I woke up to the sound of the morning coming through the morning, the birds in the trees and the sweet smell of the trees coming through the open window into my room. I slowly opened up my eyes, having me see the closet that was next to the bed and the ceiling, but I was not moving from my spot. Something was holding me there, it was an arm that was draped across my waist on top of the sheets. The hand was smooth and looked content on where it was, somewhat grasping my waist and having me follow the length of the arm to see its origin. There was Joe, sleeping next to me and was facing me with his head against the pillow and his chest somewhat covered from the sheets. I smiled from seeing him, though he was still asleep and having his own smile on his face. What we did the night before, it was something that I've been wanting to do with him for awhile, but never got the courage to do so. Now I felt like I was glowing and the smile I had on my lips never wanted to leave. But my stomach was in need of something to eat, so I had to go with that.
Reluctantly I pulled his arm off of me, seeing him stir a bit but not wake up as I tucked it next to his body, leaning over and kissing him on the head before sliding out of the bed. As soon as I got up from the bed, I realized that I was in fact, naked. This was a bit much for me, having me quickly grab a pair of boxers and my brassiere, then throwing on a spare shirt Joe gave me to wear for pajamas and I walked out of the room quietly, closing the door silently and looking in on Joe one more time. He rolled over to the other side, still asleep and looking more at peace compared to the other couple of nights. I smiled, leaving the room and walking out into the kitchen where there was no noise to be heard.
My own mind was in the clouds from last night, having me remember flashes and images of Joe and I together under the sheets. It was both magical and frightening, since I was a virgin and now I lost it to him. It made me feel blush coming over me since I did, in fact, enjoy it. What was there to dislike about it? He made me feel things that I never thought would come to surface, and I hoped it was the same for him as well. It must have since he too looked like he was beyond enjoying himself. It made me feel a bit proud.
I walked barefoot onto the kitchen, looking up to see Babe was already there, drinking from a mug with coffee and a solemn look on his face. Wearing pajama pants and a black shirt, he was looking at the floor and with no smile on his face. It seemed like he had no sleep, and I wondered what was the cause of that. I slowly walked into the room and moved my hair from my eyes.
"Good morning, Babe." I said to him softly, going over to the coffee pot that had about half of a pot left of coffee in it.
"Mornin', Red." he said to me in a low tone, having me watch him with worried eyes now as I grabbed a mug from the cabinet near the sink.
"You okay?" I asked him, looking back in front of me to pour my drink and fix my coffee. I heard nothing at first, just a heavy sigh and then his feet hustling underneath him.
"Have you ever had the nightmare of someone being shot in front of you?" Babe asked aloud in a curious tone, though it was laced with pain. I froze while I was placing sugar in my mug, thinking about it for a moment or two. I peered my head over slightly in his direction, though he was still looking at the floor.
"You know that I have." I answered him, talking my mug with me as I walked over to the chair across from him, stirring it in and placing the mug on the kitchen table as he then blinked once. Babe took in a deep breath, finally looking over at me and then having me see the pain behind his eyes. I knew he wasn't getting sleep, Doc told me the day before when we were visiting. My heart was tugging for him, wondering what he was seeing when he closed his eyes.
"I thought I was getting better, you know? I mean, I didn't think the dreams were goin' to be so fuckin' terrible until last night." He explained in a grunt, having me see his eyes getting glossy and he rubbed away the tears before they could even escape from them. I only watched him, thinking that he just needed to get this out of his system before he wanted to get comfort. He needed to talk about it, like how I did with Joe.
"What did you see?" I asked him, seeing him eye me then with his bloodshot eyes and he breathed out again a heavy breath.
"I saw Julian….on the ground….spewing out blood and dying in front of me," He explained in a broken tone, having me just watch him as he went on with his dream, "But then…I saw you. You were running to him with your satchel….and you flew in the air from that grenade. I watched you hit the tree….and you died." The last part he spat out bitterly before I saw a tear roll down his cheek and his hands were shaking on his knees. Babe was suffering far worse than I was, I could feel it and see it as he then wiped away the tears.
