Thursday June 8th
It is late morning and the sun is high in the sparsely clouded sky. The white whispy puffs of cloud float us by in the ocean of light blue. A gentle cooling breeze is the only means of relief from the hot sun. Today is laundry day, and I stand over a barrel of lukewarm sudsy water and scrub with a soapy brush the many stains from our several sets of uniforms outside the barracks. I then dunk them in another barrel to rinse them before I hand them to Kurtz who stands barefoot in a wicker basket of soaked clothes. He stomps feverishly, attempting to trample the most moisture out of the soaked garments as he can. His already baggy pants are rolled up even further to reveal his skinny feet and calves. The bottoms of his pants now made shorts are soaked with water. Kurtz stomps gleefully as though it were a water puddle. A pool of soaked earth sits around the wicker basket's circumference, and I try to keep Kurtz from stepping out of the basket and dirtying my hard scrubbed uniforms. He then bends down to retrieve the now strained garments and passes them to Obrenski who pins them up to a clothes line that runs from the barracks to the barrel of the Flak 88 gun. The clothes line possesses a variety of uniforms and undergarments that are hung to dry like raisins in the hot sun. We also lay trousers and shirts over the barrel of the cannon.
Lieutenant Sprieg stands by the radio, in a crisp officers uniform, listening intently in his headphones. He occasionally pets Otto the cat as he is balled up on the table. It has been two days since the Allies have made landfall in Normandy and they are beginning to push inland.
Obrenski hasn't talked much to the Lieutenant in the last two days. I figured he is still angry from the British man's release. The Lieutenant doesn't mention the airman though Kurtz asks frequently about him. The Lieutenant usually tells him that he has gone home, an answer that satisfies Kurtz for a couple hours before he returns to pester the Lieutenant with another question. Sergeant Rudendorf had someone replace the windscreen on the Kubelwagen. We also pulled, with pliers, a flattened bullet from the vehicle grille. I was startled from how close we were to death.
As I scrub I think of my last letter with Irina and its very lustful dialogue that makes my hairs stand up and I feel that euphoric feeling again. I think of everything I wish to do with her this summer. And how I would like our romance to continue. And most importantly, the less than gentlemanly things I wish to do with her if I could get her alone. "Franz? Are you almost done?" Kurtz asks impatiently waiting to stomp out another garment. Drat, my fantasyful day dream gets intrupted again. "No Kurtz." I reply. "Well hurry up, I am tired of getting wet." Says Obrenski with water dripping down his arms as he stands shirtless hanging our bed linen out to dry. His burly, hairy, stocky build on full display. His suspenders hang below the knees of his gray army pants. I notice the many scars that are scattered across his back. Suddenly the Lieutenant steps over to me and says," Franz, with the Allies in Normandy, I expect the Allied bombings to become more frequent." I wonder where he is going with this. He continues, "That being said, in the event that something were to happen to one of us…." He pauses before saying abruptly," I need you to teach Kurtz how to drive." "What?!" I exclaim. Obrenski chuckles and Kurtz looks at me excited. "Why me?!" I plead. "Because I trust you and honestly, I know Obrenski won't do it." Obrenski laughs and points in my face," Ha!" I sulk, my head falls in despair. Why me? I am going to die and worse it's going to be with Kurtz. The Lieutenant looks to Obrenski and says," Don't get too excited, you will be covering Franz's duties while they train." Obrenski's face immediately frowns. He gives a stern,"Well dammit." Now it is my turn to laugh as I exclaim,"Ha ha!"
My gloating subsides as I remember that I have the treacherous task of teaching Kurtz to drive. I look to the Lieutenant and ask pleadingly," Do I have to?" "Yes and that isn't an option." the Lieutenant says. I sulk saying," Aww nuts." Kurtz jumps up excited,"Franz! I get to drive!" Obrenski tries to keep himself from chuckling while the Lieutenant glares at him, daring him to laugh. I rub my hand over my face and groan, I accidentally wipe my face with water.
