Title: Happy Birthday to you...
Author: DelphieKat katerie@hotmail.com
Rating: PG (just to be safe, for one or two words)
Classification: general/portrait
Spoilers: Almost everything up to season 9
Summary: Harm celebrates his 40th birthday, but as usual, the events don't really take place as anticipated...
Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I don't own these characters, they belong to DPB, etc...
Author's Notes: I think DPB forgot something really important in Harm's life: his 40th birthday. It is usually an important step in a man's life, so I thought it might be interesting to write a fic about that. I had a lot of fun when I wrote my first fic (Rocking around the Christmas Tree), and I'm still having a lot of fun doing this one. I hope you'll enjoy it, and if so, send me some feedback, I'd love to have your comments.
Thank you so much Dae, for your beta-reading, even on Christmas night!
Another thank you to you, Rhonda, for the nice advice.
All remaining mistakes are mine, sorry!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
October 24th
2316 ZULU
North of Union Station
Harm's Apartment
Sad guitar music was floating throughout the air, covering the sound of the rain hitting the windows. Harm finally put the music instrument away and got up to get a drink. He took a cold beer from the refrigerator and hit the play button on the stereo. The blues music that was coming out of the speakers fitted his mood exactly. His first week back at JAG had been awfully long. He'd had to deal with the admiral's mood and everybody had seemed to avoid him, for no particular reason. Even Mac didn't seem enthusiastic about working with him anymore.
"Can I really blame her?" he said out loud, speaking to himself. "I quit everything I had to save her life and when she asked me why, I couldn't tell her... I ran away the minute I saw that I wasn't the most important person in her life anymore. And now," he took a folder from his desk, only to put it back there, "the only reason she wants to talk to me is because we're co-counsellors on the Romano case." Harm was less than thrilled to discuss this case with her that night, but he couldn't find any cover story good enough to convince her to let it go. He could only postpone the inevitable a little longer.
"I'm sure she lied to me yesterday morning. Even if I told her I didn't, I did hear what she said on the phone: '...he just entered my office, honey. I gotta go. Love you!' " Harm sighed heavily, as he remembered the discussion. "I'm sure she was talking to Webb, but she just hung up, saying it was an old friend from Okinawa who recently moved to Washington."
Harm sat down on the couch, drinking the last drops of his beer. Since he was back from Paraguay, he felt out of the loop, as if he didn't really belong to JAG anymore. He knew he was getting old; besides the admiral, he was the oldest officer at JAG, but as his 40th birthday was approaching, he was even more keenly aware of it.
"I'm almost 40, but it's like I've done nothing in my life. I did serve my country honestly for almost 20 years, earning two DFC's and a Silver Star, but my personal life is still a mess. Two of my girlfriends died, another left me because I encouraged her son to follow his father's footsteps and the last one is now married to a mortician." A strange void filled his heart as he remembered those women he has once loved. "And above all those women, there's Mac, but now I've lost her, too. I did nothing to keep her, I rejected her more than once, and that's where it led me." His voice was hardly more than a whisper. "I don't think I still have the courage to have this discussion with her, but tonight, we have to prepare for the Romano court-martial, so if I cannot set things straight in my personal life, I'll at least keep my career on the right track."
Confidence was back in Harm's voice. He lifted his head straight and his eyes shone with determination. He grabbed his briefcase, his car keys and his coat, and then headed toward his SUV, trying to avoid the falling rain.
0127 ZULU
Georgetown
Mac's apartment
Harm parked his vehicle in front of Mac's apartment. Surprisingly, she answered only at the third knock. She opened the door carefully, and he noticed she was wearing a long dark-blue skirt and a white blouse that flattered the curves of her body. 'She looks amazing tonight. It's the first time she dresses that way for one of our meetings,' Harm thought, before seeing the disappointment that flashed in her eyes as she recognised him.
"I take it you were waiting for somebody else," Harm said, already turning away, and in his thoughts added, 'and I don't want to have a confirmation on who's that lucky man.'
She quickly grabbed his arm before he was out of reach, and he saw an apologetic smile on her face. "I'm so sorry, Harm," she started, seeing the briefcase he was holding, "I totally forgot about the Romano case. I have company, but... maybe you'd like to join us?"
Before he could say anything, she remove the briefcase from his hand, opened the door wide and guided him into the apartment, a devilish grin on her face.
