A/N: This is my first MASH fanfic since my last attempt last summer. I hope you enjoy it. Complete!
Story inspired by the song "Cat's In the Cradle"
Disclaimer: I own none of the MASH characters
Son Like Father
Daniel Pierce was Hawkeye's hero, but there was a story behind that. When his mother was still alive, Hawkeye only saw his father four maybe five times every two weeks. Daniel Pierce was a surgeon and that came above family.
One cold, rainy morning in April, Hawkeye awoke and made his way downstairs to the kitchen where he saw his father making breakfast, French Toast. The last few days before his mother died, Hawkeye's father had served him cereal and told him his mother wasn't feeling well. After finishing his breakfast, Daniel guided his son into the family room and sat him down on the sofa. Hawkeye's mother had passed away earlier that morning.
After his mother's death, Hawkeye saw more and more of his father. His father seemed to have time for him now. Daniel would arrive home from work around four in the afternoon to dedicate his whole evening to his son.
When Hawkeye reached his high school years, his father arranged his work schedule so he worked weekends only – Friday through Sunday - from 8P.M. to noon the following day. Daniel began realizing that he only had a couple of years left with his son at home and he wanted to spend every minute possible with him. He helped Hawkeye in his studies, final exams, and university entrance exams. Before Daniel knew it, Hawkeye graduated high school and left home to attend Boston University.
One minute his son was graduating med-school and the next minute Daniel was sending his beloved son off to war. He was proud of his son for becoming the surgeon he had always wanted to be, but he didn't want his son to see the horrors of war that he had seen in the second world war.
His son arrived home a changed man. The once jet-black hair that covered his son's scalp now was peppered, almost completely grey. The humor was still there, but the jokes were darker, more mature. The once bright-lit eyes now dull, filled with horror, exhaustion, and defeat. Daniel stared at his son and could only wonder what the future had in store for his little boy.
Five years passed before Daniel found himself giving his son away. After three years of looking but never finding the right woman, Hawkeye and Margaret Houlihan had a run-in at a Boston General seminar. They knew it was time for them to settle down and become the couple they were destined to be. Two years later, they were married. Two years after that Robert Jordan Pierce was born and Daniel finally saw the light return to his son's eyes that had been absent since before he had been shipped off to war.
As the years went on, Daniel unfortunately saw his son doing the same thing he had done to him. Hawkeye had no time to spend with his son. He had missed his son's first babble of dada, his first step, his first full sentence, the first time he sang the alphabet correctly with no redo's or corrections, and the first time Robert wrote his full name out on paper with no wrong doings. Daniel realized solemnly that that was exactly what he had missed in Hawkeye's childhood. Daniel knew that the milestones his son had missed of Robert's life were memories he would never get the chance to embrace.
Robert was now in middle school and Daniel knew Hawkeye was tired of the situation he was in; Margaret was pressing the subject of adopting a child whom Hawkeye didn't want and Robert was an incurable drug addict at fourteen. Daniel watched from a distance the day that Hawkeye decided to walk away from his family and become a free man once again.
Three years later, Hawkeye came home in tears and Daniel hastily prodded to know what had happened. Hawkeye told his father immediately. His son had been the patient he had unfortunately had to assist on, the teen had been shot three times. At 8:56 P.M. Robert Jordan Pierce was declared dead, at only seventeen years of age.
Margaret was involved with a new man. They had adopted a British baby a year ago. Madison Jean O'Connor had been the cause of Robert's severe rebellious stage. Margaret had been paying no attention to him only baby Madison. His father had walked out on him years before leaving the betrayed, lonely, and confused teenager to cope by himself. Robert coped the only way he knew how in his drug-phased mind – getting involved with danger.
Daniel watched as his son tore himself apart after Robert's death. A week after Robert's funeral, Daniel saw the telltale signs of fatal defeat. His son's guilt was eating him up and about to swallow him whole. Not a week later was Hawkeye Pierce laid to rest.
Daniel lay on his deathbed twelve years later with Margaret by his side holding his hand. His son had learned to survive Daniel's parenting style, but Hawkeye's son couldn't learn to maneuver his emotions on how he felt about his father never being there for him. Ironic how true the saying was, Daniel's last thought before he died was Sons are just like their fathers.
A/N: Well, what did you think of it? Let me know in your REVIEW. ALL reviews, welcome! Thanks so much, y'all! Let me know if you would like this story continued with invidual chapters going through each time period. Thanks, --Stacey--