Searching for a barber: end of school p3 by thadeusz

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This is part 3 of a 3 parts story and it is important to read them in good order
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At the end of our next and final year, Dmitri was promoted to Corporal-mechanic and Piotr was promoted to Sergeant. I remained a Private. There was a solemn ceremony: my friends had to change their headgear. The Captain placed solemnly on Dmitri’s head a beret and on Piotr’s head a kepi. Simultaneously he cut their soldier collar and threw it to the ground with a well simulated disgust. The Captain did the same thing for the 23 other Drummers who were promoted immediately. I remained a Private: during this ceremony I was told to stand guard, holding my perfectly cleaned rifle, with the 11 other new Privates and ex-bad Drummers, like me. It goes without saying that we had to keep our soldier collars.

All of us had been assigned to the same regiment and to make matters worse, I was assigned to the section Piotr would be leading.

That night, the last that I spent in our old room between my promoted friends, Piotr turned toward me and said, as a matter of fact:
"Private Botcharov, from now on you will only call me ‘Sergeant’. Understood ?"
I had been well drilled and I replied:
"At your command, Sergeant," and I saluted my superior, head of my future section.
Dmitri added:
"For me it will be ‘Corporal’, Private Botcharov."
And I replied:
"At your command, Corporal," and I saluted him too.

Some Drummers 3rd class were allowed to have slightly longer hair: they no longer had to be shaved to the wood every week. This was the case with Piotr and Dmitri, both being good soldiers. But it was not the case with me.

So, I worked as hard as I could and finally, near the end of my second year, I was told that I could do as well as the others. That Saturday, I went to the barber and asked for a zero cut on the sides and a short 2mm cut on the top of my head. The barber objected since I now deserved better: he chose to give me a 1mm on the sides and a 3mm (maximum authorized) on the top in order to create a high and tight. The main result was that from that day on, going to the barber took me more time. I asked to have an overall zero cut, a rapid cut, but the barber refused saying that it would spoil the presentation of the section.

Six years after graduating from the Military Academy, Piotr lives now in a flat, inside the barracks, with his wife and kids. He had rapidly been promoted to Master Sergeant. He has now been promoted to Lieutenant. He hopes that his eldest and unruly son will be accepted in the Drummer Academy: they helped him become a man, why would they not do the same for his unruly son.

Dmitri also lives in the barracks, but in a much smaller apartment. He is not married : he is a Master Corporal and spends a lot of money on booze and girls, outside the barracks since he can go out whenever he wants.

I was rapidly promoted to Private First Class, on the basis of my now good behavior. It is now 9 years since I have been press ganged. I was hoping to be now on the verge of being promoted to Corporal thanks to my continuous good behaviour and to the highschool diploma I succeeded to get while living as a Private in the barracks. For the time being, I don’t have the authorization to go out of the barracks, except for the service.

My commanding officer, the Colonel of my regiment, wanted to select an enlisted man to bat for the new officer. He reviewed the files of all his Privates and Privates First Class. This is how he discovered that I had served, without great honor, with Piotr, the future officer. The Colonel thought that it might be good to offer me this position since I already knew Piotr. He called me to his office and I went there, thinking he wanted to promote me to Corporal.
I entered his office and he told me:
"Private First Class Botcharov, you will serve as an ordinance for Lieutenant Dragan since he has been promoted to that rank and needs thus an ordinance."
I forgot my decision to obey all orders and I started to plead:
"But, Colonel, I was a Drummer with this Lieutenant and now I am on the verge to be promoted to Corporal. There must be a mistake. How could I be his ordinance ?"
"Botcharov, I have your file here. I understand that as a Corporal you could not serve as ordinance for your former friend. Neither can you do that as Private First Class. You are thus demoted for your own good and you are as of now a plain Private. You will keep this rank for at least 6 more years. You will serve Lieutenant Dragan during all that time wherever he tells you to go."
"Colonel, permission to speak ?"
"Yes, Private." I immediately noticed that the Colonel had now changed his way of addressing me.
"Colonel, may I hope to be promoted to Corporal in six years, if I keep behaving well ?"
"Certainly not, Private. You had a too bad a behaviour during your first year at the Academy. You were then pronounced not promotable."
"Colonel, I will never be promoted before the end of my military obligation because of my first year ?"
"That’s correct, Private. You will keep your soldier collar during your full 30 years obligation."
"Colonel, I will then be 45. What will happen with me at that time ? I don’t know any other job than that of a soldier," I was really anxious for my future.
"It is simple, Private. If you behave well, you will be offered a new contract. This will be a contract for life. You might then be promoted to Lance Corporal and function as a real Corporal, but you won’t be a real one."
"For life Colonel ? With a soldier collar ?"
"Yes Private. Don’t dream too much: you won’t be allowed to go out of the barracks. But you will also have a soldier’s pride, and food and shelter and clothes. DISMISS now and start getting rid of that first stripe you no longer deserve and then go to the barber and get a full special hair shave: I want to see your head as a billiard ball."

I was stunned, but I remained silent knowing that the Colonel was right. I was lucky that he did not punish me. I saluted him according to the rules, made a perfect about turn and left his office.

Now, I serve my former friend Piotr as well as I can. When I am not waiting after my Lieutenant, I train in the barracks. I enjoy living in a big room which I share with 3 other Privates. The 4 of us live there happily. The four of us wear a soldier collar, even if the 3 other Privates did not go through the Military Academy: the only difference is that they don’t have the obligation to serve during 30 years. The discipline is very strict. We are constantly supervised by a Corporal who sleeps in a small room next to ours. Four groups of soldiers and one Corporal are under the direct supervision of a Sergeant and three such groups are placed under the direct authority of a Lieutenant, in our case Lieutenant Dragan who requires us to show him the respect he deserves. He requires that especially from me since he has witnessed my bad behaviour and my serious punishments. From time to time Lieutenant Dragan sends one of us to the knout: he is just and I respect his decisions even if I am to undergo this punishment. I behave as well as possible, trying to be the best of my room, and to deserve that life contract and the rank of Lance CorporaI.
It must be clear that we, Privates and Privates First Class, are not authorized to go out of the barracks, except on special occasions. We have a shop, a bar and a brothel inside the barracks and we can only go there when our Corporal gives us his permission to do so.

After six years of good service, and with my Lieutenant’s approval, I might regain my former rank, but I am not sure I desire this. As a Private, I have no responsibilities, except serving my officer, and this is a comfortable situation.

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