Instead of the spook he had been expecting to find inside, Harm saw Bud and Harriet playing with their kids near the coffee table. Before he could articulate anything, Bud was up on his feet, greeting the commander warmly. At that moment, Harm caught sight of Jennifer Coates hanging a streamer reading "Happy Birthday" over the fireplace and realised what was happening. The Romano case had only been an excuse to make sure he would come here that night, for his friends to celebrate his 40th birthday.
Harm was lost in thought when a slight cough made him turn his head. He couldn't believe his eyes when he recognised the three people standing beside him. Keeter handed him a glass of champagne as Kate Pike and Skates simultaneously welcomed him with light kisses on his cheeks.
"I thought you were all deployed somewhere around the world," Harm managed to say after a few seconds.
"They were," said a familiar voice coming from the kitchen, behind him. "But when an admiral asks for certain officers to be assigned TAD to Washington for a week, it's hard to say no," added Tom Boone, shaking firmly the hand of the commander who had suddenly fallen silent.
"Ahem... I know, you are not getting any younger, Buddy, but don't forget your old friend."
"Sturgis!" Harm exclaimed, patting him on the shoulder. Then he noticed the woman beside him: "Congresswoman Latham."
"Harm, if my memories are intact, you know me well enough to call me Bobbi. Happy birthday."
"Thank you very much, Bobbi," Harm answered, with the hint of a smile. Then he looked around, trying to find the instigator of this party, but he couldn't catch sight of Mac anywhere, so he headed to the kitchen, thinking she might be preparing the dinner. Mac wasn't there, but he found Webb talking with Gunny in front of a pot of boiling soup. 'They are probably discussing a new operation somewhere around the world,' he thought. The admiral was pouring glasses of champagne for everyone and Meredith and Teresa Coulter were setting the table for the entire group, chatting friendly.
"You know, Harm, it took me two entire weeks to prepare another coroner to do my specific tasks, just to be able to leave for two days. You owe me one."
"Terry, I owe you much more than that, and you know it." He took her hand in both of his. "I'm very glad to see you here."
The only other place Mac could be was in her bedroom, so Harm walked in that direction. The door was slightly ajar, and he knocked softly on the doorframe.
"Who is it?" asked a familiar voice inside the room.
"It's Harm, Mac. May I come in?" He didn't really wait for the answer and opened the door. Mac tried to block his view, but he had enough time to see Chloe put a large box wrapped in colourful paper behind the bed.
"Honey, go see Clay and ask him if he needs any help with dinner," Mac told Chloe, and the girl nodded and left the room, closing the door on her way out.
"So, the one you called 'Honey' is Chloe," said Harm, a relieved note in his voice.
"Why are you so surprised, it's not the first time you hear me call her that," Mac retorted, then she softened her voice to continue, "I hope you're enjoying your night, even if we're not discussing the case." She winked at him as she said the last words.
"I don't know what to say, Mac. It's the first time in years I do something special on my birthday. And to have all my friends around after a year like that, it's... I don't know... it's a little... overwhelming. Was that the reason you were avoiding me the whole week?"
"Harmon Rabb, have you ever tried to organise such a party with someone like you around? You stick your nose everywhere, it's almost impossible to keep any secrets from you!"
Harm was about to reply something, but the doorbell interrupted him.
"That's the best part of the surprise coming up," Mac teased.
"Don't tell me you asked some call girls to come here," he answered in kind.
"Go and open the door, you'll see," was all she replied.
So Harm hurried to the door and yanked it open. Tears rose in his eyes when he saw his mother and Frank waiting to be invited in. He turned his head towards Mac and opened his mouth once or twice before being able to utter any syllables. Then, he finally presented her to his parents: "Mom, Frank, this is Mac, my..."
"Co-worker," Mac completed his speech, not seeing the flash of pain in his eyes. "Nice to meet you in person, Mr and Mrs Burnett."
"Mac, please call me Trish. Harm talks so much about you, you're almost part of the family by now." Then Harm's mother turned to face him, "Son, I'd love to meet all those friends of yours."
As everybody was settling down around the table for dinner, the doorbell rang again. Mac got up and gestured towards the door, raising her voice like the stadium speaker announcing a famous hockey player in the Stanley Cup final: "And now, Ladies and Gentlemen, let's welcome our only missing guest... The last, but not the least... Directly from Russia... Sergei Zhukov!" And at that moment, she jerked the door open.
But instead of Harm's little brother, a policeman holding his hat was standing in the doorway, a sad expression on his face...
