Never Coming Home

After making our beds a little more comfortable and putting our belongings away, Mikey and I went over to what I think was the breakfast tent. At least I think it was; it seemed like a pig pen to me. Men sat at benches with tables eating some kind of slop, burping and chugging their food down. I shivered at the sight.

Men are disgusting! I thought to myself. No doubt will my identity be revealed with all my feminine manners.

We stepped into a line with some other people where a cook ladled out some kind chili. I hoped it was chili. Mikey got a bowl and handed me one, and smiled in thanks. The cook was a burly type of man, with broad shoulders and a pot belly. He grunted and ladled the nasty concoction into my bowl. I scrunched my nose at it. The food looked more like vomit. Mikey started walking towards a table and I hesitated on whether or not to sit with him. I decided to follow, but I stopped in my tracks because he sat at a table with Bob and Frank. No way in hell was I going to sit with them, so I made my way towards an empty table in the corner, and reluctantly began eating my slop.

My stomach knotted as the gloom settled over me. Every once in a while I looked up from my food, seeing how all the men had somebody to laugh and sit with while I sat here by myself. I was an outcast on my very first day! I felt so much loneliness already, and I was beginning to miss Adam and Aunt Clare. I looked back down at my food and glared at it. I didn't feel so hungry anymore. I pushed my bowl of slop away from me, and set my head down on the table. I would rather die right now then go through all this.

"What have I gotten myself into?" I whispered to myself.

A whole five minutes had passed, and my stomach started to feel queasy. I blame the poor excuse for food. We were all going to die of malnourishment by eating this stuff. I heard the squeak of the bench across from me and a bowl placed onto the table, causing me to look up. Mikey sat right across from me, staring at me through his glasses.

"Uh...hi," I said, turning my gaze back down.

"Hi," He said. "I saw you over here by yourself and thought maybe if I should join you."

I looked up at him again, confusion written on my face. "Why?"

"Well, we are partners after all, and besides, I didn't want you to be alone!"

I was surprised by his words, showing such kindness towards me. After what I've gone through, I never thought that anyone would be nice to me. It was shocking, really.

"Um...thanks, I guess," I said, sporting a small smile.

Mikey smiled back, and spooned his food, putting a bite into his mouth. His face scrunched back, choking on it, and spit it back into his bowl. He gagged, sending me into fits of laughter.

"Now I see why you're not eating," He grimaced.

I snorted. "You think!"

He rolled his eyes at me and pushed his bowl aside. "So since we're going to be war buddies for the next few months or so, why don't we get to know each other? Where're you from?"

"Belleville," I said.

He grinned and said, "No shit! I'm from there, too! Okay, um...how old are you?"

"Seventeen, you?"

"Nineteen. Full name?"

"Ann--" I stopped short and realized that I couldn't say my full name. It was bound to give away something. So I quickly corrected my mistake and said, "Andrew. Andrew Montial Miller."

"And you go by Monty?" Mikey raised an eyebrow.

I nodded, my hand instantly going to the chain around my neck. "Yeah, it's my nickname that my father always used for me. He always said that I looked like a Monty, and I've always liked being called that. It's the one of the few things I can remember him by."

Mikey's expression turned to a confused one. "Remember him by?"

I nodded again. "He died. He was the General of the United States Army. I'm sure you've heard of him. He was killed in battle while in Germany. His funeral was in the beginning of the month..."

"Wait," Mikey gaped. “You’re the General’s son?”

I nodded, and quietly replied, “Yes.”

His eyebrows knitted together. “Wait, I thought he had a daughter?”

The back of my neck heated up and I stuttered over my words. “Uh...uh, yeah, my sister...Anne. He...he never talks about me...”

Thankfully he seemed to buy my lie. “Oh. Too bad you lost him.”

"It's okay. At least there's something I could do for him."

"What's that?"

"Revenge." Mikey's eyebrows went up to his hairline when I said that, and I continued. "He was killed by a man named Rumier Koch; I even have the bullet that killed my father." I pulled out the bullet that hung from the chain from under my shirt, letting Mikey have a glimpse of it before returning it to the safety of my shirt.

"Oh..." He said, shifting his gaze to the table.

"Well, what about you? Brothers? Sisters?" I asked, changing the subject.

"Yeah," He nodded. "One brother; older actually. His name is Gerard."

My eyes widened. "You don't mean..."

"Oh, yes. Gerard, the Major of this stupid squad. And it's okay; you can say anything you want about him. He's a real dick anyway." He laughed, and this caused me to smile.

A bell sounded and everyone started to leave. Mikey got up and I followed suit, trying to stay close in case Bob and Frank popped out of nowhere. The rest of the day Mikey and I got to know each other since we didn't start training till tomorrow. It was lovely, and I was one hundred percent sure that Mikey didn't even suspect that I was girl. I was man now, no matter how ridiculous it sounded; I was a man from here on then till the war ends or I die. Mikey told me about his childhood, his fears, everything. I told him stories of my life, slipping in some lies every now and then. I told him of my father, and what a great man he was. He listened quietly and carefully, and didn't stop me if I dragged on. I liked him for that; he was a man with kindness and respect for others.

I'm grateful for someone like Mikey. I'm grateful for him being my first friend.

My first friend, I'd think to myself. And I smiled at this.