"I saw Grant in my dream once," I stated to him, seeing him now watch me with big eyes as I took a drink from my coffee, feeling the bitter drink go down my throat, "He was alive, but his head was blown off to bits where the soldier shot him. It was in Carentan, and he was reaching out to me, calling my name but it wasn't his voice. It was Joe's voice, and when I heard it I screamed." I could see it all over again in my mind, the blood and damage on his face and how he was reaching for me with clenching fingers and desperation on his face. I could even hear Joe's voice coming out of Grant's mouth, having me shake it off as Babe was still staring at me
"Is this ever going to go away?" Babe asked in a miserable tone, having me take another sip from my mug and think about it for a moment. I was wondering the same thing: if the nightmares were going to go away ever for me. I and good nights and I had bad nights, so there was never going to be a concrete answer. But I doubted Babe wanted to hear that. he wanted to hear something positive.
"In time, Babe." I merely replied to him, seeing him have a small smile on his face before he then looked down at his left leg, having me look at well.
"You remember when I got hurt in Bastogne?" He asked me aloud suddenly, his voice was no longer bitter but curious as to have me remember the incident with him in Bastogne and how he did get hurt.
"I do." I replied back to him, seeing him take a drink from his coffee again and then smiling from the sheer thought.
"My leg was bleedin' out, getting shot in the calf and I thought I was going to loose the leg really. What a pussy," He said aloud in a smirk, having a smile from seeing him grin. I had to hand it to him: Babe was a young handsome man when he smiled,"And yet you made sure that I wouldn't loose the leg." He then reached down, rolling up the pajama pant on his leg to have me see his calf. I followed him with my eyes, seeing him then show me the scar that was on his calf and it looked rather distinct against his pale calf. It was almost the size of a half dollar, having me watch him look at the scar himself and then leaning back in his chair.
"At least it healed up pretty good," I commented to him, seeing him nod his head, "And you know there was no way in hell I was going to have you lose your own leg out there."
"I never thanked you for that." He said to me, having me shake my head.
"Of course you did, right after I patched you up. Remember?" I asked him.
"That was just because I was in the heat of the moment," Babe countered with me, having me eye him and see what he was trying to do, "I just….never properly thanked you…for just keeping us boys alive." I looked at him now with nothing to say at all. He wanted me to know how much I meant to not only him, but with the rest of Easy Company. He gave me a small smile, the kind of smile that would warm any person's heart and ease their soul.
"Thanks, Babe." I merely replied to him, seeing him only smile at me in return as I heard footsteps coming into the kitchen. I looked and saw it was Doc, coming from his room on the other side of the house with his black hair messy. He yawned, seeing the both of us and then going over to grab his own coffee.
"Bonjour." He said aloud in a grumble.
"Good mornin' to you too, Doc." Babe replied to Doc, looking away from me and grabbing his mug, taking a big drink from it as I smiled at Doc. He poured his drink, slowly and he cracked his back from where he was against the counter, something I remember him doing when he woke up in the mornings in either a foxhole or in a dark hidden place.
"So, I take it Joe didn't like the couch?" Doc asked aloud, facing away from me but having me hear the hint of curiosity in his tone as I paused before taking my drink from my mug. Did he know what happened? Could he listen? What an embarrassment. I watched him carefully, holding the mug to my lips as he then faced me with a smirk on his face and taking his drink from his own mug, watching me with eyes that showed that he knew something about me that I wished was not going to be exposed.
"Doc.." I trailed off carefully.
"Who am I to say where he sleeps, though from the looks of how your hair looks and that one hickey on your neck," Doc explained with his gleeful smirk, having me freeze and then carefully reach up to my neck, feeling the sensitive skin there and the evidence of a mark Joe left on me, "He liked the bed better." Babe started to snicker from her spot in front of me as Doc just grinned as if he had his own personal victory. I glared at the both of them as Babe was just snickering in his chair.
"Ne commencez pas avec moi." I warned him in a bitter tone, having me see him shake his head and hold up his spare hand in defeat and surrender.
"You two are adorable together." Babe commented in a gleeful tone, having me kick him lightly under the table and see him almost spill his coffee.
