I would like to dedicate this story to my incredibly awesome reviewers who asked for more Hal/Maggie in the series. In particular, one of my anonymous reviewers, who said that I was now their favourite author. I would just like to say that you are quite possibly my favourite person in the whole world right now. Seriously, you have no idea how much something like that means to me!
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Hal plans a romantic picnic for himself and Maggie when Tom, Ben and Matt all catch the flu. While Anne is busy looking after them, she ropes in Hal and Maggie as babysitters. Will their day be spoiled looking after Julia, or will it turn out for the best?
For the past week, a bad dose of the flu had been raging through the population of Charleston. It wasn't serious, but it was quite unpleasant, and Anne and Tom were determined that Julia wouldn't get it. At a little under a month old, It could prove more complicated than with others.
While all this was going on, Hal was planning some 'alone time' for himself and Maggie. They may have shared a room, but it was near impossible to get a decent amount of time alone, since apparently none of the Masons ever knocked before entering someone else's room. They'd found themselves in multiple awkward situations with everyone in the house except Matt, with whom they'd only had one. Even Lourdes had walked in on them, and she was hardly ever at home!
Eventually, Hal decided to take his girlfriend on a picnic. There was a meadow just outside the town, but close enough that it was protected from skitters, which was perfect for a picnic and some privacy.
On the day they were meant to go, Hal got up early to pack their lunch. He'd set aside a few things over the space of a couple of days; two apples, some goat's cheese, bread made the day before, and a little chocolate. It wasn't much, but in those times of hardship it was a feast.
Hal stowed the backpack with the food in it under his bed just as the rest of the household started to wake up. It quickly became apparent that all was not well.
Tom, normally a morning person, found himself unable to get himself out of bed, while Matt's croaking calls for his dad told them he was sick too. It was pretty obvious from Ben's shivering form that he wasn't exactly one-hundred per cent either. Hal, Maggie, Anne and Julia were the only ones in the house who weren't ill.
Anne, eager to get Julia out of the house, decided it would be best to send Julia with Hal and Maggie for the day. Needless to say, although he couldn't say anything, Hal wasn't overly happy with the arrangement. Maggie didn't mind so much, but then she wasn't bothered so much by the slight lack of privacy.
"Tell Weaver Tom and Ben are sick on your way, would you?" asked Anne as they left the house.
"Of course. We'll see you later." said Maggie as they started walking down the street. Anne waved before shutting the door. "You know," said Maggie, noticing Hal's haughty expression, "there is one benefit to having Julia with us."
"Oh, and what's that?"
"We don't have to carry the food." Maggie pointed to the bag hanging from the handles of Julia's pram, and Hal couldn't help but laugh.
"When did you get to be an optimist?"
"I don't know. I think we'd all be pretty miserable if everyone here was a pessimist - or even a realist - though."
Hal agreed with her. No could bear to be around Lourdes since Jamille's death, simply because she'd become such a pessimist. He shuddered at the thought of being stuck with three-thousand pessimists. No, it was a good thing people in Charleston were optimistic.
The meadow was one of those few places that remained relatively unspoilt after the invasion. On the hot June day, it was the perfect place for a young couple to go for some privacy and escapism. The long grass and the first of the summer wildflowers hid anyone from view, and it was within the town borders, so those who went there didn't have to worry about skitter attacks. Hal and Maggie hadn't been there, but the meadow had had a reputation for a place for couples even before the invasion, so it wasn't long before everyone in the Second Mass. had heard of it. Tom and Anne had gone there when Hal, Maggie and Ben were minding Julia for the day, and had said it was nice, which had been what gave Hal the idea for the picnic.
They set down the picnic blanket on the ground (it had been lurking in one of the trucks since they were at the school). Hal put the brakes on Julia's pram and picked up the bag. As soon as they'd covered the baby in sunscreen, Hal went for the food.
"Prepare to be amazed by the fest I have gathered for us." Maggie couldn't help but smile at this. She already knew it wouldn't be much, but she was excited to see what Hal had found for them all the same.
Hal pulled the out the apples, bread and cheese, leaving the chocolate in the bag as a surprise for after.
The pair devoured their food. Decent apples were thin on the ground at that point, and Maggie wasn't sure she wanted to know what Hal had had to do to get his hands on goat's cheese.
"I have a surprise for dessert." said Hal, reaching for the bag and pulling out the chocolate, agonizingly slowly.
Maggie gasped. "How did you get this?!" She hadn't seen chocolate in months. She'd thought there was none left. It was one of those foods she'd really missed.
They split the chocolate evenly between them, and ate it as slowly as possible, savouring the treasured food as long as possible.
They were lying on the picnic blanket, enjoying the hot summer day, when Julia began to whimper.
"Hey," said Hal, reaching into the pram for his sister. "What's wrong?" It wasn't long before they realised that Julia needed her nappy changed. Hal went pale at the thought of that. Maggie rolled her eyes at him, and went to do it herself.
"There," she said, putting the dirty nappy into the rubbish bag, "all better."
Julia gurgled contentedly as Hal and Maggie fussed over her. Julia Mason was going to end up spoilt rotten.
"I think she's drifting off." whispered Hal.
"Yeah. I'll put her back in the pram." Maggie was careful to put Julia into her pram as gently as possible, so as not to wake her.
"Now, I do believe we should make use of this privacy."
I'm not as sure about this one. It's been a bit of a headache for me, because I was trying to write it while one of my brother's friends was over, and he is an incredibly loud child. He is also very nosy, and you can't go on the computer with him around without him asking what you're doing every thirty seconds or so. I hope the lack of ability to concentrate hasn't wrecked this. Please tell me if it has.
Also, this series might be put on hold for a bit because I want to challenge myself by writing something darker. I'm not sure how long that will take, and it will be a Falling Skies fic, but I'll try my best to add more Julia fics regularly.
Borderline Sociopath, AKA: Nessa, xoxox