Medic In Red

a t t a c k s

The leaves crunched under Talbert's feet as he was crouching behind the bushes, Winters behind him. Three, maybe four Germans were clear in his line of sight. Following Winters's orders, he crouched down in army position next to Liebgott and fired his M-1 Garand. Bullets firing out, whizzing so close to his face he could feel the hotness. One of the men next to him got shot on his arm, and was crying out. Floyd knew he should've called out for Roe or Eva but Winters was shouting to follow him and so Talbert did, a gut wrenching feeling in his stomach that he might've left a man to bleed out, to die. 

Talbert re-loaded his machine gun and fired at a German tank across the field. In his line of sight. "I THINK ONE OF THOSE DEAD KRAUTS HAS A LUGER!" Malarkey reloaded and fired his gun while shouting. Floyd could hardly hear Don over the cannons and noise "SO?" 

Donald doesn't even respond, running out in open fire to a dead Kraut. Patting down his blood stained uniform for any Luger. "MALARKEY" Talbert screams out, bullets firing over his head and nearly over his body as Malarkey sprinted back to the foxhole, behind Guarnere. "GOT YOUR FUCKING LUGER?" 

Tab moved from foxhole to foxhole, hours and hours of shooting. Dead bodies stench rotted the air, and there wasn't a clean hand in sight. He had a headache, although he was distracted from it by Popeye sprawled out in the foxhole, pants down and bloody ass in sight for all to see. "Do you think this is a ticket home" Popeye shouted. 

"Maybe. You'll do fine Sargent. See one of the medics when we get back to battalion" With a reassuring pat on Wynn's shoulder, and a nod at Tab, Buck followed Dick out of the foxhole.

Floyd moved out, falling in the foxhole between Guarnere and Perconte "FUCK. I GOT FUCKING BLOOD ALL OVER MY ARMS AND LEGS" Frank shouts out, frustrated but not paying attention to anything else happening. "SUCK IT UP FRANK, ITS BLOOD. WE'RE IN A WAR, GET USED TO IT" Bill shouts back, equally covered in dirt and blood, leaves and sticks adorned his clothes. 

Dick ran through the long foxhole "BACK TO BATTALION, GO, GO" Every single solider had a relief spread through their body. Although not like the relief they once had in domestic life when told it was dinner time, it was a relief from not having to shoot Germans for the time being. 

-

Blood covered men on stretchers, moaning out only left more wrinkled up foreheads. "Lieb, you know where the aid tent is at?" Tab turned his attention to the Californian man, who seemingly hated the female medic,had to resist the urge to roll his eyes but pointed forwards to a large tent. 

Tab opened the flap and placed his helmet under his arm "Hey Popeye, how you doing?" he softly approached Wynn 

"Doin fine, Tab. Doing real great actually. Doc Morris here can really fix you up" Popeye looked up to stare at Eva, who was only focusing on Floyd but quickly looked down at Popeye. "You're fine, Robert. Take it easy and try not to get your ass hit anymore or it'll be more damage" 

Popeye thanked the brunette medic and made his way out. "You okay, Tab?" Eva wrung her hands on an already dirty rag, staring at her friend. She could see his knuckles were bloody and bruised, a purple and blue bruise if you squinted hard enough. She leaned back to get gauze and wrap his hand up. "It was quite an attack, Malarkey tried to get a Luger off some dead kraut, too many men were injured. I couldn't even count" His voice sounded like he had something on his mind, like he was distracted. Floyd was staring out into the distance "And did something happen to you? You seem really shaken up" Eva finished wrapping the bandage around his knuckles and took a step back to look into his eyes. 

"I-" Tab paused for a minute "I think I left a solider out to bleed" His voice caught in his throat and it cracked, trying to blink away tears of guilt "What do you mean?" 

"A man next to me got hit, Winters was yelling to follow him and if I stayed there to save him, he might've been fine but I might've gotten hit. Still, he probably bled to death because of me" Tab looked away, his eyes red and he ran his fingers over the gauze bandage. "Floyd Talbert look at me right now"

Eva moved to rest her hands on his knees as he stared back into her eyes "You did not shoot him with a gun, it was not your fault he got hit. It wasn't that mans fault either. The Germans made it a goal to hit him. That's just what comes with being in a war I guess. But if you stayed there to save him, you not only would've been an angel, you would've literally become one. You would've died, Tab but you saved your own life even if it meant risking another and that's not only brave, its necessary" She leaned forward to wrap her arms around his neck, and he hugged her back just as tight. Taking a notice in her smell and dirt covered cheeks, he still found comfort and solace in them. 

"You did not leave that man to die, okay?" Eva pulled back, placing her hands on his broad shoulders, which were visibly tense and knotted. Talbert nodded and hopped off the table, giving her the best smile he could muster for Eva but the broken in his eyes explained everything he didn't tell her. 

That's the thing about pain, it demands to be felt