The Hasty Heart Page #8

Okay, Sister.

Go ahead.

You fellows can manage without me.

Don't go away, Lachie.

Yank, could you wait?

There's something I'd like to ask you.

- Well, sure, Lachie.

- Take a seat.

- What's on your mind?

- Have you ever been in love?

With bells on.

- Well, when was the first time you knew?

- Oh, I'd say the first time I kissed her.

Hey, you're not asking me to tell you

about the bees and the flowers, are you?

There are certain things that are as

well-known in Scotland as anywhere else.

Well, I'm glad to hear it.

I'd hate to see the Scots die out.

Well, about this kissing,

when a good girl kisses you,

it's an encouraging sign, is it not?

Well, good or bad, it's encouraging

any way you look at it.

Aye.

Tell me, you think I have the right

to ask a lass to be my wife?

- Well, look, buster, you don't mean...

- Aye.

- Bonny Sister Parker.

- Wait a minute, Lachie.

Everybody falls in love with his nurse.

It's natural.

Well, I bet every patient in that ward has

been in love with the Sister for a while,

- including me.

- I do not resent it. She's a bonny girl.

Well, yes, but just because

the Sister takes care of us

and is good to us,

doesn't mean she's in love with us.

You might be making a mistake.

Have you ever heard

of the Sister kissing a patient?

- No.

- Of course not.

So if she did kiss a man

of her own free will

it would mean that

she meant to encourage him.

- Eh?

- Well...

And if she kissed me, and she did,

it must mean something.

Lachie,

I don't know.

Well, the one sure way of finding out

is to ask her, and I will.

I have my proposal all prepared.

Wish me luck.

Oh, wait right there.

I'll not be long, whatever happens.

Come in.

Have you a minute to spare, Sister?

Well, I was just going to take these over

to the matron.

Oh, that can wait.

I was thinking of making

a proposal of marriage.

- Good gracious, you don't mean me?

- Well, who else?

I think you'd best be seated.

I told you once,

I had no plans for marriage in my future,

- you may recall.

- Vividly.

- But, Lachie, you mustn't feel that you...

- Please do not interrupt.

My proposal.

I'm not much of a man on the surface,

but I have a great and powerful

will to work.

I have a wee house in Scotland

that you know about.

My health is good.

I've a fearful temper, but I do not think

I'll ever make you suffer for it.

I'll do my best. I'll give you all I can.

You'll never want for food.

And you'll never have

to worry about the rent.

I've worked since I was seven.

I've been a cabin boy,

a seaman, a carpenter, a farmer,

a miner and a stevedore.

I can give you

numerous character references.

I've good teeth.

I'm not tattooed or anything.

I love you.

I hope you'll do me the honor

of considering my proposal.

Lachie,

are you asking me to marry you,

because you think

you owe me something?

I offer you my heart

because it does me no good without you.

I wish I knew what to do.

I mean, what to say to you.

You do not share my feelings?

I've made you unhappy.

I presumed too much.

No. No, it's not like that at all.

I'm making you unhappy.

And only because

I haven't the courage to...

Lachie,

you want us to be married?

Is that what you want most in your life?

Aye, my darling. You'll marry me, girl?

If it makes you happy to think of us

being married,

then that's what I want, too.

Oh, oh, my bonny, bonny lass.

Oh, I'll do nothing to displease!

- Lachie.

- Oh, I promise. I promise.

Lachie, there's so many things

I want to say to you.

- But they can wait.

- Aye.

Yank, Yank! She will, lad! She will!

She'll marry you?

Aye, we've not set the date,

but she agreed.

Well, that's great, Lachie. Congratulations.

Will you stand up for me?

- Be your best man?

- Aye.

Yeah, I guess I can do that all right.

Thanks, lad. Thanks!

Come on, Blossom.

I'll teach you another word.

One suitable for all occasions.

- How much further is it?

- Only another hundred miles.

When I get this thing inside I'm gonna sit

in it and do my laundry.

- You sit in that, you'll wear it for life.

- That must be the tub they boil the tea in.

Getting heavy?

Getting no lighter

with all the help I'm getting.

Well, it's uphill, that's why.

Well, use your periscope if you can't see.

Where are we going from here?

- A little bit more.

- Nearly there.

All right. Put it down.

- Yeah, we'll take it from here.

- Thank you, big-hearted Arthur.

- Now rest yourself.

- Thanks, mate.

Oh, I'll tell you.

- You're out of condition, you know.

- Yeah.

Hey, Yank, where's Lachie?

- In the washroom taking off his kilt.

- Oh.

What's going on here?

- A kilt, sir. We was having a bet, sir.

- A Scotch bet, sir.

Just a little joke, sir.

- Where is the Sister?

- Stepped out, sir.

- And Corporal MacLachlan?

- In the washroom, sir.

Well, ask him to come out, will you?

I want to talk to him.

Yes, sir.

Lachie, Colonel wants to see you.

- I was just changing, sir.

- That's all right.

- Oh, did you take the pills I sent over?

- Aye.

But you cannot force me

to take any more, sir.

What's that?

May I be so bold as to remind you, sir,

that as a British soldier

I have the right to refuse them.

Now, look.

You fellows wait outside, will you?

- Yes, sir.

- Yes, sir.

Sit down.

Well, Corporal, I've had a call about you

from my Brigadier at headquarters.

He's instructed me to tell you that

you can go home to Scotland immediately,

if you want to go.

Is there not a waiting list, sir?

Well, he evidently thinks you're more

important than the waiting list.

Well, he must be joking, sir.

I'm only a Corporal.

- Of course, from the Camerons.

- Well, whatever your rank,

there's a passage

booked for you tomorrow.

They've given you

a very high priority by plane.

You can be home in Scotland

in a few days.

But why am I so important, sir?

What's the reason?

Because yours happens to be

a very special case.

Well, what's so special about it?

The point is, Corporal,

would you like to go?

Before I answer that, sir,

I think I have the right to know

why I'm being given this privilege.

There's more to this than meets the eye.

Well, since you really want to know,

I've been ordered to give you

all the facts of the case.

- But I've been given the facts.

- No. No, not entirely.

When you came in here

with a bit of shrapnel in your kidney

there was a chance

that you would recover.

I have.

You've recovered from the operation, yes.

But you only have one kidney left.

It's a bad one. I know you feel quite well,

but that one kidney

is destined to collapse.

Then what happens?

We can't give a man a new kidney.

Understand?

Aye.

It's very clear.

How long have I got, sir?

Not very long, I'm afraid.

A week, maybe two.

I've not very much time, have I?

I didn't tell you before, MacLachlan,

because to me

there seemed nothing to gain.

But perhaps it's just as well

that you do know.

I misjudged you, sir. I'm sorry for it.

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes