The sun pierced its merciless rays into my eyes, obstructing my vision. I squinted in defense and rose up once I was out of the tent, and the sun was barely above the horizon. Perfect. I took one last glance at my friends, who were sleeping soundly in the comforting warmth of their blankets. After heaving a long, heavily sigh, I turned away and made my way toward the town of Gettysburg.
As I slowly walked through the many blades of fresh grass that licked my ankles, I tried my best to cover my soldier backpack with my hair. The backpack that I received for enlisting in the army was all I had, and I didn't want anyone to question me why a girl like me would have a soldier's backpack. I failed in covering my backpack since my hair was way too short. In fact, each golden strand of dry, straight hair barely passed my shoulders.
In the corner of my eye, I barely noticed the orange fire that was crackling about twenty or so meters to my left. I subtly turned my head toward the fire, and the flames calmly licked the sky.
Colonel Joshua Chamberlain calmly sat on a log in front of the fire, its orange glow illuminating his strong face. Through the near-complete darkness, I could easily see that Colonel Chamberlain was obviously thinking about something. His eyebrows were furrowed, his frown lines etched forever on his face, and he was hunched over in thought.
Once Chamberlain noticed that I was looking at him outside my tent, he turned his gaze toward mine and angled his head in a confused fashion.
"Hey, you," he called out toward me, his hands cupped to his mouth. "Come over here, you must be cold."
I sighed a heavy sigh of relief knowing that Colonel Chamberlain thought that I was a stranger. With nervousness swelling in my body, I couldn't do anything else but obey the Colonel. I shuffled over to him in my fluffy dress and plopped down next to the Colonel. He smiled thoughtfully and stared into the fire, his eyes taking on an orange glow.
"You know," he began shyly. I always knew that Chamberlain was the shy type, but whenever he had a job to do, such as bark an order for the Union army, it's like his shyness completely disappears. Chamberlain rested his hand on his chin in thought. "I know you from somewhere."
Chamberlain squinted and studied my features, making me feel a bit uneasy. "I just feel like I know 'ya from somewhere, you just look so familiar."
"Sorry, sir, but I don't know what you're talking about," I lied. I obviously knew that I was the person that looked familiar to him since Vange and Evangeline are the same person. "You must have the wrong person."
My face flushed to a bright red in embarrassment, and I kept the soldier backpack tightly on my back so Chamberlain wouldn't see.
Colonel Chamberlain shook his head doubtfully and returned his gaze off of the fire and back to me. "No, no. You just look like the boy who disobeyed my orders and ran away from the infantry's lines to help his friend fire a cannon."
I sat still, my eyes wide. I didn't want Chamberlain to find out that I was a girl. I didn't even know what the punishments were for disguising as a boy to be in the army, and I preferred to have it stay that way.
Chamberlain and I exchanged long, awkward stares before I finally came to the conclusion that this man was trustworthy enough. He was shy after all,; why would he go to town and shout that I joined the army?
I swallowed my courage and finally spoke. "That boy you're talking about is sitting right in front of 'ya."
Colonel Chamberlain couldn't comprehend my response and sat still, his eyes wide and his mouth agape in shock. His eyes then darted about my features, and I could sense that he was finally putting the pieces together.
"Y-you-" he stammered. "You were a woman all along?"
"Shh!" I angrily pressed my finger to my lips to signal for the Colonel to stop talking. "Keep your voice down!" I anxiously glanced around the temporary camp, wondering if any soldiers were outside to hear our conversation. "Yes, I was a woman all along? You surprised?"
"N-no!" Chamberlain stuttered. "I'm just," he paused and inhaled sharply like his next sentence was illegal to say. "I'm just quite impressed."
"You're impressed?" I echoed, a hint of doubt lingering in my voice.
After Colonel Chamberlain nodded in aggreement, I smiled in satisfaction. It was good knowing that a Colonel in the military was impressed by my acts of sneaking into the army disguised as a boy. In fact, I was also surprised that he didn't punish me for doing so. He must be a smart, understanding man to actually have a positive feeling of being impressed.
"Honestly," He paused and glanced at me awkwardly as if trying to implore me for my real name.
I chuckled and smiled thoughtfully back at Chamberlain. "My name is Evangeline."
"Evangeline," Colonel Chamberlain continued, saying my name very slowly while trying to get accustomed to my different name. "T-that was really brave of you, Evangeline." His voice was in a slight stammer.
I remembered that fellow officers told me that Chamberlain had a stammer ever since he started to speak. He's been getting over it though-and it's hardly noticeable. However, Chamberlain still pauses in his speech from time to time, but he's doing way better.
Joshua Chamberlain continued. "Evangeline, you've inspired me to be a better Colonel."
I awkwardly rubbed my arm, and I felt my cheeks becoming warm in embarrassment. "What?" Was the Colonel flirting with me?
He shook his head awkwardly, denying my thought. "No-no. I didn't mean it like that, okay? I already have a wife and two children."
