Free Two Days Of A Dream by Kathryn Gimore

She hadn't thought about stepping into the tent. Not usually this slow on her feet, Kelly chided herself.
    Coleman tied the front and back flaps back. Kelly hoped a wandering breeze might cool the stifling tent. Two perfectly-made cots, a footlocker under each, flanked the tidy area. Two canvas camp chairs accompanied them. The tent was sparse but somehow homey.
    "Have a chair."
    Kelly took the closest, pulling her feet up and inspecting them for skewer marks. Coleman slouched in the other chair.
    "Okay, tell me the story."
    "Where do I start?"
    Kelly had meant it as a rhetorical question but Coleman answered tersely.
    "The beginning, and don't leave anything out."
    "Well, before this all started I was at home, in Lincoln, Nebraska, alone, on a Friday night, thinking about how I don't have a number three."
    Coleman narrowed her eyes. "What's a number three?"
    "It's the third thing on my goal list, a husband." Kelly sighed.
    "Oh. What's one and two on the list?"
    "College and a career, number four is children."
    "That makes sense so far." She motioned for Kelly to continue.
    "I was all alone and not even a boyfriend to call. Have I depressed you yet?"
    "Nope." She looked around her tent. "I don't need a boyfriend, and after living with five hundred other soldiers for six months, some alone time would be nice."
    Kelly understood her feelings but ... "After living alone for eight years, alone time isn't appealing to me." Kelly fingered the gown that she had almost forgotten in her arms. "Last night I decided to be spontaneous."
    "Is that when you snuck on a military transport and flew to Iraq?"
    "No, I wouldn't sneak on a plane, and I didn't fly to Iraq."
    "Then how'd you get here?"
    "I don't know."
    The private shook her head. "You don't know how you got here?"
    "No."
    "That’s weird."
    "You're telling me? But this is the best dream I've ever had. After I put on my gown..." Kelly held it up.
    "That's pretty material."
    "It's the softest thing I've ever worn."
    "You look pretty pampered, so I guess that's saying something, huh?" Coleman leaned over and rubbed the material between her fingers. "So you think you're dreaming?"
    "I'm not pampered and I'm definitely dreaming. How else could I end up in Iraq dressed in satin?"
    "I'd say in a private jet with leather seats, you know, the usual."
    "My usual is ratty pj’s. This I’d been saving." Kelly stroked the material.
    "So what happened next? Did someone break in and kidnap you?" Coleman leaned forward.
    "No." She laughed. "You have a wild imagination. I went to bed."
    "That's it?" Coleman sounded dubious.
    "That's it."
    "That's too boring. My way is more interesting." She leaned back and put her hands behind her head.
    "That's my life, boring. Nothing interesting happens to me outside the office."
    "You find working in an office interesting?"
    "Sure. There's lots of stress, but when a campaign comes together and the bottom line is big, you just want to do the victory dance."
    "Yeah, I can just see you dancing around the office and everyone chanting, 'Go Kel-ley, Go Kel-ley.'"
    Kelly sat up straight. "Oh, no, I would never do that."
    "You don't do the victory dance?" The beautiful soldier scrunched up her nose.
    "No."
    Coleman put her arms down. "Never?"
    Kelly looked away. "Well ... no." This was a thought that had never spent much time in her brain.
    "Why not?" Coleman sounded incredulous.
    Kelly shrugged, not sure of her feelings on the matter. "It wouldn't be appropriate."
    "Why?"
    "In my position I need to look dignified." Kelly nervously smoothed out the satin shimmer in her lap.
    "Why do you have to look dignified?" Coleman looked Kelly over again and snorted.
    Blood rushed to her face. She wished she wasn’t in the oversized sweats with messy hair and no make-up. The thought stopped Kelly cold. She didn't have any make-up on. She shook herself and blinked a couple of times. Who cares? This is a dream . She dragged herself back to the question.
    "First, my position