Four weeks later
It was midday and the scorching sun was beating down on Easy Company as they stood at the beginning of the assault course, waiting for the torture to begin again. And this time they were being timed.
"You have three minutes to complete the course," Sobel was saying as he walked up and down the line, smirking at a number of the men who he knew struggled to make it in that time. It made Evelyn sick just how much of a kick he got on pulling people down and making them feel as though they were failures.
Taking a deep breath, she shook her legs to try and ease some of the tension out of them, and at the same time she wished she could ease the tension from her mind. During the last few weeks, she had tackled this assault course more times than she could count and the first few times she had failed completely due to the fact that the high wall she was expected to climb over by herself was almost twice the size of her. After much perseverance, and a few tips from the guys, she had mastered it. Just about. And much to Sobel's complete and utter annoyance. Then there were other issues. As a complete beginner, she had about as much strength as a gnat, and whenever she tried to do the horizontal bars or the twenty push ups then sit ups at the end of the course, her arms would just turn to jelly. After weeks of training though, that had soon changed and her arms were now toned and supported her weight easily. Well alright, not easily but it was easier at least. It was quite a feat for a girl who used to struggle to carry her own suitcase when she arrived at Toccoa.
The final hindrance that had stopped her completing the course within the three minute time allowance in the past had been her speed. At just under five feet tall, she was by far the shortest in the company- even after Frank Perconte- and her legs just didn't seem to go as fast as the others could. In their spare time, Bill and Joe Toye had taken to all kinds of extreme measures to help her with that, like chasing her around with a huge spider they had found in the barracks or teasing her with chocolate. At the time, she had found their colourful ideas absolutely ridiculous, but in hindsight they had actually done the job.
"Any man or woman..." Sobel fixed her with a pointed stare. "...who fails to complete the course in the allotted time will be out of the training programme."
"You got this," Malarkey squeezed her shoulder reassuringly once Sobel had walked past.
"I sure hope so, Don," she gave him a grateful smile.
"Go!" Sobel suddenly shouted and with that they were off.
The horizontal rope ladder was first, and not wanting or needing any distractions, Evelyn mentally shut herself off from everyone else around and concentrated solely on the task in hand. Designed for speed and agility, she lifted her legs as she manoeuvred through the boot sized holes. Almost at the end, her boot got caught in the rope and she tripped but without missing a beat she quickly jumped back up to her feet and dove through the wooden tunnel in front of her, shimmying through it as fast as she could. Next was the horizontal bars. She wiped her sweating palms on her shorts and jumped up, grabbing hold of the first metal bar with both hands. Crossing her legs at the ankles, something that she had discovered made her feel like less of a dead weight, she gritted her teeth and swung from one bar to the next until she eventually reached the end. In her peripheral vision, she was aware of figures running past but she kept her mind focused solely on herself. Eyeing the wall, she took a running jump and with the tips of her fingers took a hold of one of the small wooden grooves about two thirds of the way up the wall. Wedging her boots into another groove lower down, she pushed herself up until she could reach the top of the wall with her hands. Swinging herself not so gracefully over the top, she jumped down the other side and at last the end was in sight. The sit ups were first, and she got them out of the way fairly quickly until all she had left was her twenty push ups. She had no idea if she was within the time limit but she could hear some of the guys cheering her on, and she grinned as she counted the push ups in her head. One, two, three... eighteen, nineteen, twenty. She jumped up and ran to the end of the finish line where Sobel and his little pet, Sergeant Evans were waiting with a clipboard and stopwatch.
"Two minutes and fifty nine seconds, Corporal," Sobel sneered as she walked past him. "Barely a pass."
Yeah, but a pass nonetheless, asshole.
"Well done, Ev," Malarkey clapped her on the back. "I knew you could do it."
"I only just did it, though," she said, panting and pulling her shirt away from her body where it was beginning to stick.
"A pass is a pass," Malarkey grinned.
"So I ain't getting rid of you yet, kiddo?" Bill smirked, putting an arm around her shoulder.
"Nope," she laughed. "Looks like you're stuck with me a while longer."