Faintly like a whisper on the wind, I hear my name being called out. Then again and again. I stop and look around for the source. Then I see a bicyclist approach us. The woman rider shouts my name. It's Irina! I find myself getting excited. As she cycles, I see her wearing a white button up blouse and a brown skirt, her blond hair tied in a braid. Her bicycle has a basket tied down to the front of it. Obrenski whistles and says,"Would you look at that." The Lieutenant utters,"Obrenski, behave yourself." Obrenski shrugs. As Irina pulls up to the gun pit, Kurtz shouts excitedly," Irina!" as he jumps out of the basket and dashes barefoot toward her. He hugs her just as she had dismounted the bike and kicked up the kick stand. "Irina! I missed you!" Kurtz exclaims as he hugs her tightly. She responds,"I missed you too. How is the cat?" He chatters," Otto is great! The Lieutenant really likes him." He releases his grip and they walk back to us. The Lieutenant goes to greet her. "It is good to see you again, miss." Obrenski approaches her and asks slyly," How was your time at the movies?" The Lieutenant sharply hits him in the side with his elbow. Obrenski responds with a grunt. I blush, I can't believe he just asked that. She responds with a smile,"It was very nice, thank you." "I am sure it was." He replies sly again. The Lieutenant juts him in the side again. Obrenski groans. Obrenski recomposes himself and then asks without any shame,"So when are you going to screw my boy yet?" The Lieutenant's jaw drops and he glares at him. I feel extremely embarrassed. Obrenski has a wide grin. Irina's face turns bright red as she looks at me. The Lieutenant grabs Obrenski by the arm and drags him into the barracks and he closes the door. I'm certain the Lieutenant is about to school him in the art of mannerisms. Irina approaches me with basket in hand and says,"I thought we would have a picnic today." "Here?" I ask confused. She replies," No silly, out there." as she points out to the field of yellow and white flowers. Kurtz, who had been following behind her, perks up and asks excitedly, "Can I come too?" Irina gives a motherly reply,"Well Kurtz, I was hoping this would be between me and Franz." Kurtz pouts," Awww,ok." before he wanders off to go pester the cat. "Well that would be nice. But I would have to ask the Lieutenant for permission." I say. "Don't worry." she says,"I'll ask." The Lieutenant and Obrenski return from their lecture. Obrenski approaches Irina and says,"Well lass, uh…" He looks nervously at the Lieutenant, who glares at him, before finishing,"I wanted to apologize for my less than gentlemanly conduct." A phrase obviously recited. I am stunned, I have never heard Obrenski apologize to anyone for anything, ever. I personally want to know what the Lieutenant said to get him to apologize. The Lieutenant flashs an approving expression. Irina smiles and says, "Well thank you Obrenski."
Irina looks at the Lieutenant and asks,"With your permission sir, I would like to borrow your private for lunch, if that would be ok." I look at the Lieutenant pleadingly. I hear Obrenski mumble under his breath," I got some privates you can borrow right here." The Lieutenant replies,"Yes but do return him in a timely fashion. We have a drill to run this afternoon." Irina snaps to a mock attention with a wide smile and offers a cute salute, saying,"Yes sir!" The Lieutenant flashes a smile and a half hearted salute." Franz, come here." says the Lieutenant. I rise from the wash barrel and approach the Lieutenant. He whispers to me," This time, keep your hands to yourself." I blush. He then smiles, "Well you two go have fun." Obrenski mocks us under his breath,"Sure lover boy gets a date and I get to do his laundry." The Lieutenant heard him this time and glares at him.
Irina takes my hand abruptly and almost drags me off into the field of yellow and white. We lay our picnic out in the field of flowers far away out of sight from the gun pit. The sun is high in the sky and fluffy clouds pass us by and the breeze is cool. We are surrounded by a field of yellow and white flowers. We set up a large cloth on the ground with our picnic basket placed in the middle. We remove from the basket roast chicken and rye bread. The rye bread is delicious but the chicken is dry, no doubt by Irina's cooking. As we eat I notice she stares at me dreamily. "So Franz," she says,"I was wanting to know if you would like to take me to the August Ball." "August ball?" I ask confused. " Yeah it is on the first and the entire town dances at the square and in the cathedral." she says. "Uh yeah I would have to ask the Lieutenant but sure." I say. I ask," Whats the legend behind the ball?" She smiles gleefully before she replies," It started in the first world war when the men and their wives and girlfriends danced before they had to leave for war. The city has held one every August ever since." Going to ball with Irina would be great, I am already getting excited at just the thought. I state,"Well that sounds like a lot of fun." She replies," I thought you would like to go." Suddenly she appears to have a piffany,"Oh! I almost forgot the reason why I came." I look at her curiously. She continues, "Mother would like to have you over dinner." What? Her mother wants me over for dinner. Oh no this could be a very bad thing. I'm certain she will silently judge my every move. Oh no, what if her mother knows about the movie incident and has set a trap for a scolding. Either or I am going to have to be on my best behavior in front of her mother. I stammer,"Uh uh when does she want to have dinner?" "This Saturday, if you are able." she answers. I am tempted to say I am busy but the adorable look on Irina's face tells me she is excited for this. I comply," Sure sounds fun." Oh dear God I feel like I will spend my weekend preparing to enter the lion's den. Irina smiles happily.
