Strawberry Red

Chapter 8 Ruby

It was dinnertime when the situation in the hospital finally calmed down. Most patients were treated and resting while the nurses cleaned. Ruby was currently on her knees trying to rub blood off the floor. A few hours prior Colonel Huglin was rushed through the hospital's entrance to the operating theatre. He wouldn't stop coughing up blood. During the emergency operation they found out he had a ruptured lung. So, they stabilized him and transported him immediately to a specialist in London. A few other patients with severe frostbites would be sent to London in the morning.

The door to the hospital opened and Buck entered. He looked around for a moment before his eyes landed on Ruby. "Ruby."

She looked up and saw him standing a few feet away from her. "Hi, Buck. Are you here to see your gunners?"

"Yeah, how are they doing?" He asked. Ruby put the bloody sponge into the bucket and stood up.

"They are resting right now. They'll be out for one or two weeks until the frostbites have healed," answered Ruby. "Should I take you to them?"

"That would be great." Buck followed Ruby over to the gunners' beds. Bosser was laying on his back while the ball gunner unfortunately had to lay on his stomach due to his injuries.

"Major Cleven. What a surprise," said Bosser when he spotted the pair walking towards him.

"Bosser, how are you feeling?" Buck went to sit next to his bedside.

"Better now. I don't know what I was thinking when I took off my gloves. It was really stupid." Bosser shook his head in disappointment and starred at his bandaged hands.

"Don't say that. It's a natural response. Your gun was stuck, so you wanted to fix it. It happens more often than you think that airmen forget about the cold surrounding them during battle," Ruby tried to comfort him. She smiled softly.

"She's right. Nobody blames you for your injuries." Buck turned his head away from Bosser and looked over his shoulder to see his ball gunner.

"Tommy, how are you?"

"It hurts like a bitch, but otherwise I'm alright. I'm being looked after very well by the nurses." Tommy weakly looked at him before closing his eyes again.

"What exactly happened up in the air?" asked Buck. "How did you get frostbites?"

"Ball gunners are exposed to cold air constantly during the flight. Inside the ball turret it's just as cold as outside of the plane. That's why ball gunners are more prone to get frostbites," explained Ruby. "We might have to send Tommy to London. To make sure the frostbite is healing as it should."

Ruby lifted the covers and showed Buck the frostbit which was covering Tommy's thighs and part of his behind. The skin peeled and fell off, leaving red flesh on the surface. Blisters were slowly forming themselves on the red flesh. She slowly pulled the cover back over Tommy's body again.

"Get better soon, Tommy," wished Buck before leaving him to sleep. Ruby and Buck walked away from the injured pair. Meatball spotted them from the corner where his dog bed was placed. He stood up and happily strutted over to Buck to greet him.

"Hey, my boy." Buck kneed down besides Meatball and pated his head. "Is he with you know?"

"Yeah, Colonel Huglin was furious when he found out about Meatball. So, I offered to take care of him rather than DeMarco. Luckily, Huglin agreed to that and allows me to take him with me to work," informed Ruby Buck about Meatball's situation.

"It's really kind of you. Meatball means a lot to the guys." Buck stood up again.

"Well, I love Meatball too. I won't give him up that easily. My family used to have dogs when we were younger. And now we've got Meatball. He's got my father wrapped around his paws in just one week" joked Ruby.