... ... ...
"Oh, oh, I got another one," George announced excitedly. He, Evelyn, Skip Muck and Joseph Liebgott had been given a most glamorous task for that afternoon; latrine duty. Of course, they hadn't committed any infractions but Sobel always made sure Winters found some and so it was clearly just their turn. "What did the shit say to the fart?... You blow me away."
Evelyn and Skip groaned simultaneously from their adjoining cubicles.
"Stop with the fucking jokes, Luz," Liebgott said.
"Well, I'm sorry for trying to bring some toilet humour to this situation. Get it, toilet humour?"
"I'll give you toilet humour in a minute when I shove your fucking head down one," Liebgott snapped, before he suddenly gagged. "Can someone explain to me why I got the worst one? I swear I've never seen so much shit in all my life."
"That's surprising for someone who talks a lot of it," Evelyn teased.
"Oh Ev, you're spending far too much time with Luz," Skip laughed.
Evelyn got up off of her knees and with her cleaning supplies left her cubicle to seek out Liebgott in his. With a grimace of pure disgust on his face, he had one hand pinching his nose while he held a toilet brush that didn't look to be doing very much cleaning. She snorted and he turned around with a scowl.
"It helps if you actually put the brush in the toilet, you know," she commented.
He glared, although Evelyn noticed that it wasn't with the same amount of animosity he usually gave everyone else.
"Have you just come to gloat?"
"My, my, we are grumpy aren't we?" she chortled. "I've finished my cubicle so I actually thought I would be kind and help you out with yours, but if you've got it all covered then I'll just go and start on the sinks."
But even as she said the words, she knelt down beside him with a smile and began scrubbing. Joe hadn't exaggerated. This really was dire, she thought as she tried to breathe through her mouth to avoid the stench.
"Oh, and feel free to help, by the way," she stopped scrubbing a moment to fix him with a pointed stare.
"Well this is your domain after all, isn't it?" Joe answered with a smirk.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Well, being a woman and all; cleaning is what you are all good at, right?" he answered, trying hard to keep his lips from twitching as he watched the scowl appear on her face.
"Do you wanna say that again, Liebgott?" she stood up angrily, that famous Guarnere temper coming out and her hazel green eyes blazing.
Joe had noticed over the last few weeks that whenever she started to get wound up, the green flecks in her eyes became more pronounced. Suddenly, he snorted and Evelyn realised he was winding her up. With a huff she knelt back down and began scrubbing the toilet bowl ferociously, but Joe could see the small smile playing around the corners of her mouth. He nudged her with his elbow and she gave in and smiled widely at him, revealing straight white teeth.
"It's gone awfully quiet in there," George observed. "You've either killed each other or you're making out."
"Shut up, George," Evelyn and Joe both answered at the same time, and Joe smirked when Evelyn quickly bent her head over the toilet bowl, a faint blush creeping up her neck.
Between the two of them, they had that toilet sparkling clean in no time.
"Hey Skip, you know I've never asked how you and Faye met," Evelyn said a little while later as she wiped down one of the sinks.
George groaned and Joe rolled his eyes. The two of them had heard the story more times than they cared to count.
"The first day I ever saw her was August 18th, 1939. I remember because it was a Friday and I always took my sister, Ruth for a burger on fridays as my mom would stay late at work," Skip started, a dreamy glaze appearing on his face. "Ruth was talking about something or other, but I wasn't really paying any attention because, well, she's always talking. Anyway, I was just peering out the window of the diner, watching the world go by when suddenly, on the other side of the road, there she was. She was with her friends, laughing at something and I couldn't take my eyes off her. I swear, it was like everything went in slow motion and when the sunlight hit her she looked just like a real life angel sent from heaven. I knew right there and then that I was going to marry that girl one day," he continued, smiling as he relived the memory. "It's funny, because I've never been the type to be forward when it comes to girls, but I found my legs moving of their own volition and before I knew it, I was standing right in front of her. I honestly don't even recall leaving the diner or crossing the street. One of her friends asked if they could help me with something and when I said that I was just wanting to introduce myself to my future wife, they all laughed. But she didn't. Her blue eyes met mine and it was like there was just the two of us, alone on that sidewalk. I took her to the movies the very next night and ever since then we've been inseparable. This is genuinely the longest we've ever been apart, and as soon as this stupid war is over, I'm going to marry Faye Tanner and live happily for the rest of my days."