"Oh," was my reply as I felt my cheeks somehow grow warmer. I didn't mean to jump to conclusions and think that the Colonel suddenly gained a lust for me,
Chamberlain chuckled and brushed off my sudden assumption. "It's okay, Evangeline. I just wanted to say that you've inspired me to be a better Colonel ever since I saw you just leave to help your friend. I mean-" he paused, gathering his words. I could almost see the gears turning in his mind.
"When you left to help your friend-Arthur I believe-you disobeyed the army's rules and broke away from your lines to help Arthur. You were doing nothing in the infantry at the time, though, and you made a good decision," he had a great amount of understanding in him, and I respected him for that.
"It's not like another Colonel or General might punish you for it, but I've come to understand that you might need to risk getting punished if that meant helping out a fellow soldier in need. That's what being in the army is all about, right?:" He laughed once more, his long mustache bouncing up and down on his lip.
"I guess so," I joked back. "Does that mean that I, a woman, have more knowledge about what being in the army's about than a Colonel?"
The Colonel was took off guard, and he leaned back in his seat awkwardly. Once he knew that my joke was most likely true, he tugged on his shirt collar and replied, "I guess."
Colonel Chamberlain shifted on the log that we sat on and turned back to the fire, holding out his hands toward the sweet warmth. He then turned back toward me, his gaze slowly resting onto mine. "What are you doing, though, just l-leaving the army? You know that's illegal." His face hardened into a stern expression and his eyebrows furrowed and his frown lines being carved deeper into his face.
I rolled my eyes, still in a jokey mood. "T'ain't illegal if you don't get caught," I smiled, trying to stifle a small laugh.
Chamberlain's expression molded out of his stern one and he began to laugh once more. But he immediately stopped laughing and froze like an ice cube when he noticed my expression turn fearful.
"Please don't tell anyone that Vange was actually a woman all along," I pleaded, still referring to my boy disguise.
Chamberlain thought for a second, the fear bubbling inside of my body. After several moments that felt more like eternities, Chamberlain finally answered, "Don't worry, Evangeline, my lips are sealed." He then stood up, his hands sleepily resting on his back.
"Hey," The Colonel said after another moment's silence. "Since you're leaving, why don't I give you a ride over to the nearest hotel?"
"Why'd you wanna go through all of that, Colonel? I asked even though I wanted to accept his offer. I just wanted to see why he would want to go out of his way and help me get to the town.
"N-not sure," Chamberlain answered. "I guess I just wanna be a decent human being." He smiled thoughtfully as per usual.
I rolled my eyes and finally accepted his offer. "Oh, alright. I'll let you take me to the nearest hotel since you're such a gentleman."
Colonel Chamberlain smiled a brighter smile than before, stood up, and untied his horse from a nearby fence. Once he mounted his horse, he held out a firm hand. "Hop on."
***
Before we reached the hotel, I saw a familiar figure leaning against the hotel's front.
"Johnathan!" I shouted happily as Colonel Chamberlain stopped his horse in front of the hotel.
Once Johnathan spotted me, he sprinted toward me at full speed, his arms outstretched and a wide smile planted onto his face.
He lifted me off of Chamberlain's horse and held me into the air. "Hey, Evvie girl!"
"Evvie girl?" I repeated, laughing.
Johnathan's set me down gently, and his face flushed to the color of a bright tomato. "Sorry, I was just trying out nicknames for you." He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.
I chuckled and glanced back toward the Colonel. In response, he just smiled and shook his head as he leaped off of his horse, his hands still on his horse's reins. "You friends?" he asked without hesitation.
Johnathan and I exchanged glances and then nodded toward the Colonel at the same time. "Yeah, we're friends," we both cheered.
Colonel Chamberlain raised a brow skeptically in our direction like he knew that Johnathan and I were more than just friends. He rolled his eyes once more and added, "Why don't we enter the hotel, you weirdos?"
With nods of agreement from both Johnathan and I, the three of us entered the small hotel.
***
As Johnathan held open the door for the Colonel and I, curiously glanced around the interior of the hotel curiously.
A few wooden tables were peppered along the lobby, and two couches sat closest to the front desk. A small group of people happily ate breakfast at one of the tables, and there was a table with exactly three seats for us.
I smiled and glanced toward Johnathan. "Hey, uh, can we stop and eat before I get a room?"
Since he couldn't resist my request, Johnathan smiled thoughtfully back at me and replied with a soft "Alright, then. You two sit down, and I'll buy us some breakfast."
"No, no!" Chamberlain interjected, my gaze falling on him. "You don't need to do that. I'll pay."
Johnathan held up his hand, signaling for the Colonel to silence. To my surprise, Colonel Chamberlain fell quiet, and I tried my best not to cover my mouth in shock. "I'll pay," he snapped.
After several more minutes of tense argument, the anger within me bubbled up to its highest point, and I was ready to explode.
I thrust my arms in between the two men, and I pushed them both backward with my strength. "Guys!" I shouted, smoke coming out of my ears and nose. "Stop arguing, I'll just pay."
