THE BIRTHDAY SURPRISE
"Hannibal, you can't be serious. I'm not wearing a blindfold for the whole trip. What would other drivers think?"
"Oh come on, Face. I promised you a surprise for your birthday, now what kind of surprise would it be if I let you see where we're going, uh?"
Face sighed and shrugged his shoulders in defeat. "OK, you win. Happy now?" he muttered, trying to sound annoyed but he really wasn't.
Hannibal kissed him but before Face could reply the Colonel had twisted him so to tie a silk tie upon the younger man's eyes.
"Feels comfortable?" the Colonel asked.
Face nodded.
"We're ready to go then" he announced happily and gently guided Face to the passenger's side and helped him to sit and to fasten the seat-belt.
Hannibal drove for about half an hour. They left the city center and headed to the country; Face heard the noises of the city weakening and guessed they were going out of town. He once told Hannibal that there was a camp about 30 miles from the city where you could bungee jumping, climbing on rocks and trees and other similar things; he never had the occasion to try it. So maybe the Colonel was taking him there.
But why the formal dress? Since they were having a few days leave, they were not wearing their uniforms but Hannibal had suggested him to put on his best Armani dress. That didn't make any sense.
About half way to what Face presumed was their destination, Hannibal turned to the right, drove for another couple of minutes and then stopped the car. Face was confused but waited patiently for the older man to open the passenger's door and help him out of the car, then to walk a short distance.
"There are three steps now" he warned. Face climbed the steps safely and proceeded into an open door.
"Are you ready, baby?" the Colonel whispered in his lover's ear.
Face took a deep breath and nodded. Hannibal untied the silk tie, Face opened his eyes and the room exploded in a "Happy Birthday" chorus.
There were about 15 people in the large room decorated with banners and balloons; Murdock and BA were among them and Adele, Hannibal's parents, Hannibal's younger sister and older brother with their families, a bunch of kids.
Face's first reaction was to take a step back towards the door and if Hannibal hadn't been on his side holding his hand the Lieutenant would had run away. Hannibal's parents lived in another state as well as the Colonel's sister and brother; was it possible that they had taken a flight and spent so many money just to be there, just for him?
Hannibal sensed his lover's discomfort and squeezed his hand, in a comforting and caring gesture that calmed him down. A small shy smile spread on Face's lips. He didn't have time to think about what to say because Hannibal's mother launcher herself in his arms, shortly followed by the rest of the family.
"It's good to see you, Face. Are you okay?" the woman asked in a sweet caring voice.
"It's good to see you too, Madam. I…" Face replied politely and was going to say that he was really happy to see them, but the older woman silenced him with a cold stare, that reminded him of Hannibal.
"I thought we had an agreement about it, Lieutenant. Please, call me Gloria, we're not in the Army and there is no Madam or Sir between us".
Face suppressed the instinct to answer her "Yes, Sir!" and nodded, blushing slightly.
"Good boy" Gloria stated patting him lightly on the cheek. "I can see why John is so fond of you, you're simply adorable".
Still smiling, Hannibal's mother reluctantly stepped aside to let her husband greet the younger man. The man was taller and grayer than Hannibal; despite being in his 70's, Lionel Smith was still in fine shape and someway intimidating. They exchanged some pleasantries and finally he engulfed the younger man in a manly embrace.
Then it was Hannibal's sister's turn. Joan Smith was a beautiful woman, with the same grey blue eyes of the Colonel, she was just a little smaller; her blonde hair were combed in a pony tail and she wore a simple white T-shirt on light blue jeans. She also wore orange converse, the same as her children.
Joan kissed Face on the cheek and murmured something in his ear that made the Lieutenant laugh, while her husband, Carl, remained silent at her side not really understanding what was going on. But as soon as the woman returned to his side, Carl regained his composure and shook hands with Face.
Hannibal's older brother was a man of formal manners but he was a gentle and caring man; when they first met, he had welcomed Face into his family with such an easiness and a warmth that the younger man had felt like crying. Jacob Smith asked Face about the blindfolded trip and joked about him being scared by the whole Smith's family who had marched on him in answer to Hannibal's desire.
Jacob's wife, Anita, was a petite brunette with sparkling blue eyes. Face had to bend down in order to hug her. She was dressed in a more formal way than her sister in law, Joan, but she welcomed him with equal warmth.
Face then was assaulted by Hannibal's nephews, five little children always busy in some new trick. Gloria always used to joke about them making half of a football team, being all male. Casey, the youngest son of Joan Smith, climbed Face's leg until the Lieutenant took him in his arms. The other boys, Franklin Martin Oliver and Nathaniel, kept talking to him all together while Casey started playing with his hair.
Seeing his lover in need of help, Hannibal took Casey from Face and the other boys with him, so to let the younger man greet Adele.
The woman was very happy to see 'her boy' and couldn't hold back tears. Face hold her for some minutes, speaking quietly to her and making her laugh.
Murdock was the next to hug Face. He was wearing his pilot cap and pink star shaped sunglasses. He also wore green converse at his feet. They didn't need to talk much, being close friends: Face was as happy to see him as much as Murdock was excited to show him the Birthday Cake, which was the copy of the American flag, made with red and blue sponge cake and white cream.
BA was the last to greet the Lieutenant. He managed a "Happy Birthday Bro" in a gruff voice. Like Jacob Smith, the Corporal was a man of facts and he didn't know how to handle this kind of situations. His affection to the younger man, however, was proved and Face himself knew there was a big heart under BA's hard shell.
After the greetings were properly done, Hannibal suggested for them all to start eating and drinking. The children launched themselves at the table were the food and the drinks were and their mothers hurried to go after them, in order to make sure they didn't ruin the cake or worse.
Face was relaxed and at ease, he talked to everyone in the room and enjoyed the party.
At some point, Hannibal announced it was the"Cake Time"; the kids starts to shout at Face to wear the king's carton crown and he complied. He was then handed a knife and he cut the first piece of cake, with all people looking at him and taking photo of him; Face felt like a groom at the wedding party.
Then he was given a small box with a little American flag on it. At the chorus of "Open it", the Lieutenant complied and almost cried when he found the new Traser Type 6 Navigator Watch, the new model of his old one that he lost on their last mission. Face thanked the whole family and Hannibal, not being able to say much more; the unexpected gift took him by surprise.
The afternoon went on with everyone enjoying the party; once the kid were done with the food and drinks, the women of Smith's family and Adele gathered around Face, who was entertaining them in his usual charming way uncaring of the offended looks of their husbands.
Hannibal himself would have liked to share a moment alone with his lover but thought he could wait until the evening, when he would have taken Face to a fine restaurant and after to bed.
Eventually Face managed to get out of the women's grip and reunited with the Colonel, who was sat near the window enjoying the scene. Face joined him and Hannibal smiled at him.
"Thank you so much, John. I've never had a birthday party before… it means a lot to me that your whole family has travelled a long way just for me…" the younger man quietly admitted.
Hannibal's smile widened. "They love you, Face. They're our family. I wanted you to feel the way I felt for my whole life, with my family first and then with you" he explained.
The younger man felt on the verge of tears; unfortunately it wasn't the right moment to show his Colonel how deeply he loved him. Feeling his body was reacting to the Colonel's words in a way he wouldn't want others to see, the lieutenant hold back his desire and stood up.
"Later, Hannibal" he whispered in the older man's ear.
This time, it was Hannibal who had to fight the arousing of his private parts and wait until the night to get what he wanted.
END