George and Joe scrunched up their noses in distaste at such an effeminate display of emotion about a woman, but Evelyn wiped at a stray tear that dripped down her cheek.
"That's the most beautiful thing I've heard, Skip," she sniffed delicately. "Faye's a lucky woman."
"I'm the lucky one," Skip smiled.
"Ok, enough with the lovey dovey already. Ev, if I'd have known a soppy story was all it took to impress you, you should have said,'' George sidled up to her, wiggling his eyebrows and putting an arm around her shoulder.
"You're a pest," Evelyn tutted, swatting him on the arm. "And you wonder why you don't have a girlfriend."
"Ouch," George stuck his bottom lip out into a pout. "Your words cut deep, Miss Guarnere."
"I'm sure you'll survive," Evelyn stuck out her tongue at him. "And by the way, it's Corporal Guarnere to you, George."
"What about you, Ev?" Skip asked, ignoring her and George's childish antics. "You got anyone back home we should know about?"
"Ooh yeah, tell us, Evelyn. Is he handsome? Does he make you positively swoon?" George grinned, fluttering his eyelashes teasingly.
Nobody noticed Liebgott stop what he was doing as he watched out of the corner of his eye for her answer.
"Sorry to disappoint boys, there's no one."
"Oh, come on," George pressed. "Pretty girl like you, they must be queuing up around the block."
"I swear to you," she exclaimed. "Why would I lie?"
"I dunno," George shrugged. "Maybe you don't want us all to know about him? Oh no, I know, you don't want your brother to know, do you?"
"That sounds about right," Skip laughed. "We've all seen how overprotective Bill is. I wouldn't blame you for keeping it a secret."
"For the last time, there's nobody!" she threw up her hands.
"Come on guys, stop it now," Joe spoke, secretly pleased with her answer.
"Although, they are right about Bill," Evelyn said. "He does have this way of scaring off any guy that comes near me. I think it's 'cause our other sisters are both older than me and him so he could never stop guys from calling on them, but with me it's different. I remember once when I was about fifteen, Tommy O'Riordan, who worked in the appliance store at the end of our road, asked me out to the movies. Tommy O'Riordan, by the way, was very sought after in our neighbourhood and all my friends were jealous when they found out. My sister, Gina helped me do my hair and even put on some make up, and it was all very exciting. But also, it was a huge secret because we knew if Bill found out, he would go mad. So anyway, we were in the theatre, waiting for the Wizard of Oz to start and all of a sudden who should turn up in the seats behind us?"
"Noooooooooo," George gasped gleefully.
"Oh yeah," Evelyn nodded. "It was. Bill and his girlfriend, Frannie. He casually taps us on the shoulders and says 'anyone for popcorn?'. It was so embarrassing. Frannie at least had the good grace to apologise when we went to the rest rooms during the interval, and said that Bill had heard it from one of his friends who knew someone else who worked in the appliance store with Tommy. When we got back from the restroom, Tommy was white as a sheet. He said he wasn't feeling so great and had to go home. To this day, I still don't know what Bill said to him while I was gone."
By this point all three of the boys were howling with laughter. George was laughing so hard that he was doubled over holding onto his side.
"Needless to say, after that there haven't been any more dates because word got around about Bill, and I don't think anyone fancied their chances against him. Not that I can say I was overly bothered," Evelyn grinned. "I wanted to concentrate on graduating high school and getting a job anyway. Not that I would ever say this to his face, but he probably did me a favour because if he hadn't stuck his nose in the way he always does, I would probably be married and poppin' out kids with nothing else to show for my life right now. Not that there's anything wrong with that, though. It's just that, I guess I wanna have a life for myself first before marriage and babies."
"But what about the day when you eventually want those things?" Joe asked.
