3

"Seen who yet?" Hawkeye asked and pretended to not know who he was talking about.

"Come on Hawk." BJ looked at him. "You don't have to pretend with me."

Hawkeye knew that it was useless to try to avoid talking about her. So he sighed in defeat and answered. "No, not yet." He stood up and walked around. "What am I going to do?" He sat back down. "I honestly didn't expect to see her again."

"I still say you should tell her how you feel."

BJ was right and Hawkeye knew it. He should tell her, but how? He thought to himself for a moment then looked around at the olive drab tent. It looked nothing like ‘The Swamp'. Hawkeye slapped his knees and jumped to his feet. "You know what this place needs?" He was desperate to change the subject.

"Ah, new drapes? BJ went along. He knew Hawkeye didn't want to talk about Margaret.

"No." Hawkeye looked at BJ in that devilish way he had and laughed as he always did when he had a prank on his mind.

"Um, a fresh coat of paint!" BJ looked around.

"You're getting warmer. The still."

"Hey, you're right. But do you really think we're going to be here that long."

"Whether were here a day, a week, a month or a year, it doesn't mater." Hawkeye continued. "We need it. It's our life line. It's out escape. It's the well of life." He pulled BJ off his bunk. "It's just what we need. It wouldn't be ‘The Swamp' without it." Hawkeye laughed.

"Hey, that reminds me." BJ snapped his fingers and turned around. He picked up his bag, opened it and reached inside. "I have something that will make this place seem a little more like home." He turned around and was holding the sign that had hung on the door of their tent at the 4077th, "The Swamp".

"That's great Beej, just what the place needs." They walked outside to hang it on the door. "Do you think we should say something?"

"I don't know, like what?" BJ shrugged his shoulders.

Hawkeye thought for a moment. "I know," he cleared his throat. "By the powers vested in me, by the state of Chaos and Disorder, I hereby proclaim this to be ‘The Swamp'." He hung the sign on the door.

"Beautiful." BJ clapped. "Com'on, we'd better get over to post-op." They started walking to post-op. "Have you seen anyone else from 4077th?"

"Just you." Hawkeye was getting nervous. He was thinking about Margaret. What if she's in there? He thought. They walked into post-op and Hawkeye immediately began looking around for her but she wasn't there. He let out a sigh of relief. He wasn't ready to see her. He looked around again and noticed that nearly all the beds were occupied. "Damn!"

"Yeah, I know what you mean." BJ was looking around as well. "By the looks of things you'd never know the war was over."

"Hawkeye! BJ! What you doing here?" Nurse Kelley stood up from where she had just finished checking a patients blood pressure and walked over and hugged each of them.

"How you doing Kelly?" BJ smiled

"It's good to see you." Hawkeye was glad to see another familiar face. "Where's Colonel Harrison?"

"I'm fine. The Colonel's over there checking on a patient."

They walked to the far end of the room where the Colonel was sitting next to a patient. "Colonel, we're here." Hawkeye sat down on the empty cot across from the Colonel. "Where do you want us to start?"

"Just a minute." The Colonel got up and walked to Kelley. "Kelley, start Patterson on Streptomycin and check him every hour."

"Yes, sir." Kelley took the chart from the Colonel.

"Okay." The Colonel turned to Hawkeye and BJ. "Hawkeye, I want you to stay here with me and BJ, I need you to head over to the supply room and help Major Houlihan inventory the supplies."

Hawkeye looked like he had been shot. Just the sound of her name sent Hawkeye's head spinning.

"Will do, Colonel." BJ stood up and looked at Hawkeye who looked nervous. "Hawk, you okay?"

"Yeah." He said, trying to sound convincing. "I'm fine."

"Okay, I'll see you later." BJ left post-op and the Colonel began going over the patient's with Hawkeye.


BJ walked across the compound to the supply room. He was worried about Hawkeye. He knew seeing Margaret again would be difficult especially after all the two of them had been through. Hawkeye had told him about what had happened between them that night they spent in the abandoned hut. Hawkeye had also told him how much he loved her. "This is going to be tough." BJ said.


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