In Times of War

Chapter Thirty-Four

Chapter Thirty-Four

   Lee is getting discharged today. David is getting moved to a permanent hospital elsewhere. I was in the tent taking care of a few of my patients. David had surgery yesterday and was barely stable enough to move, but he had to be taken to somewhere they could help him heal better and faster. Lee was in well enough condition that he could go back to fighting. Lee had gotten to walking the day before yesterday and if he could walk he could fight.

“Try to keep the weight off that leg as much as you can.” I say as I finish stabilizing a man’s ankle.

“Sure thing, doll.” The man tries to smile seductively, but it doesn’t work very well.

“Okay, buddy, you’re good to go.”

“Sarah, can you cover me for ten minutes? I need to say goodbye.” I ask Sarah who is standing right beside me. She nods and pulls me into a hug.

“Sure thing, I can’t imagine what you’re going through. You take all the time you need.”  I nod and go to Lee’s bed.

“Time to go.” I look at him and glance at David in the bed beside him, barely conscious.

“Take care of yourself, man.” Lee says to David.

   “Same goes for you.” David replies and they clasp hands in between the two beds and then I help Lee to the entrance of the tent. He limps a little but not as bad as I would have expected. I was personally against him leaving because I was worried he would rip the stitches out of his leg, but he said he was going to walk out with or without medical permission. I stood outside the entrance of the tent where a truck is waiting to take the discharged men out to the front lines.

“You’re gonna take care of yourself right? No ripping those stitches out or I’ll take your head off your shoulders when I see you back at home, understand?”

“Yes, ma’am.” He laughs at my serious tone.

“I’m serious, and I really don’t want to do that because of Alice, but I will.”

“I’ve learned not to doubt you, Mia. But you’ve gotta take care of yourself too. That means absolutely none of that starving yourself stuff you did last year.” I can tell he is deadly serious.

“Did David tell you about that?” I ask quietly, and he nods slowly.

   “It tore him up so bad I made him tell me. Mia, not being there for you was probably the hardest thing he’s ever done. It tore him up somethin’ awful and to be honest, it freaked me out too. He stayed up thinking about nonstop, worrying about you and whether you were going to be there when he got home.”

“I’m sorry.” I whisper. I have gotten this speech too many times and feel awful every time because they make me feel even guiltier about my disorder.

   “Just don’t ever do anything like that again, please.” I nod and let him give me a hug. His arms are similar to David’s, but they weren’t David’s. They were still reassuring and comforting and reminded me of home. I hug him back, but then the driver of the truck honks his horn. He kisses the top of my head and ruffles my hair before being helped into the back of the truck. I wave back at him when he waves from the back of the truck.

   I walk back inside to David’s bed. I hold his hand as two men carry him out on a stretcher. His hand is limper then I would like. They load him into the back of the ambulance and I check if the driver is in the front. He isn’t. I go back to David. His face is pale and beaded with sweat. I know he’s in a lot of pain because they had found another fragment of shrapnel in his stomach.  No one was really sure that his stomach was clear yet, but apparently he had been in a lot of pain the whole time he was in the hospital, he just didn’t want to bother anyone with it.