PSA: Its gonna get real bad before it gets worse. All of you not wishing Hawkeye or company to suffer are advised to quit reading right here.

I will try to update often this week to make up for the faux pas from the weekend. Reviews will be appreciated. Their lack will be ignored! I am trying to finish the story and cannot get there fast enough even if I am having fun writing it. I hope you guys are having as much fun reading as I am having writing.

Chapter 68

I finished shaving and decided to go to the movie anyway. Maybe Brigid O'Shaughnessy had the cure to my broken heart. What could be better than a beautiful face with a devious mind? It had to be better than what I had here. I had enough of prudent princesses and all I did was bring out their anger and insanity. Maybe Santa sends a fresh batch of beautiful nurses and the ones already here would not ruin my reputation before I had a chance of doing it myself.

I decided to find Sidney and take him with me. At some level, that struck me as disturbing. Someone going to a movie after being dumped by a prospective girlfriend and decides to take his shrink. There was more than one level of disturbia lurking just underneath but I figured it a smart move to leave the shrinking and analyzing to Sidney and just watch an excellent whodunnit, even if my date was my shrink. Nobody could be as sinisterly charming as Bogart and nobody could be as angelically devious as Mary Astor. Apologizing to Gene Tierney, I continued lusting after Mary Astor. It helped me focus on my shaving skills.

Sindey agreed to go out with me. Not exactly a triumphant moment in the history of ...well, basically anything but I figured if anybody could help me feel less lousy, it was him.

Sitting on those benches, hunched forward, with rain starting outside and cold wind finding ways to creep in unobtrusively with absolutely no soft and warm company of female persuasion to help me along, for once, I could not focus on the movie I really liked for almost a decade. The kicker came when the heater went out during intermission. Those who were huddled together could probably afford to sit here and watch but with no hot scenes to improve my circulation and save me from hypothermia, I ditched my date and left for Swamp.

Frank was there.

Cursing under breath, I removed the now wet outer wear, picked some of the already brewed gin and tossed it into the heater. Maine was not famous for its sunny coastal areas but it was never like this either. This cold was brutal and cruel. And it was only end of November. Holiday season around here reminded me of fairly vivid picture Dickens drew in The Christmas Carol. Some of it he wrote and rest I imagined. And it was dreary. Just like right now.

I wanted to go home!

Sleep was nowhere around, thanks to my earlier nap. Frank was ignoring me and I was glad for that. I looked at him and knew he was welling to let me have it. Maybe he liked his life better.

I wasn't sure when I drifted to sleep. It was not a very good sleep but I don't remember waking up in the middle. I was still tired when I woke up in the morning. It was dark outside but the rain had stopped. Shower seemed like a good idea. Being this early helped. I got real hot water, first of the ten servings of real orange juice, fresh coffee which tasted almost like coffee with just a little help from imagination, unburned sausages and toast that hadn't developed close ties with coal. Remembering my assessment from yesterday, I kinda knew today was gonna be a good day. I was owed one, after the total wreck I had for yesterday. Soon after I settled on a table, Margaret followed. She looked tired and not herself. Whatever it was, it wasn't any joke she would brush aside and return to her feisty self. Maybe my having a good day was more important to me right now so I let sleeping dogs lie and concentrated on my breakfast. Which was edible. I simply could not hide my glee. Pretty soon, people started rolling in and the noise level started increasing. Col. Potter, Sidney and a gas passer joined me on my table.

After some small talk, I excused myself and left the table. There was no rain but I could hear thunder from afar. I hoped it to be thunder. The other prospect only made things drearier, considering the half deck of surgeons, weather and the general state of inebriation in the unit.

Most of the day went without anything happening. It was around 3pm when I was paged through PA system to report to Potter's office. Wondering what it was about this time, I made my way to the office.

"Hello Radar!"

"Hello Hawkeye!"

"How's his mood?"

"Radar, tell him to come in and find it himself." Boomed Potter from his office.

I raised my eyebrows for some explanation but Radar just shrugged his shoulders giving me the teeniest of smiles.

Couldn't be bad, I reasoned myself.

"Hello Colonel!" I waved at him before landing on a chair in front of his desk. He was rummaging through his liquor cabinet.

"Sorry son, cannot offer you any." He sounded sincere as he poured himself a stiff one.

"Just a few days more. Than I will be back to my good ol' self." I informed him with as much confidence as I could muster in my voice.

"Don't think so!" And down came the gauntlet.

"What? Am I going home? I can pack in ten minutes, you know." Knowing full well that wasn't the case, I still hoped against hope.

"Your liver function tests returned." Why did he sound less than happy? I was feeling better. I was on the mend and I knew it.

"But nobody sent it yesterday. And the ones from before..." And with that, I realized, I had no idea about the ones before that.

"Nothing to worry, Pierce! I just think your return was a little premature. Its a coupla days old so maybe things have gone better over last two days. I don't think sending you to Tokyo or Seoul would do you much good. But I think you should rest and concentrate on regaining your health. I cannot have you on my roster yet. I am getting a replacement surgeon."

My LFTs hadn't improved?

"Can I?" I asked for the report. This was perfect! Just perfect. I shook my head as I scanned the neatly typed report. "It could be wrong." I hope.

"That's why I want you to send another blood sample marked urgent. I'm sorry son!" And he looked it too.

I could not even utter my own apology. It sounded hollow, meaningless. He was stuck with me and now...

Shaking my head, I thanked him and left his office.

Its not like you died! Its just a damned report and for all you know, it could be wrong. Besides, you had two days rest. And you know that these lab vallues fluctuate. You feel good today, don't you. Its gonna be nothing, you'll see. And its not even your fault. You got sick while trying to help someone and they understand.They know you would never strand them when they need you. They don't blame you. They know what you feel about being sick and how you feel you let them down. They understand!

DO THEY?

Maybe my theory of one good day followed by one bad day was wrong after all.

I wasn't that fortunate!