A Soldier of No Importance [ Band of Brothers ] 1

NINE

With weekend passes canceled, the boys of Easy Company spent the next day playing cards or exercising. They didn't see much of Alice; she spent her time roaming the woods around Camp Toccoa and climbing up Currahee at a leisurely pace. She'd gotten up early, before daybreak, and wandered off into the forests.

As much as she'd laughed about the Georgia mountain being a far cry from her Alpine home, the quiet trembling of the forest leaves made her smile. She settled down on the low pillar they always tagged at the top of the run and chewed on some trail nuts she'd bought at the PX.

The thing she found she missed most in Toccoa was the lack of close contact. She and Robert had grown up with hugs and kisses from their family and friends, and she'd often sleep next to him for comfort on cold nights in the mountains. Not only did she not have someone to hug for comfort in her time of loss, but the permanent ache knowing her family was gone forever settled in her body. She felt cold. Now all she had was her mission.

She had no country. She had no brothers. She had no family. She had no home. All Alice had in America to remind her of Europe were her languages.

Footsteps pounded the ground down the hill. The birds had stopped chirping. Alice reached into her pocket and felt the knife she had been issued. Around the corner came a handful of Easy Company men and she relaxed.

"Hey look! It's Alice." George panted as he rushed up the ditch to the stone.

Behind him, Christenson, Webster, and Perconte all smiled to varying degrees. She forced a smile and waved as they clambered up. All of them paused, heaving at the stone.

"You are running Currahee on a weekend?"

"We're not gonna let Sobel take next week's passes." He looked at her. "We're supposed to hit it," said George between breaths. "You're sitting on the stone." Then his smile grew. "As your friend, I suggest a kiss instead."

Alice saw Webster roll his eyes, while the other two just shook their heads with a smile. George did not give up. Perhaps playing along wouldn't be such a terrible idea.

"All right. You four got up here and found me. But, there are rules. No turning heads. And one cigarette per kiss. I don't have my own pack yet."

"Deal." Then he grimaced. "I don't have my smokes on me though."

"I know where you keep them."

She gave him a cheek kiss, gently pressing her left cheek to his and making a kissing sound with her lips. They all laughed as he pretended to be shot. Perconte and Christenson both promised her cigarettes at the bottom. Webster declined, saying he didn't have any cigarettes to trade. He shuffled awkwardly before heading back down the mountain.

Alice chuckled to herself. She continued to sit at the stone, relishing the quiet for as long as she could. A gentle breeze had picked up and the sun began to sink in the sky. The leaves rustled on their branches. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply. The slow plodding of feet up the ditch made her open them a while later.

"Luz said you were handing out kisses for whoever got to the top."

Alice rolled her eyes at Nixon's statement. "You climbed all the way up here for one?"

With a laugh, he shook his head and sat down beside her on the ground. Wiggling his fingers he showed her the ring. "I'm married."

"I was handing out small cheek kisses in exchange for cigarettes," she explained.

They both paused before cracking up. The deal sounded more ridiculous when she said it out loud. As she covered her face in shame through the laughs, he collected himself.