She slowly scoots closer to me and I notice she bites her lip. She suddenly jumps into my lap and pushes me onto my back. I lay there and watch her begin to undo her blouse revealing her black brassiere. I blush and stammer,"Wh.. what are you doing?" "I have been wanting to do this all day." she says seductively. I am extremely excited, I am not going to attempt to stop her this time. I welcome this display of affection. She leans forward unbuttoning my uniform and begins to kiss me on the neck. I feel my heart flutter, my body trembles, the euphoric feeling returns. She has fully unbuttoned my uniform revealing my gray under shirt. She sits up and smiles, letting down her long blond hair. She is so stunningly beautiful.
Then I hear it, "Franz, can I wrestle too?!" Its Kurtz! Me and Irina look and there stands Kurtz with a confused look about his face. Me and Irina almost in unison shout. "Kurtz!" We blush uncontrollably and Irina stammers trying to cover herself," Ku..Kurtz, wh…what are you doing here?" "The Lieutenant said I should check on you." I silently fume. Sprieg!!!! Irina clamors off of me and quickly buttons up her blouse. I sit up and button up my uniform. Kurtz approaches us and says,"The Lieutenant wanted me to keep you out of trouble, but I am not sure what he meant. Are you in trouble Franz?" "No, I am not." I say almost growling. Irina stands and says,"Actually, we were just starting to head back." What? I don't want it to end. She picks up the basket and cloth comes to help me to my feet. I am so incredibly disappointed. She extends her hand and I take it and am raised to my feet. I feel a measure of anger and disappointment.
We began our trek back through the field of yellow and white and I just remembered what Lieutenant said about keeping my hands to myself. And now I just realized that Kurtz bore witness to our entire act of lust filled intent. What if he tells the Lieutenant? Oh I will be in so much trouble. Maybe I can prevent Kurtz from talking. I say nervously," So uh Kurtz, how about we not tell the Lieutenant about me and Irina wrestling." He asks," Well why not Franz, everybody likes to wrestle." Irina catches on and says," Well you see Kurtz, girls are not supposed to wrestle with boys." He turns and looks at her curiously and asks, "But why?" She stammers for a response so I answer,"Well some people think it's a bad thing." He looks at me and asks,"Well why do they think that Franz?" It is my turn to struggle for an answer. Irina covers me by saying,"We will tell you when you get older." She approaches Kurtz and leans over him with her hands on her knees and asks, "Kurtz, can you keep a secret?" His eyes grow wide with excitement and exclaims,"Oh boy! I love keeping secrets!" Oh we are doomed. She speaks almost in a whisper,"If you don't tell the Lieutenant you saw us wrestling, I'll make you a chocolate pie." He jumps with excitement, saying," A chocolate pie? A real chocolate pie?" Irina responds,"Uh huh and it will all be just for you." He jumps around gayly. I am surprised she is willing to bribe him, but I need to make sure he doesn't talk. I decide to turn up the pressure. "And Kurtz," I say," If you don't tell the Lieutenant, I will do your chores for a month." He looks at me even more excited exclaiming," No chores and chocolate pie! This is the best day ever!" Me and Irina look nervously at each other. This isn't going to work and we know it.