"Meh, who knows," Evelyn shrugged. "That day's a long way off so I aint gonna worry about it now. Anyway, that's enough chat guys, Sobel's gonna bust our asses if we aren't done when he comes to inspect."
... ... ...
Later that day
"Don't sit under the apple tree with anyone else but me. Anyone else but me, anyone else but me. No! No! No! Just remember that I've been true to nobody else but you, so just be true to me. Don't go walking down lovers' lane with anyone else but me. Anyone else but me, anyone else but me. No! No! No..."
Bill rolled his eyes and frowned as he listened to his sister singing her heart out like she was one of the Andrews Sisters. Truthfully the closest she would ever come to that was in her head because in real life her singing was abominable. Screeching cat was probably putting it kindly. For as long as Bill could remember, Evelyn had always sung in the bathroom, but until Toccoa he had genuinely never noticed the extent of just how bad she was. Then again, at home had never been forced to stand in the same room with his back to her while she showered. He looked at his watch and sighed. A few of the guys were starting a game of craps in ten minutes and he was going to miss it.
"Are you nearly done?" he called, tapping his foot impatiently.
"Two more minutes," she shouted sweetly.
"You said that five minutes ago."
With a huff, she reluctantly switched off the water and Bill could hear her rummaging about in her rucksack for clean clothes.
"You know Ev, these ridiculously long showers are gonna have to stop," he decided. "The night before last, you were in here for almost half an hour. I thought you had gone down the drain or something."
"Well you're the one who insists on coming," she replied tartly, pulling on her underwear. "Don't bother from now on."
"Yeah ok, like I'm about to let you come here on your own," he snorted sarcastically. "Just shut up and get dressed, will ya? I've gotta go and beat Malarkey at craps in five minutes."
"Nobody can beat Malarkey at craps," Evelyn said matter of factly. "Haven't you lost enough money to him to know that by now?"
"Yeah well tonight's the night I get it all back," Bill rubbed his hands together gleefully.
"Good luck with that," it was Evelyn's turn to snort. She hurriedly pulled on a clean pair of OD's and shoved her dirty ones back into her rucksack. She tapped Bill on the shoulder, their signal that she was decent, and quickly ran a hairbrush through the knots in her already curling hair.
"You know, I often wonder why you keep your hair so long if all you ever do is wear it up?" Bill commented, pulling a strand down so that it was straight and then watching it spring right back into a perfect curl when he let go. "Even before nursing and the army, you always wore it up. Last time I ever saw you wear it down was at Gina's wedding last year. And even then, I think that's only 'cause she forced you."
"Since when was how I have my hair such a big issue for you? I keep it long 'cause I like it that way, is that ok?"
"Jeez, calm down. Is it your female time or something 'cause let me tell you, you've been testy all day, and I ain't the only one that's noticed. Alright, alright I'm joking," he exclaimed holding his hands up in surrender when she shot him a glare as deadly as the ones he was renowned for. "Come on misery, let's go."
... ... ...
Craps had been going for an hour and true to form, Malarkey was proving to be victorious. Bill, however, was refusing to go down without a fight and Evelyn, who had grown bored of watching her brother getting tirelessly beaten, decided to try and write the dreaded letter to her parents. After four weeks, she still hadn't told them about her new role within the military. Of course, she felt guilty especially when her mother had already sent her two letters, but she just couldn't seem to find the right words.
"You still trying to write that letter to your folks?" a voice spoke from the cot beside her own, and Evelyn looked up to meet Eugene Roe's kind eyes.
Eugene, or Doc, as most of the men called him, had a quiet and calming nature that had immediately drawn Evelyn to him. She got the feeling that he sometimes felt set apart from the others. They were, after all, brash and loud especially when all together, and while they liked and respected him as a fellow comrade and as a medic who could potentially save their lives one day, he was often on the sidelines. Evelyn suspected that it was through his own choice, and by watching them all from the outside he saw sides of them as individuals that perhaps usually went unnoticed.
"What have you got so far?" he asked, swinging his legs over the side of his cot and putting down the Medical Journal he had been reading.
"Uh 'Dear Mom and Dad. I hope this letter finds you both well'," Evelyn said sheepishly.
"I'm sure that's all you had written yesterday evening too," Eugene frowned.
"Hey, that's not true at all," she protested. "Yesterday, I had only written 'Dear Mom and Dad'. I've added a whole other sentence since then, thank you very much."
"My apologies," Eugene smirked. "But still, if this is the rate at which you're writing it, then the war's gonna be over before they even know you were there."
"With any luck," Evelyn muttered. "Don't look at me like that, Eugene Roe. If you're so good at writing letters, then you do it."
She handed him the pen and paper with a raised eyebrow, but he merely pushed them back towards her with a grin.
"The longer you leave it, the harder it will be," he said. "And the longer you wait to tell them, the more hurt they are gonna be that you felt you couldn't tell them in the first place. They're seven hundred miles away, Evelyn. What's the worst that can happen? They will deal with it, in the same way they dealt with it when your brothers enlisted. Prove to them that you're the adult you keep saying you are, and write the goddamned letter."
"Eugene, did I just hear you swear?" Evelyn gasped, her eyes wide. "Quick, who can I tell about this?"
"Evelyn," Gene fixed her with a serious look. "Don't try and change the subject."
"I would never try to do that," she opened her mouth in mock outrage.
"Mmhmm," Eugene raised an eyebrow and resumed his reading. Evelyn crossed her legs to try and get comfortable and chewed on the top of the pen while she thought carefully about how she wanted to word this letter. Eugene was right. When wasn't he? The thing was, she couldn't even get annoyed at him because he was just Eugene. Stable, sensible Eugene. This time, when she put the pen to paper, it seemed to move of its own accord;
Dear Mom and Dad,
I hope this letter finds you both well. I'm sorry it's taken me so long to write you back. Things have been rather busy here at Toccoa, and in fact I have taken on a new role that has given me even less free time than I expected.
Mom, if you're not sitting down, then do so now because I don't think Dad will thank me if you collapse on the kitchen floor, especially seeing as he had just laid those new tiles the week before I left. Not that I mean to say he cares more about those tiles then he does you, it's just that, as he reminded me about a hundred times, they cost him a fortune. Ok, I'm just rambling now so I'll get right to the point.
A few weeks ago, Colonel Sink (I'm sure Bill has told you who he is, but just in case, he's the commander of Bill's regiment) approached me and asked me to take part in some kind of military experiment. I know at times I can be rash, a trait we all seem to possess in this family, but this was something that I promise you I thought long and hard about. Anyway, after much deliberation, I accepted and now you are looking at (well not literally, I know) the military's first female combat medic. Well, I will be if I pass my training that is.
I know you guys (especially you, Mom) are probably going to be stressing out right about now, but I sincerely hope that once this news has sunk in, you might start to feel a little proud that your little girl might be a part of something that could change women's roles in the military forever. Growing up, you always encouraged us all to pursue our dreams and not let anything get in our way. Now I'm not saying that I ever dreamed of growing up and fighting in a war or jumping out of an airplane, because we all know that I dreamed of growing up and marrying the King of England (still wouldn't turn down that offer, by the way). Anyway thanks to you both, I always believed that my abilities were equal to those of men.
I don't really know how much I'm allowed to tell you both about this new role I've taken, but I hope it might ease your minds somewhat to know that they've put me in the same company as Bill. In true Bill fashion, he flipped his lid when he found out what I'd done, but I think now he's kind of gotten used to having me around, and you'll be happy to know he's been taking good care of me. Well, when he's not being his usual annoying self.
I hope you're both not too mad? Dad, don't let Mom tell that gossip, Mrs Gomez, next door because she'll only start filling Mom's head with crazy ideas about what I'm doing, and she'll exaggerate whatever Mom tells her when she spreads it around the neighbourhood. Remember that time Clara had flu and she told everyone that she was dying? Or when Henry broke his arm and she told Mr Jones across the road that he was going to have to have it amputated. Before we know it, I'll be single handedly fighting the war both in Europe and the Pacific alone. Sorry, I'm sidetracking again, aren't I?