"You don't start either, Babe." I warned Babe now, Doc walking over and sitting at the chair to my left, leaning his elbows on the table and just grinning from ear to ear. This felt like I was a teenager all over again, being teased from having a romantic night and having evidence on my neck for it.
"I'm not going to make a big deal out of it," I explained to the both of them from my chair, "And I don't think Joe wants to either."
"And we're not going to either…it's just cute for you two." Doc replied to me, having me watch him now and see that the playful teasing smirk that he and moments ago was gone and his friendly smile was back on his tried face. He too looked worn down and older, thanks to the war and him running around as a medic. He still and some youthfulness in his face and eyes, but they were being overtaken by the worn bags under his eyes and the tattered skin from scars and restless nights.
"I'm only going to take that was a compliment, thank you." I replied to Doc, seeing him nod his head once as I finished the mug in my hand.
"We should head out into town today for lunch, and we can grab some food for dinner. I'm thinking catfish." Doc explained, changing the subject and having me see Babe eye him from next to me.
"Catfish?" He asked, having me hear the hint of curiosity in his voice. Both Doc and I looked over at him, thinking that it was odd that he was confused with the notion of eating catfish, since that was a regular dish here in the South.
"I have to get you acquainted with the Louisiana lifestyle, Heffron." Doc said back to him with a hint of annoyance, almost rolling his eyes and having me giggle. I got up from the chair, stretching out my back and ruffling my hair now with my fingers.
"You guys let me know when we're heading into town." I explained to the both of them, walking away from the boys and back over to the bedroom, wondering if Joe was was still asleep.
"Let Joe know how to properly do a hickey, will ya?" Babe asked in a snide remark though I knew he meant well. I just flipped him off while I walked away from him, hearing Babe chuckle as he started talking to Doc again. He was a good friend to Babe, a great one since they started talking together in Bastogne. It made me glad Doc had someone else to be around other than myself.
I walked back over to the bedroom, pushing it open and having me see Joe sitting on the edge of the bed, rubbing his head and taking in a deep breath. He was wearing clothes again, his own pair of boxers and a sleeveless shirt, showing his lanky muscles and arms along with his neck and collarbone. I walked into the room, closing the door behind me and then seeing him look over at me. Once they were making eyes with one another, something inside my chest was going to burst into a million pieces and flutter out of my mouth. I was suddenly a teenager all over again, having me wish that I wasn't feeling this way from just seeing him there on top of the bed.
"I was wonderin' where you were since I woke up alone." Joe explained in his raspy morning voice, having me smirk at him and walk over to sit next to him on the bed, getting close with him and seeing him take my hand in his, the smile never leaving his face. Even in the morning he was still handsome in my eyes.
"I had to get my coffee in, and Doc and Babe are awake." I explained to him aloud, having me notice him then look over to my neck, seeing the evidence from our night together and then reaching up to touch it gently with his finger. Once he had contact with the skin, I shivered.
"Damn, I did a number on you," He commented, having me just shake my head, "I should be more careful."
"You should, since both Doc and Babe are now teasin' me about it." I said back to him, seeing him lower his hand from my neck and then look a bit uncomfortable now from the notion that I was getting teased by both Doc and Babe. I saw it in his eyes, the look of both protection over me and the annoyance of teasing in general. Squeezing his hand in my own, I got his attention back to me as I just smiled at him to show that this was nothing for me.
"Don't worry about it," I reassured him, seeing him look at me with his eyes and search me for the truth I was saying, "It's nothing with those two. They know that we mean well, and you know fully well that they are mostly like my little brothers when it comes to something like this." He slowly nodded his head, now no longer bothered and then sighing. After a moment or two of silence, the both of us sitting together on the bed and basking in the afterglow of what we did, he then looked over at me with intrigue all over his face.
"What we did last night…" he trailed off, looking like he as struggling with what he wanted to say as I looked at him with interest, "Was it good enough?"
"Good enough?" I asked him, clearly confused as to what he was trying to understand.
"Was what we did….oh shit….was it nice enough for ya?" he asked me in a struggle with his voice and on his face. I then broke out into a grin, seeing what he was trying to figure out. He wanted to know if I enjoyed myself last night, and it would be seen on his face that he was self-conscious about what I was feeling for him last night in the bed and with our moment. I carefully placed my hand on his face near his jawline, seeing him just watch me with big eyes and with wonder behind them. How could he think he was no good enough for me when it came to sex?