We arrive back at the gun pit and it is now afternoon. Obrenski, leaning against the earthworks, spots us and says,"Ah the love birds are back, and look you found a dog too." Kurtz looks around excitedly exclaiming," Where?! I want a dog!" Irina chuckles at him. I am too nervous to laugh. Obrenski rubs his hand down his face in annoyance. The Lieutenant listens to the radio with a headphone to his ear. He will occasionally stroke Otto the cat who cleans himself on the radio table. The Lieutenant spots us and asks,"Well you two, how was the picnic?" I find myself still aggravated with Lieutenant for sending Kurtz to ruin our date, especially when it was getting to the good part. Irina speaks up,"It was good, though we weren't expecting company." The Lieutenant replies, moving the little flags on a map of Europe, keeping track of bomber formations over the continent," I sent him along to make sure you two stay out of trouble." He stops and glances at me. Irina asks,"You don't trust us, do you sir?" Lieutenant Sprieg replies," It is not you that worry about dear." This is unfair! He thinks I am the one who is seducing her. If only he knew! The Lieutenant continues," It also doesn't help that we have, in our company, a bad influence." He looks to Obrenski. Obrenski jumps and snaps, " Hey! What do you mean by that Sprieg?!" The Lieutenant replies calmly," Don't play innocent Obrenski, your comments earlier justify my belief." So that's it, he thinks Obrenski is influencing me to seduce her. He hasn't a clue. Obrenski snaps with his arms crossed," Na uh, this one isn't on me Sprieg." The Lieutenant sets down the headphone, a sign he is taking the conversation seriously, "What do you mean?" Obrenski replies,"Why don't you ask loverboy yourself." The Lieutenant looks at me. I swallow hard. Oh no, we are about to open a can of worms. What would happen if he found out that Irina was making all the moves? Would he forbid me from seeing her? He is strict enough to do that after all. The Lieutenant speaks like a father getting on to a misbehaving child,"Franz, what is this about?" I swallow harder. Suddenly Irina steps in to defuse the situation,"Is anyone hungry? I will cook." Kurtz jumps up excited," Ooh me, me!" The Lieutenant pauses and thinks and says,"Well I haven't had lunch yet, so that would be fine." Obrenski adds," I haven't ate myself." Irina flashes a big smile gives a cute,"Splendid." I am glad she took some pressure off me. I exhale a sigh of relief. "Franz." the Lieutenant says,"We will finish this conversation later." I swallow hard again, he is definitely on to me.
Irina looks at me and asks,"So where is the kitchen." Kurtz perks up and says," Ooh Ooh, I'll show you." Irina chuckles as Kurtz takes her hand and drags her excitedly. I follow them into the barracks. She breaks free of Kurtz's grasp and looks around almost disgusted at our living quarters. I feel a little ashamed for when I give a closer inspection, I see half made beds, trash and rubbish lying at the sides of our cots. Kurtz's area has model planes strewn about and half empty pallets of paints. Obrenski,s side fares no better, for wads of paper litter the sides of his bed. His area is decorated with lewd pinups that I have payed no attention to but it is not certainly suitable for company. I am appalled by the film of dust that spread across the ground. I feel so embarrassed. Irina speaks up disappointingly,"Well this is not how I pictured a military dorm." I feel ashamed. She then heads into the kitchen with Kurtz, I follow behind them. Irina looks around the kitchen almost revolted even though the kitchen is probably the cleanest part of the barracks. She browses the stock of canned meat, salts, condensed milk, flour, and sacks of potatoes. She says disappointedly," Well you guys really don't have much." I respond by saying,"Yeah I told you, they really don't give us much. Or at least anything that is good." Kurtz excitedly asks," Irina, what are you going to cook for us?" She replies," I don't know, I will have to see." She looks through the cans and finds something suitable. " This will do she says." as she pulls down two cans of corned beef. She asks,"Oh Kurtz, could you help me open these?" Kurtz smiles and gleefully attempts to find a can opener. Once he has received said item, he helps Irina open the cans. Their contents look like a thick brown substance that is wholly unappealing. Irina retrieves a skillet off of the rack and dumps the contents of the cans out onto the skillet with a plop. "Kurtz." she says as she turns on the stove,"Can you cut me some potatoes?" He looks to me excitedly,"Franz, can I cut potatoes? I promise I won't cut myself like last time." Last time he almost took his thumb off and mine with it. There is a reason we don't let him have knives. I buckle and nod in agreement, he excitedly attempts to retrieve the brown burlap sack of potatoes from on top the rack that is a little taller than he can reach. I watch him struggle for a moment, I would be lying if I said this wasn't amusing. He sticks his tongue out of the corner of his mouth as he desperately attempts to reach them. Irina snaps at me,"Franz, go help him." I end my entertainment, and retrieve the sack for him. He quickly finds a sharp knife and begins to pull the potatoes out over the sink. His body primed and ready to start cutting. Before he can begin, Irina says,"Not so fast, did you wash them first?" Kurtz pauses and thinks before mentally agreeing. He turns on the faucet and water from our one hundred gallon tank outside floods the sink. He rinses the dirt from them and I am surprised to see so much earth that has been caked to them. Once he has finished rinsing, he carelessly begins cutting, making me nervous in the process. "I need them cut small. I am going to make mashed potatoes." The brown mass of corned beef sizzles and pops on the stove. Irina shuffles around Kurtz and retrieves a pot hanging off the wall. She interrupts Kurtz to fill it with water. She then shuffles around Kurtz again to set the pot of water on the burner to boil. Kurtz resumes his task of rinsing and cutting potatoes into small cubes before setting them in the pot.