Without giving Johnathan or the Colonel time to protest, I stormed over to the buffet table, grabbed nine waffles, and quickly paid for the food.
I sat down on the table and set down the mountain of waffles, Johnathan and Chamberlain leaning backward in their seats in surprise.
Johnathan and Chamberlain did not respond to my sudden outburst, but they rolled their eyes and sighed instead.
"She's a real handful," Chamberlain whispered to Johnathan without me noticing.
Once everyone was settled and began to dig into their long-awaited breakfast, I was the first to speak. "So, why don't we all talk about ourselves so we can get to know each other better?"
My friends nodded in agreement with their mouths full of food and Colonel Chamberlain piped up. "Why don't I go first, since I have to leave very soon to wake up the Union army."
"Understandable," Johnathan added. "Go ahead."
Joshua Chamberlain finished his bite of a waffle and inhaled sharply. "I've always loved the state of Maine-I've been born there, and I wish to die there, hopefully in the town I resided in my childhood, Brewer. I've been studying at Bowdoin College."
He sighed and glanced through Johnathan and I distantly. "I remember when I met the love of my life-Fanny. I've always been inspired and interested in women how aren't afraid to show what they're capable of-like you, Evangeline." He smiled in my direction.
"You and Frances-Fanny-both always put men in their place whenever they talked bad about women. I remember one day, Fanny chose to boss me around for a day and make me run the kitchen and make me kids and all, and she was the one who worked in the office all day. You, on the other hand, still took on the role of a man, but you just did it differently, and I respect you and Fanny both for choosing to have your voices heard; you two are very brave." Joshua smiled and gazed towards me, giving me a thoughtful look.
Johnathan finished eating his waffle. "It's very good to hear that you have a great amount of respect for women, Colonel."
The Colonel began to gather his things and stood up out of his chair. "Please, just call me Joshua."
I didn't mean to ignore Joshua as I nodded toward Johnathan in agreement. "Yeah, usually men just ridicule women for trying to be heard, and the men just send them back into the kitchen."
Joshua Chamberlain stopped the conversation short when he pushed in his chair and swung his backpack over his shoulder. "I'm afraid I have to go to wake up the troops now, but before I go, I have a little something for you, Evangeline."
Colonel Chamberlain frantically dug his hand through the front pocket of his backpack Once he finally found the item that he was searching for, he removed his hand from the front pocket, revealing a silky bright violet bow.
He outstretched his arm and held the bow in my direction. "This is for you, Evangeline. I gave one to Fanny a few years ago, and I thought that you should get a matching one, since you're both feminists a-and all." He still stammered, and his voice was a bit shaky and nervous.
I carefully took the bow from him and stroked it with my thumbs, feeling its silky, smooth texture. As I gently rubbed the bow, it shined beautifully in the light, and I couldn't take my gaze off of it.
"It's-beautiful!" I practically shouted happily when I glanced back up at Chamberlain, who was still smiling thoughtfully. From the corner of my eye, I could see Johnathan irritably crossing his arms behind me. I barely managed to hold in a laugh and clipped the purple bow into my hair, which was now down.
I swirled a portion of my hair into a ponytail, and I left the other half down to hang above my broad shoulders. I tied the bow onto my half-ponytail to secure it, and once I finished, I proudly spun around to show off my new bow that the Colonel gave me, the long skirt from my dress flowing into a near-perfect circle around my waist.
"That looks beautiful on you," Johnathan added as he stepped in and placed a strong hand on my shoulder, trying to include himself in the conversation between Joshua Chamberlain and I.
Chamberlain chuckled. "She does look really good with the bow, and it goes really well with her eye-"
Joshua began to walk backward toward the entrance of the Gettysburg hotel, but then stopped and rubbed his mustache. "Say, Evangeline, where are you going since you left the army?"
"I'm going to visit my mother," I replied rather coldly, even though I didn't mean for it to come out that way. "She divorced her husband since she's been fed up with living with him on a slave plantation."
"Oh-" Joshua peeped before I interrupted him.
"And the South's economy had begun to crash and all because slaves are finally being freed, so my mother decided that she should leave to Washington D.C. before she loses money," I continued.
"Well," Chamberlain inhaled sharply, the awkwardness in him making his hands shake a bit. "I'm happy that you'll be able to see your mom after all this time being in the war."
I held myself back from telling the Colonel more about my life, for instance, when I visited my mother and father at Evan's house. I didn't choose to keep talking to Colonel Chamberlain, because I didn't want to bore the poor guy, and I also didn't want to tell him my personal matters just yet since I didn't know if I should fully trust the guy or not.
When he knew that I wasn't going to talk anymore, Colonel Chamberlain made his way for the giant double doors of the hotel.
"Goodbye, Evangeline and Johnathan!" Chamberlain waved his hat in our direction to say goodbye.
Before he closed the two doors, he cupped his hands to his mouth and shouted, "Until we meet again! I hope we can find each other when you two are somehow in the army again."
"Until we meet again!" I shouted with a small giggle in my voice.
Chamberlain laughed and waved once more. "Bye!"