To be continued...
Author: DelphieKat katerie@hotmail.com
Rating: PG (just to be safe, for one or two words)
Classification: general/portrait
Spoilers: Almost everything up to season 9
Summary: Harm celebrates his 40th birthday, but as usual, the events don't really take place as anticipated...
Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I don't own these characters, they belong to DPB, etc...
Author's Notes: I think DPB forgot something really important in Harm's life: his 40th birthday. It is usually an important step in a man's life, so I thought it might be interesting to write a fic about that. I had a lot of fun when I wrote my first fic (Rocking around the Christmas Tree), and I'm still having a lot of fun doing this one. I hope you'll enjoy it, and if so, send me some feedback, I'd love to have your comments.
Thank you so much Dae, for your beta-reading, even on Christmas night!
Another thank you to you, Rhonda, for the nice advice.
All remaining mistakes are mine, sorry!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
October 24th
2316 ZULU
North of Union Station
Harm's Apartment
Sad guitar music was floating throughout the air, covering the sound of the rain hitting the windows. Harm finally put the music instrument away and got up to get a drink. He took a cold beer from the refrigerator and hit the play button on the stereo. The blues music that was coming out of the speakers fitted his mood exactly. His first week back at JAG had been awfully long. He'd had to deal with the admiral's mood and everybody had seemed to avoid him, for no particular reason. Even Mac didn't seem enthusiastic about working with him anymore.
"Can I really blame her?" he said out loud, speaking to himself. "I quit everything I had to save her life and when she asked me why, I couldn't tell her... I ran away the minute I saw that I wasn't the most important person in her life anymore. And now," he took a folder from his desk, only to put it back there, "the only reason she wants to talk to me is because we're co-counsellors on the Romano case." Harm was less than thrilled to discuss this case with her that night, but he couldn't find any cover story good enough to convince her to let it go. He could only postpone the inevitable a little longer.
"I'm sure she lied to me yesterday morning. Even if I told her I didn't, I did hear what she said on the phone: '...he just entered my office, honey. I gotta go. Love you!' " Harm sighed heavily, as he remembered the discussion. "I'm sure she was talking to Webb, but she just hung up, saying it was an old friend from Okinawa who recently moved to Washington."
Harm sat down on the couch, drinking the last drops of his beer. Since he was back from Paraguay, he felt out of the loop, as if he didn't really belong to JAG anymore. He knew he was getting old; besides the admiral, he was the oldest officer at JAG, but as his 40th birthday was approaching, he was even more keenly aware of it.
"I'm almost 40, but it's like I've done nothing in my life. I did serve my country honestly for almost 20 years, earning two DFC's and a Silver Star, but my personal life is still a mess. Two of my girlfriends died, another left me because I encouraged her son to follow his father's footsteps and the last one is now married to a mortician." A strange void filled his heart as he remembered those women he has once loved. "And above all those women, there's Mac, but now I've lost her, too. I did nothing to keep her, I rejected her more than once, and that's where it led me." His voice was hardly more than a whisper. "I don't think I still have the courage to have this discussion with her, but tonight, we have to prepare for the Romano court-martial, so if I cannot set things straight in my personal life, I'll at least keep my career on the right track."
Confidence was back in Harm's voice. He lifted his head straight and his eyes shone with determination. He grabbed his briefcase, his car keys and his coat, and then headed toward his SUV, trying to avoid the falling rain.
0127 ZULU
Georgetown
Mac's apartment
Harm parked his vehicle in front of Mac's apartment. Surprisingly, she answered only at the third knock. She opened the door carefully, and he noticed she was wearing a long dark-blue skirt and a white blouse that flattered the curves of her body. 'She looks amazing tonight. It's the first time she dresses that way for one of our meetings,' Harm thought, before seeing the disappointment that flashed in her eyes as she recognised him.
"I take it you were waiting for somebody else," Harm said, already turning away, and in his thoughts added, 'and I don't want to have a confirmation on who's that lucky man.'
She quickly grabbed his arm before he was out of reach, and he saw an apologetic smile on her face. "I'm so sorry, Harm," she started, seeing the briefcase he was holding, "I totally forgot about the Romano case. I have company, but... maybe you'd like to join us?"
Before he could say anything, she remove the briefcase from his hand, opened the door wide and guided him into the apartment, a devilish grin on her face.