Anyway, I love you both so much. Honestly, I do. And I can't wait to come home and see you guys as soon as we get leave.
Evelyn.
P.S. Please don't hate me.
P.P.S. Pretty please. With a cherry on top.
P.P.P.S Ok I'll stop now I swear.
"I did it," she squealed triumphantly, all but throwing the letter into Eugene's lap. She bounced up and down nervously on her cot as she waited for him to read it. "Well, is it ok? You think it's terrible, don't you? Oh god, give it here and I'll try again."
"Calm down, Evelyn," Eugene soothed, still reading, and she immediately sat still. How did he do that? His voice always that affect on her. Finally, he looked up and smiled. "It's perfect."
He handed it back to her and she quickly stuffed it into an envelope and sealed it, before hurriedly scribbling the address on the front.
"I'll take that," Eugene grinned, gently snatching it out of her hands. "Just in case it takes you as long to send it as it did to write it."
"Thanks," she said dryly.
"For God's sake, Malarkey, are you cheating or something? You gotta be!"
"Stop being such a sore loser," Malarkey answered calmly, scooping up the pile of money in front of him.
"Evelyn, you wanna lend me some money?" Bill called over to her.
"Uh not really, no. I lent you some last time, and the time before that, come to think of it. You're on your own this time, Bill. Come on, Eugene," she stood up.
"Where are we going?" Eugene frowned.
"To post that letter."
"Right now?"
"Yes," she said, grabbing his hand and pulling him up. "I'm getting out of here before Bill tries to wrangle my last few dollars from me."
"Alright," Eugene sighed. "Come on then."
The sun was setting casting an ethereal golden glow over Toccoa as they walked across the dusty path towards the mail hut.
"You know, that mountain is actually quite nice to look at when you're not running up it, listening to Sobel shouting," Evelyn commented.
"Sure it's pretty, but it aint anywhere near as pretty as the Bayou back home," Eugene replied almost wistfully. "If I was back home on an evening like this, I would be out on the water. Just me in my little wooden boat listening to the sounds around me. The rustling of the Cypress trees as the wind weaves quietly through the leaves or the gentle coo of a dove calling for its mate. There is nothing more humbling in all of life than realising that you are just one of the many beautiful things God created in this world."
"It sounds breathtaking," Evelyn smiled. "There's nothing like that in South Philly. If I was at home right now, I would be listening to my neighbour's next door arguing in the street, and the closest I ever get to nature is next door's feral cat which scratches me anytime I try to stroke it."
"Sounds idyllic," Eugene snorted.
"Oh yeah, it's like paradise," Evelyn laughed. "Truthfully though, after this is all over, I wouldn't mind coming down and seeing this Bayou. You know, apart from one time when I was a kid and we all went on a trip to Washington, Toccoa and home are the only places I've ever been."
"That makes two of us then. Before coming here, I'd never even left Louisiana before."
"Well in that case, let's make a pact then," Evelyn suggested. "Once this stupid war is over, I will come visit you in Louisiana and then you can come visit me in Philly? Deal?" She held out a hand and it was only a second before Eugene put out his own.
"Deal."
... ... ...
It was Friday night and while every other company in the 506th was spending their evening relaxing or having fun, Easy Company was marching. Again. After a strenuous morning of physical training followed by a very long afternoon of lectures, everyone had been ready for a rest. But Sobel, of course, had other ideas as always. This was Evelyn's fourth Friday since joining Easy company and her fourth Friday night march. Would it really kill Sobel to let them have it off just once? It irked her that he didn't even join in with the march. Not that she was entirely sure she would have wanted to listen to him point out all their faults while they marched anyway.
"I'm gonna say something," Bull suddenly declared. Evelyn and George, who were marching beside him, looked at each other and shrugged.
"To who?" George asked.
"Lieutenant Winters," Bull called out.
"What is it?" came the reply.
"Permission to speak, Sir?"
"Permission granted."
"Sir, we got nine companies, Sir."
"Fucking Einstein," George muttered.