"You were amazing," I replied to him, my smile never leaving my face as he smiled at me finally, the insecurities he had were washing away, "I thought I was the one who thought they weren't good enough for you."
"Are you kiddin' me?" He asked me with a wide grin, "You were mind blowin', Marley." We both grinned at each other then, having me feel like a school girl with her crush so close to her. It was good that we both talked about it, how we both were feeling about each other even after we had sex. I leaned in a kiss him square on the mouth, hearing him hum against my lips and then kiss me back. This was more simple for the both of us, no need for lust at that moment as we pulled away from one another. Joe ran some of his fingers in my hair as we were still close enough to kiss, but kept out distance.
"You taste like coffee." He stated to me in a whisper.
"Does it bother ya?" I asked him with a hint of coyness. He grinned, shaking his head from side to side.
"Not one bit."
I woke up in the dead of night to someone walking on the hardwood floor of the house, having me move a bit from my spot in bed and where Joe was, since he was sleeping next to me with his arm around my waist. I listened, wondering where that sound was coming from and then I heard the front door opening, having me sit up from my bed and Joe's arm fall away from me. He woke up from that action, though my own thoughts were concerned as to who was walking in the house in the middle of the night. It didn't feel right, and as the front door slammed close I snapped my head over to the window where the front of the house was, seeing nothing at first but hearing the crickets at night.
"What is it?" Joe asked in a groggy tone, but my eyes saw someone running into the front yard, hand reaching out and looking like they were trying to reach a ghost. I shivered, knowing that body and then feeling my heart drop.
Doc. Oh god no.
"Doc." I said aloud, shooting off the bed and the sheets flying off of me as I hit the hardwood floor with my feet. I moved away from the bed, hearing Joe get up as well but slowly compared to me. I was already out of our room and at the front door, opening it and seeing Doc out there in the front yard, no longer walking but frozen in his spot. I moved out of the house, walking out to see him there, looking away from me as if he was frozen in his spot. I could hear two more pairs of feet behind me, knowing that it was Babe and Joe who were watching as well as I waited, wondering what Doc was going to do next.
He was sleepwalking, I could see it in his stance and how he was slowly trying to figure out what was happening around him. Was he hearing the same things that I heard? I had no clue, and it scared me as he then slowly looked over his shoulder at me. His dark eyes that were usually filled with comfort and warmth were now dark and petrified. I held out both hands to him, open and up as he was looking as if he was about to break into tears.
"You're okay Doc." I reminded him, telling him the same thing Joe told me as he too comforted me from my own sleepwalking. I heard nothing behind me, but I knew Joe and Babe were shocked from what they were seeing. Doc looked defeated, which was not a look we were used to.
"Someone needed help, Gingembre." Doc said in a small broken tone, having me nod my head at him as I walked over to him. He was watching me, still in shock from his sleepwalking as I was close enough to reach out to him. But I wanted him to reach me, to make that step since I knew he would be too scared to just move from his spot.
"Revenez à moi, mon ami." I said to him softly, seeing him looking at my hand and taking a shaky breath. This was killing me, seeing him so broken when he was the stronger one between the both of us as he then carefully touched my hand with his sweaty fingers. I smiled at him, feeling him grip me tightly and slowly walk over to me. When he was close enough, he collapsed in my arms, the both of us falling to the ground in a grunt.
I could hear Joe and Babe jog over to see if we were hurt, but Doc just clutched me, weeping into my shirt as I was cradling him in my arms. My head against his, having me kiss his black hair as his grip on me was so tight that he was afraid that this was another nightmare that he was going through. I started to rock him back and forth, on the floor in front of his house under the moonlight as Babe and Joe looked on. Softly I sang into his hair, knowing he can hear and maybe the two others could too. But he needed to hear it, the same song my mother sang to me as I was suffering in front of her.
Tomorrow will be brighter,
It's true, I've seen it before
A brighter day is coming my way
Yes, tomorrow will be kinder
