my spine.
"Yeah, Gene did a good job at stitchin' it up." I commented as I grabbed my shirt and slid it up my arms.
"Jo?" A voice called through the door. George stood up and swung it open.
"Hey there, Doc!" George greeted. "Your ears must be burnin!" Gene raised a confused brow and I just rolled my eyes as I continued to button up my shirt. He looked back and forth between George before shaking his head.
"How's ya shoulder?" he asked. I opened my mouth to answer, but George beat me to it.
"Beautiful, Doc," he grinned. "Just beautiful." I heaved an annoyed sigh and slipped my socks on. "You're an artist, Doc. You really are."
"George." I admonished.
"No, really," He continued. "We should take a picture of your handy work and hang it in the lube."
"Louvre," I corrected as I bent down to tie my boots.
"That's what I said." I looked up to find Gene looking perplexed at a grinning George. I shook my head and punched George playfully on the arm.
"It's healing just fine." I said, ignoring George's pouting face. Gene nodded.
"There's coffee downstairs." The half-Cajun informed us.
"It's about fuckin' time." Perco groused as he pushed his way passed Gene.
"Christ, what is this, a convention?" I rolled my eyes at all four of us crammed into the small bathroom. George grinned as the three of us made our way out, leaving Perco alone to do his business.
"What can we say, JoJo," he shrugged. "We all wanted to watch you shower." I shoved him playfully and Gene huffed and rolled his eyes.
I let my nose guide me downstairs and into the kitchen where I zeroed in and focused on one thing…
"Coffee." I dashed over to the percolator, grabbed a cup and filled it with the bitter liquid. I took a deep sip from it and swallowed the scorching hot liquid.
"Smooth." I choked.
"You're gonna burn yaself." Gene scolded. I shrugged and blew on the coffee before taking another sip to appease the Medic. He ignored me as he and George poured themselves a cup. We sat in silence as we all drank our sludge, putting off what the day was about to bring to us.
"Sgt. Benally." A voice called sending an involuntary shiver down my spine. I knew who the voice belonged to before I even saw the owner.
"Sir." I answered as I grabbed another cup and poured coffee into it. "In here."
We all heard his boots as they made a beeline for the small kitchen. I turned and held the coffee cup out at the same time he appeared in front of me. He took the cup with a raised eyebrow and I just shrugged in answer.
"Walk with me." He said as marched out the back door.
"Just a moment, sir," I said as I turned to refill my cup, he nodded and continued out the door.
"Da hell do you two do that?" George asked as he and Gene eyed me.
"Do what?" I asked, confusion written clearly across my face.
"You two always find each other and know what the other needs without saying a thing." I raised an eyebrow and paused.
"You're just making shit up, George." I answered with an eye roll.
"He's right." Gene jumped in. "I've seen it."
"Ya see! You and he, with the cigarettes and the coffee," George went on.
"Everyone needs cigarettes and coffee… they're the staples of life." I scoffed and pushed myself away from the counter. "And we don't always know where the other is. In case you don't remember, we spent almost a whole month playing cat and mouse."
"Which only worked because you and he always knew where to find each other," George threw in.
"You're outta your fucking mind." I glared. "And I'm going to go follow our CO before he comes in here and shoots me."
"He'd never shoot you, JoJo." George said his voice heavy with something I cared not to identify at the moment.
Instead, I made my way out the door, flipping him the bird as I went. I sipped my coffee as I stepped down the stairs and walked over to Speirs who had found a seat on a concrete bench just a few feet from the house.
"Sir," I greeted as he motioned for me to take a seat next to him. We sat side by side for a time, just sitting and drinking coffee, watching the world pass us by.
"How ya feeling, Sgt. Benally?" He finally asked. "Because you look like shit." I bit my lip and tried, really tried, but I couldn't stop the chuckle that escaped my lips.
"Thank you, sir." I glanced over and saw a small smile curving its way across his mouth. "I'm better now that I've had coffee." I answered. He nodded.
"You gonna tell me what you're hiding yet?" He asked.
"Not yet, sir," I answered. "You gonna order me to tell you?"
"Not yet." He threw my own answer back at me.
"Good to know we're on the same page, sir." We both took a sip of our coffee.
"Hate to be contradictory." He agreed and I laughed outright, earning several strange looks from passing soldiers. But one glare from Speirs sent them careening off far away from the intimidating Captain.
"You'll have to teach me to do that." I told him as I watched them scurry off like rats.
"You just have to shoot a few people." He said flippantly.
"Is that all?" I asked in mock shock. "Well fuck, I think I start with Luz." The corner of his mouth twitched.
"Someone needs to."
"I let him know you said so." I grinned.
"Oh, I have something for you." He reached into his pocket and produced a rectangular box. "Here," he tossed it at me and I caught it against my chest with my free hand.
"What's this?" I asked with a raised brow. He nodded at it and I used my thumb to pop it open. "Well, that's a bit absurd..." I mumbled.
"The Army thanks you for your service… blah, blah, blah." He sipped his coffee.
"Really?" I muttered. "Why?"
"You were shot, Sgt. Benally." He said wryly. "That earns you a Purple Heart."
"Where should I hang it?" I raised an eyebrow and looked over at him. "Somewhere where the snipers can get a good look at it," I joked and held the box up so the medal hung over my heart. He rolled his eyes and shook his head slightly while I snickered and closed the box, sliding it into my pocket. We sat in companionable silence for a while finishing off what coffee we had left in our cups.
"You gonna be ok today?" He finally said all trace of our previous banter gone. I sighed deeply and ran my hands through my still damp hair.
"I have to be." I said. He turned his head towards me and I met his steely brown eyes with my own gaze. "I don't have a choice."
He cocked his head slightly in the way I had become so used to, the way he does when he calculates what I say and do. I felt my pulse as it jumped a notch but forced my breathing to remain calm and steady.
"You're a mystery, Jo." He finally said as he narrowed his eyes before returning his gaze to the world in front of him, "One that I intend to unravel."
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anon: Thank you for the review. I'm glad you liked the chapter!
Britt: Thanks, I was surprised I updated as well. Glad you liked it!
Ana: Here's more! Are those virtual cookies still available… or are they all moldy because I took so terribly long to update. I'm so sorry! I hope you liked this chapter as well!
NayNay: I'm glad you liked it. Yeah, no Speirs yet, but he's coming. And no, no hints at whom she's going to fall for. That just wouldn't be any fun!
Nernst: I'm glad you liked it! Sorry it took so long to update!
Thatch: Thank you for the reviews! I'm glad you liked the story, I haven't abandoned you yet. I've just let real life get in the way of my writing. I'm still determined to finish this story if it is the last thing I do! Thanks again for reading and reviewing!
As for everyone else who has read the story and not reviewed, thank you for reading and please let me know what you think of this story! Good, bad, not so bad, just let me know what you like or don't and any suggestions for improvement you may have!
Please take the time to leave me a review, it is always greatly appreciated!
Amanda
Edited 8/7/17