"I'm surprised you even know who Einstein is," Evelyn snorted, and George opened his mouth in mock outrage.
"Why are we the only ones marching every Friday night, twelve miles, full pack in the pitch dark?" Bull questioned.
As Winters slowed down in his marching a little, everyone's eyes turned discreetly to look at him, waiting for his answer. It was obvious to most, if not all of them, that Lieutenant Winters thought very little of Sobel, but such was his nature that they knew he would never undermine his superior to any of them.
"Why do you think, Private Randleman?"
"Lieutenant Sobel hates us, Sir."
"Lieutenant Sobel does not hate Easy Company," Winters smirked. "He just hates you."
"Thank you, Sir," Bull grinned.
"Did Winters actually just make a joke?" George gasped, grabbing hold of Evelyn's hand to steady himself.
"I can't quite believe it myself either, Georgie Porgie," Evelyn said.
"Georgie Porgie?" George frowned. "Never call me that again."
"Aw but why not? You're so ickle and cute. I just wanna squeeze those little cheeks of yours," she motioned with her hands.
"If you're talking about my ass cheeks then squeeze away," George wriggled his eyebrow suggestively.
"Uh you're gross," Evelyn grimaced, scrunching up her nose in distaste.
"Yeah but you love me, right?"
"Like a hole in the head."
"You two are like children," Bull commented albeit with an amused glint in his eyes.
"That means you can be like our Dad then?" Evelyn smiled sweetly.
"Good Christ, no way," Bull snorted. "If I ever have kids like either of you, I'm sending them to boarding school as quickly as I can."
"So cruel," George tutted.
"Shut up the pair of you or you won't finish this march if you get my meaning." Bull shook his head in exasperation.
It was the middle of the night when they finally reached their barracks, and ever cheery Sobel was there waiting for them.
"Lieutenant Winters, I want canteens out, caps unscrewed," he demanded.
"Canteens out and open," Winters relayed the order.
"On my command, they will pour the contents onto the ground."
"On the CO's orders you will upend your canteens."
"Now, Lieutenant."
"Pour 'em!"
Sobel meandered through the formation with his eagle eyes fixated on the canteens in their hands. Exhausted and sweating, Evelyn could have cried as she watched the cool water falling wastefully onto the dry ground.
"Who is this?" Sobel suddenly shouted heading to the back of the formation. "Christenson! Why is there no water in your canteen? You drank from your canteen, didn't you?"
"Sir, I-" Christenson tried to protest.
"Lieutenant Winters! Was this man ordered not to drink from his canteen?"
"He was, Sir," Winters replied.
"You disobeyed a direct order," Sobel shouted in Pat Christenson's face. "You will fill your canteen and repeat all twelve miles of the march."
"But Sir, I was-" Christenson tried again.
"-You were what?" Sobel demanded.
"Sir, I couldn't help it," Christenson spoke as quietly as he could and looked like he was about to cry, such was the shame he felt at that moment. "I thought I was going to faint, Sir and there were still five miles left."
Sobel clenched his jaw as he pondered that statement then suddenly the nasty glint returned to his eyes and he smirked triumphantly.
"Corporal Guarnere, here now!" he yelled.
Evelyn rolled her eyes and sighed at George before walking over to Sobel and Pat.
"Corporal Guarnere, were you aware that Private Christenson had become ill during the march?"
"No Sir, he didn't mention it," Evelyn replied honestly.
"It is your job to know if someone is sick without them having to mention it," Sobel spat.
"With all due respect, Sir-"
"-Are you arguing with me, Guarnere?"
"No Sir," Evelyn said, taking a deep breath to try and calm herself. She could feel her temper rising.
"If you can't see something is wrong with the men here, how do you expect to do it on the front line when it matters the most?"
Pretty sure the blood pouring out of them and the shouts for a medic will be a bit of a hint. Idiot.
Evelyn knew that Sobel wanted her to argue just so that he could have the pleasure of punishing her. He hated everyone in the company, but he had made it his personal mission these last few weeks to punish her for the slightest little infraction. At first, she had tried to stand her ground with him but quickly realised it only made the situation worse for her and sometimes everyone else. So as much as it irked her to do so, she usually gave in for a quiet life.