After a while of cooking, Irina asks," So Kurtz, where are you from?" He looks at her and chatters,"I'm from Berlin." You know I never really thought to ask where Kurtz was from. "Really? Do you have any brothers and sisters?" He replies excited," Yeah I have seven big brothers and many sisters but papa always called them maids because they all dressed the same. Papa said we have a big family." Papa I assume is Kurtz's father who wanted him euthanized, I'm glad Kurtz doesn't know. Irina asks curiously,"So Kurtz what was home like?" He exclaims," I lived in a huge house that had so many rooms, and we had the biggest yard!" Irina chuckles before saying,"That sounds mighty nice." As she continues cooking. The Lieutenant did say Kurtz came from a rich, noble family. Kurtz continues in glee while he cuts,"Papa and Paul would ride horses and Papa would always have meetings with the nice dressed men. And Papa said Mommy had to go away for a long time." Did Kurtz's mother die? He never mentioned her before. Irina must be thinking the same thing because she asks," Well where did she go?" Kurtz replies," I don't really know, but my big brother Paul said that she went to a place called uh uh Am-rica." America, his mother left for America. I breathe a sigh of relief, I was worried I would have to tell him his mother died but it just seems she left Germany. I wonder why? "Kurtz,what do you want to do when you grow up?" Irina asks while proving the sizzling beef with a spatula. "I want to join the Army just like my brothers and fly airplanes!" He states with joy. How does he not know? How do I tell him he is already in the army? I got to tell him,"Uh Kurtz." I say. Irina butts in as he looks at me,"Kurtz, uh what do you think you are doing now?" He looks at us confused and says,"Cutting potatoes. Am I not supposed to?" "No no, just what have you thought you have been doing this entire time?" Irina asks. Kurtz replies confused,"Helping you cook?" I, tired of beating out of the bush, state, "You are already in the army Kurtz." Kurtz freezes in thought like he never realized it before. He says stunned,"Franz?" "Yes Kurtz." I reply. He speaks in quiet disappointment," The Army is boring." Me and Irina burst into a laugh. Poor Kurtz has a face of immeasurable disappointment, causing me and Irina to laugh more. He begins to pout like a sad dog. "Oh Kurtz." Irina says wiping tears from her eyes,"You are so cute, we thought you knew." Kurtz asks me,"So I'm in the army Franz?" "Yes Kurtz." He suddenly perks up and asks excitedly,"Does this mean I get to fly a plane now?" Irina tries to keep herself from chuckling, me too for that matter. I finally say," No Kurtz, not yet." He replies with a disappointing," Awwwww." I wonder what he has thought he has been doing this whole time. He probably thought he was still in the Hitler Youth.
Irina fills the pot with water and sets it on the burner to boil. She removes the sizzling corned beef from the burner and sets the skillet on a burner that is not on. Kurtz cleans the potato peels from the sink and places them in a waste bin. Kurtz asks," So what are we going to do now?" She replies," We are going to tidy up while they boil." Kurtz replies," Awww I hate cleaning." "Don't worry, it won't take long if we all work together." She says as she juts my side with her elbow. I don't want to clean either for that matter but I also am embarrassed by how our building looks. Suddenly Obrenski pops his head in the kitchen door,"Something smells good, what are we cooking." Irina replies," Corned beef and mashed potatoes." "Ah still something from a can, but since it's coming from a woman, I'll pretend it's not." He says slyly. "Hey, what's that supposed to mean." she snaps. "What I meant it as a compliment." He says trying to play innocent." Irina pushes past him into the living quarters, she looks around with her hands on her hips and huffs,"Well look like I got my work cut out for me." Obrenski smiles mischievous like an awful thought entered his mind. "Irina." He says," Can you bend down and pick up those paints for me. I suffered a back injury long ago and can't reach down anymore." She says complying,"I guess that is a start." She bends down and begins collecting the paints scattered across Kurtz's side of the barracks. Her brown skirt is raised up to where we can see the parts of her thigh. I can't help but stare. Obrenski grins wide like the pervert he is. As she is picking up strewn items, she says,"Obrenski, I know what you are doing." He grins wider saying,"Is it that obvious?" She replies, setting down the items on Kurtz's bed," You're a nasty old man. My mother warned me about men like you." Obrenski takes her hand gently and kisses its saying,"Doll, there are no men like me." She aggressively retracts her hand breaking free of his grip. Obrenski grins wide. Irina says,"Kurtz come here and go through your things or else I am going to throw them away." Kurtz rushes from the kitchen exclaiming,"Not my stuff!"
