AN: This is the forty-first installment of my personal challenge to write a tag to every episode. This is a tag to 2x20, Skyscraper + Power. It takes place soon after the ep. It's a lot lighter and fluffier than my last tag lol. I know it's pretty short, but I still like it, and I hope you do too. To all my fellow Americans, happy Independence Day! To all of you who are not American, I'm sorry, I can't fix that for you. JK lol I love you all so much. I hope you enjoy, and please leave a review!

The plane ride back to LA was one of the more relaxing plane rides Jack had enjoyed. No one had any GSWs, stab wounds, internal bleeding, or major bumps or bruises. It was a nice change. Jack and Mac were chilling on the couches near the back of the plane while Riley and Bozer watched some horror comedy near the front. Jack found his mind wandering back to the mission, and the annoying brat of a kid they saved. His dad had actually microchipped him. That was a little weird, but, kind of understandable.

"Maybe I should get you microchipped," Jack said to Mac with a smile. The blond shifted over to look at Jack, rolling his eyes.

"You're not gonna microchip me," he said, a small smile playing on his lips.

"With all the times you get kidnapped, go missing, or we get separated, it sure would save me a lot of stress and gray hairs," Jack pointed out. Of course he would never do it, because that would be a major invasion of privacy and bodily autonomy, but he still liked to get Mac all riled up about it.

"Even if you were being serious, you still couldn't. It's not like I'm a minor and you're my legal guardian or anything," Mac replied with a scoff. The blond adjusted himself so that he was lying on his stomach with his head propped up by his hand. To Jack, he looked every bit the annoying teenager he met back in Afghanistan.

"Okay, but I am your next of kin and power of attorney," Jack said with a smile.

"Only because my real dad left," Mac said, his smile falling immediately once he realized what he had said. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that-"

"It's fine. I know you didn't, kid. You have nothing to be sorry for. Your old man on the other hand, he has a lot of questions that he needs to be answering."

Mac sighed, looking away from Jack. "I don't know," he said. "Maybe it's just that Ethan's dad, for all his faults, still actually cares about his son. Mine doesn't," he finished in a low voice, his eyes not meeting Jack's.

Jack was once again reminded of how unfair all of this was, how Mac didn't deserve any of this. The kid's father had walked out on him, never to be seen again, and yet, somehow, that kid had grown into the most remarkable young man Jack had every met. He deserved a father who loved him - but, in a way, he already had that.

"That's where you're wrong, pal. Sure, your real dad may be a total jerk and all, but you still have someone in your court who loves you more than you know. You see, that guy, he loves you so much that he's willing to put up with your scrawny ass 24/7 in order to keep you safe, in order to protect you. Not only is that his job, it's his life, and he wouldn't trade it or you for anything in the world." Jack stopped to duck his head to try to catch Mac's eye. Once he finally did, he continued, saying, "spoiler alert, that guy's me."

That finally made Mac smile again, with a light chuckle to go along with it. "Yeah, I guess you're right," he said. "What do I need some elusive man for when I already have the perfect dad?" Mac's face turned red at his words, but he kept his smile, despite breaking eye contact. "Goodnight, Jack," he said, letting his head fall as he closed his eyes.

"Goodnight? It's six in the evening," Jack said, trying to ignore the lump in his throat at Mac's rare admission.

"Not in LA it's not," Mac mumbled.

Jack chuckled in reply, then laid down himself. He still couldn't believe how lucky he'd gotten to have such an amazing kid, such an amazing boy that every now and then, he got to call his son.