Instead of the spook he had been expecting to find inside, Harm saw Bud and Harriet playing with their kids near the coffee table. Before he could articulate anything, Bud was up on his feet, greeting the commander warmly. At that moment, Harm caught sight of Jennifer Coates hanging a streamer reading "Happy Birthday" over the fireplace and realised what was happening. The Romano case had only been an excuse to make sure he would come here that night, for his friends to celebrate his 40th birthday.
Harm was lost in thought when a slight cough made him turn his head. He couldn't believe his eyes when he recognised the three people standing beside him. Keeter handed him a glass of champagne as Kate Pike and Skates simultaneously welcomed him with light kisses on his cheeks.
"I thought you were all deployed somewhere around the world," Harm managed to say after a few seconds.
"They were," said a familiar voice coming from the kitchen, behind him. "But when an admiral asks for certain officers to be assigned TAD to Washington for a week, it's hard to say no," added Tom Boone, shaking firmly the hand of the commander who had suddenly fallen silent.
"Ahem... I know, you are not getting any younger, Buddy, but don't forget your old friend."
"Sturgis!" Harm exclaimed, patting him on the shoulder. Then he noticed the woman beside him: "Congresswoman Latham."
"Harm, if my memories are intact, you know me well enough to call me Bobbi. Happy birthday."
"Thank you very much, Bobbi," Harm answered, with the hint of a smile. Then he looked around, trying to find the instigator of this party, but he couldn't catch sight of Mac anywhere, so he headed to the kitchen, thinking she might be preparing the dinner. Mac wasn't there, but he found Webb talking with Gunny in front of a pot of boiling soup. 'They are probably discussing a new operation somewhere around the world,' he thought. The admiral was pouring glasses of champagne for everyone and Meredith and Teresa Coulter were setting the table for the entire group, chatting friendly.
"You know, Harm, it took me two entire weeks to prepare another coroner to do my specific tasks, just to be able to leave for two days. You owe me one."
"Terry, I owe you much more than that, and you know it." He took her hand in both of his. "I'm very glad to see you here."
The only other place Mac could be was in her bedroom, so Harm walked in that direction. The door was slightly ajar, and he knocked softly on the doorframe.
"Who is it?" asked a familiar voice inside the room.
"It's Harm, Mac. May I come in?" He didn't really wait for the answer and opened the door. Mac tried to block his view, but he had enough time to see Chloe put a large box wrapped in colourful paper behind the bed.
"Honey, go see Clay and ask him if he needs any help with dinner," Mac told Chloe, and the girl nodded and left the room, closing the door on her way out.
"So, the one you called 'Honey' is Chloe," said Harm, a relieved note in his voice.
"Why are you so surprised, it's not the first time you hear me call her that," Mac retorted, then she softened her voice to continue, "I hope you're enjoying your night, even if we're not discussing the case." She winked at him as she said the last words.
"I don't know what to say, Mac. It's the first time in years I do something special on my birthday. And to have all my friends around after a year like that, it's... I don't know... it's a little... overwhelming. Was that the reason you were avoiding me the whole week?"
"Harmon Rabb, have you ever tried to organise such a party with someone like you around? You stick your nose everywhere, it's almost impossible to keep any secrets from you!"
Harm was about to reply something, but the doorbell interrupted him.
"That's the best part of the surprise coming up," Mac teased.
"Don't tell me you asked some call girls to come here," he answered in kind.
"Go and open the door, you'll see," was all she replied.
So Harm hurried to the door and yanked it open. Tears rose in his eyes when he saw his mother and Frank waiting to be invited in. He turned his head towards Mac and opened his mouth once or twice before being able to utter any syllables. Then, he finally presented her to his parents: "Mom, Frank, this is Mac, my..."
"Co-worker," Mac completed his speech, not seeing the flash of pain in his eyes. "Nice to meet you in person, Mr and Mrs Burnett."
"Mac, please call me Trish. Harm talks so much about you, you're almost part of the family by now." Then Harm's mother turned to face him, "Son, I'd love to meet all those friends of yours."
As everybody was settling down around the table for dinner, the doorbell rang again. Mac got up and gestured towards the door, raising her voice like the stadium speaker announcing a famous hockey player in the Stanley Cup final: "And now, Ladies and Gentlemen, let's welcome our only missing guest... The last, but not the least... Directly from Russia... Sergei Zhukov!" And at that moment, she jerked the door open.
But instead of Harm's little brother, a policeman holding his hat was standing in the doorway, a sad expression on his face...
To be continued...