We clean for a while while the potatoes cook. Irina sweeps and while Obrenski cleans his side of the room and I make my bed while Kurtz organizes his plane collection. Irina starts going through Obrenski's shelves and sorts through letters. "These are awfully old." Obrenski rushes over and snaps,"Don't touch those!" She sets the letters down and apologizes." He states,"I don't throw those away." I mock him," What, are they your man love letters?" He replies sternly, giving a serious look,"No, they are more important than that." I feel kinda bad insulting him. Kurtz hasn't mentioned anything about the wrestling event, which leads me to believe he forgot. The potatoes finish boiling and Irina mashes them before preparing plates. She goes out side and passes them out. The Lieutenant takes his with a thank you.
Me, Irina, and Kurtz sit cross-legged in a circle on the cloth outside, our plates nestled in our laps. The Lieutenant still stands manning the radio, and picks at his lunch while occasionally fending off Otto the cat from stealing a morsel. Obrenski sits outside the trench, his legs dangling over the earth works side. He eats at his plate intensely. After a while of eating, Kurtz perks up and asks,"Irina, when I am I going to get that chocolate pie." My blood freezes, apparently so does Irina's because she stammers,"Well uh I will bring it the uh next time I uh visit." Obrenski exclaims," Chocolate pie?! Where's mine?!" Irina's face is turning red from the pressure. Kurtz exclaims,"Aww, I wanted it now." Irina stammers again,"Well I didn't bring any ingredients to make a chocolate pie." Kurtz pauses like he never thought of that and utters simply,"Oh" He then turns to me excitedly and asks,"Franz, I thought you said you were going to do my chores." Me and Irina freeze, both of our faces are bright red. Obrenski asks confused,"Do his chores? Couldn't you have done mine while you were at it?" The Lieutenant's head perks up, he is no fool, he obviously smells a bribery. He utters calmly,"Franz, what does he mean by that?" My heart is racing, my mind flips through excuses as though it were going through a filing cabinet. I freeze. Kurtz excitedly answers for me," Irina said she would make me a chocolate pie and Franz said he would do all my chores if I didn't tell their secret. Shit! It's out! Oh we are so doomed. My blood feels like ice. Me and Irina's face are so red, I am sure we would have more in common with a tomato. The Lieutenant sets down his headphones and slowly turns toward us. He speaks in the sternist tone I have ever heard,"What secret?" Irina stammers for answer,"Well uh uh you uh see uh sir." Kurtz perks up and says excitedly," They didn't want me to tell you that they were wrestling. They didn't even invite me." Shit shit shit! It's out, we are so doomed. Every hair on my body is standing up. I am so embarrassed that I am paralyzed. Obrenski breaks into hysterical laughter exclaiming,"Lover boy about got him some!" The Lieutenant's eyes are wide and his face is of pure scorn. He says aggressively,"Wrestling?" Kurtz nods his head gleefully. Irina slowly rises full of shame and attempts to excuse our actions," Sir I.. I can explain." The Lieutenant replies," There will be no explanation from you dear. As a matter of fact, I believe that it is time that you left this installation." Irina hangs her head in shame. She looks at me with a face of apology and not wanting to leave. The Lieutenant then utters sternly, "Franz." Oh no. "We are going to have a discussion later." Oh I am so done for, I am never going to see her again. Irina gathers her basket, I can see tears welling in her eyes, and begins trudging up the dirt ramp to her bike. She mounts her bicycle and petals off. After watching her disappear, I turn to the Lieutenant who holds his arms crossed. Obrenski heckles,"Uh oh lover boy is in trouble." The Lieutenant angrily glares at him before saying to me calmly,"Franz what was the one thing we talked about?" I stammer for an excuse but all I can muster is," Uh but but." The Lieutenant snaps," No buts!" He continues calmly,"Clean this up, we will talk this evening." I swallow hard. Obrenski quietly attempts to keep himself from chuckling. The Lieutenant turns and returns to his post at the radio. Kurtz approaches me as I collect plates and says,"I'm sorry Franz, I am not very good at keeping secrets." You don't say.
