From Here to Eternity_ The Restored Edit - Jones, James [443]
And so it was that, when they came home from work on the evening of the eighth day, he was waiting for them eagerly in the living room, holding the afternoon paper impatiently. His eyes, though not what you could strictly call sober, were reasonably clear; and he had shaved, and bathed, and changed his clothes; he had even combed out his hair, which was getting quite long by this time.
They were both so surprised that they were inside the door and already sitting down, before they either one even noticed that the clean clothes he had put on happened to be his uniform. In the starched uniform, his face startlingly clean and shining, he looked boyishly hopeful and eager, beneath the puffiness under his eyes.
“If I’d had an ounce of goddamned sense,” he said happily, as he held out the paper, “I’d of gone back Sunday morning like I had a hunch to. Hell, if I’d gone right on out to the CP at Hanauma Bay I’d of probly got there before they did.”
Alma took the paper, and read it, and handed it on to Georgette.
“If I’d of left then,” he said, “I wouldnt of had any trouble at all getting back. Everything was so confused and so many guys were trying to get back that nobody would have noticed me. Now its going to be harder, but once I get back to the Compny under my own power and report in, I’m all right.”
“I see you’ve got my gun,” Alma said.
Georgette, who had finished reading the article, laid the paper down on the chair and got up without saying anything and went to draw the blackout curtains against the twilight outside.
“I dont think I’ll need it,” Prew said. “Its just a precaution. I’ll bring it back first time I get a pass. Well,” he said, on his way to the door. “I’ll see you all. You better turn out the lights when I go out.”
“But aren’t you going to wait until morning?” Alma said. “Its almost dark now.”
“Wait, hell,” Prewitt said. “The only reason I waited this long was to let you know where I went so you wouldnt wonder what happened to me.”
“Well, that was certainly considerate of you,” Alma said tightly.
“I figured I owed you that much,” he said.
“Yes,” Alma said, “I guess you owe me that much.”
With his hand on the knob he turned back from the door. “Hey, whats the matter? You sound like you think I’m going away for ever. I may get compny punishment for a couple weeks, but soon as they let me have a pass I’ll be back up.”
“No you wont,” Alma said. “Because I wont be here. And neither will Georgette,” she added.
“Why not?”
“Because we’re going back to the States, thats why!” she said wildly.
“When?”
“We’re scheduled for a boat leaving January 6th.”
“Well,” he said, and took his hand off the knob. “How come?”
“Because we’re being evacuated!” Alma said recklessly.
“Well,” he said slowly, “then I’ll try and get back up before then.”
“‘I’ll try and get back up before then,’” she mimicked. “Is that all it means to you? You know god damned well you wont be able to get back up before then.”
“I might,” he said. “What the hell do you want me to do? stay here till you’re ready to leave? I’ve already stayed out over a week now. I stay much longer I wont be able to go back at all.”
“You could at least stay until morning. They’ll have patrols out all night,” she said, her voice beginning to crumble. “And theres a curfew at sundown.”
“They’ll have patrols out all day, too. As far as that goes, it’ll be easier to make it at night.”
“Maybe if you stayed till morning you’d change your mind,” she wept at him, openly and suddenly weeping, nakedly and without preparation in the same way a bullet is suddenly nakedly and without preparation in flight from a gun barrel.
Georgette, who ha