"No excuse, Sir," she finally answered.
"Seeing as Private Christenson here is ill, he will go to the medical station and you will repeat the march in his place," Sobel smirked.
"Lieutenant, if I may-" Winters interjected.
"-You may not," Sobel shot Winters a warning glare. "What are you waiting for, Corporal Guarnere? Fill up your canteen and repeat the march immediately."
"Yes Sir," Evelyn nodded, clenching her jaw.
As she walked past the men, they all had varying expressions on their faces ranging from pity to anger. Her brother had his fists clenched and she could see Joe Toye murmuring something to him. God bless Joe Toye. He really was a good friend to Bill and he seemed to be one of only a few who could calm him when he was wound up which was no mean feat.
"Lieutenant Sobel," Eugene's quiet voice said. "As lead medic it should have been my responsibility to notice that Private Christenson was ill as well. Therefore, I request permission to repeat the march with Corporal Guarnere."
"And me, Sir," Spina piped up.
"Denied," Sobel answered, not even looking at them or giving consideration to their request. "Fall out."
When Evelyn finally finished her twelve miles hours later, in the far horizon the sun was just beginning to awaken for the day. Lieutenant Sobel had not even waited up to make sure she finished, so she went straight to the barracks. As she wearily approached, she noticed a lone figure sat out on the porch, a cigarette dangling between his lips.
"You made it then?" Liebgott smirked.
"Just about," she sighed, collapsing to the floor beside him. "What are you doing up so early?"
"Considering I haven't actually been to sleep yet, the question should have been what am I doing up so late?"
Evelyn, who had begun loosening the laces on her boots looked up in shock.
"You waited up for me?"
"We all did, well tried," Liegbott shrugged nonchalantly, taking a long drag of his cigarette. "But one by one they all gave in and went to sleep. Even your brother couldn't hack it."
"He's always liked his sleep," Evelyn smiled fondly, remembering times growing up when her poor mother had taken drastic measures like throwing cold water over Bill to wake him up when he was late for school or work. "So you were the last one, huh? You must be exhausted?"
"Says the girl who's just marched an extra twelve miles more than the rest of us," Joe snorted, watching her pull off her boots and socks and sigh in relief as she wriggled her toes. "Oh, here I got something for you."
Evelyn positively beamed as he handed her his canteen full of water and she downed it all without stopping, giggling with an almost childlike innocence when cool droplets ran down her chin.
"What?" she asked, suddenly self-conscious when she caught Joe watching her with an expression she hadn't seen before.
Beautiful. There was literally no other word to describe her, Joe thought to himself. He almost groaned when her tongue darted out of her mouth to lick nervously at her lips. In her dirty OD's with her ebony hair starting to tumble out of the bun she wore it in, she was the most beautiful thing he had ever laid eyes upon, and Joseph Liebgott had laid eyes upon a lot of women. He definitely had plenty of charm when it came to the ladies, and if he had met a girl like Evelyn back home or in a bar in Toccoa, she would have been eating out of the palm of his hand in no time. But with her, it was different. The way his stomach flipped strangely whenever he saw her or the bizarre tightness in his chest when he saw her laughing at something George or one of the others said. She wasn't like any other girl he had met. He didn't feel so cocky around her, not that he ever showed it in front of anyone.
"Joe? Are you alright?" Evelyn's voice broke him from his thoughts, her hazel green eyes peering at him worriedly as she placed a hand on his arm.
"Huh? Oh yeah. Sorry, I was just thinking. You know what, I just remembered, I gotta be somewhere," he stood up quickly as though her touch had burnt him.
"Now?" Evelyn frowned, puzzled by the sudden change in his behaviour.
"Yeah," he said, all but running down the porch steps. "I'll, uh, catch you later, Ev. Get some sleep, yeah?"
"Yeah," she muttered watching his figure disappear down the path, before turning around.
Pushing the door open as quietly as she could so as not to wake anyone else, she sighed as she lay on her cot. Sleep claimed her before she knew it.