We had folded the laundry and finished our duties for the day. The dark night is cast over our hamlet. I lie in my cot and agonize over the lecture I am about to receive. It is now dark and Kurtz sits reading a children's book while Obrenski reads a letter by oil lamp. The flickering orange of the lamp provides our only illumination as it refracts off the walls of our home lighting it in a warm light
Suddenly the Lieutenant opens the door and says,"Franz, come with me." Oh this is going to not end well I just know it. He leads me to his shack and opens the door. He moved the radio and table inside. His fresh clean uniforms hang from a rail that goes from wall to wall. At the end of bed, Otto the cat lies in a ball, his piercing yellow eyes look at me curiously. He mostly stays with the Lieutenant. "Sit down." He commands. I sit down on his tidy and well made cot. He begins sitting in his chair,"First and foremost, you are lucky I didn't contact her parents." I rush to defend myself," But Lieutenant…." "No buts, I will talk and you will listen." He interrupts me. He continues," Franz, a courtship is a wonderful thing and I know you two like each other a lot…" "But sir." I interrupt him to proclaim my innocence. "Don't interrupt me." He snaps. He takes a deep breath and continues,"Women are something special, something to hold and honor. You as a man must not sully that with perversions no matter how tempting they are." But sir, I'm not the one doing it." I confess. "I know." He replies simply. "What?" I say stunned."Franz." He says,"I know this girl isn't as innocent as she makes herself seem." "What do you mean?" I ask curiously. "It takes two to "wrestle" Franz." he says,"And I know how she looks at you, it's not hard to tell." " Franz believe it or not, I was a young man too. And yes before you ask, I wasn't all that different from you." He pauses before saying almost embarrassed like," Let's just say I uh used to get into uh trouble myself." I look at him astonished. For the first time ever, I see him blush. I didn't think it was possible. "Look Franz, the point is I know how women work. And I could care less about who starts it. It is your duty as a man to not let it get out of hand. You are a gentleman, I expect you to act like it. I don't care if she is trying everything in the book to get under your skin, you must stay firm and say no." I never thought this talk would go like this. I feel I can be open, like he kind of understands. "Sir." I say "It is so difficult." He replies," Oh I know Franz, women can be mischievous creatures when they want to be, they only do that for the ones they really like. And temptation is always present, I know, but you have to remain strong. The last thing you want is her to get pregnant." I blush, I never thought about it that way. I try to defend my resolve," But sir, I don't think it will…" He interrupts me,"If you are anything like I was at your age, it will. And let me tell you Franz, this town is not particularly fond of children born out of wedlock." I hate to admit it but he is right, what would happen to us if Irina got pregnant. He continues almost like a father, "Anyway, just promise me that you will at least try to keep your hands to yourself." For the first time, I almost heard my fathers voice come from him. He stands up and opens the shack door," Alright, you are dismissed." I rise and head out the door but he stops me by saying,"Franz, you are a good young man and I don't want you thinking otherwise. And I want you to know what you are going through with this girl is normal. Just remember to stay firm. And promise me one more thing." "What's that sir?" I ask. " Just promise me you won't turn into Obrenski." I nod and smile. Then I think to ask, "Why is Obrenski like that?" The Lieutenant replies,"He lost his wife to tuberculosis. Let's just say he never really recovered after that. He has been trying to fill that void of companionship with sex. As you can tell, it doesn't really help." I think maybe he is right. Maybe Obrenski is such a pervert because he couldn't handle losing his wife. "Oh, well good night Lieutenant." I say as I close the door. That was not at all how I was expecting the lecture to go. I am glad the Lieutenant still has faith in me. Though I wonder what he was like in his youth, and what exactly was his definition of trouble is.